I have never had any engine problems with any of my cars, Rover included.

 

I had a camshaft fail at 45k using (dealer recommended) Castrol Syntec 5w30.

Please look that up for me.

 

Dave it looks like that oil has had several recipes. But it has been as low as 600 ppm that would say don't run it to me. The only syntech oil that has 1300 ppm is the 20-50w I would stay away if it was me.

 

Thanks BH, I was dubious of that thin of oil but at the time I trusted the dealer to know what was right as I was under warranty. That camshaft failure happened shortly after the extended warranty ended. At which point I found this forum and a good indy mechanic.

My new camshaft has never seen that oil and my Rover has not seen the inside of a dealership since.

 

I don't think the weight of the oil is to blame just the composition. Try a google search for bob the oil guy. There is a ton of knowledge to be learned there

 

The D2 manual says 5W30, but that is IF your local temp is under 95F. Since the temp under the hood is seldom under 95F, I'd trend toward the 10W40 or better. Rover does not spec a 5W30 or 10W30 oil for above 95F.

The D1 manual says 20W50 can be used, just not advised below 32F.

With many of us operating older Discos with high miles, the thicker oil has a space to fill. Of course, if you follow the factory change interval, skipped every time the stock market fluctuates (leased vehicles are not always serviced when they should be, nor are those owned by people with real world money problems). Iffy Lube wants to put in the whatever, so be specific if you want engine to last longer. Change early and often so the innards don't look like some of these. Castrol and Rotella at 190K ish, then some that did not. Reddish one is dealer change intervals at just under 50K. Oil change is one of the cheapest things you can do for your truck. Now the exotic 25,000 mile oil changes - sorry, Rover is not built to those kinds of tolerances, 5000 is more like the max. It might last 25,000 - but if it gets dirty from wading, etc., then you'll be driving 20,000 miles on puke oil and thinking everything is just great. There is one spot in the Rover manual that says oil may have to be changed daily in arduous dust conditions.

Oil changes are just like voting in Chicago - do it early and often.

 

i agree with frequent oil changes and useing proper oil. and the idea that someone would not check thier oil for 25k after wading is silly they deserve to lose a engine. my big goal with this thread was to find out if people are experiancing sensor failures extremely early due to very high levels of additive. i also am hoping to learn how much is too much as well as what oils are associated with failure of camshafts. if i was looking for oil for the buick in my old jeep with a carb i would totaly have some high additive oil and add a extra botel of additive like gm and ford sell for thier old cars. so everyone chime in here lets see what we all can learn

 

Rotella is high in zddp, and it's what most of us run. I don't think our o2 sensors or cats get replaced more often than usual.

Meanwhile zddp is proven to be good for bearings and camshafts.

I'm probly gonna switch to Amsoil 10w-40 Premium Protection (AMO). It still has tons of detergent but a higher tbn and is a true full synthetic. I also think the Rotella 15w is a little thick, and the 5w is a little thin. When I switched from Mobil 1 to Amsoil in my Corvette, it sounded like a different engine. I'll be curious to hear the difference in my Disco.

 

[QUOTE=dr. mordo;385338

I'm probly gonna switch to Amsoil 10w-40 Premium Protection (AMO). It still has tons of detergent but a higher tbn and is a true full synthetic. I also think the Rotella 15w is a little thick, and the 5w is a little thin. When I switched from Mobil 1 to Amsoil in my Corvette, it sounded like a different engine. I'll be curious to hear the difference in my Disco.[/QUOTE]

See, you're going to be wasting money on the Amsoil unless you are going to go 25,000 miles between oil changes.
Your engine will not last any longer using Amsoil vs. Rotella.
If you think "5" is to thin and "15" is to thick then you need a "10", but in all reality the difference between them is minimal.

 

At some point I saw a uoa over at bitog showing increased wear in a disco running 15w-40. Blackstone said the thick oil probly wasn't flowing enough at start, so things were wearing until the oil was warm and flowing freely. So while the difference between 15w and 5w may be slight, it does affect engine wear.

I've been unimpressed with 5w oils in every vehicle I've run them in. The valve train always sounds much noisier to my ears. Also, running a 5w oil in these ancient engines seems way too thin. I want oil that's thin enough to flow when cold, but still thick enough to lubricate these engines.

I'm not saying Rotella is bad oil at all. I've used it for several years in various vehicles. I just want a full synth oil that's 10w-40 and has all the zddp and detergents Rotella has.

I'm actually thinking I may use the Amsoil XL 10w-40, which is about the same price as Rotella T6.

Oil choice is certainly very personal. I don't mind spending a bit more to hear a smooth running engine.