What oil do most of you guys (and gals) use?

[minendrews68]

As the title says, I have a carbureted 383 sbc engine. What do most of you use for oil, synthetic or regular oil? What brand, viscosity, etc?

[vintageracer]

I use name brand synthetic oil and a GOOD high quality oil filter.

I will purchase whatever Top Name Brand Synthetic Oil in the weight I need that is recommended by the vehicle manufacturer or the engine builder that is the "Synthetic Oil & Filter Special of the Week" at Advance Auto or the Zone with a GOOD quality oil filter. I have used synthetic oil exclusively in all but one of my vehicles for MANY years and that includes the golf carts, side by sides and pressure washer and anything else that needs engine oil! At most the "Synthetic Oil & Filter Special of the Week" only costs $10-$12 more than the "Dino Oil & Filter Special of the Week". Personally "I" think the extra $10-$12 spent on the "Weekly Synthetic Oil & Filter Special" is worth the money!

Typically I use Mobil 1, Castrol Syntec or Pennzoil brand synthetic oil as those brands of oil are the brands that are usually advertised as the "Synthetic "Oil & Filter Special" of the week. I will use the "High Mileage" formula of these synthetic oils in my vehicles with over 100K miles which is most of them.

I run the synthetic oil for 5K miles in my daily drivers and run it for 12 months on the cars that sit and are used less than 5K miles a year. I base my required vehicle oil changes upon either "miles driven" for the daily driver's or "time" in the crankcase for the other vehicles that are driven less than 5K miles per year.

The lone exception is my 1995 Ford Powerstroke dually. I have run Shell Rotella T or Chevron Delo "Dino" oil in that truck since it was new. That's what I have used since it was new as synthetic diesel oil was not available way back when I purchased the truck. I have changed the oil in the truck every 3K-4K miles since the truck was new. I have a complete written service record on my truck with every gallon of diesel fuel poured in the truck and every service performed on this truck. I now only drive the truck maybe 5K-7K miles a year so I guess I'll stick with what has kept me rolling for 190K miles. This truck is the only vehicle I personally have every purchased new. I've had it 20 years so I guess I'll keep it another 20 years!

I have NEVER had an engine blow in a street vehicle and have NEVER an oil related issue with any engine in any street vehicle or toy vehicle I have ever owned.

I guess you could say from MY perspective ALL the synthetic oils and "Dino" oils from All the Major Oil Refiner's are good. If you don't believe it just ask the oil refiner's who make it!!!

I think the type and brand of oil filter you choose to use is Just As Important as the type and brand of oil you chose to run in your vehicle. I purchase only high quality oil filters which means I typically upgrade the filter offered in the Weekly specials when I do not like the oil filter type or brand offered in the weekly special. Most weekly oil/filter specials allow an a filter upgrade if the filter in the oil & filter special is not the best quality oil filter available from that retailer.

I know there are oils with "Mo Zinc" that is recommended for the older cars & vehicles certain types of cam shafts. I have run these high zinc oils in Flat Tappet race engines in my Vintage Race Cars and I have NEVER had an oil related engine failure on any race engine. Once again I am NOT brand loyal I run the type of oil and a Quality Oil Filter recommended and/or needed for the specific application.

This is what works great for me!

In the case of YOUR 383 application I suggest you defer to your engine builder or crate engine manufacturer for your engine oil type, brand, viscosity and filter recommendations!

[rrelco]

Schaeffers Oil i am a rep for them but in my opinion its the BEST!!!!
i run a 66 Elco 383 using there 20/50 racing oil also there automatic fluid in the 5 speed and extreme racing gear oil 75/140

[Rod]

on the old school stuff (ie) sbc, bbc, I use Brad Penn oil....it has a natural high zinc and mineral compound...its a Pennsylvania green oil from the same refinery that produced Kendall and Amalie brand lubricants back in 1997 It is also the oldest, continuous running refinery in the world. Pennsylvania Grade crude oil is a unique, thermally stable paraffinic crude that makes an excellent choice for refining into lubricating base stocks.

on the LS motors I use Joe Gibbs Driven oils XP8

[minendrews68]

Of course we have neither around here, what is the choice of to synthetic, or not to synthetic?

[WallaceMFG]

I run Amsoil in everything I have. Right now my Chevelle has Amsoil break-in oil and filter on it, I'll keep it that way for a bit before putting normal oil in it. Amsoil has their "Z-Rod" oil that I run in the Torino, it's a high zinc formula and I run 20W/50. Make sure you use an Amsoil filter though, it's a big part of why the oil is good.

Just as an example, I run normal Amsoil synthetic in my '01 Silverado. I run the oil to about 8,000 miles, then do what they call a "1/2" service where you just change the filter and top off the oil, then run another 8,000 miles before changing it completely. They advertise that if you can go 25,000 miles between oil changes, but I don't want to run it that far. And before anyone asks me, no I don't run my Torino that long before changing the oil.

[TheJDMan]

I'm running Rotella T6 5w40 in my 383 SBC. All oils designed for use in cars contain reduced levels of ZDDP or have removed it all together for emissions reasons. But since Rotella is primarily a diesel oil used in all manor of big trucks and heavy equipment it still contains higher levels of ZDDP than car motor oil. Shell specifically states that Rotella, although primarily marketed as a diesel oil, can be used equally well in gas engines without any issues.

[RLJ676]

Anyone use Mobil 1 V Twin? Very high zinc content, it's loved by the offshore boat guys. Good enough for their quarter million dollar power probably good enough for my 355? I run it or Mobil 1 15w-15 race synthetic in my boat, anyone use that either?

[Interceptor5588]

My builder swears by Rotella T, I always have a pail of 15w40 around. Synthetic is better for turbo applications, though, I believe that it does not break down as much under extreme temps.

[Chad-1stGen]

I've been running the Mobil 1 15-50 synthetic racing oil in my LS3 crate motor. With the oil temps I see in a 20 minute road course track session I want the higher range of synthetic oil.

[68gmcJames]

I have joe gibbs10w 30 in the flat tappet motor(sbc). Mobil 1 in everything else (coyote,hemi,ls,and whatever hondas are,)

[Space Dynamics]

15-50 whatever is on sale. My 145k mile 350 doesn't really care right now since the camshafts are basically offset circles.

But when I was racing my E30, I would put A good 15-50 (20-50 if I could find it) synthetic in, along with a good filter.

[cactuss4]

Mobile 1 changed their specs or whatever sometime ago, it's not the same oil. I run Rotella T6 in all of my vehicles and will run it in my Chevelle.

I have a 618hp to the wheels twin turbo 3 liter S4, it get's the Rotella and turbos are hard on engines!

[nokones]

Go-Fast (Race) Corvette - engine-Redline Race; Tranny-GM Syncromesh; Rear Diff-Valvoline; Power Steering-GM Oil
Grocery Getter Corvettes - engine-Mobile 1; tranny, Power Steering, and diff-GM Stuff

[Red67Mustang]

Royal Purple.

[Tom Welch]

Napa Gold filters, M1 or Royal Purple in the appropriate viscosity, in my 09 Z06 I use M1 0w40. M1 or RP 5w20 in my F150. M1 or RP 5w30 in my wife's Jetta TDI, 50 mpg is awesome! I tend to keep cars a long time so I view it as a little extra insurance.

[72BBSwinger]

In that 383 stroker I would run Mobil 1 15-50 Red Cap. Good stuff for older type engines. Newer engines I would run Mobil 1 0W40, Pennz Platinum 5-20 or 5-30.

[Goodale Engineering]

358 Roush Yates engine, I run their Next Gen Racing oil, same as the cup teams run on Sunday. They sell it in 5 gallons buckets for $150 I think, dry sump tank holds 14 quarts. It is higher zinc content than modern engine oils.

On the newer stuff you can run Royal Purple, Amsoil, Mobil 1, they're all pretty much the same quality if you go synthetic.

For filters I only run Wix, on everything.

[H2Ogbodies]

Mobil 1 fluids for everything and K&N filters for everything as well.

[MonzaRacer]

Break in on Shell Rotella T conventional, then Shell Rotella T synthetic.