OIL IS KILLING OUR CARS!!!!!

Note that this article was published in November 2006 and is offered here to provide background to the problem of changing oil formulations. More recent information can be found in the follow-up article located at the Continued... link which is also located at the bottom of this article. B ! "eith #nsell$ %oreign &arts &ositivel $ 'nc. #bout a ear ago ' read about the reduction of (inc dialk l dithiophosphate )*++&, in the oils supplied with #&' approval that could affect sliding and high pressure )-&, friction in our cars. .he reduction of these chemicals in sup-plied oils was based on the fact that phosphates reduce the effectiveness and eventuall damage catal tic converters and introduce minute amounts of pollutants into our atmosphere. # couple of months ago ' had a member of the Columbia /orge M/ Club bring a totall failed camshaft and lifters back to me that had onl 000 miles on them11 ' immediatel contacted the camshaft re-grinder )+elta Cam, and asked how this could happen. .he were well aware of this problem as the were starting to have man failures of this t pe. 'n the past$ the lack of a mol bdenum disulfide camshaft assembl lubricant$ at assembl $ was about the onl thing that could create this t pe of problem. M customer has assembled man engines and had lubricated the camshaft properl . .hen the bad news came out! 't2s toda 2s 3modern3 #&' )#merican &etroleum 'ndustr , approved oils that are killing our engines! Meaning all flat tappet )cam follower, e4uipped engines$ as used in all BMC products$ all British 5e land products$ most pushrod engines prior to 6070$ earl 8olvos$ #merican high-performance engines and man others. Ne9t call! .o a ma:or camshaft supplier$ both stock and performance )Crane,. .he now have an additive for whatever oil ou are using during break-in so that the camshaft and lifters won2t fail in an unreasonabl short period of time. .he also suggest using a diesel rated oil on flat tappet engines. Ne9t call! .o a racing oil manufacturer that we use for the race cars );ed 5ine <il,. .heir response! 3=e are well aware of the problem and we still use the correct amounts of those additives in our products3. .he continued to tell me the are not producing #&' approved oils so the don2t have to test and compl . .heir oils were N<. the 3new$ improved and approved3 ones that destro flat tappet engines1 3=e :ust build the best lubricants possible3. >ounds stupid$ doesn2t it$ New-#pproved but inferior products$ but it seems to be true for our cars. .o top this off! our representative from a ma:or supplier of performance and street engine parts )-&=', stopped b to 3warn us3 of the problem of the N-= oils on flat tappet en-gines. .his was a call that the representative was making onl because of this problem to warn their engine builders1 3.he reduction of the (inc$ manganese and phosphates are causing ver earl destruction of cams and followers3. .he are recommendding that$ for now at least$ there must be a proper oil additive put in the first oil used on new engines$ be ond the liberal use of mol disulfide assembl lube. .he have been told that the first oil needs the additive but remain skeptical that the first oil is all that is necessar . .heir suggestion is to use diesel rated oils such as +elo or ;otella that are usual-l available at auto stores and gas stations. .his problem is B'/1 #merican -ngine ;ebuilder2s #ssociation )#-;#, Bulletin ?.B2@@@ directl addresses this problem. ' had a short discussion with their engineer and he agreed with all that ' had been finding. Ne9t phone call was to a retired engineer from Clevite$ a ma:or bearing and component man-ufacturer. .he first surprise was that he restored older British Motor bikes. .he second surprise was that he was 38-;A3 aware of this problem because man of the old bikes had rectangular tappets that couldn2t rotate and are having a ver large problem with the new oils. Be has written an article for the British Bike communit that verif all the 3bad news3 we have been finding.

Comp Cams put out 3?22C .ech Bulletin! Flat Tappet Camshafts3. .he have both an assembl lube and an oil additive. .he telling sen-tence in the bulletin was 3=hile this additive was originall developed specificall for break-in protection$ subse4uent testing has proven the durabilit benefits of its long term use. .his special blend of additives promotes proper break-in and protects against premature cam and lifter failure b replacing some of the beneficial ingredients that the oil companies have been re4uired to remove from the 3off the shelf oil3. Ne9t 4uestion! Now what do we doD %rom the camshaft re-grinders )+eltaCam, 3Ese oils rated for diesel use3$ +elo )>tandard <il product, was named. #bout the same price as other 4ualit petroleum based oils. .he have the *++& we need in weights we are familiar with. %rom one camshaft manufacturer )Crane,! 3use our additive3 for the first C00 miles. %rom /eneral Motors )Chevrolet,! add -<>$ their oil fortifier$ to our oil$ it2s onl an 7-ounce can ).his problem seems to be something /M has known about for some time1,. .he additive sa s for break-in onl $ some dealers add it to ever oil change. %rom ;edline <il! Ese our street formulated s nthetics. .he have what we need1 -arl in 200F the will be suppl ing a 3break-in oil3 specificall for our cars. %rom Castrol! =e are beginning to see a pattern emerging on older cars. 't ma be advantageous to use a non-approved lubricant$ such as oils that are +iesel rated$ G C cle Motorc cle oils and other specified diesel oils. .he will be suppl ing 3new oils3 specificall for our cars in earl 200F. %or ou science buffs! *++& is a single polar molecule that is attracted to 'ron based metals. .he one polar end tends to 3>tand3 the molecule up on the metal surface that it is bonded to b heat and friction. .his forms a sacrificial la er to protect the base metals of the cam and tappet from contacting each other. <nl at ver high pressures on a flat tappet cam is this necessar because the oil is s4uee(ed or wiped from the surface. .his high pressure is also present on the gudgeon pin )wrist pin, in diesel engines$ therefore the need for *++& in all diesel engines. .he >econd part of the e4uation is Mol bdenum disulfide )Mol ,. .he mol bonds to the (inc adding an additional$ ver slipper $ sacrificial la er to the metal. ' found out that too much of the mol will create problemsH lack of this ma-terial reduces the effectiveness of the *++&. .he percentage$ b weight is from .06 to .02I$ not much$ but necessar according to the chemists. Now there is no den ing that there is a problem$ lack of *++& )*inc-+ialk l-+ithio&hosphate, in modern oils kills at least our cams and tappets. .here seems to be no known alter-native. <ur cars are a small percentage of the total market and B'/ Corporate$ the #merican &etroleum 'nstitute and possibl government have made decisions that are detrimental to our cars. .his problem isn2t going awa . .he trend toda is to lighter weight oils to decrease drag$ which increases mileage. Most of these seem to be the 3-nerg Conservation3 oils that we can-not use. ;edline oil and others are suggesting a @$000 mile break-in for new engines1 &roper seating of rings with toda 2s lubricants is taking that long to properl seal. >hifting to s nthetics be-fore that time will :ust burn a lot of oil and not run as well as hoped. .he 3-nerg Conservation3 trend was first led b automakers to increase mileage numbers and secondl because the *++& and other chemicals degrade the catal tic converter after e9tended miles$ increasing pollution. Most of us don2t have catal tic converters and the mileage gains are not that significant. Man oil companies ma have products that will continue to function well in our cars. Castrol$ ;edline$ 8alvoline$ Mobil$ >hell$ #ms-oil and others have now commented on m original article and are making suggestions. >ome companies are offering short lists of 3acceptable3 oils$ others :ust one. <ne compan has responded without an substantive information in a two page 3bulletin3. B their account all their oils are superior and applicable. .his is t pical of man companies.

>ome oil manufacturers are pointing to metallurg $ blaming poorl built cams and followers. .his ma have some validit but the bottom line is that there has been a big increase in failures with products that have been on the market for man ears but are now having greatl in-creased failures. .o me the bottom line is$ if the lubricants are working there is no contact between surfaces$ it shouldn2t matter what the materials used in the products are$ within rea-son. <n 3modern3 production cars$ sta with the manufacturers2 suggestions. %or an car pro-duced before about 6000 the owner needs to be aware that the factor suggested lubricant ma have changed and ma not be applicable. %lat tappet$ stock$ performance or modified ma be affected. M/Bs from 60FC to 6070 must choose to sacrifice the cam or the catal tic converter as an e9ample of how difficult the decisions are becoming1 Aes$ there is more1 Castrol does understand our dilemma and is activel looking into what it can do to support our cars. =e can soon e9pect to see products from them with specific application to classic cars. ;ed 5ine will be offering a 3break-in3 oil soon after the first of the ear. >hell2s ;otella will be good until about June or Jul of 200F with possibl nothing after that date. +elo )Chevron, will also be 4uestionable after the new 3CJ-G3 standards come in the middle of 200F. Now the important information$ here are <ils that ma be correct for our cars toda ! )#s reported b manufacturers b 2-67-0F$ N<.-! man have changed their recommendations over the last three months1, Castrol > ntec 3Classic3 20=-C0 ) available after #pril$ 200F , .=> Motorsport! 60=-60K K full s nthetic$ available onl at BM= dealerships BM=! 5ong 5ife C=-@0K K full s nthetic$ available onl at BM= dealerships ;ed 5ine! 60=-@0$ 60=-G0 ) > nthetic oils , 8alvoline! 8;-6 20=-C0 ) Conventional oil , #msoil! 20=-C0 ) .;< ,$ 60=-G0 ) #M< ,$ 6C=-G0 )#M-, L 20=-C0 ) #;< , Mobil! Mobil 6 C=-@0 20=-C0 )> nthetic, Chevron! +elo G00 >hell! ;otella =hat we are doing at %oreign &arts &ositivel has been difficult to determine but with few options left$ the following is what we are forced to do. >ome of our choices have been based on the manufacturer2s willingness to help and specific reports. .his list will change in the ne9t months with Castrol and ;ed 5ine adding products :ust for our cars. Break-in uses +elo G00 @0= )a break-in oil will be available from ;edline soon1, or Castrol B+-@0 if it was pro-duced before Jul 2006. =e have some old stock of Castrol B+-@0. Conventional oil is 8alvoline 8;-6 20=-C0 or Castrol /.M-20w-C0 if it was produced before Jul 2006. =e have some old stock. > nthetic oil is ;ed 5ine 60=-@0 in newer engines or 60=-G0 in older engines. Break-in is now @$000 miles before changeover to running oil. 6- ear or 67$000 mile oil change interval with ;ed 5ine s nthetic 6- ear or 2$C00 mile oil change interval with conventional oil )8alvoline 8;-6 20=-C0,. .hank ou to Castrol$ ;edline$ Christiansen <il$ 8alvoline$ Mobil$ >hell$ >tandard <il and #msoil for input. =e2re sure this sub:ect will continue! &lease forward an new information on this sub:ect that ou ma encounter. =e have received some ver interesting ma-terial from 3Mr Mol 3 that ma be putting mol bdenum disulfide )Mo>, into this discussion. 't seems that *++& plus Mo> is the best from the oil companies2 opinion but Mo> b itself ma be beneficial. >ome racers swear b it. .he literature seems to support 3Mr. Mol 2s3 position.

"If you're currently putting mileage on your classic vehicle and using the latest API grade SM oil, you are almost certainly doing irreversible damage to your engine. " - William C. Anderson - New Oils and Old Cars'Old Cars Weekl !" 'n November 2006$ ' published the first of the 3 Oil is Killing Our Cars3 articles and virtuall all ma:or engine builders and camshaft manufacturers are now admitting that we were right in condemning the new oils. .hese oils were causing at least FCI of cam failures ) #merican -ngine ;ebuilder2s #ssociation$ pg. 7$ Jan-Mar 2007 ,11 Now with ever one admitting the problem$ solutions are surfacing. =hat is this all aboutD 'n the middle 60F02s catal tic converters )cats, became mandator on most cars. B the middle of the 60702s it was noted that cats had a limited lifetime. =ith the addition of computer controlled fuel deliver $ o9 gen sensors were introduced into the e9haust s stem. >oon after this it was noted that one of the -9treme &ressure )-&, components of oil$ *++& )*ink-+ialk l-+ithio-&hosphate,$ caused deterioration of the o9 gen sensors and cats. .he auto manufacturers started to re-design engines so that the didn2t need much of this additive and b 200C all ma:or oil manufacturers started to reduce *++& in their oils with the goal of meeting at least 3>M3$ /%-G classification. Most engines designed before 6070 were with flat tappet construction and were designed around and had to have *++&. #s these 3old3 engines toda use onl a small percentage of the total lubrication oil consumed$ the removal of *++& did not affect the ma:orit of the oil market. <f the C00 million registered cars in the E.>. onl 60 million are older than 6077 )2I,. Most well known companies therefore choose not to help people who own older cars$ especiall those with flat tappets. .hose that are acknowledging our needs are limiting what is available and even what the offer ma not be sufficient. .he bottom line here is that if ou are not using a lubricating oil with at least the necessar amount of *++& our car was designed to use )flat tappet design or high performance hot rod, ou are damaging our engine. Bere2s the number we need! #round 6$600 ppm. with 2$000 ppm being about the highest concentration of *++& )*ink-+ialk l-+ithio-&hosphate,$ a minimum of around 6$@00 ppm. Most of toda 2s oils have reduced this chemical to near 6C0 )G00 to 700, ppm and in most cases it seems their goal is to reduce it further1 #nother point! *inc andNor &hosphate do not e4uate to protecting our engines. *++& is the compound that protects our engines. +on2t accept oils or additives that claim to have what we need if the give :ust (inc andNor phosphate numbers. +iffering *++& compounds have different temperature tolerance$ read the manufacturer2s literature1 .here seem to be onl two ma:or North #merican oil companies currentl producing products for us and the are Castrol )> ntec 20=-C0 in the black bottle with 3;ecommended for Classic Cars3 on the back, and 8alvoline )8;-6 20=-C0,$ both are about 6200 ppm or :ust at the minimum *++&. Joe /ibbs ;acing <il is now producing street oils that seem good for our engines and distribution of this product is :ust starting in North #merica )6600 ppm,. ;ed 5ine <il$ a smaller manufacturer on the =est Coast$ is available at man racing shops$ with 60=-G0. -astern >tates seem to be able to find Brad &enn <il$ >wepco and Bi*. &enrite <il in #ustralia. <ther small companies are starting to notice our problem and are bringing out new products. Now comes .he News1 .wo companies are now producing *++& additives that can be added to an oil1 ;ather than tr to find oils that might protect our cars$ ou can now add a pre-scribed amount of *++& to our oil of choice. .he more concentrated the additive the better. Be aware that the larger the dose of additive re4uired to reach 6$600 ppm$ the 3carrier3 in the additive will dilute our oil and reduce the oil2s designed lubrication abilities. %irst to come to market was a product called 3*dd&lus3. "irban &erformance$ the manufacturer$ has a web site www.*dd&lus.com that e9pands on what we have been learning over the last ear and their approach to solving our problem. .he are seemingl

careful not to suggest an brand of oil and claim their product should be compatible with an compan 2s products. .here is no new information on this website but it answers man 4uestions. .he market directl on-line or through dealers. 't comes in a G ounce bottle that is recommended to be added to G or C 4uarts of oil. .he second product is 3Cam->hield3. # person that has been in the lubrication business for man ears has developed this product and is a ver e9perienced lubrication formulator for some of the largest racing programs from road racing to off-road. .his product is ver concen-trated so it does not dilute our base oil. 't comes in a bottle that has a built-in measuring device so that ou can accuratel dispense the product based on how much oil and what ou need to add. .his compan markets through lo-cal dealers and on-line www.Cam->hield.com. .his compan also does not suggest an single brand of oil. 't comes in either G or 7 ounce bottles with a measuring device. <f these two additives$ 3Cam->hield3 is the most concentrated$ has two t pes of *++& for complete coverage$ comes in a bottle that makes it eas to administer the correct dosage and is lower in cost per treatment. <ther products that contain *++& are -<>$ .orco$ Crane$ CompCam and >.&. .hese are not specificall formulated for our cars and have limited use. >ome are specificall to be used onl during break-in. .here ma be others. >o we have a final answer1 =e can now know$ b adding the *++& that was mandated out of most oil$ that we are not internall wearing awa our engines at an accelerated rate b restoring the *++& that our engines were designed around. ' want to acknowledge and thank the comp-anies$ large and small$ and the individual people who have written and called me with input on this sub:ect from all over the world. Man were aware of this problem even before m first article was published. #ll these inputs are used and are appreciated. "eith M. #nsell - %oreign &arts &ositivel $ 'nc. www.%oreign&arts&ositivel .com 60000 N- 670th >treet$ Brush &rairie$ =ashington 07606