Volvo Penta SAE30 Replacement

[APDexenHII]

Volvo Penta discontinued their SAE-30 SG/CE which is recommended in my Volvo Penta 4.3L GS powered Four Winns runabout. There was some discussion on what a suitable replacement would be, but nothing definitive. I called three dealerships and they all said something different. (any marine Full Synthetic 30wt, 10W-40 Full synthetic, and 15W-40) There is supposedly a Technical Service Bulletin that says:

All 2008 and newer engines were to switch to Volvos 10w-40

All gasoline engines prior to 2008 were to use Volvo's VDS-3 Oil (Which is Volvos diesel specification, 15w40)

But that's from a forum, and I couldn't find the original source.

From what I understand, boat engines have dramatic shear breakdown because they are run at higher RPMs for longer durations. Because of this I'm leaning towards:

LIQUI MOLY 2044 Touring High Tech Diesel Special Oil 15W-40

• Volvo VDS cert.

Mobil Delvac 1300 Super Heavy Duty; Diesel Engine Oil; SAE 15W-40 Synthetic (MOBIL 122492)

• Volvo VDS-4.5
• Listed as Marine application
• More Economical

If there is another thread on this topic, please let me know. I attempted to find a post about this but the newest one was from over a decade ago and most ended with "that's what I'm going to use and only time will tell."

Application: 1997 Four Winns 195 Sundowner - 4.3L Volvo Penta GS - Engine model : 432BPLKD

 

[Rand]

if you are worried about shear and breakdown
a full syn 15w40 such as delvac extreme

 

[oil pan 4]

If you're a 30 weight purist there's Walmart sae-30 I don't remember the ratings on it. It's high detergent, off road diesel oil. Has a picture of a tractor on it.
I'm sure even a cheap synthetic blend 15w-40 would be fine.

 

[DriveHard]

I have run Mobil 1 Delvac 15w-40 in all my marine engines Merc and VP for 25 years, and never had an oil related issue.
305/355/454/dual 350/350/496/350 again...all have been happy on that oil with good pressure, etc.

 

[kschachn]

If an engine really has "dramatic shear breakdown" then you would want an oil with no VM. Where are you getting that information? If it's really that bad then any multigrade oil would be a problem, including the recommended ones.

 

[APDexenHII]

If an engine really has "dramatic shear breakdown" then you would want an oil with no VM. Where are you getting that information? If it's really that bad then any multigrade oil would be a problem, including the recommended ones.

That's the general information I've found on forums such as iboats. I have only had this boat for about a month, so I'm personally feeing a bit like a fish out of water as an ex-auto mechanic.

Regarding multi-grade oil, I'm extra apprehensive because I have the original owners manual which say to absolutely not use a multi-grade.

I bet you're right though and I should stop overthinking it

 

[APDexenHII]

I have run Mobil 1 Delvac 15w-40 in all my marine engines Merc and VP for 25 years, and never had an oil related issue.
305/355/454/dual 350/350/496/350 again...all have been happy on that oil with good pressure, etc.

This is what I think I'm going to do. Is there any difference between the Delvac 1300 I listed and Mobile 1 Delvac?

 

[APDexenHII]

If you're a 30 weight purist there's Walmart sae-30 I don't remember the ratings on it. It's high detergent, off road diesel oil. Has a picture of a tractor on it.
I'm sure even a cheap synthetic blend 15w-40 would be fine.

I'm only concerned about going to a multi-grade because the owners manual said to NOT use any multi-grade. I think I'll end up going with the Delvac since it's so much cheaper and others seem happy with it.

 

[kschachn]

Regarding multi-grade oil, I'm extra apprehensive because I have the original owners manual which say to absolutely not use a multi-grade.

This is what I think I'm going to do. Is there any difference between the Delvac 1300 I listed and Mobile 1 Delvac?

Those are a bit exclusive.

 

[DriveHard]

This is what I think I'm going to do. Is there any difference between the Delvac 1300 I listed and Mobile 1 Delvac?

I have always used the Delvac 1300

Mobil Delvac™ 1300 Super 15W-40 diesel oil | Mobil Delvac™ Engine Oils

Learn how Mobil Delvac™ 1300 Super 15W-40 synthetic blend diesel oil can help extend engine life and provide engine protection.

www.mobil.com

 

[APDexenHII]

Those are a bit exclusive.

Agree'd I'm just trying to explain why I'm apprehensive about which oil I select. Then coming to a conclusion

 

[APDexenHII]

I have always used the Delvac 1300

Mobil Delvac™ 1300 Super 15W-40 diesel oil | Mobil Delvac™ Engine Oils

Learn how Mobil Delvac™ 1300 Super 15W-40 synthetic blend diesel oil can help extend engine life and provide engine protection.

www.mobil.com

Thanks for the recommendation

 

[kschachn]

There's never a problem with a monograde oil unless you are starting the engine at a temperature which is inappropriate. HPL sells a no-VII 10W-30 which can be used down to about 0F. Other blenders sell minimal VII oils as well, you might ask @Pablo for an Amsoil suggestion. But either way a monograde oil without a corresponding winter rating is still appropriate for warmer temperatures as long as you get the correct API license or whatever the manual specifies.

 

[DriveHard]

Thanks for the recommendation

You will see it even calls out marine in its "recommended for use in..."

• On-highway heavy-duty trucking and off-highway applications including trucking, mining, construction, agriculture and marine

 

[PontiacHO]

Volvo Penta discontinued their SAE-30 SG/CE which is recommended in my Volvo Penta 4.3L GS powered Four Winns runabout. There was some discussion on what a suitable replacement would be, but nothing definitive. I called three dealerships and they all said something different. (any marine Full Synthetic 30wt, 10W-40 Full synthetic, and 15W-40) There is supposedly a Technical Service Bulletin that says:




But that's from a forum, and I couldn't find the original source.

From what I understand, boat engines have dramatic shear breakdown because they are run at higher RPMs for longer durations. Because of this I'm leaning towards:

LIQUI MOLY 2044 Touring High Tech Diesel Special Oil 15W-40

• Volvo VDS cert.

Mobil Delvac 1300 Super Heavy Duty; Diesel Engine Oil; SAE 15W-40 Synthetic (MOBIL 122492)

• Volvo VDS-4.5
• Listed as Marine application
• More Economical

If there is another thread on this topic, please let me know. I attempted to find a post about this but the newest one was from over a decade ago and most ended with "that's what I'm going to use and only time will tell."

Application: 1997 Four Winns 195 Sundowner - 4.3L Volvo Penta GS - Engine model : 432BPLKD

My Four Winns with a 5.8 Volvo Penta owners manual also specified a mono grade oil. The boat dealer used a conventional 40 grade Union 76 racing oil. I switched to a 15w40 with no ill effects.

 

[oil pan 4]

That's the general information I've found on forums such as iboats. I have only had this boat for about a month, so I'm personally feeing a bit like a fish out of water as an ex-auto mechanic.

Regarding multi-grade oil, I'm extra apprehensive because I have the original owners manual which say to absolutely not use a multi-grade.

I bet you're right though and I should stop overthinking it

There's oils with styrene polymer VM now and they're virtually immune to viscosity breakdown from shearing.
The 2 main reasons not to use oil with VM is extreme shearing or say your application is not to use it in an engine at all and you actually want the oil to have higher viscosity at or around room temperature for that application.

 

[Snagglefoot]

1997? Time flies. 27 years ago. Modern multiviscosity HDEO oils have you covered. No need for grandpa’s single viscosity 30 weight oil any more. Flame suit on. Cloud yellers have at it.

 

[oil pan 4]

My Four Winns with a 5.8 Volvo Penta owners manual also specified a mono grade oil. The boat dealer used a conventional 40 grade Union 76 racing oil. I switched to a 15w40 with no ill effects.

Another reason to use mono grade oil, don't they have really good HTHS numbers?
It's a good cheap way to get great HTHS oil.
In a boat motor they run half to 100% load for extended periods of time. The coolant maintains the right temperature or a bit cool but the oil gets hot, real hot in ahard working boat motor.
Because it's a boat they can assume you're probably never start it much below freezing so you don't need multi grade oils.

 

[oil pan 4]

1997? Time flies. 27 years ago. Modern multiviscosity HDEO oils have you covered. No need for grandpa’s single viscosity 30 weight oil any more. Flame suit on. Cloud yellers have at it.

Only thing I can think of is boat oil tends to run really hot and mono grade oil is a cheap way to get really good HTHS numbers and keep them.

 

[DriveHard]

Only thing I can think of is boat oil tends to run really hot and mono grade oil is a cheap way to get really good HTHS numbers and keep them.

Boats have nearly unlimited cooling and oil coolers, with usually ~160F thermostats. They don't get as hot as car engines in my experience. If you exceed 212F in the heads/jackets you see steam behind the boat and you know you have a problem...as the raw water is boiling before it leaves with the exhaust. While marine engines are worked hard...they are kept cool if everything is working correctly.