Older aircooled VW Beetle, flat tappet

Joined
Feb 27, 2010
Messages
9
Location
High Desert, CA
Hello, I am interested in some good synthetic oil for my freshly rebuilt stroker 1400cc VW Beetle motor. I am going to be running it a tad lean so the heat will be there. I believe it is a flat tappet system, although the lifters (I am running hydraulic) don't seem to be completely flat. I am running a custom short duration high lift cam and forged connecting rods, but I am not building this motor for power, rather for gas mileage. I am honestly not thrilled with conventional oil due to the temperatures happening in even a normally operating aircooled engine. I am leaning towards Royal Purple based on my friends' experiences with it. Any advice is appreciated.
 
Rotella T6 5W-40 would be a good choice.
Would not recommend a straight 30wt oil, besides you want to run a synthetic.

If you have your heart set on RP then you could go with their PCMO 5W-40 although it's ZDDP level may be lower than you'd like. I don't know if they have a HDEO version.
 
Rotella T5 10w-30? Redline 5w-30? Valvoline VR1 whateverw-30?

Mobil 0w-40?

There are many possibilities, few of which will likely keep that engine alive longer than another.
 
Count me on the straight 30 wt side. Around 2008, there was a guy called Barkerman from California on this forum.

He had a Datsun 510 with over 500,000 miles on it using Delo straight 30. After the first 300,000 miles, he started using Delo straight 40 wt.

I guess you don't have to have a 5W or 10W for start ups in hot California weather to have a long engine life. Go run that straight wt - and don't look back!
 
I ran only Shell Rotella or Caltex Delo oils in the my VW Bug for the 30 years I owned it. I overhauled it (my labor) only thrice in those 30 years till I sold it to make way in my garage for a Honda. Those oils are very good, change every 2500 miles if you don't have an aftermarket oil filter in it.
 
Originally Posted By: CATERHAM
If you have your heart set on RP then you could go with their PCMO 5W-40 although it's ZDDP level may be lower than you'd like. I don't know if they have a HDEO version.


They do. The 5w-40 should be okay for ZDDP, but they also have the new HPS line, which appears to be like the old regular line in that it has more ZDDP than the SN/GF-5 limitations that it's new API spec line face. They also have 10w-40, 15w-40 HDEO, and 20w-50.
 
Tappets are NOT flat. They are slightly convex so they turn and wear more evenly. [They end up flat or concave, though!]

Forged rods? A total waste for your needs.

Stock VWs like this have no oil filter. And they have a small sump. So SHORT OCIs are required. Like not over 2k.

I'd use a dino - It'll be just fine for those low miles.
If the engine is put together right, I'd use a 5-30 or 10-30.
You DID say fuel economy was what you are after.
 
A 1400cc is a stroker?

What mm piston/cylinder are you using? 69mm crank?

Make sure the oil cooler bypass is working to prevent the oil cooler from blowing out. If this valve jams open you will not get your oil cooled. Gotta be sure it's working.

Also, Im sure you are using an oil filter, but if not, there are oil pump covers available with an outlet pipe, which allows an oil filter to be added.

I used to work in a foreign car parts store that had a full line of VW perfomance parts and a machine shop back when I was in college. Pretty interesing stuff. That was 30 years ago, Im guessing VW engine building is becoming a lost art nowdays.
 
Hi, what's your bore and stroke combination to obtain 1400cc? Are you working with a 40hp, 1200? That's fine, but what does the cam grinder recommend? I don't know of any vw cam grinder that will stand behind their product if a synthetic is used for initial break-in. Even the local trans builders here in SoCal don't like the use of syn gear oils. I know some things are hard to change.
There has been an article or two by HotVW's on high mileage motors over the last decade or so. Not a very "news worthy" subject for them, as advertising $$ dictates magazine subJect matter.
Personally, I built a budget 1600cc engine for my '71 bus 2 years ago and had Web Cams regrind the stock cam/lifters and with there blessing used Shell Rotella 30wt for initial break-in and now using the old school Rotell 15w-40, ci-4+, with a 7qt capacity. Its been a good engine so far.
I'm thinking that if you want to run a syn oil in a custom hi mpg motor, attention to detail is paramount. Things such as vw's small oem 21mm oil pump, tighter bearing clearances than the normal vw machining, and your thin 30wt syn oil.
Please keep us posted. Also you have heard of the two popular vw sites, "thesamba" and "shoptalkforums", haven't you?
Bill
 
Originally Posted By: tundrawolf
Hello, I am interested in some good synthetic oil for my freshly rebuilt stroker 1400cc VW Beetle motor. I am going to be running it a tad lean so the heat will be there. I believe it is a flat tappet system, although the lifters (I am running hydraulic) don't seem to be completely flat. I am running a custom short duration high lift cam and forged connecting rods, but I am not building this motor for power, rather for gas mileage. I am honestly not thrilled with conventional oil due to the temperatures happening in even a normally operating aircooled engine. I am leaning towards Royal Purple based on my friends' experiences with it. Any advice is appreciated.


tundrawolf,

Since you and I live in the same region my personal pick for you would be a synthetic of your choice in the 10W-30 bracket.

I don't know anything about Royal Purple oil but for that kinda of money I'd just get Mobil 1 standard or the extended version if your wallet is fat.

Durango
 
Originally Posted By: Jeff_in_VABch
A 1400cc is a stroker?

What mm piston/cylinder are you using? 69mm crank?


64mm crank (1200 engine) x 83mm pistons (1500 engine) = 1385cc

But it isn't a stroker!

77mm pistons (1200 & 1300 engines) x 74mm crank = 1378cc or x 76mm crank = 1415cc
 
That depends on what oil pump is in your engine. A stock VW aircooled engine will hold around 30 psi at speed and around 10 psi at idle. I had 65 VW that I rebuilt with a bigger cam, big bore kit and two barrel carb with a high volume pump which ran around 20 at idle and around 50psi at speed with either SAE 30 or 20W-50 in Southern California. I remember that I played with the pressure relief valve to lower the pressure with the bigger pump because the pressure was in the 65 psi range at speed and I didn't want it that high.
 
Back
Top