150 Johnson VRO ?

[fishcrazy101]

Just curious if it makes any difference what kind of oil you should use. Is it necessary to use Johnson/Evinrude product or is any brand as good.And if you change brands do you need to avoid mixing them or just pore the new in the tank? Main reason Im asking is someone said that they had experiences where their OMC motors had been sensitive to the type of oil that you put in them. So Im going to try some pinnzoil as they suggested and see if it makes any difference. His take was that he couldnt slow troll with certain oils as they made the motor slow speed operation poor. I have been using Johnson/
Evinrude oil.

I also feel like this thing is really sucking down some oil. Its just a feeling as I have not particularly scrutinized the usage. Is there any adjustment on the mixing or can they get out of adjustment and pour more oil in than they should. Have heard many say they would disconnect the pump and just premix it. I dont think I wan tto do that but want ot make sure this is mixing properly. I do have low oil and no oil lights on the dash and have no problem indications but was curious if there is required maintenance on these.

THANKS FOR ADVICE.

 

[JB]

Re: 150 Johnson VRO ?

You can use any TC-W3 certified outboard oil, crazy. Some folks imagine that they run better on one brand or another but there is no reliable evidence to support those claims.

You can believe this: Synthetic and synthetic blend oils will make less smoke, less carbon and less pollution, but at greater cost than petroleum based oils.

Outboard oil with engine maker brands on it is simply repackaged and repriced oil made by an oil company. You pay a lot extra for the name on the bottle.

 

[fishcrazy101]

Re: 150 Johnson VRO ?

Thanks for the info JB!
being a novice to outboards I am proceeding cautiously. Probably too much so but its my nature to know before I jump. I suppose that this would imply that there is no problem in mixing various brands tht are TC-W3 certified.

Still interested to hear from other Johnson owners about their experience with the motor's sensitivity to oil type.

 

[riptide09]

Re: 150 Johnson VRO ?

My Johnson has never had any issues with different brands/types of oil. Some produce more smoke than others. I usually use the Johnson/Evinrude XD50 which is a synthetic blend. In the past I have used the non-synthetic Johnson/Evinrude, synthetic blend Penzoil and I even used some Mercury branded stuff.

 

[fishcrazy101]

Re: 150 Johnson VRO ?

well I couldnt resist when I saw Pennzoil on the shelf at Sams club for $6 and change a gal. They are giving that stuff away. Its a synthet blend. Someone told me they liked it in their Johnson.

 

[Fed]

Re: 150 Johnson VRO ?

If you think you're using too much oil check out your fuel system for air leaks. There's a good article about VROs at http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/VRO.html
You could also measure your fuel & oil usage and do the sums.

 

[charliealley]

Re: 150 Johnson VRO ?

I have been using Penzoil for years with no problems. however I feel strongly like many others here, throw that VRO pump as far as you can, premixing will cut so many problems and may well save you an engine someday. One other thing, mixing oil brands generally is not a problem however it is not a good idea to mix synthetics with conventional oil. Charlie

 

[fishcrazy101]

Re: 150 Johnson VRO ?

Fed that is a good article you posted. Seems that there is no adjustment to the system only some maintenance work which I guess I should do. Cleaning the oil reservoir and filter. Anyone ever do this? I didnt know it had a filter and where is it? On the tank? I really dont know about how you disconnect the VRO. What do you do just plug off the oil intake and just strt premixing? Seems like you would need to drain the fuel out of the line also or you would be running for a brief while on raw gas. I wonder if your vro pump quits how much time you have to shut it down before you incur damage? That warning signal is generated right in the VRO pump itself and doesnt look like there would be much time to react.