Oil Rec for Street Driven & Track Usage

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Hey all. I drive my AP1 Honda S2000 about 2-3k miles per year on the street. I am competitive in autocross (~10 events) and run a 3-4 track days a year in the car. On track days I typuically see the oil temperatures around 260F, sometimes above 280F. Currently I am running 4qt Mobil 1 0w-40 and 1 qt Mobil 1 15w-50. My oil pressure is just a few PSI below the service manual values at idle and 3,000 RPM at 176F oil temp. I am 33 PSI at idle, specification is 36 PSI. I am 83 PSI at 3,000 RPM, specification is 85 PSI. I obviously have an oil pressure and temperature gauge. The engine has 137k miles on it and many many sessions of track days and autocross. Despite all this, the engine burns very little oil, which is surpising for a F20C that gets a frequent workout and is higher mileage. I race with some of the HART guys (Honda of America Racing Team), and the engineering team recommends Redline oils and run them in all of their cars. I want to hear what BITOG thinks!

What oil and filter do you recommend for this type of application & vehicle?
 
If I were tracking my car and had access to factory-affiliated people who tracked the same car, I'd follow their recommendations to the letter.
 
I use Red Line in my S2000 and NSX (and SC400) for daily+track usage. I would also use Mobil 1 0W-40 comfortably. I've posted a UOA or from my NSX somewhere in here, but the short version is the oil looked fine (not that a UOA is conclusive or perhaps even useful).
 
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Redline 5w30 has an HTHS of 3.7, and M1 0w40 has HTHS of 3.6. And you are spiking the 0w40 with M1 15w50, which has HTHS of 4.4. As a rough estimate, the HTHS of the blend you are running would be 0.8x3.6 + 0.2x4.4 = 3.76. Honda's viscosity recommendation for the S2000 was 10w30, and it's rare for them to exceed 3.5 HTHS. I think the oil you are running is fine for HTHS, but would be more shear-prone than Redline 5w30.

I think your' on-track oil temperatures of 260-280F are fine, especially since you're running good quality synthetic. I have seen 315F in my Corvette running Redline 5w30, and it's fine.
 
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Well ironically the HART team had an engine failure in their S2000 today at an event... they were running Redline 30wt race oil. Thrust bearing on the crankshaft is suspected to have grenades.

I got a full track weekend coming up where I'm going to be pushing the car hard. I picked up a 5qt jug of Mobil 1 15w-50 from Walmart. 4.4 HT/HS with bumped up ZDDP. I'll toss it in and see how it runs. Not changing the oil filter in there is only 1200 miles on it.
 
Wow! Following, also an s2000 owner.

Maybe you should try a good quality 10w40? I think 15w50 is too thick.

Look at redline 10w40, motul chrono 300v, penrite racing.
 
Originally Posted by DV0993

Look at redline 10w40, motul chrono 300v, penrite racing.


Yup, this but dont be afraid of 5w30 redline either, and we also found out that 5w40 redline would be a great way to go as opposed to 0w40 or 10w40. cSt on 5w40 is actually better (higher) then 10w40 but you give up zero in noack and hths. The working theory developed by some guys running the 6.4 hemi's is that redline uses a different base oil for the 5 winter rated oils, same holds true for their 30 weights, even better hths when compared their 5w30 to their 10w30. So the entire use a 10 or 15 rated oil for better protection, doesn't hold true with this particular brand, and it goes way beyond the stat sheet but into uoa's and peronal experiences of many guys that have no horse in the race. Overwhelmingly they are chosing 5 winter rated redline against any other formula in that brand.

But all 3 of these oils are good choice, don't get much better then those. If you are track racing I'd also be doing uoa's anyhow if you are then driving it on the street.
 
Originally Posted by burla
Originally Posted by DV0993

Look at redline 10w40, motul chrono 300v, penrite racing.


Yup, this but dont be afraid of 5w30 redline either, and we also found out that 5w40 redline would be a great way to go as opposed to 0w40 or 10w40. cSt on 5w40 is actually better (higher) then 10w40 but you give up zero in noack and hths. The working theory developed by some guys running the 6.4 hemi's is that redline uses a different base oil for the 5 winter rated oils, same holds true for their 30 weights, even better hths when compared their 5w30 to their 10w30. So the entire use a 10 or 15 rated oil for better protection, doesn't hold true with this particular brand, and it goes way beyond the stat sheet but into uoa's and peronal experiences of many guys that have no horse in the race. Overwhelmingly they are chosing 5 winter rated redline against any other formula in that brand.

But all 3 of these oils are good choice, don't get much better then those. If you are track racing I'd also be doing uoa's anyhow if you are then driving it on the street.


Redline 5w-40 was my first choice actually, the cost scared me away though, at least this oil change. I tried 5w-30 and the pressure was just slightly lower than what I have now. Makes sense since the HTHS values are close. I'll have the pressure values of the 15w-5 tonight. Then probably try the Redline 5w-40 at the end of the season before winter storage.
 
I'd look into Nick @ gotexhaust for pricing, it's like drop ship and he sells it so cheap I can't say. He doesn't post prices they are so low, so PM him and inquire if you wish. Usually free ship with 1/2 decent order, I dunno make it a huned or so. There is nobody that everyday price is cheaper, much lower then posted on redline's site. Everyone on the hemi forum uses this guy and posts their satisfaction. Just clarify that you want and only will order the high performance, the only times there have been issues were when people assumed redline only has one lineup, they have 3 plus in many lineups. He still made those right, but just to clarify high performance blue label not the new junk.
 
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Hi, nice to see your post. I bought your Accord in 2014. It went to southern illinois last year.

It's pretty rare for an F20c to not burn substantial amount of oil so you've already found a winner. Considering M1 0W-40 is one of the most developed oils in the world and has endurance racing pedigree, I'd continue using it with the 15W-50 without giving it another thought.
 
Update. Drained the oil (left the filter on) and refilled with M1 15w-50. Oil pressure is only a little higher, not as much as I was expecting.

Reading the Nissan GTR owners manual they recommend changing the oil if it exceeds 266F on a track. I pretty sure I exceeded that on my last track day and may explain why my pressure dropped a little after (shear). Comforting with fresh oil.

With the high kick of ZDDP and slightly higher oil pressure I'm happy with it so far.
 
Ran the 15w-50 all weekend. Had 8 sessions on track pushing the car pretty hard. Most sessions were about 15 minutes long. Back straight sees nice sustained WOT from ~70mph to 120mph, then HARD on the brakes into a 60mph sweeper.

The 15w-50 was a favorite of the Chevy guys. It seemed like anyone with a new LT engine was running it, even some newer model Porsche folks.

Ambient temps were 85F and sunny. Car saw 280F+ on every session. Burned about 1/2qt of oil during the weekend. No issues. Looking forward to a UOA this fall.
 
Originally Posted by randomhero439
Ran the 15w-50 all weekend. Had 8 sessions on track pushing the car pretty hard. Most sessions were about 15 minutes long. Back straight sees nice sustained WOT from ~70mph to 120mph, then HARD on the brakes into a 60mph sweeper.

The 15w-50 was a favorite of the Chevy guys. It seemed like anyone with a new LT engine was running it, even some newer model Porsche folks.

Ambient temps were 85F and sunny. Car saw 280F+ on every session. Burned about 1/2qt of oil during the weekend. No issues. Looking forward to a UOA this fall.


Thanks for the update!

Have you upgraded your banjo bolts?
 
Banjo bolts are original. Probably not gonna upgrade them unless I pull the pan and install a windage baffle too. That seems necessary if I use tires below 200 treadwear.
 
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