Time for OC in collector Ferrari after 2.5 yrs?

[Pantdino]

My Ferrari Dino has been driven 266 miles in the last 2.5 years since the last change using Mobil 1 15W-50. Here's the result of the current analysis by Blackstone Labs:

TBN 11.0, AL 1, CHROMIUM 0, IRON 3, COPPER 4, LEAD 2,TIN 0, NICKEL 0, SILVER 0, TITANIUM 0, MANGANESE 1, POTASSIUM 2, SODIUM 5, MAGNESIUM 18, MOLY 55, BORON 130, SILICON 31, CALCIUM 2876, PHOSPHORUS 1042, ZINC 1254, SUS VISC @ 210F 78.9, FLASHPOINT 370, FUEL 0.5, WATER 0, ANTIFREEZE 0, INSOLUBLES 0.2

In their written comments Blackstone mentions the silicon as being a possible issue. At some time during this fill I noted the nuts sealing the air filter were a bit loose and I snugged them. At the last analysis at 173 miles in 2/05 SILICON was 21. Blackstone says it doubts it represents abrasive dirt as the other findings don't support that.

Is the silicon high enough that the oil needs to be changed?

Thanks

 

[JeePing]

WOW!

If you can aford Ferrari, why in the ________ you still haven't change your oil in 2.5 years?
You spent 30 on UOA but instead you should of changed oil and not wory about it.
Come on man... I bet you can aford oil chamge once a year.

 

[Scali62]

PantDino's a Doctor according to his profile, he must have a lot on his mind, if the car was being driven 266 miles a year does it really matter that much, maybe kept in a climate controlled garage too .. Or maybe it's in a display caes in his living room ..
Having said that......
WHAT IN THE NAME OF ________ WERE YOU THINKING MAN, THIS IS A DINO HERE, lol .. vroom vroom, these things really went up in value over the last decade or so, cool cars ,6 cylinders if I recall ...

 

[gedcruise]

I'm just curious. Which Dino? There were 308s, 246s and a tiny number of 206s. There were also Fiat Dinos using the Ferrari V-6. Also, note that these cars are not Ferraris, rather they are badged as Dinos, after Ferrari's late son. At the time, only V-12 road cars were badged as Ferraris, although racers were another matter.
Anyway, change the oil. It is false economy any way you look at it not to change at least once a year.

 

[Scali62]

Theres a Dino on E Bay now bidded up to for $ 145 K with 5 days left, not bad for 1/2 a Fiat !

 

[gedcruise]

e-bay is not the venue for any decent collectable car. Any decent car would be in a real collector auction, and would bring at least twice what you have quoted as the e-bay current bid. Also, would you, or anyone else, who actually has it, pay six figures for anything on e-bay?

 

[Pablo]

The silicon is probably leachate from gasket material/sealants and a tiny amount is native in the oil. Also yes some is from dirt entering the intake. I would take the car for drive, change the oil when it's warm and sample again next year or so.

May I suggest this: Amsoil Series 2000 20W-50

 

[Pantdino]

Quote:

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I'm just curious. Which Dino? There were 308s, 246s and a tiny number of 206s. There were also Fiat Dinos using the Ferrari V-6. Also, note that these cars are not Ferraris, rather they are badged as Dinos, after Ferrari's late son. At the time, only V-12 road cars were badged as Ferraris, although racers were another matter.
Anyway, change the oil. It is false economy any way you look at it not to change at least once a year.

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Mine is a 246, and the "not a Ferrari issue" has been beaten to death by enthusiasts ever since it was introduced. All I know is that the looks and sound of it take my breath away.
RE changing the oil once a year, which numerical value in the analysis indicates the oil must be changed even now, in your opinion?

 

[Pantdino]

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e-bay is not the venue for any decent collectable car. Any decent car would be in a real collector auction, and would bring at least twice what you have quoted as the e-bay current bid. Also, would you, or anyone else, who actually has it, pay six figures for anything on e-bay?

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People use ebay to advertise a car, not to actually sell it. I think you'll find the auction is ended early under some pretext. There are too many deadbeats on ebay to take the bids seriously. And no, no Dino street car is worth twice that bid price.

 

[Pablo]

There is nothing numerically that screams at me: "Tell Pantdino to change his oil....."

It's just that a Ferrari is only human hands away from the touch of the master himself and leaving the same oil within for 2.5 years, well it's just so "antibob".....it's the spirit of the thing.

 

[ebaker]

The oil should be fine and I don't see any reason to change it. I wonder if the paper filter element deteoriates with time?

 

[Pantdino]

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The oil should be fine and I don't see any reason to change it. I wonder if the paper filter element deteoriates with time?

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I was thinking it would make sense to change the filter, as we don't know how much stuff is in its pores.

Does an oil filter filter out the kind of tiny silicon dust particles we're concerned about here?

Just in case someone's interested, an oil change on this car does involve 9 qts of oil. Walmart has stopped stocking Mobil 1 15W-50, and the only other source I have for it is at Pep Boys at $7.29 a quart. Add $20 for a filter and you're looking at close to $100, so no, an analysis is not the same price as an oil change.

But I can be happy I have an older car. For new cars Ferrari specifies a special oil that only dealers have and a change will set you back $450.

But money is obviously not the point here. It drives me nuts that supposedly knowledgeable people on Ferrari and other enthusiasts boards will still post that you MUST change your oil every 6 months, no matter if the car hasnt' turned a wheel and you used synthetic. The main reason I'm doing this is to find out what the TRUTH is based on science, not tradition. I suppose that before analysis was available the best we could do was to have these rules of thumb, but those days are gone.

 

[G-MAN]

Since you obviously don't drive this car that much, I'd suggest when you do change the oil again that you go with something a little more "warm-up" friendly. I'd try Rotella T Synthetic in 5w40. This weight is going to get moving around in the engine more quickly than 15w50 and it is the weight that Ferrari would put in your Dino if you took it to them for service. In addition, Rotella T Syn is very similar to the Helix Ultra 5w40 that Ferrari dealers use.

 

[marco246]

G-Man has it right.

Two or three years ago I was looking for a Dino and did a little research on the oil requirments. The owner's manual recommended an obsolete Shell oil ("100"?--without giving a weight). I contacted Shell in Holland and was told the original oil weight was 10W-40. The fellow I was in contact with recommended Rotella T synthetic 5W-40 if the engine's seals had been replaced as part of a rebuild.

Clearly your engine can handle synthetic oils. I'd go with the Shell.

By the way, I bought a nice 328 instead of a ratted out Dino. Every time I doubt the wisdom of that decision (more frequently than I'd like to admit), I recall the agony and expense of restoring an Italian sports car (an Alfa). Never again. Enjoy your Dino!

Cheers, Mark

 

[ekpolk]

Quote:

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Quote:

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I'm just curious. Which Dino? There were 308s, 246s and a tiny number of 206s. There were also Fiat Dinos using the Ferrari V-6. Also, note that these cars are not Ferraris, rather they are badged as Dinos, after Ferrari's late son. At the time, only V-12 road cars were badged as Ferraris, although racers were another matter.
Anyway, change the oil. It is false economy any way you look at it not to change at least once a year.

---

Mine is a 246, and the "not a Ferrari issue" has been beaten to death by enthusiasts ever since it was introduced. All I know is that the looks and sound of it take my breath away.
RE changing the oil once a year, which numerical value in the analysis indicates the oil must be changed even now, in your opinion?

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I see nothing to indicate that a change is needed here. I might add particle counts to my next UOA, just to see what's there, but especially if you performed a pre-emptive filter change, I would not be worried at all about leaving this oil in for another 6-12 months before another test.

Now, what I'm really wondering about is how on earth you are able to overcome the temptation to drive that thing!?!

 

[enjoythemusic]

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Is the silicon high enough that the oil needs to be changed?

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First, drive a 1985 Euro 308 as daily beater and track rat. Have changed to various oils over the past few years to find the sweet spot for MY example and MY type of use. The silicone is a bit high and i would change oil every 2 years i would change the oil and filter every two years regardless of mileage. The startup wear concerns the 15W rating and i use Mobil 1 0W-40 as the 0W present a low viscosity to reduce startup wear. When you do drive the car, make sure she gets to full temp to burn off possible stagnant water and whatnot. Ferrari engines of the Dino/308 era LOVE heat. Good temps are around 200F for oil and coolant.

Your UOA looks fine and below is my recent UOA using Mobil 0W-40 after a few track days at Lime Rock for the Ferrari Historic event.

 

[va3ux]

My uncle owned a Ferrari Daytona 365 GTB4 (which is now owned by my cousin). He changed his oil every 2500 to 3000 miles. It held alot of oil - something like 8 or 10 or 12 quarts.

Neat engine : V-12 with 6 Webers and 2 distributors (magnetos ?) Great big oblong air cleaner.

Speedometer went to 220 mph and the car had a top speed of 186 mph.

 

[gedcruise]

I hope I didn't offend you, sir. The 246 GT is one of the all-time beauties. A truly gorgeous car to view. I did not mean to imply that it was somehow inferior to a Ferrari, but rather that the factory never called the cars by that name. The 246 was intended as Ferrari's answer to the 911. Too bad it was never produced in 911 numbers. Had it been so, I could afford one. Anyway, change the oil. ________ forbid you need to open up that V-6.