Infiniti Q50 (VR30DDTT) | can't make up my mind on oil...

Your kia has caked valves and burns oil because those 4 cylinders in them are sub-par powerplants overall and known to be extremely hard on oil. They are notorious for the exact issues you mentioned regardless of what oil is used. I am not personally knowledgable enough on oils for your application regarding your infiniti but I keep seeing you refer to your kia motor in this thread and I think you are putting too much weight on those results in regards to your thinking. Also, the users giving you advice in this thread are among the most knowledgable on here.
The oil that some of us are recommending to him would do much better in that KIA.
I am actually not sure why he came here to ask questions if he knows the answer.
 
@zigziggy You've been given some solid advice in this thread. Quite frankly, it's time to take your head out of the rear end and consider that advice. You're too focused on pieces of the puzzle (Zinc/Phos amounts) instead of the overall final picture and the type of performance an oil offers. If an engine is known for caking up the valves - it will keep doing that no matter which oil you use. End of story. Go back over all previous comments and gain some knowledge, instead of doing whatever it is that you're doing here...
 
I don't understand why you think this is "overkill" when low-SAPS oil clearly provides more good than harm. I may even run it in my Kia since our beloved Valvoline Advanced just cakes on its valves. I don't want to deal with CD issues in my Infiniti.
Because you don't have a GPF and I assume you aren't burning oil. GPF compatibility is one of the big parts of the push for low SAPS, so then you had a reduction in antiwear additive chemistry, because GPF's are more sensitive to damage from phosphorous ending up in the exhaust.

Before the introduction of GPF's, most of the Euro oils for gasoline engines were full SAPS, like M1 FS 0W-40 for example, even though the engines were GDI and TGDI. The (more dramatic) reduction in phosphorous (and subsequently zinc) on this side of the pond was more driven by the pursuit of thinner oils and the potential for increased consumption, which is why xW-40's were omitted from those requirements.

The mid and low SAPS stuff was introduced in Europe to protect, initially, DPF's on diesel engines. When GPF's were introduced, it carried over, and now, that's also accompanied by the pursuit of thinner oils like in North America.

So, what is it you think you are getting, in terms of a benefit, from running a low SAPS oil in an engine that doesn't have a GPF?; what advantage do you think you are leveraging by reducing the amount of AW additives in your sump?
 
The oil that some of us are recommending to him would do much better in that KIA.
I am actually not sure why he came here to ask questions if he knows the answer.

I'm sure they would, just saying that the OPs urgent concern to switch oil and the parameters of future oil choice for his VR30 seemingly being primarily spurred and informed by a Kia 4-cylinder making a mess of itself doesn't make much sense IMO.
 
Go back over all previous comments and gain some knowledge
Yes sir.
instead of doing whatever it is that you're doing here...
I've been doing what you suggested above.

I'm sure they would, just saying that the OPs urgent concern to switch oil and the parameters of future oil choice for his VR30 seemingly being primarily spurred and informed by a Kia 4-cylinder making a mess of itself doesn't make much sense IMO.
In my original post, I made a couple of clear points; I said that I am 1) not an oil expert and 2) based on my KIA's UOA, I was under the impression that I am not using the right oil in my VR. This isn't the only place where I'm getting my information from. Also, as I pointed out, I know quite a few of VR owners who run low-SAPS oil for thousands of miles and the intake valves for those people stay clean; I simply came here to hear different opinions on this aspect + about the oils we can get here.

Besides, I found at least one thread here where Castrol euro spec oil was used in a q50 with the vr30ddtt engine with pretty great results.

I think I got what I wanted out of this thread, so consider me a happy customer ❤️ thanks y'all.
 
Yes sir.

I've been doing what you suggested above.


In my original post, I made a couple of clear points; I said that I am 1) not an oil expert and 2) based on my KIA's UOA, I was under the impression that I am not using the right oil in my VR. This isn't the only place where I'm getting my information from. Also, as I pointed out, I know quite a few of VR owners who run low-SAPS oil for thousands of miles and the intake valves for those people stay clean; I simply came here to hear different opinions on this aspect + about the oils we can get here.

Besides, I found at least one thread here where Castrol euro spec oil was used in a q50 with the vr30ddtt engine with pretty great results.

I think I got what I wanted out of this thread, so consider me a happy customer ❤️ thanks y'all.
They probably used Castrol Edge 0W40. Full SAPS oil.
Go to European oil subforum and you have plenty of resources.
 
Nissan still using tiny oil pans?
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Nothing wrong with a good 0w20.
The general consensus is that 0w20 oils actually have a greater proportion of PAO/GTL/G3+ in the blend compared with 5w30 etc

Try 400hp.
Why would I "try" 400hp?
The OP did not specify which version of the car he had in his original post.
If he mentioned it in a later post I admit I did not read all posts just the original one.

If it had been a Redsport I think it would have been likely he would have mentioned it in his original post, so in the absence of info to the contrary a 300hp version is plausible.
Even so, my point would hold even more in a 400hp application: With a 400hp 3.0L, you will have even more heat beating on a oil creating even more demand for a good HTHS number, something simply not provided by a 0w-20 oil even with the higher quality lube stocks.
 
The OP did not specify which version of the car he had in his original post.

300 or 400hp that's irrelevant hence I didn't specify as it is still the same VR30DDTT with higher boost/different tune from the factory (and a few other things). The recommended oil is identical in both, Luxe or RS models.

I will continue using 5w30 and continue changing it once a year unless my driving habits change.

Finally, I found a thread where I got all my questions answered; wish I found it earlier so I wouldn't have to create this thread.
 
Why would I "try" 400hp?
The OP did not specify which version of the car he had in his original post.
If he mentioned it in a later post I admit I did not read all posts just the original one.

If it had been a Redsport I think it would have been likely he would have mentioned it in his original post, so in the absence of info to the contrary a 300hp version is plausible.
Even so, my point would hold even more in a 400hp application: With a 400hp 3.0L, you will have even more heat beating on a oil creating even more demand for a good HTHS number, something simply not provided by a 0w-20 oil even with the higher quality lube stocks.
Both tunes use the same VD30DDTT engine and recommend 0w20 oil.

This particular engine runs the oil at 160-180f and with other provisions in place can accommodate low viscosity oil.

If HTHS was the main concern, why not use a 25w60 oils with high hths values?
 
I'm using the Dropbear LLC oil pan ($650) in my '17 Q60 Red Sport AWD. It increases capacity to 7 qts, and it has better internal oil pickup baffling for when I'm at the track or on my favorite cloverleaf ;)

Oh, and unlike the stock composite pan, Dropbear positioned the drain plug to allow all of the oil to drain out.

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As for oil, I was using Valvoline 5W30 Modern Engine Oil - will be switching to Valvoline Extended Protection since ME is discontinued.
 
As for oil, I was using Valvoline 5W30 Modern Engine Oil - will be switching to Valvoline Extended Protection since ME is discontinued.

Meh, don't see much of a difference between Advanced and Extended Protection:

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I am currently on Valvoline 5w30 Advanced since last August (1800 mi since the change); I'll send it in for analysis but most likely will be switching to Pennzoil Platinum 5w30.
 
I mean is that even needed though? API's requirement is what, like ~250 ppm or something like that. From reading bitog, more doesn't mean better and not all molys are made the same.
Not really sure. Redline I think has 400-500+ ppm of moly. I think Toyota and Mazda oem oils do as well.
 
I understand this very well but what I don't understand is how would I benefit from 5w40 vs 5w30 I'm running right now. As I mentioned, the majority of Q community runs 5w30. Only a few run 5w40. In addition, the last winter was pretty cold, I think the lowest we've ever seen since the 60s and it was around 1 degree F (-17C). That said, the 0w20 that Nissan recommends would flow better in cold than 5w40. I need something that will suit both hot and cold with great protection.
0w40. Low saps vs full saps is an argument not worth having. Intake valve deposits are a when not if problem if you don't regularly clean the intake valves and run very long OCI.
 
0w40. Low saps vs full saps is an argument not worth having. Intake valve deposits are a when not if problem if you don't regularly clean the intake valves and run very long OCI.
It's worth talking about it because I drive 2k miles/year or less for almost 3 years now, so it's important that I make the right decision when it comes to oil. I feel like changing it twice a year is just a waste of money, heck, when I did my last oil change last August, the oil looked new and didn't even smell like gas.

In my Kia's case I always change at 5k mi or 6 months, whichever comes first and before I installed a catch can, I've been baking my intake valves with Valvoline 5w30 advanced. They were so filthy that I spent half a day scrubbing them last year. I experienced rough idle and horrible gas mileage. It took me 20 minutes to remove the intake manifold (which was btw covered with gunk on the inside). After cleaning everything, I then installed a catch can, which fills up quickly during winter. Nevertheless, NO WAY it will take 20 minutes to remove the manifold on my VR and quite honestly I don't even want to do it any time soon (or until I have no warranty). You know that all these valve cleaners don't do a thing since our valves don't get washed, so I don't use them. I'd much rather take preventive measures to avoid my VR's valves from baking and one way to do this is by using low saps oil. And before BITOG experts attempt to bite me in the ass again, I'm not saying that low saps oil is the cure from CDB on the valves, it will still happen just less of it and throughout longer period of time. I mean, I speak with these people that run that oil on a daily basis. Yes, they live in Europe and yes they use it in their q50 and q60 with the same VR engine. No, they won't come here to confirm my words and I don't expect anyone to believe me anyway.

Bottom line is, it was hard for me to believe it the first time we spoke about it about 6 months ago or so but now that my annual OC is coming up, I want to be sure the oil I select is good in terms of protection, "lower" on saps and is OK to change once a year given that I drive ~2k miles in traffic making short trips. Valvoline suggests changing every 5k miles or per manufacturer's recommendation while PP can allows extended drain intervals, which is my case in terms of time but not the miles. From spending hours and hours here on BITOG and other sources, I think Pennzoil Platinum is the oil to use (I was gonna go with Pennzoil Platinum Euro L but that thing has too little moly in it (~60 ppm?) and plus, it seems like that oil is sensitive to the quality of gasoline and since I fill up at Sam's or Costco, I don't have any data about the quality of gas they sell).
 
From spending hours and hours here on BITOG and other sources, I think Pennzoil Platinum is the oil to use (I was gonna go with Pennzoil Platinum Euro L but that thing has too little moly in it (~60 ppm?) and plus, it seems like that oil is sensitive to the quality of gasoline and since I fill up at Sam's or Costco, I don't have any data about the quality of gas they sell).
The oil is sensitive to the quality of the gasoline? How so?
 
It's worth talking about it because I drive 2k miles/year or less for almost 3 years now, so it's important that I make the right decision when it comes to oil. I feel like changing it twice a year is just a waste of money, heck, when I did my last oil change last August, the oil looked new and didn't even smell like gas.

In my Kia's case I always change at 5k mi or 6 months, whichever comes first and before I installed a catch can, I've been baking my intake valves with Valvoline 5w30 advanced. They were so filthy that I spent half a day scrubbing them last year. I experienced rough idle and horrible gas mileage. It took me 20 minutes to remove the intake manifold (which was btw covered with gunk on the inside). After cleaning everything, I then installed a catch can, which fills up quickly during winter. Nevertheless, NO WAY it will take 20 minutes to remove the manifold on my VR and quite honestly I don't even want to do it any time soon (or until I have no warranty). You know that all these valve cleaners don't do a thing since our valves don't get washed, so I don't use them. I'd much rather take preventive measures to avoid my VR's valves from baking and one way to do this is by using low saps oil. And before BITOG experts attempt to bite me in the ass again, I'm not saying that low saps oil is the cure from CDB on the valves, it will still happen just less of it and throughout longer period of time. I mean, I speak with these people that run that oil on a daily basis. Yes, they live in Europe and yes they use it in their q50 and q60 with the same VR engine. No, they won't come here to confirm my words and I don't expect anyone to believe me anyway.

Bottom line is, it was hard for me to believe it the first time we spoke about it about 6 months ago or so but now that my annual OC is coming up, I want to be sure the oil I select is good in terms of protection, "lower" on saps and is OK to change once a year given that I drive ~2k miles in traffic making short trips. Valvoline suggests changing every 5k miles or per manufacturer's recommendation while PP can allows extended drain intervals, which is my case in terms of time but not the miles. From spending hours and hours here on BITOG and other sources, I think Pennzoil Platinum is the oil to use (I was gonna go with Pennzoil Platinum Euro L but that thing has too little moly in it (~60 ppm?) and plus, it seems like that oil is sensitive to the quality of gasoline and since I fill up at Sam's or Costco, I don't have any data about the quality of gas they sell).
PP and PUP both recommend being changed at the manufacturer specified interval.
 
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