Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

[driftwood47]

This fall I changed oil and was told to use 50 weight oil which I did but it seems to me that is too heavy. Any thoughts? I am in Virginia and will use it in the early spring (If spring ever gets here)

 

[Bondo]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

Sounds a Little Thick to Me....<br />I Think Merc recommends 30w......<br />I run 15w50 Mobil 1 .......

 

[crazy charlie]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

Who recommended 50wt oil????why Did they reco it?? because the motor was burning oil????As Bondo stated ,its pretty thick stuff.too thick for spring and fall,ok for july and august.Charlie

 

[johnkc]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

merc oil is 25w40 ,the acceptable sub according to the manual is straight 40w

 

[LubeDude]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

In my completely Biased opinion the best dino oil for this aplication would be Chevron Delo 400 15W-40. this is an HDDO (Heavy Duty Diesel Oil) this oil has a very high TBN rating and is as close to a synthetic as you can get without paying the price! If you want the best storage oil and best protection for your engine then Amsoils new Diesel Marine in the 15W-40 is you best choice! Full Synthetic!<br /><br />You really do not want a 50W oil! Im with Crazy Charlie on this one, Who told you that???

 

[driftwood47]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

I appreciate the info. The dealer reccomended the 50 weight. I haven,t run it yet and I think I'll drain it out and go for the lighter oils. I have always felt that with cars anyway that a light oil is best. This boat has to last me a long time.<br />Thanks guys.

 

[LubeDude]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

The 50W oil certainly isnt going to hurt your engine, you are going to at least have to warm it to drain it! <br /><br />Goes to show you that even some dealers dont have a clue!<br /><br />Still a lot of people that think thicker is better!

 

[Bhamil]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

Hey, Lube Dude; You sound like you know your stuff; you really think running that engine until it's warm won't hurt it? 50 wt just sounds plenty "heavy" to me, I guess I would be scared it wouldn't thin down enough to pump up to all the neato parts. But, you sound like a guy who would know; What kind of pump would he need to pull that "molasses" up through the dip stick hole?<br /><br />Driftwood, where in VA are you? I'm at the beach

 

[LubeDude]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

Was it a strsaight 50 weight? If 20W-50 it would be better, but if it starts, just let it Idle until it warms up, It will be fine for that amount of time!<br /><br />I have been involved in lubricants as a hobbie for near 30 years! Picked up a lot of information over the years. Now that the internet is hear it makes it that much easier!<br /><br />If you are interested here are a couple good sites to go to:<br /><br /> web page bobistheoilguy ?<br /><br /> web page more than you ever wanted to know about motor oil

 

[driftwood47]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

Ben Hamilton-I am in Waynesboro,Virginia and usually tow to either Norfolk or Lake Anna. I like Norfolk better because of the salt water and fishing is good there. Boat name is the CORINA LEE.

 

[MFG197]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

NAPA $1/qt sae 40

 

[LubeDude]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

WWYC na7:<br /><br />The NAPA oils are manufactured for them by Valvoline. There additive package is light in the first place and I doubt it to be any better in the oil they make for NAPA! <br /><br />The reason for the diesel oil is that it has a higher TBN (anti corrosion) rating than regular oils!<br /><br />NAPA, Not suitable for marine in my opinion!!

 

[MFG197]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

Thanks for the opinion...maybe i'll look into other oils.

 

[cobra 3.0]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

For my 3.0 OMC Cobra they say SAE 30. How does the Walmart SAE30 SL rated oil stand up?

 

[LubeDude]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

Cobra 3:<br /><br />Even though the manual says 30W, You will be fine with a 15W-40 in an HDDO (Heavy Duty Diesel oil), Chevron dello 400 would be a very good oil for this engine! Very high TBN (Anti corrosion and anti Acid) great for the time it sets! Change at intervals of 125 hrs. or one year!<br /><br />Why buy the cheepest oil you can find for a boat engine that works its tail off for you??

 

[cobra 3.0]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

I do not judge a product by price alone. If Walmart is a good oil, why pay through your nose? I can change the oil 5 times before I pay for the synthetic you are recommending.<br /><br />I used the Walmart oil for my 14 year old Jetta for years. When I sold it after over 300,000 kms, it still didn't drink a droplet of oil.

 

[LubeDude]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

The Dello 400 is not a synthetic, although Castrol might call it one! It is a Hydrocracked petrolium and is as close as you can get to a synthetic without paying synthetic price! You asked if the Super tech held up, Actually it holds up quite well for a cheep oil, and Im not surprised that you had good luck with it in your :car", I just think that the dello would be better for your boat, it also has a very high Zink content which is what makes racing oils shine!! I know for a fact that it will take the beating that a boat can put on an oil better than the wallyworld oil, and it is only about 50 cents a quart more.

 

[Bhamil]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

Lubedude; I have a question for you, asking strictly for your opinion. I believe there's no comparison between an engine used in an automotive environment and one used in a boat, and the biggest difference to me is sustained RPM's. Where a car's transmission shifts through the gears decreasing the engine's RPM's to somewhere between 1900 and 2600, a boat is barely making a wake at those RPM's. So, I'm of the opinion that what one does with a car is real nice but not to be confused with a boat engine. What's your take?

 

[cobra 3.0]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

Ben, I would also agree with that. However, my boat doesn't get used 1/10 of what my car does. And some four bangers do get reved quite a bit in cars, but nowhere as much as a boat engine for sustained periods of time.<br /><br />LubeDude, sounds great! 50 cents isn't much!

 

[LubeDude]

Re: Engine oil question Mercruiser 3.0

Ben Hamilton:<br /><br />Thats exactly what Ive tried to explain, quess Im not getting my point accross very good. Hmmmm<br /><br />Boats beat the cr*p out of oil, thats why I have always said that you need to use an oil with the highest amount of aditives you can find! Thats why I always reccomend HDDOs (Diesel oils), or synthetics! thats why I just told Cobra 3.0 not to use the wally world oil in his boat but that it was probably OK in his car! Use high quality oil and change it at 100-125 hrs of use unless you want to do an analysis on it and you can go farther with the right synthetics!