Detergent oil

[40 Deluxe]

Originally Posted by Kevin in NJ

At a very high level, oil engineers when asked about antique engines, will tell you that you need detergents and additives to prevent the build up of bad chemicals.

Really kind of a no brainer once you understand the detergents do not break up sludge. They only keep the very small stuff in suspension to prevent sludge. Additives keep things like sulfuric acid from forming.

The other thing to understand is the modern oils do not really break down. The additives get used up, but they still lubricate. You should NOT change your oil every 500 miles as that is a waste of resources. A few thousand or a few years would be better.

Now there may be something to using oils made for compression ignition (diesel). The A engine and the diesel engine share some characteristics that make logical sense.

In experience, just about any oil works well.
Engines will fail not because of the oil, but because they were not built right to begin with, so do not fret much.

Yes, I left out a bunch of details. Loose engines vs new engines vs broke in engines there are some considerations.

Also,

We have like 30 engines we have taken apart and it is interesting how well oiled they can be. One engine I had owned like 15 years and it was sitting in a barn for a long time before me. When it was tore down there was still a good coating of oil on the bearings. There would have been a wet start even if you cranked and started right off.

Thank you, Kevin in NJ, for the accurate post. There are far too many oil myths running rampant, such as one claiming you need to add zinc! And another claiming that you must use non-detergent! So one is to dump zinc into a crankcase full of non-detergent 30W oil???

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If you are just going to start it up and let it idle until warm and then change the oil you might be waiting a while for the oil to warm up. That is if you have a cooling system in good order.
In your case I would get a piece of cardboard to cover the radiator to help get it warmed up. Place an inexpensive meat thermometer in the coolant and monitor the water temperature while you are warming it up.
Using the thermometer often while you are getting used to driving your A will give you a lot of information on how your engine is operating. As you get comfortable with it you will use the thermometer less and less.