Engine Oil - Oils Aint oils !

At our December 1995 meeting our guest speaker was Paul Glover from Castrol Australia. He stood in at the last moment for Les Gould.

There is a lot more to oils than you think. Most qf our lubricating oil is imported from Kuwait because our crude oil is too thin for lubricating. The most important aspect about oil when buying multi-grade is the viscosity rating. Your engine needs a low viscosity at start up and high viscosity at operating temperature such as an oil with a range of 10w - 60. W stands for winter. Multi grading is achieved by adding Polymer (plastic) coils, which are microscopic and uncoil to make it thicker, when the oil heats up. Australia is currently a world leader in multi grade oil technology, while Europe is a leader in Synthetic oil.

Eighty percent of engine wear happens at engine start up. Paul spoke briefly about all the additives, anti foaming agents, including detergents, and anti corrosives that make up today's high tech oils. Because today's oils are so good, extra oil additives are not needed, in fact they can do more harm than good. But it is alright to use them in lower grade motor and gear oils.

In engine coolants always look for Australian Standards number AS2108 anti freeze and anti boil. For Subaru motors Paul suggested always use high quality oils and coolants changed regularly. Paul recommends that oil filters should be changed every time the oil is changed and recommended Castrol TXT for L Series, Liberty's and Imprezas.

For more mind boggling information on oil additives see More Oils Aint Oils.

David Martin SC180

Disclaimer: Technical information given or disclosed in this website is given with the best intent and is advisory only. No responsibility is taken by the the Subaru 4WDrive Club of Queensland or its members for any damage or injury caused by any vehicle modifications made, or by the use of any products or the adoption of any procedures mentioned in this website.