Hello Gurus, I am looking for an oil recommendation for a 1986 Ferrari 328 GTS with 23K miles. I live in Northern CA., great climate. Thank you for the help.
Oil Recommendation for Ferrari 328 GTS
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edyvw
$50 site donor 2025
Something 15W40 with high ZDDP? What manual says?
I believe old ferrari's came with 10w-50 or maybe 10w-40? so you could use m1 15w-50 or a stout full syn hdeo like mobil delvac extreme or valvoline heavy duty full synthetic 15w-40 which would also be good. But I think m1 15w-50 will be great for it. But I can't see it having any issue with a 0/5w-40 either.
f355spider
$50 Site Donor 2025
I owned a 1978 308 GTS and later an 1987 328 GTS, both had similar recommendations in the manual to use AGIP 10w-50 and/or 10w-40 AGIP. Both were semi synthetic and of course, ancient formulations. In the late 1990s Ferrari recommended for most of their 80s and 90s era cars to use Shell synthetic 5w-40. That (I believe) is still their recommendation. If you go to Ferrarichat, you will find many opinions and observations, which may shape yours.
Back when I had mine in the late 1990s to 2005, I used mostly Mobil 1 15w-50 as that was popular with most owners. I think toward the end of ownership I was using Pennzoil or Shell 5w-40, more closely aligning with Ferrari current recommendations. The main reason I switched to the 5w-40 was at cold start, the 15w-50 showed really high oil pressures...enough so, that I waited a few minutes before starting off to let it warm and settle down. (btw, do follow your owners manual recommendations to not rev the engine over 4000 rpm until the oil has warmed to over 170F, cold oil cannot get to the top of the engine and properly lubricate when cold) Once warm, get it over 7000 rpm at least a few times on each drive and enjoy that glorious noise!
There are no known oil related issues with these older 3 liter engines, they are stout. I wouldn't worry about using a quality 5w-40. If you are new to Ferrari ownership, I highly recommend you find a good Ferrari specialist for advice, whether dealer or independent. They can be very helpful to improving your overall ownership experience.
Ferrarichat was indispensible for helping me with various issues, that I was able to fix myself on my 328. Like the common tachometer failure, where it reads low. I removed it and sent it to Palo Alto Speedometer for repair. My speedometer quit working and it was just the sender that failed. It is screwed into the transaxle. I ordered a new one and it was a simple swap. I learned to do my own transaxle fluid changes, and oil changes. It was a fun car to wrench on. I found a great "old school" Ferrari trained mechanic to work on it for valve adjustments and tune ups. He was truly a master with these cars and kept it running beautifully.
Back when I had mine in the late 1990s to 2005, I used mostly Mobil 1 15w-50 as that was popular with most owners. I think toward the end of ownership I was using Pennzoil or Shell 5w-40, more closely aligning with Ferrari current recommendations. The main reason I switched to the 5w-40 was at cold start, the 15w-50 showed really high oil pressures...enough so, that I waited a few minutes before starting off to let it warm and settle down. (btw, do follow your owners manual recommendations to not rev the engine over 4000 rpm until the oil has warmed to over 170F, cold oil cannot get to the top of the engine and properly lubricate when cold) Once warm, get it over 7000 rpm at least a few times on each drive and enjoy that glorious noise!
There are no known oil related issues with these older 3 liter engines, they are stout. I wouldn't worry about using a quality 5w-40. If you are new to Ferrari ownership, I highly recommend you find a good Ferrari specialist for advice, whether dealer or independent. They can be very helpful to improving your overall ownership experience.
Ferrarichat was indispensible for helping me with various issues, that I was able to fix myself on my 328. Like the common tachometer failure, where it reads low. I removed it and sent it to Palo Alto Speedometer for repair. My speedometer quit working and it was just the sender that failed. It is screwed into the transaxle. I ordered a new one and it was a simple swap. I learned to do my own transaxle fluid changes, and oil changes. It was a fun car to wrench on. I found a great "old school" Ferrari trained mechanic to work on it for valve adjustments and tune ups. He was truly a master with these cars and kept it running beautifully.
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Thank You, great info.I owned a 1978 308 GTS and later an 1987 328 GTS, both had similar recommendations in the manual to use AGIP 10w-50 and/or 10w-40 AGIP. Both were semi synthetic and of course, ancient formulations. In the late 1990s Ferrari recommended for most of their 80s and 90s era cars to use Shell synthetic 5w-40. That (I believe) is still their recommendation. If you go to Ferrarichat, you will find many opinions and observations, which may shape yours.
Back when I had mine in the late 1990s to 2005, I used mostly Mobil 1 15w-50 as that was popular with most owners. I think toward the end of ownership I was using Pennzoil or Shell 5w-40, more closely aligning with Ferrari current recommendations. The main reason I switched to the 5w-40 was at cold start, the 15w-50 showed really high oil pressures...enough so, that I waited a few minutes before starting off to let it warm and settle down. (btw, do follow your owners manual recommendations to not rev the engine over 4000 rpm until the oil has warmed to over 170F, cold oil cannot get to the top of the engine and properly lubricate when cold) Once warm, get it over 7000 rpm at least a few times on each drive and enjoy that glorious noise!
There are no known oil related issues with these older 3 liter engines, they are stout. I wouldn't worry about using a quality 5w-40. If you are new to Ferrari ownership, I highly recommend you find a good Ferrari specialist for advice, whether dealer or independent. They can be very helpful to improving your overall ownership experience.
Ferrarichat was indispensible for helping me with various issues, that I was able to fix myself on my 328. Like the common tachometer failure, where it reads low. I removed it and sent it to Palo Alto Speedometer for repair. My speedometer quit working and it was just the sender that failed. It is screwed into the transaxle. I ordered a new one and it was a simple swap. I learned to do my own transaxle fluid changes, and oil changes. It was a fun car to wrench on. I found a great "old school" Ferrari trained mechanic to work on it for valve adjustments and tune ups. He was truly a master with these cars and kept it running beautifully.
f355spider
$50 Site Donor 2025
Be sure to read the entire owners manual from cover to cover. There is some really good information in there. Not only maintenance and service info, but basics on how to properly use the heater and AC controls and checking the oil level and coolant levels.
f355spider
$50 Site Donor 2025
There are only two quality oil filters for this car, the factory approved UFI and the aftermarket Baldwin B253. The filter is mounted standing up, and has an internal standpipe and back flow valve. All other brands of filters that claim to cross reference either do not have a standpipe (Mobil 1 for example) or the back flow valve doesn't work properly (Fram). If either (or both) are not present, the oil pressure will take much longer to come up upon cold or warm start, as all the oil drains back to the sump when you shut off the engine.
I note that most Ferrari specialists outside the dealer network prefer the quality of the Baldwin over the UFI, but either is acceptable from my observation and useage. UFI had a design change around 2001 and recalled a bunch. UFI changed from a traditional rubber seal to a shallow o-ring that was failing and leaking catastrophically (literally blasting oil under pressure out the seal all over the engine). The design was fixed, and never recurred, but that settled it for some who never went back to UFI.
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Post some pictures of this from 1986. That was one of my favorite cars back in the day.
f355spider
$50 Site Donor 2025
Here's my 1987 328 GTS from back in the day (over 20 years ago!)...I loved that car...it had some great upgrades over the previous 308 series. More interior room, better AC, more power, better brakes. But retained those good looks, balanced handling, and great engine noise. Just a classic looking Ferrari.
A 0W-40, 5W-40, 10W-40, 20W-40, straight 40 grade oil all have the same viscosity at your normal fully warmed up operating temperature. And it takes a good 15 to 20 minutes for your motor oil temperature to get there (even though your water temperature gets up in a few minutes).
The starting thickness of those above oils in sunny south Florida is vastly different however. It is thick, often too thick as many cars limit the engine RPM until the oil temperature is higher. You should notice your oil pressure at idle is much higher during the first few minutes. It settles down when the oil is at full operating temperature. There is an oil over pressure valve that prevents the oil pressure from being too high and it kicks in sooner with a 10W-40 than a 0W-40. As such you will have more flow of oil during the 15 minute warm up period if you use a 0W-40 oil.
We previously used 20W-, then 10W- and now 5W- oils but the latest recommendations for a lot of cars is a 0W- oil. There is a reason for this trend. I always recommend a quality 0W- oil in whatever grade you think is best for your application.
Ali
PS: As I no longer track any of ours cars there is no need for higher viscosity oils. Currently I use a 0W-30 in my Ferrari 812 Superfast with 800 HP. Oil analysis reveals no wear with this oil for regular city and highway driving.
The starting thickness of those above oils in sunny south Florida is vastly different however. It is thick, often too thick as many cars limit the engine RPM until the oil temperature is higher. You should notice your oil pressure at idle is much higher during the first few minutes. It settles down when the oil is at full operating temperature. There is an oil over pressure valve that prevents the oil pressure from being too high and it kicks in sooner with a 10W-40 than a 0W-40. As such you will have more flow of oil during the 15 minute warm up period if you use a 0W-40 oil.
We previously used 20W-, then 10W- and now 5W- oils but the latest recommendations for a lot of cars is a 0W- oil. There is a reason for this trend. I always recommend a quality 0W- oil in whatever grade you think is best for your application.
Ali
PS: As I no longer track any of ours cars there is no need for higher viscosity oils. Currently I use a 0W-30 in my Ferrari 812 Superfast with 800 HP. Oil analysis reveals no wear with this oil for regular city and highway driving.
Remember when this car was manufactured 5w40 wasn't readily available.
Exactly!
f355spider
$50 Site Donor 2025
Of course.
f355spider
$50 Site Donor 2025
Just remembered another reason I went to using the Pennzoil 5w-40 euro oil. Not only was the oil pressure rather high while cold with the 15w-50, but it seemed rather high even when warm/hot. I ended up taking the car to my independent Ferrari specialist and he was able to adjust the oil pressure. I think he said he adjusted or shimmed a valve or some component in order to lower the operating pressure a bit, and also said to use 5w-40.
Gutsy move taking your Ferrari to an independent "specialist" to "adjust" the oil pressure.
Was money burning a hole in your pocket?
Also seems like everyone is in southern Florida or California and given the fact that proper xW was being used, I don't get the comments regarding oil not reaching here or there ... and it didn't sound like anyone was using a 10/15/20W in northern Alaska during winter months.
No?
Was money burning a hole in your pocket?
Also seems like everyone is in southern Florida or California and given the fact that proper xW was being used, I don't get the comments regarding oil not reaching here or there ... and it didn't sound like anyone was using a 10/15/20W in northern Alaska during winter months.
No?
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f355spider
$50 Site Donor 2025
Hardly "gutsy". High oil pressure were a known issue on some older Ferraris, that can get out of calibration. On most cars, which do not have an oil pressure gauge, how would you ever even know there is a high pressure issue? The idiot light only identifies low pressure.Gutsy move taking your Ferrari to an independent "specialist" to "adjust" the oil pressure.
Was money burning a hole in your pocket?
Also seems like everyone is in southern Florida or California and given the fact that proper xW was being used, I don't get the comments regarding oil not reaching here or there ... and it didn't sound like anyone was using a 10/15/20W in northern Alaska during winter months.
Carlo was a master Ferrari technician and performed every manner of repair right down to full rebuilds. He had his own engine testing equipment he built himself. It was an amazing shop and a terrible loss to the Ferrari community when he passed.
https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/t...rrari-master-technician-rip-4-10-2020.620009/ Scroll down and you can see a freshly rebuilt V12 daytona engine he demonstrates to the local club.
The issue is cold oil not reaching areas until it is properly warm. And no, there are Ferrari owners in every part of the USA and the world. I was the membership chair for the NW and we even have members in AK. These are very high reving engines...even a 328 redlines at 7700 rpm. My current 430 Scuderia redlines at 8500. Newer Ferraris redline at 9,000 to 9,250. You have to pay attention to the oil temp and ensure it is over 170/180F before running it up. Every Ferrari owners manual has warnings about letting the oil fully warm before exceeding 4000 rpm from the 1970s right up to today.
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f355spider
$50 Site Donor 2025
All my 308 GTS photos are before I owned a digital camera...and I got my first camera just before I sold the 328 GTS...so very limited.
I need to scan my pictures someday. I have a ton of pictures of the F355 Spider though...
Funny you say that. Same customer had us install the updated oil pressure relief valve spring
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