Castrol R oil on road going Rover 3.9L V8

[jseven]

Cobra with Rover 3.9L V8 I was interested in was running on Castrol R oil. The owner changed to Castrol GTX oil, but didn´t strip and thoroughly clean the engine to get all the old residue out which would be the most reliable way to do, although expensive too.

Anyway here´s what he did:

He ran the car till it was warm
drained the old oil out
removed the Oil filter
put a new oil filter on
Filled up the engine with Engine Oil Flush by Shell
Ran the engine for a short time till warm , low revs
Drained the Oil Flush Oil out
Changed the oil filter
Filled with Castrol GTX oil
and ran the car for a few hundred miles and then changed the oil again with new Castrol GTX and a new filter.

Can this be an adviceble procedure? What do you experts have to say? Thanks.

J.Seven

[Miket]

I think flushing the way he has done it should be ok, but it won't show the damage/wear that the Castrol R has allready done to the engine.


Castrol R 40 is formulated to have a strong affinity to hot surfaces and provides superior oiliness for racing engines. It also contains special additives to combat oil thickening.

• Benefits
  - Provides a powerful oily film at high engine speeds and temperatures - for maximum power output
  - Excellent load carrying reduces wear even under extreme riding conditions – for maximum engine protection
  - Multifunctional – also provides excellent performance as a gear oil.

• Application
  Castrol R 40 has been especially developed for car and motorcycle racing and is equally suitable for two-stroke and four-stroke engines.

• When used in four-stroke engines, the oil should be changed before each race and is intended for continuous use only. Drain intervals should not exceed 1,600 kilometres. The oil should be drained out between races and the engine should preferably be replaced by conventional engine oil before storage. It is recommended that the engine be drained and flushed before Castrol R 40 is refilled and used.

• Castrol R 40 is also applicable in two-stroke engines for pre-mix lubrication at the fuel / oil ratio recommended by the engine manufacturer. Two-stroke engines should be stripped and cleaned after each use.

• Performance Levels
  There is no internationally recognized performance level standard for specialized racing lubricants such as Castrol R 40. Proven on the track.

[jseven]

Great info. Thank you very much Miket.

J.Seven

[wilf]

Jseven - run, don't walk, away from this car.

There is no need whatsoever for you to buy any car with potential problems, there are plenty around that do not have any issues like this.

Especially for you, living where you do, you should not be taking any chances, so listen to your head and not your heart.

ON THE OTHER HAND:

If this car is cheap enough, you can stand the cost of a rebuilt RV8. But it would have to be very cheap indeed. Like well under £10k.

[dingocooke]

Agree with Wilf 100% here.

Having rebuilt quite a few engines that have run on R, and having used R in the past,
I just cannot emphasise enough that you cannot flush it out; even if you flushed it out with neat Acetone, there would still be plenty of residue.
Getting the engine hot will not get the gummy residue out, period.
On more than one occasion I have had top scrape R residue off engine internals with a paint scraper, it does not all flush out!!

As we said before, buy it and budget for an engine rebuild (and not just for gaskets either now the engine has been filled with mineral oil which will be moving the gummy r residue around the engine)

Sorry but surely better to find out now than later?

Steve

[mylesdw]

I'm with Wilf on this one; just walk away unless it is very cheap. Running Castol R in a modern (not vintage that is) engine with a pressure lubication system is such a strange thing to do that you have to wonder what other nasties you would find.

[jseven]

Looks like a dead deal

J.Seven