Engine oil for P6B

[quattro]

I changed the oil today for some Halfords Classic 20W-50.

It is now smoother, quieter and actually feels torquier.

[testrider]

I've used the Castrol XL20/50 and also Miller Oils 20/50 and can't realy tell the difference. My car had regular Castrol GTX 10/40 in when I bought it as the owners manual just says use Castol GTX so that's what he bought. There was a definite change in the engine soound and smoothness when I changed it to the thicker stuff not to mention better oil pressure.

The good thing about the Castrol stuff is that I can mail order it along with the TQF gear oil needed for the BW auto box and there's free carriage on orders over £30. Haven't seen TQF on the shelves of car shops round here so mail order is the only way.

I've got some Castol XL in stock but I reckon I try some Halfords Classic 20/50 when I fill mine up after this rebuild I'm doing as it's easy to get hold of and relatively cheap too. I'll then change it to the Castrol after a couple of hundred miles or so.

[SydneyRoverP6B]

For the first four years from 1974 till 1978 I cannot say with any certainty what type of oil was used in my Rover, but after that till early 1988 Castrol GTX and then GTX-2 was in use. Both were friction modified 20W-50 oils. The engine by now had about 67,000 miles up, and I noted on a number of occassions that after changing the oil filter upon starting the engine a knocking could be heard for a couple of seconds, coming from the oil pump no doubt. I never lingered when changing filters, fitting the new one and then starting the engine immediately.

I decided to try a different oil and opted for Pennzoil Street Machine, a 20W-50 oil. Right up until the engine was removed in 2007 after 203,000 miles, the knocking eminating from the oil pump was never to be heard again.

When the 4.6 was installed by the Range Rover Specialist, Penrite oil was used. The initial fill being a 20W-50 Running In oil. After some 400 miles I returned the car for the first service where the oil was drained and the filter changed, as the engine was under warranty. The Service manager attended to the task. He drained the oil, and then removed the filter. He was quite busy so it was well over an hour before the new filter, half filled with oil was fitted.... The hoist supporting the car was then lowered and the engine filled. Given what I had heard and read about the importance of promptly fitting a new filter once the old one has been discarded and then starting the engine, I was somewhat concerned that the pump would not prime.

I mentioned this to him, and he said "that it would not be a problem, if a pump fails to pick up then there is usually something wrong and as such it requires attention". As it would happen he was right. Oil light off, pressure straight away and not the slightest hint of knocking.

Even so, I still like to change the filter quickly, just like I always have.

Ron.

[testrider]

Old habits die hard Ron and you're probably right to change the filter quickly despite what the mechanics say.

Anyway it makes less mess if you can do it quickly.

[harveyp6]

I've always pre-filled the new filter, giving it several shots as the element soaks it up, then unscrewed the old filter, spun the new one straight on, refilled with oil and started asap, but I worked in one place where one bloke always drained the oil, removed the filter and then left it for an hour while he went to lunch...........

Luckily most cars weren't Rover V8's, but he did do it, and got away with it several times.

Braver man than me.........

[dmcsweeney]

Hi all, just bought Duckhams 20W-50 on the recommendation of our regional organiser. My most recent 3500s had just had a fill of it before i bought it and seems very smooth (when it actually runs!). I have a slight rattle from another 3500s on start up (though the receipts show it's had new lifters and a cam recently) and i'm going to try the duckhams in that and halfords classic in the third car. Interestingly i'm sure i actually paid more for the Halfords oil than the duckhams! On the subject of diesel oil i ran a sierra 1.6 petrol on mobile delvac 1300 super (my father used it in all his machinery) from about 100,000 - 210,000 miles with great results. I think i had the only pinto in the world without a ticking cam! I later put it in a 2200SC and had oil leaks within days! Not doing that again.
Dave

[PeterB76]

....When the 4.6 was installed by the Range Rover Specialist, Penrite oil was used. The initial fill being a 20W-50 Running In oil. After some 400 miles I returned the car for the first service where the oil was drained and the filter changed, as the engine was under warranty. The Service manager attended to the task. He drained the oil, and then removed the filter. He was quite busy so it was well over an hour before the new filter, half filled with oil was fitted.... The hoist supporting the car was then lowered and the engine filled. Given what I had heard and read about the importance of promptly fitting a new filter once the old one has been discarded and then starting the engine, I was somewhat concerned that the pump would not prime.

I mentioned this to him, and he said "that it would not be a problem, if a pump fails to pick up then there is usually something wrong and as such it requires attention". As it would happen he was right. Oil light off, pressure straight away and not the slightest hint of knocking.

Even so, I still like to change the filter quickly, just like I always have.

Ron.

But is that a 4.6 with the later crank driven oil pump Ron? If so, it's much less of a problem.

[SydneyRoverP6B]

Hello PeterB76,

The cranskshaft driven oil pumps are an integral part of the timing cover, which then presents a clearance problem if fitted to my 4.6 within the confines of the P6B engine bay. So on that score my engine runs an SD1 timing cover complete with P6B oil pump front cover and P6B water pump with viscous coupling.

Ron.

[WarrenL]

The exact reasons why, and whoever gave them to me, have been lost in the mists of time, but I have religiously used Penrite HPR30 for many years now in GF148. This 37-year-old untouched engine is in extremely good condition. Having lifted my inlet manifold and gasket off the other day I can confirm the excellent condition of the camshaft, which as we all know, is a bit of a weakish point in the Rover V8.

[SydneyRoverP6B]

Hello Warren,

I too have been using Penrite HPR30 in my 4.6 since the Penrite Running in oil was drained. Penrite is the official supplier to Land Rover in Australia. It is great to hear that your engine is in such fine condition for having been using it over many years.

Ron.

[WarrenL]

Of course I can't comment on how the engine was treated before GF148 came into my possession, but I do know that of all the P6Bs I test drove when buying (they were still commonly available back then), many with similar mileages and histories, GF148 had the best running and best feeling engine of all. Which, of course, is one of the major reasons I bought it. Perhaps it was a Wednesday morning car?

However the experience of the last 13 years is a great recommendation for HPR30.

[ghce]

I dont know what was done to my Rover prior to my ownership but when I bought it long long long ago (about 1988) I flushed the egine and put a dose of Nulon (ptfe/Teflon) additive in from that moment on all my oil changes produced very clean and clear looking oil when drained, the oil used was BP Visco 2000 (or maybe 3000) the car is on the 3rd rotation of the digits.

Graeme

[WarrenL]

I think i had the only pinto in the world without a ticking cam! I later put it in a 2200SC and had oil leaks within days! Not doing that again.
Dave

I'll read that as meaning you put the Delvac 1300 Super, not the Pinto engine, in the 2200SC...

[dukespencer]

How can I check if an oil contains ZDDP? The only 20/50 oils I appear to be able to buy locally are Millers Classic 20/50 mineral oil and Halfords Classic 20/50. Do these oils contain sufficient ZDDP - does anyone know?

Dave

[SydneyRoverP6B]

dukespencer wrote,..

How can I check if an oil contains ZDDP? The only 20/50 oils I appear to be able to buy locally are Millers Classic 20/50 mineral oil and Halfords Classic 20/50. Do these oils contain sufficient ZDDP - does anyone know?

Hello Dave,

Unless the information is available from a product data sheet at each website, you will most likely need to phone each manufacturer. Given that the oils are manufactured to meet the requirements of engines produced during the 1960s and 70s when pushrod engines running flat tappet camshafts were common, you would have to expect that each will indeed contain sufficient ZDDP.

Ron.