Hi. I have been receiving conflicting advice on the proper oil for my stroked Ford Windsor and I thought I'd ask people that talk about oil A lOT. Engine is in a 427/SC Shelby Cobra replica (2,500 lbs wet). Car is NOT tracked, but is driven with a fair amount of spirit on the street/highway. I also run a front mounted oil cooler.
Recently swapped crank and connecting rod bearings, as I was gradually losing oil pressure and the bearings were showing the beginnings of wear. Given the 10K miles on the motor and the crank journals looking pretty good, oil PSI is now back to where it should be (60psi cold idle, ~40 psi hot idle).
I have always run Valvoline 20w-50 full synthetic in this motor. But I'm being told that running a straight 50 conventional oil would maintain the same pressures while keeping the oil cooler (current oil temp at the remote oil filter is around 212-216F). Keeping the oil cooler would certainly help keep the bearings cooler, thus promoting longer bearing life than the 10K miles the first set only lasted.
I know that if I run a thinner oil (i.e. 10w-40 or 10w30) that I will lose some hot oil pressure. Is there a compromise here between achieving the best lubricity while keeping oil temps down?
Thanks for the advice to this newbie,
-DH
Recently swapped crank and connecting rod bearings, as I was gradually losing oil pressure and the bearings were showing the beginnings of wear. Given the 10K miles on the motor and the crank journals looking pretty good, oil PSI is now back to where it should be (60psi cold idle, ~40 psi hot idle).
I have always run Valvoline 20w-50 full synthetic in this motor. But I'm being told that running a straight 50 conventional oil would maintain the same pressures while keeping the oil cooler (current oil temp at the remote oil filter is around 212-216F). Keeping the oil cooler would certainly help keep the bearings cooler, thus promoting longer bearing life than the 10K miles the first set only lasted.
I know that if I run a thinner oil (i.e. 10w-40 or 10w30) that I will lose some hot oil pressure. Is there a compromise here between achieving the best lubricity while keeping oil temps down?
Thanks for the advice to this newbie,
-DH
