1990 300D 2.5L Turbo.

I live in the SF Bay area.

Temperature range is 40 F to 100F.

What weight (5W-30, 20W-50, etc) do I use?

Thanks.

Isn't there a page in the owner's manual dedicated to this?

15w40 or 5w40 would work well. 5W30 will be too thin, and most commonly available 5/30s are not diesel rated.

-J

__________________
1991 350SDL. 230,000 miles (new motor @ 150,000). Blown head gasket

Tesla Model 3. 205,000 miles. Been to 48 states!
Past: A fleet of VW TDIs.... including a V10,a Dieselgate Passat, and 2 ECOdiesels.
2014 Cadillac ELR
2013 Fiat 500E.

There is a page in the owner's manual that addresses this question. As far as types of oil, I am going with Amsoil 10W40 Premium Synthetic Oil with boosted levels of ZDDP for extra lubrication. However, I also believe that the Lubromoly oils (available at NAPA) are on par with Amsoil, both are amongst the top five performing oils.

If you guys thing there are oil wars here you should hop on over to TDIClub. Numerous tests have shown Rotella T6 5w40 to be an excellent oil, and a value that is hard to beat. It's an easy recommendation for me to make.

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=325214

-J

__________________
1991 350SDL. 230,000 miles (new motor @ 150,000). Blown head gasket

Tesla Model 3. 205,000 miles. Been to 48 states!
Past: A fleet of VW TDIs.... including a V10,a Dieselgate Passat, and 2 ECOdiesels.
2014 Cadillac ELR
2013 Fiat 500E.

Of course - but things have changed in 20+ years.

Or maybe they haven't.

PS - I got 400K running Castrol (mineral) 20-50 on my prior car but then I come here and I encounter a wide variety of thought.

So I asked.

They didn't have Rotella T6 back then.

I'm going to have start looking for that stuff. 5W-40 is just what I need.

So it seems like a good question for me to ask.

Any advice which stores for purchase?

Mau Mart and AutoZoo have it.

-J

__________________
1991 350SDL. 230,000 miles (new motor @ 150,000). Blown head gasket

Tesla Model 3. 205,000 miles. Been to 48 states!
Past: A fleet of VW TDIs.... including a V10,a Dieselgate Passat, and 2 ECOdiesels.
2014 Cadillac ELR
2013 Fiat 500E.

I call my local WalMart and ask but no one answers the phone?

I'm buying them locally at $28/gallon.

How terrible is that?

For OM617.952s, however?

I can't get my head around whether 5w40 oils are ok or not for the older motors.

__________________


Mac
2002 e320 4matic estate│1985 300d│1980 300td
Previous: 1979 & 1982 & 1983 300sd │ 1982 240d

“Let's take a drive into the middle of nowhere with a packet of Marlboro lights and talk about our lives.” ― Joseph Heller, Catch-22

And this would be surprising, why ?

__________________


Mac
2002 e320 4matic estate│1985 300d│1980 300td
Previous: 1979 & 1982 & 1983 300sd │ 1982 240d

“Let's take a drive into the middle of nowhere with a packet of Marlboro lights and talk about our lives.” ― Joseph Heller, Catch-22

Yes oil rated 5 40 is good for any diesel as long as it is Diesel rated. I really like Mobil 1 Light truck and SUV Diesel in 5/40 for my 300D. I use it all year, great for hot weather on the 40 side, great for cold starts on the 5 side. I have never had trouble starting my 300D since I began using it about 4 years ago.

__________________
Junqueyardjim
Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important. C.S. Lewis



1983 Mercedes W123 240D 4 Speed 285,000 on the road with a 617 turbo, beautiful butter yellow, license plate # 83 240D INDIANA

2003 Jaguar Type X, AWD. beautiful, good mileage,
Mom's car, but I won't let her drive it!

Rotella T6 5w40
http://www.shell.com/home/content/rotella/products/t6/

http://www.google.com/search?q=T6+5w40&rls=com.microsoft:en-us&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&startIndex=&startPage=1&rlz=#q=rotella+5w40+synthetic&hl=en&rls=com.microsoft:en-us&prmd=ivnsfd&source=univ&tbm=shop&tbo=u&sa=X&ei=G1RATrDeD4WIsQLfu6Qw&sqi=2&ved=0CHcQrQQ&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=cb18799be3bd9f8c&biw=1280&bih=863