Diesel Engine Oils

If you look in your local telephone book under Mobile Technical Assistance or Mobil Lube-Line there will be a toll free 1800 number that you can get all the good oil about what to use etc. On many occassions they have saved our bacon and eggs in extreme situations.

Thanks for the reply - thats exactly what I did. I rang Mobil (as I have on several occasions) but they could not answer the question. But they did recomend that I use Delvac HP which I have done ever since.

Sean

Sean,
I would like to know the answer to this too, so far I have not found anyone who could answer the question.
I got a TD42T and the manual says the same thing.
I have been using CH4 oil for 120000kms so it must be OK...

Will

Sean....for what it may be worth.....I am often in Castrol's ear about oils. They are very good on PR....send them an email (from www.castrol.com.au) with your question and phone number and they will ring you back as soon as they have the information.
dp

Will,

I forgot to add that even Nissan cant tell me. You would think they would know since I presume they wrote the manual.

At any rate I suspect that its got to do the sulphur content of australian diesel. If this is true then that means that the oil specifications do not mean' latest is best' protection. It would mean that you are best to use the oil that suits the australian market including fuel composition because different oil specificatations evolve in part to suit evolving fuel /emission specifications that vary from country to country. Is there anyone that can confirm if I am on the right track or am I deluded.

Sean

Sean,
I found Shell Helix Diesel Super conforms to this specification and is not a silly price. Its hard to find an oil thatt fits the bill. Most seem to have the CG-4 rating. I think I saw somewhere that the reason could be that the old oils have a better soot retention factor or something like that. I'm just happy I've found oil which means I dont have to pay for Nissans over priced stuff .

I to have a nissan patrol 4.2td running a CH4 oil (Caltex delo 400) and have had no problems so far. I have change the oil at 5000 and a sample is sent away for testing each time an oil change happens, to date there has not being any bad results. I hope it stays that way.

I have a mate on Patrol list has just ticked over 520,000 on his GQ TD42 using Shell Rimula X from new..

Oil and filter every 5000klms.


Motor is still as good as day 1!

I am sliding down the 'J" curve.

http://tigereye.sabinet.co.za/za-lro/0008/msg00332.html

Is there something we should know with the looming low sulphur diesels coming mandatory



Sean.

Suddenly I get concerned. I've got a 100 series 4.2 Diesel and I've always stuck in CG4 oil. 120K on the clock. Should I change or have I damaged whatever it is that is bad about using this rated oil.

I have found that the synthetic oils with all the additives do not necessarily do a better job than the mineral oils. If you wish to pay extra for synthetic oils so be it, but I have found that the extra mileage between oil changes doesn't tend to be any cheaper in the long run if you are looking at the running life of a diesel engine.

Sean

I have been doing my own oil changes on my Patrol 3.0 TDI although several have been done at Sevo's when I have been on trips. Initially I used Penszoil Long Life API CH-4 because I checked out the technical guff from Pennszoil which said it could be used in place of API CD, CF, and CF-4 oils. I chose to use it because it came in convenient 10 ltr containers and was easly obtainable at the Auto parts stores in that size. Try finding CF and CF-4 in anything other than 5 or 20 ltr containers is almost impossible.

A guy wrote into the Fourbie Forum in the January 2003 issue Australian 4X4 mag saying that he had been told by Nissan that use of CH rated oil would lead to premature valve train failure. Something to do with the soot retention qualities of the lowerAPI number oils. I don't know if this is something to do with the standard of our fuels and perhaps this will change when the quality of our fuel meets Euro Standards.

According to my research on internet web sites CH-4 is the service catigory for high speed, four stroke diesel engines designed to meet 1998 exhaust emmission standards (USA). Ch-4 oils are specifically compounded for use with diesel fuels ranging in sulfur content up to 0.5% weight. The advice also says that it can be used in place of CD, CE, CF-4 and CG-4 oils!!!!!!

What it boils down to is that Nissan does not recommend any grade highter than the API CD, CF CF-4 grades for the 3.0ltr. It also makes it very clear not to use API CG-4 grade. When you look at the technical stuff on API CG-F grades it can also replace API - CD, CE and CF. Who knows.

To cut a long story short my vehicle is still under warranty. I immediatly drained and flushed the Pennzoil and am using Shell's Helix Diesel Super which is CF rated and reasonably priced. Shells Rimula X is also suitable but more expensive. There are others including Caltex Delo 500 and no doubt Mobiland some of the othershave the right API catyegory. I like to do my own oil changes and will have either buy a 20ltr drum or two X5 ltr containers in future.

It's also true that the recommended oil change period under normal running for the Patrol 3.0 TDI is 15000 km and Nissan has technical papers which support this. Shows you how much some of the dealers know, because when I bought mine the service people were telling me to change the oil every 5000 and the motor had ben out there for 12 months. I do mine every 10,000 because I have a fair bit of commuter driving between the off road trips.

Happy Patroling