1970s Ford V8 oil recommendation please ?

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carfan

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Hi all,

Looking for oil recommendation ,I'm in Ireland so don't have all the options available in US

Temperature 20F - 80F approx ,not too hot or cold !

My local shop has Valvoline durablend 10w 40 synthetic/mineral blend ;

http://www.valvolineeurope.com/english/products/engine_oils/durablend/cid(619)

opinion on viscosity & zddp level for the cars below ?

1971 Ford Torino 351 cleveland completely rebuilt with roller tappets I believe
1972 Ford Mustang 351 cleveland 50k miles never been opened
1960 Chevrolet 348 90k miles stock

currently using Miller classic performance mineral oil 20/50 which has high zddp level ,I'm
thinking it may be a bit on the heavy side for good startup lubrication.


Thanks in advance for advice
 
Back then the old man used straight 30w. I guess those older engines weren't as fussy.

Then around 1974 he bought a brand new, baby blue gran Torino station wagon with a 3 speed on the column, vinyl floor covering, vinyl seats, seat belts, am fm radio and heat. My uncle was a Ford Rep for the big truck division and he switched us to 10w 30. Saying these "new" engines require a range for winter and summer.

We switched everything over to 10-30 55 gallon drum from the texaco oil man. never had any problems and we ran all those engines until they needed rebuilt usually around 100K. we always had 8 to 10 engines to service we had a farm, we did all our own work. I remember in the 60's Sears used to sell short blocks then we would buy them from or local NAPA store. Those were the days I was a kid and we were there so much the NAPA guy knew me by name.
fordgrantorino1972blaul.jpg
 
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That Valvoline Durablend should work fine in everything you have. If you can get Mobil 1, either 15W-50 or 0W-40 would be great. Even the M1 10W-40 HM would suffice.
 
Sweet Torino wagon!

Yeah I would stick with a 10W30. They just dont seem to mind much what's in them. Compared to modern clearances and tolerances, these "big dumb animals" just run on whatever.

I also have a 50 Gallon drum of Pure branded 30W from the 60s that I have periodically run in cars from that vintage and they just don't care.
 
Originally Posted By: jayg
Sweet Torino wagon!

Yeah I would stick with a 10W30. They just dont seem to mind much what's in them. Compared to modern clearances and tolerances, these "big dumb animals" just run on whatever.

I also have a 50 Gallon drum of Pure branded 30W from the 60s that I have periodically run in cars from that vintage and they just don't care.


Your using oil that has been sitting almost 50 yrs ?
 
Originally Posted By: heyu
Originally Posted By: jayg
Sweet Torino wagon!

Yeah I would stick with a 10W30. They just dont seem to mind much what's in them. Compared to modern clearances and tolerances, these "big dumb animals" just run on whatever.

I also have a 50 Gallon drum of Pure branded 30W from the 60s that I have periodically run in cars from that vintage and they just don't care.


Your using oil that has been sitting almost 50 yrs ?


Yeah in a cool dry place. Its all liquid amber with no seperation and I've never had a wear related issue in the 4 years I've been doing it in my old cars and lawn mowers. I use modern oil in my modern cars.
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: jayg
Originally Posted By: heyu
Originally Posted By: jayg
Sweet Torino wagon!

Yeah I would stick with a 10W30. They just dont seem to mind much what's in them. Compared to modern clearances and tolerances, these "big dumb animals" just run on whatever.

I also have a 50 Gallon drum of Pure branded 30W from the 60s that I have periodically run in cars from that vintage and they just don't care.


Your using oil that has been sitting almost 50 yrs ?




Yeah in a cool dry place. Its all liquid amber with no seperation and I've never had a wear related issue in the 4 years I've been doing it in my old cars and lawn mowers. I use modern oil in my modern cars.



Interesting ,Thanks for verifying that
 
First off I would like to say, Nice stable of cars. Second, I think a good 10w30 should work good. To be on the safe side. Try to run something with alittle more ZDDP in it.

GHOSTFLAME...Nice wagon. I remember them there cars. My dad worked at a Ford dealership as a mechanic and would bring home cars like that...NICE
 
i had a 72 ford torino. bought it when it was 2 years old. 351 windsor engine. used 10-40 castrol oil back then 4 quart fill after change, every 3000 miles. 10/40 was factory spec back then.
 
Originally Posted By: GhostFlame
Back then the old man used straight 30w. I guess those older engines weren't as fussy.

Then around 1974 he bought a brand new, baby blue gran Torino station wagon with a 3 speed on the column, vinyl floor covering, vinyl seats, seat belts, am fm radio and heat. My uncle was a Ford Rep for the big truck division and he switched us to 10w 30. Saying these "new" engines require a range for winter and summer.

We switched everything over to 10-30 55 gallon drum from the texaco oil man. never had any problems and we ran all those engines until they needed rebuilt usually around 100K. we always had 8 to 10 engines to service we had a farm, we did all our own work. I remember in the 60's Sears used to sell short blocks then we would buy them from or local NAPA store. Those were the days I was a kid and we were there so much the NAPA guy knew me by name.
fordgrantorino1972blaul.jpg




That's a 1972, beginning '73 they got the Fed mandated "snowplow" bumpers...

I use QS Defy 10W-40 in both my '69 428CJ Fairlane and my '72 Mercury Comet...
 
As others have noted; a Heavy Duty Engine Oil (HDEO) in 15W-40 (such as Rotella or Delo) or Quaker State Defy in 10W-40 would serve those engines well. I had a 1969 Mach I with a 4V Boss 1970 351C engine in it and a 1972 Gran Torino Sport with a 2V 351C and I used 10W-40 in both of them and they ran to about 150K before needing rebuilds (typical for carburetor engines of that era).
 
I realize that I mentioned M1 0w-40 and then didn't give a reason why.

Any engine, old or new, can benefit from the advantages of a modern lubricant formulation like this one with its relatively high VI, excellent low-temp performance and strong anti-wear package. Simply because the engine is old doesn't mean it needs to run an "old school" lubricant. I've used M1 0w-40 extensively in older Ford Windsor engines and wouldn't hesitate to use it in a Cleveland either.
 
1960's and 1970's Ford V-8's were tough, and not fussy engines.

Dad had a 1967 Mustang 289 he drove HARD from 1970 to 1978. It probably got basic 10W-30 or 10W-40 oil changes of the time, and AFAIK it never had engine problems right to about 150k miles.
 
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