Ford Facts

Oil is Killing our Cars, Continued……

"If you're currently putting mileage on your classic vehicle and using the latest API grade SM oil, you are almost certainly doing irreversible damage to your engine."

William C. Anderson, ‘New Oils and Old Cars’, Old Cars Weekly 48

 What’s this all about? In the middle 1970’s catalytic converters (cats) became mandatory on most cars. By the middle of the 1980’s it was noted that cats had a limited lifetime. With the addition of computer controlled fuel delivery, oxygen sensors were introduced into the exhaust system. Soon after this it was noted that one of the Extreme Pressure (EP) components of oil, ZDDP (Zink-Dialkyl-Dithio-Phosphate), caused deterioration of the oxygen sensors and cats. The auto manufacturers started to redesign engines so that they didn’t need this additive and by 2005 all major oil manufacturers started to reduce ZDDP in their oils with the goal of meeting “SM” classification. Most engines produced before 1980 were of the flat tappet design that were designed around and had to have ZDDP. As the “old” engines use only a small percentage of the total lubrication oil consumed today, the removal of ZDDP did not affect the majority of the oil market. Of the 500 million registered cars in the U.S. only 10 million are older than 1988.  Most well known companies therefore choose not to help people who own older cars, especially those with flat tappets. Those that are acknowledging our needs are limiting what is available and even what they offer may not be sufficient. The bottom line here is that if you are not using a lubricating oil with at least the necessary amount of ZDDP your car was designed to use (flat tappet design or high performance hot rod) you are damaging your engine.

  Here’s the number we need: Between 1,600 ppm. and with 2,800 ppm being about highest concentration of ZDDP (Zink-Dialkyl-Dithio-Phosphate), around 1,800 ppm seems desirable. Most of today’s oils have reduced this chemical to less than 400 ppm and in most cases their goal is Zero! Another point: Zinc and/or Phosphate do not equate to protecting our engines. ZDDP is the compound that protects our engines. Don’t accept oils or additives that claim to have what we need if they give just zinc and/or phosphate numbers.

 There seem to be only two major North American oil companies producing products for us and they are Castrol (Syntec 20W-50 in the black bottle with “Recommended for Classic Cars” on the back) and Valvoline (VR-1 20W-50). Joe Gibbs Racing Oil is now producing street oils that seem the best available for our engines and distribution of this product is just starting in North America. Red Line Oil, a smaller manufacturer on the West Coast, is available at many racing shops, with 10W-40. Eastern States seem to be able to find Brad Penn Oil, Swepco and Hi-Z. Penrite Oil in Australia.

 Now comes The News! Companies are now producing ZDDP additives that can be added to any oil! Rather than try to find oils that protect our cars, you can now add a prescribed amount of one of these additives to your oil of choice. The more concentrated the additive the better. Be aware that the larger the dose of additive required to reach 1,600 ppm, the “carrier” in the additive will probably dilute your oil and reduce the oil’s designed lubrication abilities.

 First to come to market was a product called “ZddPlus”. Kirban Performance, the manufacturer, has a web site www.ZddPlus.com that expands on what we have been learning over the last year and their approach to solving our problem. They are seemingly careful not to suggest any brand of oil and claim their product should be compatible with any company’s products. There is no new information on this web site but it answers many questions. They market directly on-line or through dealers.

 The second product is “Cam-Shield”. This product has been developed by a person that has been in the lubrication business for many years and is a very experienced lubrication formulator for some of the largest racing programs from road racing to off-road. This product is very concentrated so it does not dilute your base oil. It comes in a bottle that has a built-in measuring device so that you can accurately dispense the product based on how much oil you put in. This company markets through local dealers, distributors and on-line www.Cam-Shield.com. This company also does not suggest any single brand of oil.

 Other products that contain ZDDP are EOS, Torco, Crane, CompCam and STP. These are not specifically formulated for our cars and have limited use. Some are specifically to be used only during break-in. There may be others.

 So we have a final answer! We can now know, by adding the ZDDP that was mandated out of most oil, that we are not internally wearing away our engines at an accelerated rate by restoring the ZDDP that our engines were designed around.

 I want to acknowledge and thank the companies, large and small, and the individual people who have written and called me with input on this subject from all over the world. Many were aware of this problem even before my first article was published. All these inputs are used and are appreciated.

 Keith M. Ansell

Foreign Parts Positively, Inc.

www.ForeignPartsPositively.com

19900 NE 189^th Street    Brush Prairie, Washington 98606

360-882-3596

Temporary Engine – On the Hook

Charlotte’s temporary engine turned out to be more temporary than hoped.  In a previous story, I told of cleaning and reassembling a well worn standard engine that I had purchased a couple of years ago.  It rattled badly as the cylinder bores have a lot of wear, but it ran okay.

We drove the car on the January and February tours and a few other outings accumulating about a thousand miles.  On Tuesday, February 27th one cylinder went dead on my way to work; I assumed that it fouled the spark plug.  A short while later the rattling became louder, even to my poor hearing.  As I was near work and had a morning meeting, I thought that I would nurse it the couple of remaining miles and then nurse it home to change cars after the meeting.   Charlotte made it to the Villages, but not to the meeting – the noise got really loud and I shut it off and called AAA.  Of course as I was not stranded anywhere, the flatbed tow truck was there in 10 minutes.

That evening I pulled the cylinder head and to no surprise found that the number two piston had broken.  The crown was completely separated from the rest of the piston and at the top of the bore.  The skirt and wristpin bosses luckily stayed pretty much together and did not damage the bore.  Further inspection provided a couple of lessons; the most apparent being that badly worn parts are very likely to fail.

 I assembled this engine just after Christmas knowing it was worn way past any reasonable tolerance; I only hoped that it would run until I could get my “good” engine repaired.  I did not bother measuring the cylinder wear, but a fair sized screwdriver blade will fit between the piston and cylinder.  Someone had installed new rings very recently so I reinstalled them.  The upper ring groove of the pistons has a huge amount of wear.  That same screwdriver blade will fit in the groove along side the top ring.  It appears that the top ring broke and caused the top ring land to break as well.  That piece then jammed between the head and piston causing the piston to break through the center of the crown and from the skirt portion.  I pulled the number one piston as it was oily on top as well.  I found that the top ring was broken about a half inch from the end gap; it would soon shatter the piston as well.  That was the tough lesson.  Even in a low performance Model A engine, tolerances matter.   The good lessons were from the cooling system.  When I drained the coolant, it was crystal clear with zero visible rust. When the engine was apart, I had cleaned the block with swimming pool acid at about 70% strength.  I let the acid sit in the water jackets for several hours on a warm day in the sun; flushing with the garden hose for several minutes – an incredible amount of rust and crud came out.  When I filled the cooling system I had only about a half bottle of soluble oil rust prevention.  I intended to add more, but forgot.  I was amazed at how clean the coolant was when I drained it.  The other positive is that my JB Weld repair to the external crack seems to be holding perfectly.

The Twenty Millionth Ford Story

"The Milestone Model A" has just been released by the Ford Motor Company. This outstanding DVD, produced by Ford Corporate Historian Bob Kreipke, includes never-before-seen film footage from 1931 recorded in dozens of cities and towns across America as the Twenty Millionth Ford made its historic coast-to-coast tour. It shows the excitement, the crowds, the fashions and the fun, as the Twenty Millionth Ford and a group of new 1931 Model A's rolled into large and small communities, and visited national landmarks and dealerships.
The modern restoration process of this landmark vehicle is also well documented.

The film tells the complete story about the most famous of all Model A's, from Henry Ford driving it off the assembly line, to its world-class restoration.

This documentary is 44 minutes of both color and black and white film, plus sound.
Price is $25 including shipping/handling/tax.

To place an advanced order, in time for holiday gift giving, send an email to: fcsdups@ford.com.
Indicate the number of copies you'd like to order, your name and shipping address, and your phone number.
You'll receive a return call to obtain your credit card information for payment.

I'm confident that you'll enjoy "The Milestone Model A" as much as I did.

The repair procedure is straight forward and does not require special skills or special tools. I clamped the main body of the switch in my vice and gently pried up the four bent tabs that hold it together. Lift off the case half; it does not fly apart and self destruct like most switches. You will see a simple spring-loaded plunger and a very simple contact – no further disassembly is needed.

With the switch still in the vise, I dressed the tip of the contact and gently scraped the other part with a very small file. I sprayed the contacts with electrical cleaner, and slightly bent the stationary contact upward a small amount to compensate for wear. I then coated the contacts and the plunger shaft with dielectric grease, and reassembled the case halves.

It worked like new or better. In about forty minutes total, I was able to diagnose (with a simple jumper wire across the switch terminals), remove, repair, and reinstall the stoplight switch on our 1930 phaeton. Although a new switch only costs $5, just experiencing the concept of a repairable component was worth far more.

Be Prepared

Long trips in a Model A can be a once in a lifetime experience.  A well prepared Model A can provide you the trip of fun and enjoyment.  An unprepared car can make that trip into one of the longest you've ever been on, and even one of the most dangerous!  The following list of tools, parts and supplies is a good checklist when preparing your car for a tour. This list is reprinted from the MAFCA Technical Webpage.

Why don't you post it in a convenient place in your garage?

For A Long Trip, Include These Too:

Copyright © October, 2004 Santa Clara Valley Chapter of the Model A Ford Club of America
All rights reserved.