What's up? First time posting here and I need some advice. Tomorrow I am picking up a 1994 Alfa Romeo 164LS 3.0L V-6 automatic. It has over 206,000 miles on it but it was a North Carolina car most of its life and very well maintained. The previous owner used only OEM parts and kept up with the 30k mile timing belt changes that are critical for these cars to keep running. He used M1 15W-50 and OEM oil filters every 5000 miles. The Alfa was never driven in winter but I will need to drive it during the winter. The factory recommends 10W-40 oil. Would it be a good idea to switch to 10W-40 for the winter and back to a 50 weight in spring? Also, would the Castrol Edge 5W-50 for classic cars be a good switch from M1 for the summer? IIRC the V-6 has flat tappets and might benefit from the extra ZDDP found in the Castrol.
Winter oil weight for 94 Alfa Romeo 164LS
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I would use the 15W50 he/she is using just give it few minutes after a cold start to warm the engine oil a bit. If the manual says 10W40 why not use it, I don't know if Quaker Defy has a 40 oil in the line up it suppose to have high ZDP but not confirmed I think, and if you are not an Amsoil hater they have exactly what you need in the premium 10W40 full synthetic and 1200 ppm of zdp. Just a thought.
T6 5w40 or M1 0w40 would probably fit well in an older 10w40 application.
Nice ride by the way, and no they are not as unreliable as the masses believe just keep up with the ignition and fuel filter, electric issues are usually poor contact, a disconnect a re-connection of the plug fix the problem 7 out of 10 times. Good luck and enjoy. Again good amounts of zdp in the oil. Once in a while rev the engine to the limit (italian tune up) it keeps the engine internals free of deposits letting the oil reach everywhere they are performance engines, it is in it's DNA.
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Had an '88 Alfa Romeo Milano which had essentially the same 3-liter SOHC engine as your 164. The owner's manual called for 10W-50, which was unobtainable in the military PX, so I used Mobil 1 15W-50 year-round. The car spent three winters in Germany and always started on the coldest days.
So I think you'd be fine using that oil.
Thanks to BITOG and to the availability of many high-quality optional oils, however, I would probably switch to a 5W-40 HDEO like Shell T6 or Chevron Delo year-round.
The only reasons to stick with the 15W-50 (or to go to 5W-50) would be to cope with high oil consumption or low oil pressure. Alfas use a little oil from brand new, so you'll have to get a feel for that right away. Plus, it is axiomatic that the engine is going to weep a little oil here and there.
Enjoy your new Alfa!
So I think you'd be fine using that oil.
Thanks to BITOG and to the availability of many high-quality optional oils, however, I would probably switch to a 5W-40 HDEO like Shell T6 or Chevron Delo year-round.
The only reasons to stick with the 15W-50 (or to go to 5W-50) would be to cope with high oil consumption or low oil pressure. Alfas use a little oil from brand new, so you'll have to get a feel for that right away. Plus, it is axiomatic that the engine is going to weep a little oil here and there.
Enjoy your new Alfa!
First of all, welcome to the board. Use your judgement and you will get some sound advice here. I think your best advice so far is from marco246. I will bet you two Aloha's and a mahalo nui loa that he knows whereof he speaks.
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Originally Posted By: 901Memphis
T6 5w40 or M1 0w40 would probably fit well in an older 10w40 application.
+1 -> exactly what I would do.
T6 5w40 or M1 0w40 would probably fit well in an older 10w40 application.
+1 -> exactly what I would do.
10w-40 is just fine. If you wanted to switch to a synthetic, I would go with T6 5w-40.
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10w40 is fine, but unless you get Amsoil, you might have a hard time finding a ZDDP rich oil.
The other 10W40 full of ZDP would be Redline, Mobil 1 5W50 doesn't have enough ZDP any more that is the reason I switched to Amsoil 3 years ago and Amsoil for the extended drain otherwise would be Redline
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Originally Posted By: mene
The other 10W40 full of ZDP would be Redline, Mobil 1 5W50 doesn't have enough ZDP any more that is the reason I switched to Amsoil 3 years ago and Amsoil for the extended drain otherwise would be Redline
I'm no fan of Mobil 1 however to imply that the 15w-50 is inadequate based on its zddp content is utterly absurd.
Zddp was reduced in the thinner grades because of the emissions system. 15w-50 didn't fall into that category so the zddp levels are the same as they have always been,so if it was adequate when you last used it,and its pretty much the same as it was then why exactly isn't it good enough now
I'm sure its been revised and the formulation tweaked however its basically the same as its always been,except visom has been substituted instead of the pao/poe it was before.
OP
Motorcycle specific oils are also an option as they are very high in zddp but personally I'd use conventional rotella and put the savings in the gas tank for an extra long cruise.
The other 10W40 full of ZDP would be Redline, Mobil 1 5W50 doesn't have enough ZDP any more that is the reason I switched to Amsoil 3 years ago and Amsoil for the extended drain otherwise would be Redline
I'm no fan of Mobil 1 however to imply that the 15w-50 is inadequate based on its zddp content is utterly absurd.
Zddp was reduced in the thinner grades because of the emissions system. 15w-50 didn't fall into that category so the zddp levels are the same as they have always been,so if it was adequate when you last used it,and its pretty much the same as it was then why exactly isn't it good enough now
I'm sure its been revised and the formulation tweaked however its basically the same as its always been,except visom has been substituted instead of the pao/poe it was before.
OP
Motorcycle specific oils are also an option as they are very high in zddp but personally I'd use conventional rotella and put the savings in the gas tank for an extra long cruise.
That car likely wont last long in the road salt. My experience shows most of the Italian OHC motors will wipe cams when they feel like it regardless of what oil you use. Any 5w50 0w40 or 5w40 should work if you must use it in the winter.
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If you stuck with the original grade of oil, an oil pan heater for really cold days is not a bad idea. You could have it on a timer over night so oil is warm when you start up in the morning. I love 'em.
http://www.wolverineheater.com
http://www.wolverineheater.com
Originally Posted By: TiredTrucker
If you stuck with the original grade of oil, an oil pan heater for really cold days is not a bad idea. You could have it on a timer over night so oil is warm when you start up in the morning. I love 'em.
http://www.wolverineheater.com
+1 on the Wolverine heater.
If you stuck with the original grade of oil, an oil pan heater for really cold days is not a bad idea. You could have it on a timer over night so oil is warm when you start up in the morning. I love 'em.
http://www.wolverineheater.com
+1 on the Wolverine heater.
Thank you all for the replies! The 164's body is galvanized, so it's more rust resistant than the older Alfas. I will look into the oil pan heater as well. After reading this thread and the one linked to the Alfa 155, I think I will give Rotella T6 a shot.
To Clevy, sorry but I mentioned 5w50, not 15W50 in my last post.
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Welcome. I'm a newbie here, too. My 87 Spider Veloce also has flat tappet cams, and I use Kendall GT-1 High Performance 20W/50. It has .12% zinc while the 10W-40 has only .085%. Other than Kendall, Brad Penn and Valvoline Racing, there are few high ZDDP conventional oils left. Castrol introduced a GTX Classic formula, but I've never seen it in the stores. Also, my 20W-50 works fine in NC and FL, not so good in MA. If the owners manual calls for 10W-40, use it with confidence if you can find the right ZDDP levels.
Does the car have an oil pressure gauge?
That makes it very easy to optimize the viscosity of your motor oil.
Anyway for winter use and possibly year round use I'd recommend Mobil 1 0W-40.
That makes it very easy to optimize the viscosity of your motor oil.
Anyway for winter use and possibly year round use I'd recommend Mobil 1 0W-40.
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