Oil Change

[maxstu]

Just 4 miles only on newly rebuilt engine and it's sounding sweet.

Auto DJ 2.1

On Thursday lm driving 140 miles to Bucks. Mostly motorway. Then next day another 70 miles to T3BusMeet in Worcestershire. On mostly A roads.

When should l change engine oil and filter?

Original crank, camshaft, pistons and sleeves.
New crank and cam bearings. New piston rings, gudgeon pins and big end bearings. Original pushrods and followers. New valve adjusters, recon heads and new valves/springs.
Preload on new valves 1 & 1/4.

Any tips preventing me doing unnecessary damage?

Regards
Stuart

[Ian P.]

If it was me, Stu (and being no expert), I'd say that, as it's an old school engine, treat it in the same manner -do the oil and filter change, i.e. the running-in / first service, at 500 miles. Hope that helps!

Ian P.

[300CE]

Hi Stu,

I agree - I’d just take it nice and easy and drop oil and filter at 500 - that’s what I did with mine, but didn’t change the bearing’s like you have.

I’m sure one of the guru’s will be able to confirm.

[Ian P.]

Yep, take it easy, gradually increasing the revs, and the rate at which you increase them; I'd say your revs limit should be 50% of the maximum allowed (I'm assume you have a tacho in the instrument panel?) - plus don't it at one throttle setting / speed for too long at a time. What you want to avoid is being too gentle, thereby potentially glazing the bores - this will lead to the rings not bedding in properly, and increased oil consumption. An oil change just after your planned trip would seem to be about the right mileage to me.

[maxstu]

Thanks all, and my apologies for delaying my reply. I was putting together a Rachel Khoo quiche lorraine.

25 miles to date. From tomorrow 500 miles ahead of me over the next 6 days.
Will leave oil change when l return to Margate.

Thank you

[silverbullet]

However, don't pootle around and cruise on a light throttle or you will glaze the bores. The rings need to be loaded to bed them in and that means on and off load doing real world acceleration up hills and on the flat.

Just dont thrash it from cold.

All that "keep the revs low and accelerate gently" stuff is 1950's thinking.

[maxstu]

Thanks Ian.

I took the scenic route of 150 miles from home in Margate to Edgcott in Bucks.
A bit of M2 reducing and accelerating around 50-60mph. Along the Detling road. A bit of M20. But instead of just M25, l used the A25 for 20 miles. Then onto M25 for about 15 miles picking up M40 to Thame and across country through Stokenchurch and Brill. Lots of diverse and hilly conditions.

Runung very nicely. See you tomorrow.

[Ian P.]

How waa the trip, Stu? Hope it went well, after all your diligent efforts!

[maxstu]

Hi Ian, and thanks for asking.

The 2.1 did everything l asked without any issues.

From Stratford U Avon, after a very trying T3BusMeet show (rain, wind, rain, wind, and ad infinitum), l drove to S Wales. I stayed at Cwmdu Campsite between Brecon and Abergavenny.

Via an overnight stay in a campsite near Stonehenge, l returned to Margate about two hours' ago. So 640 miles on approx 28 gallons of E5 and no oil or water used during a great deal of variable driving conditions, between 40 and 55 to 60 mph, with lots of loading up engine to bed in rings.

Dropped the engine oil and removed oil filter 15 mins after pulling on drive.



Some minute particles. A few small (1mm) wafer thin flakes to worry about or not?

The cruise control worked its magic on the 130 miles (after 500 miles now ) haul from Wiltshire to east Kent.

Regards
Stuart

[silverbullet]

Cleanliness is everything! Are the metallic particles magnetic? Otherwise suspect the cam gear bedding in.

[maxstu]

Good point, SB.

I did replace the cam gear after the engineering company buggered the original one.

Will put a magnet across the particles.

But why didn't these larger particles get captured by the oil filter?

[Stesaw]

I suppose that's because the cam gear is in the sump (well not quite but is open to it from what I recall) stu, if anything the strainer would capture them and not the filter.

[tobydog]

Some minute particles. A few small (1mm) wafer thin flakes to worry about or not?

The cruise control worked its magic on the 130 miles (after 500 miles now ) haul from Wiltshire to east Kent.

Regards
Stuart

Does the cruise control have an empathetic running in setting?

Personally, I'd prefer to be in control of the revs and load on the engine, even after just 500 miles.
 

[Ian P.]

Hi Ian, and thanks for asking.

The 2.1 did everything l asked without any issues.

From Stratford U Avon, after a very trying T3BusMeet show (rain, wind, rain, wind, and ad infinitum), l drove to S Wales. I stayed at Cwmdu Campsite between Brecon and Abergavenny.

Via an overnight stay in a campsite near Stonehenge, l returned to Margate about two hours' ago. So 640 miles on approx 28 gallons of E5 and no oil or water used during a great deal of variable driving conditions, between 40 and 55 to 60 mph, with lots of loading up engine to bed in rings.

Dropped the engine oil and removed oil filter 15 mins after pulling on drive.

Great news, Stu!!



Some minute particles. A few small (1mm) wafer thin flakes to worry about or not?

The cruise control worked its magic on the 130 miles (after 500 miles now ) haul from Wiltshire to east Kent.

Regards
Stuart