synthetic oil

[greenthumb]

I was not sure if this should go in the oil thread or new holland. I asked my wife to pick up some 10w-30 oil at the store as it is time for the 200 hour change. that is all I told her and she picked up castrol synthetic blend. Can I use that in a tc 40? I have never used synthetic oil and not sure the differnce, call me old school.

 

[JerryG]

GT,
I don't think that it is a diesel rated oil. Look at the back of the bottle to see what the ratings are.

 

[CT_Tree_Guy]

GreenThumb -

I agree with Jerry that the Castrol probably isn't formulated for diesels. As for finding a diesel-rated oil in 10w-30, it seems to be an ongoing mystery why tractor manufacturers specify that weight, yet it is largely unavailable in a conventional (non-synthetic) diesel-rated oil.

This is what I did with my tractor, which is not to say that it's what you should do with yours: I used a good, high-quality (Mobil Delvac 1200) conventional 15W-40 (probably the most common weight in a diesel oil) for the first 400 hours (to let the engine break in), then switched to a 10W-30 synthetic (Amsoil, but I think Redline and Royal purple are just as good if not even better, and a lot of people like Mobil-1 and others).

There are many other good conventional diesel oils - Delo, Rotella, Pennzoil, Amalie, Valvoline, many others - they'll all get you down the road - just make sure it says it's formulated for diesel use, although I think just about every 15W-40 oil is.

At the risk of starting an oil war, I just wanted to say that I went with a synthethic (after break-in) for my tractor because it works pretty hard and doesn't require all that much oil; synthetics allow it to start easier and protect better in cold weather (at least at start-up); and I'm convinced the engine will just plain last longer. To me, the cost/benefit analysis tips in favor of synthetics in my particular application; others come to different conclusions, and that's fine by me.

Good luck, John

 

[JerryG]

The oil that I would suggest is Mobil Truck and SUV or what ever the name is that they just changed it to. It is the same as Mobil Delvac which is a heavy duty diesel oil.

 

[djradz]

fyi, I started using Rotella Synthetic in the 5w-40 version a couple of years ago when Walmart began selling it for around $18/gal. Recently I see they dropped the price to something less than $15. I'll be sticking with that for a long time at those prices.

 

[Bob_Bullock]

I went with Amsoil through out my tractor after break in. I am really impressed by the hydraulic oil. The whining sound it made in the winter was driving me crazy.

I think if you spend the money we did on these machines, a few dollars extra to go synthetic is well worth it. I have a 1998 Nissan Pathfinder with 156,000 miles on it. About 125k the transmission was shifting harder in cold weather. Put Amsoil in and it was like new. I am sold on the stuff.

No, I am not an Amsoil salesman. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[CT_Tree_Guy]

Good info Bob, thanks.

Say, what were you using for hydraulic fluid before the switch to synthetic? I've always used Super UDT; is that what you were using before, or was it regular UDT? Just wondering if I'm missing out on something (which I probably am, since I recently found out Super UDT isn't a synthetic). Which weight of Amsoil hydraulic did you go with - is that a 5w-40?

Couldn't agree with you more about giving our machines all the help they can get, especially in cold weather. One of the few Kubota hydro failures I've read about on this board involved regular UDT and cold temperatures.

Best regards, John

 

[droy]

Want to give you all a "heads up" on something that happened recently. In 2000, I bought a 1998 Dodge p/u with the Cummins diesel. Previous owner used Shell Rotella, so I continued to use it. In 2003 I bought a used eighteen wheeler with a Caterpillar engine, previous owner used Mobil Delvac 1200, so I continued. About 8 mos. ago, I figured I'd just use the Delvac in everything, diesel oil is diesel oil, right ? The pickup that formerly used Rotella, began to completely lose oil pressure at an idle. (150,000 mi.). When I consulted with a mechanic friend, the first thing he asked is if I had swtiched oils. Long story short, the Delvac loosened the sludge in the engine, partially plugging the oil pump screen. Cleaned out the screen, swtiched back to Rotella, no more problems, so far, but now I'm kinda worried about the problem re-ocurring, am not comfortable with my truck.

 

[CT_Tree_Guy]

droy -

Man, it's never simple is it? Just a thought - if the Delvac dissolved the sludge that the Rotella allowed to build up, maybe just stick with your plan to use Delvac in everything? Now that the sludge has been loosened up and hopefully flushed out, maybe it won't be a problem any more, and the Delvac will do a better job of keeping the engine clean.

I've heard that it's common to get a bunch of crud loosened up after switching to synthetics, but I hadn't heard that about
the Delvac - sounds like maybe a good reason to use it?

Just something to think about -

John

 

[djradz]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( since I recently found out Super UDT isn't a synthetic )</font>

What? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif Are you sure? From all the posts on the Oil forum, I was pretty sure it was. I was just about to pull the trigger on picking up about 12 gallons. I'd looked at Amsoil's 5w-30 synthetic, but with shipping it was getting right up there in price unless you bought a 30 or 55 gal drum, but then you had to be there for the delivery and have the equipment to get it off the truck.