Back in the early 70's when I bought my TD, I was advised by several people
not to put detergent oil in an old engine that had not used detergent before.
Well non-deterent 40W was readily avaliable back then, and that is what I used.
I was planning to do a DIY restoration but one thing after another came up
and before I knew it, 25 years had passed with the car still sitting in my
parents garage. I've got it running again after much work.
Funny thing about the oil:
The old oil I drained out looked clean. The new oil, 20W50, that has
only gone around the block a couple times, got absolutely filthy! I've recently
heard that the non-detergent thing is an old wives tale, and detergent multi-
weight is the way to go. Maybe there is something to this old wives tale after
all. I assume that the detergent has washed out the dirt from the nooks and
crannies, and that is why the oil is so filthy. Has anybody else had this
experience? I assume this is just a temporary problem.
Bob Donahue " 50s FOREVER "
rdonahue@holli.com
1953 MG-TD under restoration
1971 MGB
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