4-stroke outboard oil article

[seahorse5]

Oil related topics get a lot of emotions going and sometimes a discussion gets "locked out" by the forum moderator. This is no different than you what will find in motorcycle, PWC, and aviation newsgroups.<br /><br />I just want to mention, for informational use only, that the latest Trailer Boats Magazine, October issue, came today and has a story and tests on 4-stroke outboard oils. It is interesting reading and has some surprising results.

 

[mharkness]

Re: 4-stroke outboard oil article

For those of us without the magazine, what are their results?

 

[NOSLEEP]

Re: 4-stroke outboard oil article

ok. we are waiting.

 

[roscoe]

Re: 4-stroke outboard oil article

The article should appear here:<br /> http://www.trailerboats.com <br /><br />in about a month. Should be listed under "technical" or "features".<br /><br />Don't just sit there and wait, go boating and then check back to the website later.

 

[PAkev]

Re: 4-stroke outboard oil article

I will do my best at summarizing the article:<br /><br />The chief comparison was between marine grade and automotive grade oils. As can be expected automotive oil is priced nominally compared to that of higher priced marine grade oil from major outboard manufacturers. <br /><br />I liked the illustration of driving a car around doing 2500 RPMS at 70mph vs an outboard or sterndrive 3500 RPM's or higher for extended periods of time. With this comparison, motor wear and tear is equivelant to going about 100mph in a car. For most recommended outboard oil changes at 100 hr intervals this equates to about 10,000 miles in an automobile which would be considered by many to be irresponsible maintenance. <br /><br />The article further noted how important changing oil more than recommended in a 4 stroke is imperative. The main claim is that 4 stroke parts are more susceptable to corrosion than two strokes. This is because two strokes leave an oil film on moving parts after the motor is shut down whereas 4 strokes don't. Further compelling reasons is what they termed "fuel dilution" as the motor is run at or near idle for extended periods of time (such as trolling) It was suggested fuel dilution lowers the oil viscocity to reduce protection which oil inherently provides the engine. <br /> <br />The top pick actually ended up to be Pennzoil 10W/30 automotive oil providing the regular recommended changes were followed. Other contenders listed from best to worst for corrosion protection as per Trailer Boats test were; Evinrude Synthetic Blend, Mobil One, Pennzoil, Mercury, Sierra, Castrol GTX, and Yamaha 4-M. The jury is still out as far as using synthetic oils for four stroke outboards but the article suggests Mobile one may be a good choice when/if manufacturers approve the use of synthetic oils in their outboard motors.<br /><br />Regardless of wheather you feel comfortable using automotive oil or insist on a marine grade oil, the most important consideration in terms of engine longevity is to change oil more frequently than the maximum recommended interval. In the long run oil is cheap but repairs are expensive.<br /><br />The article was about 4 pages long with a lot of info on oil chemistry but I summarized what interesting concepts seemed to stick out the most.<br /><br />Kevin

 

[Scaaty]

Re: 4-stroke outboard oil article

You want a great series of oil articles from a unbiased source, Motorcycle Consumer News has done oil tests and as they don't accept ads, they are free to say as they wish. You would have to go to their website and look through the archives.<br />My 2 cents is changing oil should be like voting in Chicago...early and often.

 

[dajohnson53]

Re: 4-stroke outboard oil article

Originally posted by Robby6950:<br /> My 2 cents is changing oil should be like voting in Chicago...early and often.

When I find my self fretting about oil (4 or 2 stroke), it always comes back to this - early and often. (2 stroke corrolary: mix properly and well). I think of the 200K mi. cars I've had over the past 20 years that have never, ever had engine wear problems. Have we *ever* fretted over oil? Nah. We tend to stick to "major brands" like Penn, Quaker, major service station brands, castrol, valvoline, etc. But other than that, it's just "early and often" that trumps any real or imaginiary difference among oils - for common boating and automotive use. JMHO, and they're like digestive outlets, ya know.

 

[BillP]

Re: 4-stroke outboard oil article

Seahorse, <br />Thanks for the input.