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Kart Oil Question - Seeking Unbiased Knowledge

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bmur66

Member
Just getting back into karting. My son will be running a plate clone on gas. I see most people running gas clones are running kart specific oil and changing it after heats and features. Why?
Methanol doesn't mix well with automotive oils and it always ends up diluting the oil some. I get that. That's why we run kart specific oils. That should not be a concern with a gas engine.
Does using lightweight kart specific oil free up some HP? Why not a good lightweight automotive oil? I am sure someone has dyno numbers to prove extra HP but right now I am not concerned about 1/10 HP.
If I use automotive type oil and it still looks good after a night of racing why change it? How about after 2 nights? I understand splash type oiling and how there is no filter. I change oil in my lawn mower once a season, maybe and it will run for years.
There is no shortage of people willing to sell us a $10 quart or two of kart racing oil every race night but is it really necessary on a gas clone? I am not cheap, I like my stuff to last and I change my air filters 3 times a night but I am not sold. So what's the real deal?
 
bmur66 said:
Just getting back into karting. My son will be running a plate clone on gas. I see most people running gas clones are running kart specific oil and changing it after heats and features. Why?
Methanol doesn't mix well with automotive oils and it always ends up diluting the oil some. I get that. That's why we run kart specific oils. That should not be a concern with a gas engine.
Does using lightweight kart specific oil free up some HP? Why not a good lightweight automotive oil? I am sure someone has dyno numbers to prove extra HP but right now I am not concerned about 1/10 HP.
If I use automotive type oil and it still looks good after a night of racing why change it? How about after 2 nights? I understand splash type oiling and how there is no filter. I change oil in my lawn mower once a season, maybe and it will run for years.
There is no shortage of people willing to sell us a $10 quart or two of kart racing oil every race night but is it really necessary on a gas clone? I am not cheap, I like my stuff to last and I change my air filters 3 times a night but I am not sold. So what's the real deal?
Click to expand...


Think of it this way....would you be willing to RACE your lawn mower with your current oil changing strategy?

Yes, there are oils that work better than others. No oil "makes" HP, Allows it to accelerate quicker, maybe. Allow it to run tighter clearances, maybe. Cooler temps by reducing friction, maybe. Legal oils don't "make" HP. There are plenty that are pushed by engine builders that are touted as the bestest thing since sliced bread (and at a premium price.) Are they legal? Will they pass an oil sniffer or flame test? Some will, some will not.
If your builder recommends a particular oil -- I'd say go with his suggestion..but don't be afraid to ask some serious questions about it's legality if it's their "home brew."

We stock and sell at least 5 different brands of oils in our shop and I wouldn't be afraid to use any one of them in our own engines.

My suggestion is to pick a good quality oil and stick with it. Bouncing between oil brands and types (especially PAG & PAO) can get you in some serious (expensive) trouble.


-----
Thanks and God bless,
Brian Carlson
Carlson Racing Engines
Vector Cutz
www.CarlsonMotorsports.com
26 years of service to the karting industry
765-339-4407
bcarlson@CarlsonMotorsports.com
 
I don't want to speak for Brian, but I believe he means that oil doesn't make horsepower it just allows the engine to live up to its' potential so to speak by reducing friction etc. Creating HP from oil would mean there is an additive providing additional oxygen etc.
 
ALLEY CUT TIRES said:
No oil "makes" HP hmmm might wanna test some oil.. just saying
Click to expand...

Done PLENTY of testing...20 years ago, and last year.
No legal oil "makes" or "creates" horsepower. It can do all the things I listed in the post above, which "frees up" potential power, but unless there are flammables, oxygenators, etc...it cannot and will not create more HP; and that's not just saying. ;)
 
I swapped to a specific karting oil (4T) within the last year due to engine temps. With the new oil, engine temps are consistently 20+ degrees cooler so it can now be completely taped up. Thats enough for me to keep using it.
 
True, no legal oil makes horse power. However, like it has been said, kart specific oils do have benefits. There are several good ones out there. Power plus will drop engine temps and I used it for years. However, I've run a comparison of several oils on my inertia dyno and found that in acceleration, some are better than others. Two of the best ones I found were Dover's fine wine and Predator oil. I run Jerry's oil, It runs cool and smells good enough to take a swig or two{not recommended}. But like was recommended, pick one and stick with it. Some of these oils don't play well together. lol
 
bmur66, I've been running Maxima's motorcycle oil for several years now on our 19 turn asphalt sprint course where we run pump gas, and have been very happy with it. I change it every hour of track time and could probably go longer. I have one clone that is still kicking on my spare kart with unknown hours on it, a 420cc predator with nearly 20 hours of racing on it, and now currently using it in my world formula. On stock clones and the 420cc predator I wasn't turning a lot of RPM and actually just ran the petroleum Maxima 5w-30. On the mod motors and the WF motor I spend the extra $$$ on the blend, Maxima's blend is a true 50/50 and it's significantly better at holding its weight. I'm not on the track long enough each session to need the full synthetic, IMO. If I was road racing I wouldn't hesitate though.
Motorcycle oils that are noted with "meets or exceeds API SG" will have at least 1200-1300ppm zinc, which is what we need in these "technically" old school engines. Automotive oil(even some of the best ones) has been stripped of these additives due to environmental concerns. The links below are great to learn about oil and start off your karting experience in a positive manner, instead of blowing holes in motors like I did with Mobil-1 car oil. I'm not here to push any specific oil, but our track is hard on motors and pretty much everyone who started out using automotive oil had problems. We've got people using Royal Purple, Briggs 4T, Amsoil, Maxima, Motul, and a couple people using their favorite car oils and adding ZDDP to it. The big thing is, regardless of the brand of oil, these engines need the phosphorous and zinc to survive.

http://www.sportrider.com/oils-well-ends-well-part-2
http://www.sportrider.com/oils-well-ends-well-part-1
 
Which Motul oil is the best? They have some 0w20 listed for racing but under the car catagory. Some say ester based some are double ester based. Under motorcycle they have a 5w30 300V, 300V 4T and some say full synthetic blend which means it's a full blend not full synthetic? So confused with Motul buzz words.
 
I haven't seen much difference with oil in a clone or animal, the flathead my father always like to use a lighter oil specially for 2 lap time trials. Im no oil expert but I did a lot of research. most karting oils are made from the same base then have different friction modifiers added. some more caster as you'll notice the carbon build up. ive had oil made by FHS different viscosity changed the color put a name on it and people think I have something special. Dyno K made oil for me, I had them add in Teflon additive and something else to keep any corrosion out. was an additive they use in race boat engines.
Now I only sell 4T and thor. one expensive and one cheap. the 4T doesn't break down and can be used longer, I thin it out for the flatheads.
 
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