318 Oil engine Current specification

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Ricardo

Ricardo

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Hello everyone,

I have a question about the correct oil for my Dodge Dart 75 engine V8 5.2, in the owner's manual, it indicates only SAE30 oil.
To replace this old type oil, what would be the best oil to use? Here where I live in Brazil the ambient temperature is around 15-35 degrees most of the year
My dodge has no preparation, but the engine has been fully rectified with all new internal parts a 5 years ago.

Just for information, in my engine specs manual, it indicates the minimum oil pressure of 20 psi at 550RPM and 60-80 psi at 4000RPM.

In conversation here with other car owners, I found many differences in the oils they use, for example, 15w40, 20w50, 5w30, .., and they didn’t know how to explain it, just someone indicated (repair shop) and they continue to use ...

Thank you in advance.
 
I see this chart often and with your given temperature range, 10w-30, 10w-40, 10w-50, 15w-40, 20w-20, 20w-40, 20w-50 would work fine. The first number is the weight cold, the second is the weight hot.

If your 318 was built back to 1975 standards you have a flat tappet cam, so an oil with Zinc or a Zinc additive would be recommended as well if you do not have catalytic converters.

1.gif
 
The word you are looking for is viscosity
Viscosity is how smooth a fluid runs

For instance, if you are at the beach and you knock over your water bottle, almost all of will spill out

But if you knock over your sun tan lotion, most of it will stay in

Because they have different viscosity

Now, a dual weight oil, 5w30 for instance, flows different at different temperatures then a straight weight oil

Given the climate you are in, I'd say straight 30 is fine

A bigger concern would be conventional oil or synthetic

The actual oil particles in synthetic oil are smaller, so it may seep past seals that conventional oil does not seep past
 
alot of them I have never heard of 20w20? 20w40? 10w50?
That said I run 10w40 in everything I got year round near Chicago, which includes a slant 6, a couple of 318s and a 360.
 
volaredon said:
alot of them I have never heard of 20w20? 20w40? 10w50?
That said I run 10w40 in everything I got year round near Chicago, which includes a slant 6, a couple of 318s and a 360.
Click to expand...

Hello,
Thanks for the answer, but conventional or synthetic 10w40 Oil ?
 
diymirage said:
The word you are looking for is viscosity
Viscosity is how smooth a fluid runs

For instance, if you are at the beach and you knock over your water bottle, almost all of will spill out

But if you knock over your sun tan lotion, most of it will stay in

Because they have different viscosity

Now, a dual weight oil, 5w30 for instance, flows different at different temperatures then a straight weight oil

Given the climate you are in, I'd say straight 30 is fine

A bigger concern would be conventional oil or synthetic

The actual oil particles in synthetic oil are smaller, so it may seep past seals that conventional oil does not seep past
Click to expand...
 
diymirage said:
The word you are looking for is viscosity
Viscosity is how smooth a fluid runs

For instance, if you are at the beach and you knock over your water bottle, almost all of will spill out

But if you knock over your sun tan lotion, most of it will stay in

Because they have different viscosity

Now, a dual weight oil, 5w30 for instance, flows different at different temperatures then a straight weight oil

Given the climate you are in, I'd say straight 30 is fine

A bigger concern would be conventional oil or synthetic

The actual oil particles in synthetic oil are smaller, so it may seep past seals that conventional oil does not seep past
Click to expand...


Hello,

Yes, I also thought about the leaks that can appear ...
 
Para syn is a what I use. There us no issue with full synthetic with the exception of gasket material-leaks
 
I worked in a Mopar dealership in the seventies. A guy brought his new car in because the engine was leaking oil from every possible place and smoke out the tailpipe.He said it started all of the sudden. Everyone was scratching their head. He had switched from conventional oil to synthetic. New seals and gaskets and he was good to go.I forgot about it till i bought a new mower and put synthetic in it. Smoked like hell.
 
I would think those old engines run on 10W40,however 10 W 30 may also run well in it. Synthetic, I would run that in an engine with close tolerances. Like a modern V8. Ford modular V8 for example ran a synthetic blend 5 w 20. No need to run expensive oil in an old engine.
 
Dartswinger70 said:
I would think those old engines run on 10W40,however 10 W 30 may also run well in it. Synthetic, I would run that in an engine with close tolerances. Like a modern V8. Ford modular V8 for example ran a synthetic blend 5 w 20. No need to run expensive oil in an old engine.
Click to expand...

Hello,
Thank you for your reply!
 
Use your oil pressure spec in post #1 as a guide. If you are getting less pressure than indicated, go one grade thicker.
 
For information, I found a part of the 67´Mopar service manual with oil specifications under different conditions

Maintenance Chart.jpg
 
Valvoline VR1 SAE-W30. Plus, it has proper zinc for flat tappet cam. I've ran it for years in '69 and '70 318, 340, and 383 engines.
 
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