Uh oh, oil opinion

Been using 5w40 redline in the 996. I can get Pentosin and/or Liqui Moly on Amazon but not me Redline. Opinions on quality (don't go Mobil one on me, not nearly as good as redline)

If you are ordering anyways, the joe gibbs DT40 is good stuff. Jcamper

Apparently my browser won't paste the link here, but I have/can/did just buy redline 5w-40 just now on Amazon.

Listed as redline 15424 5w-40.  I buy the 1 quart bottles in packs of 12.

Thanks. But what about the original question?

Dude, it is an oil thread. You know we are not allowed to give complete and factual information! I have Liqui Moly in my 996 right now. Easy 32 horsepower increase and so smooth it sounds like someone gently petting kittens at idle. 

Jcamper

Any specific specs this oil needs to meet?  Any specific qualities you want from other than just being a 5W-40? 

Well, I want as close to a full synthetic racing oil as I can get. Redline has been good to me, and probably will just get another 9 qts. Almost 120k and never any particles in the filter between changes. This is just one of those questions I ask myself every once in a while. Not doing Gibbs. Want absolutely nothing to do with NASCAR in any way, shape or form, Sorry. I also don't feel comfortable with Amsoil and Royal Purple. Motul is another oil I've considered. Just looking for longevity. FWIW, this is my DD and gets a change every 5k with a Mahle or mann filter.

If it doesn't need to meet a specific spec and you're not running the thing up to stupidly hot oil temps, I'd be tempted to snag some 5W-40 HDEO (like Rotella T6 or Delo 400 LE), run it and then have an analysis done on what comes out after a few thousand miles to see how it's holding up in there.  Analysis is really the only way to know if a given oil (and change interval) is doing its job well enough in a given engine. 

HDEOs tend to be fairly high HTHS like a lot of racing oils, so they usually do well in engines that like a thicker oil and are prone to tearing it up a bit.  A quick search around the internet indicates others have run the stuff in 996s with good results. 

And if the HDEO option proves to be a good one, they're also fairly cheap.  Looks like both of the Redline 5W-40s I'm finding go for around $12.50 / quart.  The full synth 5W-40 HDEOs are typically $20 - 30 / gallon.  Usually towards the $20 side of that range at Walmart. 

markwemple said:

Well, I want as close to a full synthetic racing oil as I can get. Redline has been good to me, and probably will just get another 9 qts. Almost 120k and never any particles in the filter between changes. This is just one of those questions I ask myself every once in a while. Not doing Gibbs. Want absolutely nothing to do with NASCAR in any way, shape or form, Sorry. I also don't feel comfortable with Amsoil and Royal Purple. Motul is another oil I've considered. Just looking for longevity. FWIW, this is my DD and gets a change every 5k with a Mahle or mann filter.

Wants racing oil.

Refuses to use oil from a team that actually races.

Got it.

Since the old Kendall was what all P-car owners wanted, why not try its current form, Brad Penn?

i see it’s now called PennGrade.  

Lots of German car nuts run Liqui-Moly and Pentosin. BMW-branded oil (German Castrol) and Elf/Total are also really popular. Any of these are going to be just as good as Red Line.

If it’s important to you to run a “full synthetic” oil, then you need to look as what base stocks are used. You’ll want PAO (like Red Line and Amsoil) or ester (like Motul 300V and Elf Excellium). Most oils branded “synthetic” in the US market actually use Group III (cracked petrocarbon) base stocks, which most people wouldn’t consider a genuine synthetic.

Some folks have recommended diesel blends, like Rotella and Chevron Delo 400. These use Group III base stocks and are loaded with ZDDP. Good choice for an old engine with flat-tappets and no cat. They’re popular, for example, in vintage Benz circles. But probably not the best choice for a car like the 996. It won’t need all that ZDDP in the first place, so there’s no reason to risk a set of very expensive cats. 

spitfirebill said:

Since the old Kendall was what all P-car owners wanted, why not try its current form, Brad Penn?

i see it’s now called PennGrade.  

I used Brad Penn PG-1 in my old E30 track rat. Ran quieter, had better oil pressure, and reduced oil consumption compared to Mobil 1 and Motul 300V. Lots of M3 guys run it in their S14s as well. 

But, again, probably not the optimal choice for a 996.

In reply to LanEvo :

ZDDP levels in those oils have dropped a bit over time.  A lot of racing oils have more.  And in any case, while the zinc does slowly poison the cats, it's not a significant effect on their lifespan unless the engine is burning a significant amount of oil.  I've seen plenty of quarts worth of burned off HDEO run through cats over quite a few miles and the things were still doing their jobs. 

markwemple said:

Well, I want as close to a full synthetic racing oil as I can get. Redline has been good to me, and probably will just get another 9 qts. Almost 120k and never any particles in the filter between changes. This is just one of those questions I ask myself every once in a while. Not doing Gibbs. Want absolutely nothing to do with NASCAR in any way, shape or form, Sorry. I also don't feel comfortable with Amsoil and Royal Purple. Motul is another oil I've considered. Just looking for longevity. FWIW, this is my DD and gets a change every 5k with a Mahle or mann filter.

Unhelpfull, snarky comment deleted with an appology to anyone who read it before my better judgment kicked in.

This is a good thread.

In reply to rslifkin :

I thought damage to cats was the primary reason ZDDP levels have gone down?

Only thing I've learned about oil rather definitively through personal experience is that some oil seems to be better than no oil.

But I also drive cheap cars.

In reply to ztnedman1 :

NASCAR ISN'T racing.

In reply to spitfirebill :

I like Brad Penn in air cooler p-cars. The 996 is a totally different animal.

In reply to LanEvo :

Good info. Thanks! I love diesel syntheticcs, but, I agree the cat issue is a concern. My car has 120k. It isn't burning anything but my cats are probably not long for this world. Also, as a FYI I've heard that dieseel oils, for some reason, can bring tired engines back to life. Don't have 1st hand experience on this, though.

Oh, and this thread really is for the 996. I'm not so anal about oil in the other vehicles. Their engines aren't 20k to replace. LOL.

In reply to rslifkin :

Yeah, and with racing Mobil 1 vs street Mobil 1, this is one of the issues. Racing Mobil 1 is a very good oil. Just very difficult to get.

markwemple said:

In reply to ztnedman1 :

NASCAR ISN'T racing.

Uhhhhhhhhhh

It isn't. It's WWE on a track. WWE isn't wrestling. Anyway, I'm seeing a lot of love for Motul. I didn't realize that there was decent access to it until now. Great, another option.

Nascar isn't racing? Well, if the engines had an opinion, they would disagree. Regardless of what anyone thinks of the format or the series or sanctioning body, this engines are wrung all the way the berkeley out. I kinda figure the oil they use is prolly up to the task of whatever I'm gonna ask of it...

I like lubri moly. It kept the HLA's in my Mazda quiet for 5k miles.  When they started to rattle, I knew it was time for another oilchange. That said, the E55 gets mobil1 cuz Mercedes says to and the damn thing takes 9 frigging quarts and boy howdy does that add up when going redline or pentosin...

I put the cheapest 10-60 i could find in my 996. It happened to be Liqui-Moly from Amazon.  Can confirm: has not exploded.