Appropriate oil for 24 Hours of LeMons

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I have a high-mileage (127K) Honda CRX that I am preparing for a Lemons race. I've been wondering what would be the most appropriate oil for this engine. I have no idea about it's current oil consumption as I have not driven it much. I've replaced the oil pan gasket and the valve cover gasket as they were somewhat hard and leaky.

Would an oil analysis give any helpful guidance in this regard?

Thank you for reading!
 
Try Mobil 1 0w-40. Kind of a catch-all oil.

If you have consumption, have some M1 10w-40 HM for top-off.

You could also start with some M1 10w-30 HM instead, it's A3 rated and has SL specs, with higher additive levels, like a race oil.
 
Something affordable without a heaps of vii s in it.

20W-50 or 25W-50 dino race oils ?

Straight 40 ?
 
Glued ... since maximum durability is the key here and this kind of race is a pure torture test, I'm going to say use Red Line racing oil ... straight 30 or 40.

Too pricey? Use Schaeffer's Moly Bond X-200 in straight 30 or 40 weight:

http://www.schaefferoil.com/151_diesel_oil.html

Too hard to find? Try a HDEO (Heavy duty engine oil - for gas and diesel) in straight 30 or 40 weights ... Chevron Delo 400 or Pennzoil Long Life.

I don't think oil analysis will be helpful for this. I'd prep it as best you can for durability/survivability and use a straight 30 or 40 weight oil with high ZDDP, moly and/or boron levels.

Best of luck! Let us know how it turns out.
 
As Bror said, since durability is the main goal here, you don't want something that will shear at all. A straight 40-weight of some kind would be a good option.
 
I am in agreement about the Corsica. It is far more in keeping with the spirit of the event, and may make it easier to get accepted into the race. But I got what I got.
 
First, I'd like to thank all of you who took the time to reply. I appreciate that. Thank you!

As far as money goes, I bought it right, and I haven't put a lot of money into it that counts toward the $500. So, I'm not going to worry about whether they are going to check my oil or not. If that makes me a cheater, well, I've been called worse. The rules are pretty quiet on the question of lubrication. It may be a gray area and I'm happy to keep it that way. I don't want a rules clarification.

I'm seeing some recommendations here for straight weights. Why is that? If it makes any difference, it will likely be fairly hot out.

One other thing. Something odd happened with this car. Before I changed the pan gasket, the car had a very serious blow-by problem. After replacing the gasket I put a jug of MaxLife in it that I had reserved for another car and ran it for a about 30 minutes total. I swear it now has very, very little blow-by. Could the synthetic content have unstuck some rings already and made them work the way they should? Could the detergent effect really be that dramatic? I know, it sounds like an infomercial. Anyway...

Thanks!
 
The straight weight recommendation is that there's only going to be a single start, with many hours of hard running.

Start-up wear isn't the issue, and you don't want an oil prone to shearing (Viscosity improvers breaking down) or thinkening (polymerisation of viis etc.) through the event.
 
Glued, Shannow is correct. Shearing is your main enemy. A top-quality synthetic should resist this ... but why take the chance? And once the oil reaches its operating temp, its viscosity will be whatever it is regardless of whether it is mineral or synthetic. I just don't see an advantage in going with a synthetic ... unless oil temps will be incredibly high.

If I were you, I'd consider a straight weight mineral oil and add Red Line's break-in additive ... or another ZDDP/moly additive as extra insurance. If something starts to go south, the extra barrier additives may keep the engine alive long enough to finish.

As for the effect Max-Life, it's very hard to say. May Dad had a Grand Marquis (Ford 4.6L OHC or 5.0 OHV) which developed a ticking sound ... sounded like a classic stuck lifter. He changed the oil (used Quaker State 10E-30 synth blend) and it cleared up about 60 seconds after start-up.

Was it something magic about the QS oil? I doubt it. Probably just fresh oil with a fresh add-pack that was able to unstick the lifter. I expect this is the same sort of thing that happened in your case.
 
bearda-- The Mutually Assured Destruction of Omaha at MidAmericaMotorplex in Pacific Junction, Iowa.

Are you entering this race?
 
Originally Posted By: Glued
I have a high-mileage (127K) Honda CRX that I am preparing for a Lemons race. I've been wondering what would be the most appropriate oil for this engine. I have no idea about it's current oil consumption as I have not driven it much. I've replaced the oil pan gasket and the valve cover gasket as they were somewhat hard and leaky.

Would an oil analysis give any helpful guidance in this regard?

Thank you for reading!
Any 20W50.
 
Originally Posted By: Glued
bearda-- The Mutually Assured Destruction of Omaha at MidAmericaMotorplex in Pacific Junction, Iowa.

Are you entering this race?


No, I've been looking at helping crew for Capital Punishment but that fell through. I'm still planning on spectating next weekend, though.
 
Since you are running a stock engine configuration, stay away from race oils and high visc oils - they are likely to damage O2 sensors. You don't want the engine thinking it is too lean and dumping more fuel to the engine - bad fuel mileage. Since it is an endurance race minimizing time in the pits is key. The M1 10W-30 HM is a good choice - safe for O2's and low VM content helps shear stability.

If you had thousands to spend on engine mods, we would be having a different discussion, but with a $500 budget, you need to buy oil at Wal-Mart.

Save the money for tires - they make the car go faster.
 
Feffman, you're all over the same sites I frequent.

Few months old, but if I were to do it on the cheap, I'd run a diesel oil. It's a LeMons car for Pete's sake.
 
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