break in oil and changes

512Stroker said
I have been building engines on/off for the past 39 years, I worked in the Engineering Lab at Waukesha Engine where we did alot of oil testing, Shell and Mobil oils always came out on top. On my recent 340 roller build I used Valvoline VR1 Racing oil 10W-30 it comes ZDDP enriched. Engine was broke in on a dyno and now has its first 100 miles on the road all appears OK. Please note that the oil and filter were changed after the dyno run.
I refreshed it with the same oil and now plan on changing it after 500 miles. This is a street car producing 442 corrected HP I like the added protection that the ZDDP provides for the long hall.
If this were a racing application I would do some thing different.
I cant see how you could go wrong with a good quality natural API oil with ZDDP.

Like I've said...excess zinc is almost as bad as too little. I'd have to think hard about it but my memory is that VR-1 was the most HP eating oil I tested. Could be that a Pennzoil was as bad or close.

Synthetic (I should say group IV and V synthetic) base stocks will do everything a standard mineral oil and much more. Group III synthetic base stocks are not really synthetic, but somehow a bunch of dumbass goofballs in long black robes decided that group III base stock are synthetic. That's why Gus running alcohol based fuels can switch to a group III base oil and not have issues. You run alcohol on group IV and V base stocks and you can have issues.

Just as important as base stock and zinc percentages is the detergent and dispersant packages, the EP package (as I write that I may be fudging calling it EP for engine oil but I'm not feeling good at the moment) and even the viscosity index Improvers are important.

That makes an engine oil, engine oil. Buying an oil based on its ppm of ZDDP is limiting at best. Doesn't mean you stuff will expire in Hollywood fashion. Just means you are probably leaving a bit on the table.