[Vwdiesel] Oil stuff

[Tyson Cragg]

I had to go out yesterday and start a couple of GM 292 inline-6 equipped UPS
trucks after they had sat outside all night at    -26C.  We run an "all
fleet" 15W40 oil in every piece of power equipment we own.  So whether it's
gas or diesel, it all gets the same molasses-like oil.  Most of our fleet
either has the benefit of being plugged in at night (tractors and straight
trucks) or being parked inside a heated building all night (package cars).
But the "spare" trucks that no one loves are cruelly left outside overnight.
As you can imagine, the pour point of 15W40 dino oil is probably in the -15
range, meaning that at -25, it has the consistency of firm jello.  After
start-up, I had NO reading on the oil pressure gauge for at least five
minutes.  As well, you could hear a knocking sound that reminded me of
someone hitting the engine with a hammer.  Obviously, not a lot of
lubrication going on in these motors until several minutes after they are
started.  We buy all of our oil in bulk, and there is no changeover from
winter to summer.

Tyson K. Cragg
1985 Jetta Diesel
1996 Passat TDI Wagon
2002 Cabrio GLX
"DSL LVR"
----- Original Message -----
From: "James Hansen" <jhsg at sk.sympatico.ca>
To: "Vwdiesel" <vwdiesel at audifans.com>
Sent: Friday, February 14, 2003 11:38 PM
Subject: [Vwdiesel] Oil stuff


> The biggest factor in starting a really cold engine is the pour point.
This
> dictates how soon after startup you get oil pressure. Cold viscosity
rating
> is a factor, but different oils having the same viscosity rating can have
> differing pour points.  The molecular structure changes more or less
rapidly
> for a given change in temperature.  For instance, the 0-40 synth I use in
> winter, has a pour point of -48C which gets oil pressure up faster, and
does
> more for engine longevity in the long run.  Note, the Amsoil 20-50 has a
> pour point of -38F, which isn't quite good enough for here, but
impressive.
> The Vaseline, uh, I mean Valvoline has the same 20-50 rating but a pour
> point of -10.  You would be staring at a red oil light for a long time
when
> you first started your car around here. The redline has a pour point
of -49
> for a 20-50 oil.  WOW.  That would work here just fine.
>