Going through my 1985 400i finally... Managed to get all 12 cylinders running after getting the cams in time again. Replaced all injector seals and swaybar and transmission bushings... Turned rotors, new pads, caliper paint for looks and flushed brake fluid. Now on for the rest. Any recomendations on supplier for all suspension bushings? T Rutlands has all parts in stock but around $1800 including new tierod ends. Any recomendations for oil brand and weight? s/n 53079 red 400ia with black leather no sunroof for those keeping track...
Suspension parts are indeed expensive for these cars, sorry. Because of the weight they eat up the bushings pretty fast. Not to doubt you, but I show 53079 as a 1984 not 85 car. Where are you located?
I find Dennis McCann out of Ohio to be reasonable---www.allferrariparts.com As for oil, orig. spec was Agip 10w/50---Remember that sweet smell in the service dept. decades ago?--Its been most often recommended to me to use Castrol 20w/50, also told that Agip was partial synthethic--but DO NOT USE pure synthetic as this will attack seals. Hopes this helps.
Bruce Does your comment apply to all synthetics? Do you know why it will attack the seals? I work with a former lube oil developer and wish to discuss this with him. Does anyone have data to support this point? Ken
it is a known fact that with the introduction of Viton into the automotive industry, synthetic oils are no longer an issue. ANY old seal will be made from Buna and will compromised when the synthetic oils breakdown from wear and heat. Make sure to ask what the materials are for all new parts installed. Oil suggestion for original engines - SWEEPCO 20/50. It's excellent.
Hey Ken, By the sounds of Boyd's message, it appears that synthetics of a Viton 'base'(?)is not a problem if changed before 'breakdown' occurs(#miles?)...I'll need a couple of days or so to check former sources about my and Boyd's response an data support. Hey Boyd, Did I interpret your response correctly? Thanks for your input! Bruce
Bruce No, you missed the mark. Viton and Buna are types of rubber used for seals. Viton is much more chemical resistant than Buna. My question is more about the oils. Originally Mobil 1 was poly alpha olefin (PAO). It no longer is. It is made from crude oil now but with extensive hydro-treatment. (I'm a chemical engineer and know how this stuff is done.) Red Line is totally different, It is a poly methyl ester of sorts; I don;t have the name handy. So I am not sure that ALL synthetics will harm Buna seals. They are not all the same chemically. So I am hoping for more detail info. Ken
Red Line's product info says the use "Red Line lubricants are unique because they contain PE Polyol Ester base stocks..." Do you think this is safe for the seals? I was thinking of using their 5W40 in winter the 15W50 in summer. Any thoughts?
Now this seems like a new twist to me. With people in other threads suggesting only Synthetic for any engine, I find these comments pretty confusing. So what's the deal here. When has it come to light that synthetic oil eats gaskets? What age of gaskets are prone to this disintegration. More info please!!!
FOR THE LAST 2 MONTHS OR SO I HAVE BEEN LEARNING ABOUT OIL. I TOO NEED TO REPLACE MY OIL. I HAVE CONTACTED BOTH AGIP USA AND MOTUL OIL COMPANY, I HAVE PURCHASED AGIP 5-50 FULL SYNTHETIC PC OIL FOR MY F512M. I PAID $200.00 USD FOR 12 QUARTS.. AGIP EUROSPORT SPECS ISO GRADE SAE 5-50 VISCOSITY @ 40.C 127.2 VISCOSITY @ 100.C 19.0 VISCOSITY INDEX MIN 169 FLASH POINT .F -45 POUR POINT .F 465 GRAVITY API 34.8 ALSO HAS RATING SL API CF ACEA A2/96 JASO PROVIDES SUPERIOR PROTECTION AGAINST VISCOSITY AND THERMAL BREAKDOWN PROTECTS AGAINST VARNISH BULIDUP AND SLUGE FORMATION DURING STOP AND GO OPERATIONS. EXTENDS ENGINE LIFE BY CONTROLLING WEAR EUROSPORTS SAE 5W50 MAINTAINS THE OPTIMAL VISCOSITY AT EXTREMLY COLD START UP AND AS WELL AS DURING HIGH TEMPATURE OPERATIONS ELF MOTUL MOBIL CASTROL ALL HAVE VERY CLOSE ELEMENTS, IF THERE IS ANY PERFORMANCE SHOPS IN MY AREA I WOULD LOVE FOR ALL OILS TO BE TESTED SIDE BY SIDE.. FINAL THOUGHT IT IS ALSO IMPORTANT TO HAVE SERVICE DONE REGULARLY ON YOUR CARS. AND LET THE NUMBERS DO THE TALKING.. JOHN GLENDALE CALIFORNIA
Dirk; either use OE stuff from Dennis McCann or go with polyurethane from Energy Suspension. I think for a while ES didn't offer poly bushes for the 400s but I believe they've since added them to their catalog. cheers; Aaron
Aidan, great movie. As for oil, I'm going to use Red Line 15W50. Here is the Red Line data against the AGIP numbers provided by 2LEMANS. AGIP EUROSPORT SPECS RED LINE 15W50 ISO GRADE SAE 5-50 15W50 VISCOSITY @ 40.C 127.2 138 VISCOSITY @ 100.C 19.0 19.6 VISCOSITY INDEX MIN 169 162 POUR POINT .F -45 -49 FLASH POINT .F 465 486 GRAVITY API 34.8 ALSO HAS RATING SL SM/SL/SG API CF CF ACEA A2/96 JASO
FOR THOSE THAT USE MOBIL 1 HERE ARE THE SPECS FOR MOBIL 1 15-50 40.C 138 100.C 18.0 VISCOSITY INDEX 145 POUR POINT -42 FLAH PONT 228 DENSITY .87 I WILL TRY TO GET MORE INFORMATION ON OTHER OILS. I MAY RETURN MY AGIP OIL BACK TO AGIP..
I agree, by the numbers they all look about the same. I got the following from the Amsoil web site: "The test results below were obtained by an independent lab. The 4-ball wear test is a standard ASTM test for determining a lubricants ability to prevent wear. The test is torturous to accelerate wear and produce wear scars between moving ball bearings under load, so a determination of long term wear prevention can be assessed. AMSOIL produces the smallest wear scars and provides wear protection SUPERIOR to all other oils, whether conventional or synthetic! It actually SLOWS DOWN the wear and aging in your engine and will make it last much longer than normal, not to mention significantly better performance and fuel economy." Image Unavailable, Please Login
And also an updated test showing Red Lines newer formula: Four-Ball Wear Test (ASTM D4172) 60 kg pressure @ 150°C, 1800 RPM, 1 hour As Tested February, 2002 Oil Tested Wear Scar AMSOIL Series 2000 20W-50 (TRO) .44 mm Redline 20W-50 .73 mm If you believe these tests, the Amsoil product looks really good.
Hey Aidan, Bill was one of my sources as well! It's good to see the responses on this subject. Ken is 5 up on me on the chemical field(zilch for me in that dept.), but in contacting a couple of other sources(who aren't mech. or eng.), they reflected on underlying doubts they have heard over the years(no scientific basis), & I recall the controversy of switching to synthetics in a vehicle that didn't start it's life w/it. I, too, am not a mechanic, but @ $20k-$25k for V-12 rebuilds--I'm sooo reluctant to put mine in that kind of test eviron. Sorry for the lack of add'l input! Bruce
The point of synthethics for me is the way it flows while cold. A lot of the engine damage occurs before the engine gets warm. In cars that have huge oil amounts it takes longer for the oil to warm up and flow well, in those cars; my 911, 16 quarts and the 400I, 19 quarts? I like to run synthetics. Fritz
I would love to run mine on fully synthetic oil for all the good reasons described above. I can do without a $25k engine rebuild, but am worried about the seals issue. What to do?