Motor oil?

[M25VAN]

10% off at the moment if you are a member of the B&Q club.
http://www.diy.com/diy/jsp/content/mark ... ?menu=club

[TFM150K]

Make sure the 20W50 oil you buy has an API rating of at least "E" or better, if no API rating you don't know if the oil has suitable additives to use in a Minor.

The cheapest oils may very well be filtered recycled oils from the council tip tank!

I have spent the last 20 minutes googling "API" and its various options - nowhere can I find any reference to API ratings of "E" - what do you mean by ratings of "E or above"? On the oil that I have in the store, the API line reads
"API CH-4/CC4/CF4/CF/CF2/5J" - is that "E or above" or are you now as confused as I am? I would add that this is an SAE20W50 oil manufactured by a small firm with a good reputation in the classic car world and I have used it for years

Anyone able to help me, please?

[liammonty]

The E actually has an S in front of it - SE, SF, SG etc. in general terms, a higher letter means a better spec, I.e. SF is better than SE and so on. The S spec refers to petrol engines and the 'C' to diesel specs. There is an absolute mass of info available on the internet if anyone is really that interested!

[TFM150K]

Thankyou. With all those 'c's around I guess mine is diesel spec rather than petrol spec but it doesn't seem to be doing my motors any harm.
Not only is there a mass of info on tinternet but some of it is mighty confusing ( Is now the time to sign up for a degree course in lubricant application and identification)?

[philthehill]

There is nothing wrong in using diesel engine oil in a petrol engine. The detergent in the oil keeps the crud flowing to the oil filter and not to settle in the bottom of the sump. You may have to change the oil filter more regularly but well worth it if you are doing a reasonable mileage.
I used to maintain a petrol Hillman Hunter running on diesel engine oil and the engine was still like new after 100,000 miles.

[chickenjohn]

The very best thing for oil is to run your engine on gas.

On the industrial estate where my workshop is I often help the garden buildings company out with their forklift.

Had a look at the spark plugs and oil the other day, both incredibly clean. I think with an LPG conversion your engine oil will stay clean for a lot longer.

[bmcecosse]

Absolutely - I used to have a car on LPG and the oil stayed clear!. I regret the day I turned down the chance of an LPG kit for a Minor......

[GBond]

I use Motul Classic 20W50, it's supposed to have additives that make it leak less.