oilman

I think the V12 is there, but I've just had a think about it and I think I might be going to Swindon instead. I can't remember now, it was discussed before Christmas and a lot has happened since.

Castrol are right, but it's not cheap and it's time consuming. The problem with all the other testing methods is that they are not complete. The oil doesn't have to deal with what happens in an engine. They are often at room temperature rather than hot, there are no combustion by products to deal with, the oil doesn't cover 10-20k of use, etc etc. The 4 ball wear test is one of the better ones and is an industry standard, but there is some debate as to whether it's really suited to testing oil or should it be only for greases. I think I'm going up to see the Castrol tech centre in either February or March. Will be interesting to see what they do. Cheers Tim

Hi We've been on here quite a while, but I think the notifications stopped coming through (I think it is our email system) and we haven't been on a lot recently. I think the notifications are sorted out now, so will be on here more. Cheers Tim

Hi The engine oil you need depends on the service schedule the car is on. If it is on an annual/10k miles service, you need an oil that meets the 502.00 specification. If it's the variable service schedule, you need an oil that meets the 504.00 spec. 502.00 - https://www.opieoils.co.uk/c-746-vw-50200-oil.aspx 504.00 - https://www.opieoils.co.uk/c-749-vw-50400-oil.aspx The 504.00 oils are all good oils, so make your decision based on any brand/price preference you have. With the 502.00 oils, go for a 0w-30, 5w30 or 0w-40 or 5w-40. You need a 75w-80 for the gearbox and the best proven options are the Red Line MTL, Fuchs Sintofluid or Amsoil MTF. The Millers TRX 75w-80, Castrol Syntrans V-FE, Gulf Syngear FE and Motul Motylgear are good alternatives. https://www.opieoils.co.uk/c-670-75w-80-75w-85-mtfs.aspx You need 3.2-4.4L for the engine (seems that different engine codes have different sized sumps) and 2.4L for the gearbox. Cheers Tim

Hi Folks, New month means new competition and this month we have a PS3 with Gran Turismo 6 and The Last of us worth £240 To be in a chance of winning please click HERE Cheers Oilman

Hi Folks, The Team at Opie Oils would like to congratulate Antony Palourti for winning a White Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 10.1 worth £275. Dont worry as the team have a February Competition in the pipe line, so look out, as you'll never know it could be you next time. As always, our expert advice is free, if you need help you can call us Monday - Friday 8:30am to 5:30pm on 01209 202944, email us at sales@opieoils.co.uk, or just ask here. Cheers Oilman

Getting the right oil for gearboxes, diffs and transfer boxes can be tricky, so please ask here if there is any information that you need. To help us to give the most accurate advice possible we do need some information about your car. e.g. Make: Model: Year: Manual/Auto: Performance Modifications: Driving style: (road / off-road / track etc.) Any other information that may be relevant: e.g. approx BHP if modified, any transmission problems What recommendation are you looking for? Gearbox, diffs, limited slip diffs, transfer boxes etc Any oil we recommend is available to buy from us (if you would like to) for delivery throughout the UK and many destinations Worldwide. We offer a really extensive range of oils and lubricants from 11 major oil manufacturers at prices much lower than the high street and main dealers. We stock oils and fluids that meet pretty much all manufacturers and international specifications. Our brands include, Silkolene, Fuchs, Gulf, Castrol, Motul, Mobil, Millers Oils, Shell, Valvoline, Amsoil and Red Line. Plus, as the Club is a member of our club discount scheme you can get discounts of at least 10% across our entire range. To redeem your 10% club discount simply use the following club discount code at the checkout. Once the code is added at the checkout you will then receive your extra 10% club discount. However this discount code cannot be used in conjunction with other offer codes, BUT the code can be used in conjunction with any of our offers on this page HERE that do not require offer codes. Any questions please ask here or contact us via email at sales@opiepoils.co.uk Finally, if there are any products we don't stock and you have difficulty getting hold of elsewhere, let us know and we'll see if we can stock them. We look forward to being of help! Cheers Tim, Opie Oils You can also contact us by phone on +44 1209 215164 (All oils recommended are available to buy online at my web site)

Hi folks, It's that time again, all you have to do is answer the following question on our website for a chance to win a brand NEW White Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 10.1 worth £275 The Prancing Horse is the symbol of which car manufacturer? Good luck, you'll never know it could be you receiving a phone call from the Opie Oils team saying your a winner. As always, our expert advice is free, if you need help you can call us Monday - Friday 8:30am to 5:30pm on 01209 202944, email us at sales@opieoils.co.uk, or just ask here. Cheers Oilman

Hi folks, It's that time again, all you have to do is answer the following question on our website for a chance to win a brand NEW White Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 10.1 worth £275 The Prancing Horse is the symbol of which car manufacturer? Good luck, you'll never know it could be you receiving a phone call from the Opie Oils team saying your a winner. As always, our expert advice is free, if you need help you can call us Monday - Friday 8:30am to 5:30pm on 01209 202944, email us at sales@opieoils.co.uk, or just ask here. Cheers Oilman

Hi Folks, We have some great news, We have a WINNER to our end of year competition. We would like to say a massive congratulations to Alex Mcdonnell from Norwich for winning our end of year competition to win the PS4 with Killzone and NEED FOR SPEED RIVALS. We will be announcing our new compition very soon, but until then please keep an eye out on our current offers page for our latest offers and competitions. As always if you need help you can call us Monday - Friday 8:30am to 5:30pm on 01209 202944, email us at sales@opieoils.co.uk, or just ask here. Cheers Oilman

Engine Oil Viscosity Viscosity is the most misunderstood aspect of oil and yet it is the most important. Viscosity is the force required to shear (break) the oil at a certain speed and temperature. Oils work because they have viscosity; the drag of a rotating part pulls oil from a low-pressure area into a high pressure area and “floats” the surfaces apart. This is called “hydrodynamic lubrication” and crankbearings depend on it. Oil must be capable of flowing at low temperatures, so that it gets around the engine in a fraction of a second at start-up and must protect engine components at high temperatures without evaporating or carbonising and maintain adequate (not excessive) oil pressure. Many people think that the thicker the oil, the better the protection, but if the oil is too thick, it will not flow properly, leading to reduced protection. The numbers on every can of oil indicate its performance characteristics when new but there are many misconceptions on what these numbers actually mean. For multigrade oils you will see two numbers (for monograde oils only one). The first is followed by a “w” and is commonly 0, 5, 10, 15 or 20. The second number is always higher than the first and is commonly 20, 30, 40, 50 or 60. The first and second numbers ARE NOT related. The “w” number (0, 5, 10, 15 or 20) When multigrade oils first appeared, a low temperature test called “w” (meaning “winter” not weight) was introduced. Using a “Cold Crank Simulator", the test measures the oils ability to flow at low temperatures. ALL oils are THICKER at low temperatures than at high temperatures but the lower the “w” number, the quicker the oil will flow at low temperatures. The second number (20, 30, 40, 50 or 60) This number is known as the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) number and is measured in “Centistokes” (cst) at 100C. Centistokes (cst) is the measure of a fluid's resistance to flow (viscosity). It is calculated in terms of the time required for a standard quantity of fluid at a certain temperature to flow through a standard orifice. The higher the value, the thicker the oil. An oils cst at 100C determines its SAE rating within the following parameters. SAE 20 = 5.6 to less than 9.3cst SAE 30 = 9.3 to less than 12.5cst SAE 40 = 12.5 to less than 16.3cst SAE 50 = 16.3 to less than 21.9cst SAE 60 = 21.9 to less than 26.0cst ALL oils labelled 40 must fall within the SAE parameters at 100C so everything from a monograde 40 to multigrade 0w-40, 5w-40, 10w-40, 15w-40 or 20w-40 are approximately the same thickness at 100C. Some oil companies label oils as SAE 35, 45 or 55, but as you can see from the above figures, there isn't a SAE 35, 45 or 55. This "could" be because they are approximately on the boundary of the two grades, but as we don't deal with any of those I can't really comment further. Summary Cold start. A 5w-40 will flow better than a 10w-40. A 10w-50 will flow better than a 15w-50 A 5w-40 is the same as a 5w-30 At operating temperatures. A 10w-50 is thicker than a 10w-40. A 15w-50 is thicker than a 5w-40 A 0w-40 is the same as a 10w-40 If you look above, you will see that the figures quoted do not indicate at all as to whether the oil is synthetic or mineral based... Well except for 0w oils as synthetic PAO basestock is required to acheive this viscosity. Generally the oil you use should be based on the manufacturers recommendation found in the owners manual, but then modifications, climate and the type of use can affect that recommendation. If you are unsure of what is the correct recommendation for your car and would like to know more please contact us here oilman@opieoils.co.uk With thanks to John Rowland of Fuchs/Silkolene Cheers Tim and the Opie Oils team

Hope everyone is enjoying the long weekend. Remember to visit Opie Oils to see how much you could save in our 25% Off Mayhem Sale. Simply enter voucher code MAYHEM at the checkout and get a massive 25% OFF everything. Cheers Oilman

25% Off Everything at Opie Oils Enter Voucher Code MAYHEM and get 25% Off all products we stock from all these top brands: Amsoil, ArmorAll, Astonish, Bilt Hamber, Castrol, Denso, Dodo Juice, Farecla, Ferodo, Fuchs, Gulf, Hamp (we now also stock the Hamp Shortie), K&N, Kent Car Care, Laser, Mahle, Meguiars, MER, Michelin, Millers Oils, Millers Classic Oils, Mitsubishi Oil Filters, Mobil, Motul, Muc-Off, NGK, Nissan Oil Filters, Oil Safe, Polco, Red Line, Shell, Silkolene, Simoniz, Subaru Oil Filters, Trico, UFI, Valvoline & WD-40. Take advantage of this offer here > > > > > We also have many more new products including... - Filter Removal Tools for Mahle, Hamp, Subaru, Mitsubishi and Nissan filters as well as universal filter removal tools. - Trolley Jacks & Axle Stands - 2 & 3 Tonne Axle Stands - 2, 2.5 & 3 Tonne Trolley Jacks - 40 inch Car Creeper Board - Wheel Chocks - Large range of Funnels - For use with Engine Oils, Fuels, Brake Fluids, Coolants & Screen Wash As always, if you have any questions or need any advice then feel free to ask. - The team at Opie Oils

Hi All, It's been a while and there has been a lot of exciting things going on at Opie Oils, so we thought it would be a good idea to update everyone to keep you in the loop!! So here goes: Opie Oils Club Discounts We are delighted to say that all club discount codes have been renewed. To redeem your 10% club discount simply use the following club discount code at the checkout. LUPO Once the code is added at the checkout you will then receive your extra 10% club discount. However this discount code cannot be used in conjunction with other offer codes, BUT the code can be used in conjunction with any of our offers that do not require offer codes. Our current offers page address will never change, so it's probably a good idea to bookmark it! Here you will find all our latest offers from our top brands. Over 30 Top Brands Now Stocked at Opie Oils Oil, lubricant & fluid brands: Amsoil, Castrol, Fuchs, Gulf, Millers Oils, Millers Oils Classic, Mobil, Motul, Red Line, Shell, Silkolene, Valvoline and WD-40 - Soon to be extended! Spark & Glow Plug brands: Denso & NGK Cleaning & Detailing brands: ArmorAll, Astonish, Bilt Hamber, Dodo Juice, Farécla, Kent Car Care, Meguiars, Mer, Michelin, Muc-Off and Simoniz - More to come Oil, Air & Fuel Filter brands: Hamp Filters, K&N Performance Filters, Mahle, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Subaru Filters and UFI Filters - Others to be added Tools & other products from: Laser Filter Removal Tool, Oil Safe, Trico Wiper Blades, Polco Axle stands & Trolley Jacks and a 7 Litre Oil Drip Tray - More to come Not Just for Cars & Bikes..... Opie Oils stock a large range of specialist oils, fluids and parts for a number of automotive, marine, household and hobby activities. So if it needs oil, the chances are we have one! Opie Oils Free Advice & Recommendations We know that choosing the correct oils and fluids can be a bit of a mine field. So with that in mind feel free to give us a call on 01209 202944 or fill in an oil recommendation request form. Any oil we recommend is available to buy from us (if you would like to) for delivery throughout the UK and many destinations in Europe. Technical Articles On All Things Oil Over the years we have written and shared many technical articles, these can all be found on our web site HERE > > >. Please feel free to share these on the clubs community, all we ask is that credit is given to oilman at Opie Oils. If you would like to discuss any of these further then please do not hesitate to get in touch. We Now Accept PayPal We know accepting as many payment options as possible makes your shopping experience quicker and smoother, that's why we accept 5 major ways to pay through our website and 9 ways through PayPal. Opie Oils Monthly Competition Every month we're giving away a great prize, we try and find prizes that we feel club members would appreciate, for example over recent months we have given away an iPad Mini, Nintendo WiiU, Samsung Google Chrome and many other top prizes. Enter Opie Oils Monthly Competition> > > This competition will change every month but the page address wont, so it's probably a good idea to bookmark it. Used us Before? Give us a Review If you're an Opie Oils customer then we would love to know how we did! Feel free to leave us feedback through our web site or by submitting a review through TRUSTPILOT, both of which can be done HERE > > > We pride ourselves on our customer service, in the unlikely event you are not happy, please do not hesitate to contact us so we can rectify any issue you may of had. More to Come.... In the next coming months we will be launching our NEW blog, Brembo brake parts and will be constantly working to improve our look up guides and databases, we will keep everyone updated by threads and emails. If you would like to keep updated with all things Opie Oils then you are welcome to join our mailing list, simply follow this link : Register for Opie Oils News & Offers > > > Thanks for reading. oilman