Hi all,

I am wondering what would be the best oil type to put in my B230F Volvo 740GL. I live in Queensland, Australia and it gets upwards of 30 degrees Celsius here. For the past year i have been putting in HPR50 40-70 oil. Precisely speaking, this exact oil:

It has been recommended to me by an old Volvo mechanic who worked for the dealer here for the past 40 years. He told me that since its an older engine (260k km, 33 years old), i should put this oil into it since its thicker and will protect it more and help it run better, and in his experience he found that it goes well in the b230f. But recently i discovered that some 740 owners in my area put 15W-40 oil, which is obviously quite a big difference between the two. The 40-70 seems VERY thick, and i'm not really sure about going with it anymore considering that others tend to go for something like 15-40.

Any thoughts about this topic would be appreciated.

Thank you.

 

Sounds a bit thick to me. The thickest oil I ever used in a car was 20w50 in my old VW beetle. That was in the summer in an air-cooled engine with no oil filter.

 

What alternative oil would be good to use for the B230F? I suppose to make it easier, we have almost identical climate as to Texas.

 

I use 10W-40 in my 89 740GL with 378K miles on it. Change it every 5K miles. Works for me and I'm in -10*F to + 90*F temps.

 

Do you use semi, full synthetic or mineral?

 

keep in mind, ambient temperature doesn't impact the oil viscosity, the efficiency of the cooling system does. Driving in mountains or pulling a trailer puts more strain on the oil than driving on a 35C (95F) day. Considering you have an older engine and a warm climate, I'd go for a 15/40 as recommended in the owners manual and consider a high mileage oil with seal softeners.

 

I use plain old regular Dino engine oil. Any brand will do.

 

I always use 10-30 regardless of engine mileage, since 1986... I use full syn for the turboed. 40-70 is way too thick, I am surprised the engine runs with it, hate to ask the MPG you get...

 

I get about 13 liters per 100km, which is about 18 mpg. My 2nd car (4.3liter V8 Lexus coupe) gets better gas mileage than that! I get about 12.5 liters/100km in an engine twice bigger.

 

10W30 is the correct oil for B230F/FT engines in most all climates. I've had 20W50 cars, like my 1800cc vw rabbits and jettas but the volvo red block was designed for 10W30 and anything much heavier won't flow properly through the bearings.

 

a non-turbo b230f should get around 26-28 MPH on long distance highway runs, cruising at a steady speed of 65-70MPH. a turbo is lucky to break 21 under those conditions.

around town, there's just too many variables, leadfooting it light to light, its pretty easy to be in the mid teens with a turbo, and 18-20 in a non-turbo.

 

Surprising, I see the diffrence in B230 when I put 10-40 weight instead of the 10-30, lower idle speed, some stumble... May be just my imagination...

 

yeah, i'm vaguely remembering 30 years ago shortly after we'd bought our 87 240 new, when I started doing my own oil changes, I was using the 20W50 Castrol GTX that I'd been using on my Jetta, and the gas mileage and performance dropped some. mechanic informed me that was too thick of an oil for that engine, I switched to the recommended 10W30 and ran that for the remainder of the cars life, we put about 500K miles on that engine, and only retired the car because water leaks had gotten the interior so moldy it was nasty inside.

 

Just did an oil and filter change to semi-synthetic 10W-40 this morning, and WOW. What a difference. Just from changing the oil to a thinner type the car is instantly quieter by at least 30% from the outside. Before it sounded like a truck! It also starts better now, and throttle response and acceleration have both improved. The man i bought the car from a year or so back recommended that i use 40W-70 since its an older engine and will run better on thicker oil, but now i highly doubt that as the 10W-40 has proved to be superior.

 

Only a Red Block Volvo engine can survive 40-70 oil for any length of time! I can see the logic of an older engine using a LITTLE heavier oil but NEVER 40-70, the 10-40 would be it! Where do you even buy 40-70? I have never seen it in the US. The shops push the "older engine" (75,000+ miles) oil which they sell for a little more $ here which is ridiculous as a Volvo Red Block is hardly broken in at those miles. I have taken off enough Volvo heads to tell you that there is virtually no cylinder wall wear at 250+... I'd seriously question the credentials of the "old Volvo mechanic"! I'd still try the 10-30 oil, you may find even better results than the 10-40.

 

Next oil change ill try 10-30 and see how that goes. The 40-70 is relatively abundant to buy at any auto parts store in Australia, though i don't know any vehicles that would actually benefit from it? The man i bought the 740 from worked as a mechanic in a Volvo dealership, so i am quite confused myself as to how he would allow such oil to be running in the engine.

 

yeah that 40w70 stuff seems to be a aussie thing, and they claim its suitable for engines requiring 20w50, so like a blown out 1980s VW/Audi I4 or such.

its also high ZDDP (zinc) which current US spec oils are low on. not sure thats as imporrtant as we all thought it was.

 

i've always used 10w30 dino in these engines. you can get it practically anywhere. some of the 'quick' oil change places
that use bulk oil normally don't carry the 10 30 anymore. i usually get oil changes using 5w30 for my 4.0 l ford truck at the quick
valvoline places because it costs less than i can do it myself with their coupons etc....

 

10W30...in owners manual.

 

Is 5w30 too big a spread or will it be OK to use? Sure would be nice to use the same oil as the other vehicles in the garage.