Lucas oil products?

[Paul Rossmann]

What is the general forum concensus on Lucas oil products? I remember reading good things on this forum about the lucas gear oil and have been thinking of giving it a try, but how about the engine oils? Anyone have any experience, either positive or negative? Right now I a using the Castrol "high milage" 20W/50W and have been for years, and am pretty happy with that. Any reason to switch?

Getting ready for a little PM and would appreciate any advice. Thanks in advance.

[dmurrell]

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/images/lucas/lucas.htm

[Jim-ME]

I use Lucas gear and hub oil. Gear oil in the trans/transfer and hub oil for the swivel balls. No complaints what so ever. I'm a big Castrol fan for engine oil until I get to the point that I've eliminated leaks so I can switch to Mobil 1 synthetic. When I finally get my front end redone I will probably switch to Mobil ! 90W synthetic simply because it won't run out onto the garage floor any longer
Jim.

[yorker]

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/images/lucas/lucas.htm
No quality oil should require any additives- most oil ad engine makers will tell you not to use them* but if this guy was out to prove they were detrimental why didn't he add them to the same oil as his control group on the left? Because he sell's Schaeffers?:nono:

Tests like that are interesting but scientifically flawed. If he was determined to expose Lucas' additive as snake oil he should have had the same oil in both chambers, the same level of oil both with and without the additive etc.

*eg.


THE USE OF SUPPLEMENTAL ADDITIVES

Lubricants meeting PGOS outlined in this publication contain a carefully balanced additive
treatment. The use of supplemental additives, such as break-in oils, top oils, graphitizers, and
friction-reducing compounds in these fully formulated lubricants are not necessary and can upset
the oil's formulation, causing a deterioration in performance. These supplemental additives may
be marketed as either oil treatments or engine treatments and should not be used. Their use will
not void your Detroit Diesel product warranty; however; engine damage resulting from the use of
such materials is not covered. The use of such additives is at the customer's risk. Detroit Diesel
will not provide statements relative to their use beyond this publication.
http://www.detroitdiesel.com/support/On-Highway/manuals/Lubricants_Fuels_Coolants/OilFuelFilterBulletin_7SE270_010307.pdf

[dmurrell]

OK - so I'm not a scientist and I use Marvel Mystery Oil in my TD5 .... but I do think it is an interesting experiment to see the additive in the oil.

[Tim Smith]

I've been running Lucas oil in my gearboxes for a year or two now and am extremely please with it in terms of noise reduction. I have noticed that the cold weather shifts seem a bit clunky until warmed up but I'm guessing that is because I'm running the 140? weight instead of straight 90 weight. By the way, it seems kind of an oddball thing now to ask for straight 90 weight oil at the counter but thats another story...

For engine oil, I've been running the fleet truck oils that are sold in 5 gallon buckets. Wolfs head (http://www.wolfshead.com/) comes to mind but there is another one that I'm half way through right now that seems just as good. Can't remember the name.

Those engine oils are a blended mix and have been very good to me so far. I'd recommend them for our slow motors.

I once switched a Mercedes diesel to Mobil 1 high mileage oil and am sure that it was a bad move. Sure the first few hundred miles seemed great but after that it all went down hill. I started getting blow by and I experienced noticeable power loss. It also started leaking after that point too. :mad:

Maybe it was because the motor had some 250,000 miles on the clock with an unknown history. Maybe an older engine really doesn't want all that super lubricant added when things are just fine as they are. Maybe the engine was already on it's last legs and switching oils had nothing to do with it. Who knows.

Cheers!

[Paul Rossmann]

We rarely have to deal with long periods of cold in coastal SC. Like I mentiioned, the Castrol High Milage 20W/50W is a good all year engine oil down here.

Lucas gear oil (80W/90W) has to be better than the generic stuff I'm now using.

I do agree, however, about not using an additive other than to clean the engine before changing the oil (I'm talking about the ones you run for about 10 minutes).

Regards,

[yorker]

Mercedesrover told me about the Lucas Hub Oil (http://www.lucasoil.com/products/display_products.sd?iid=35&catid=2&loc=show)and I have recently tried it in the swivel housings, so far I've been pleased with it- it has really reduced the seepage past the seals. It was rather thick- I had to heat the container in order to be able to easily fill the swivel housing.

For the engine I use a good quality 15w40 diesel oil like Shell Rotella. If I had an engine that didn't leak I'd be tempted to try their 5W40 synthetic Rotella.

[917601]

An old retired British Army mech told me one trick that worked well with my swivels and rear end seals.GRAPHITE. Pep Boys sells powdered graphite and I added about 2-3 oz powdered to each thirsty member.Stopped the hub leaks but XSMN started leaking again (I have not ran it for 2.5 years).Graphite will not gum up,degrade,and adds more lubricity! So he says.Works for me.