Oil for 4A-GE Motorsport

[XC9000]

i have searched through FAQs and did not find anything specific Answering my question.

Can I invite pinions on the preferred oils to use in competition please?

My motor is well used. Odo reads 280k but no idea the milage on the engine.

Car to be used for hillclimbs, ie., short burst w high loads on para warm engine.

appreciate opinions Thx.

[Hiro]

Is the engine going to be modified significantly? Hillclimbs (as long as the engine is warm when you start) wouldn't place massive loads on the oil because you're only going to be running hard for a minute max at a time, with plenty of cool-down.

A lot of the guys on Twincam run Penrite, if it's a stock-ish 280k 16V 4AGE then something like HPR30 would be fine. Bear in mind that A-series engines love to burn oil as they get old, so don't run anything too thin in a high-miler otherwise it'll be pouring out the exhaust.

[XC9000]

Standard workings; 16V head smallport Red-top with extractors sports exhaust and running a pod only. Category only allows these mods. My mechanic mate tuned it last weekend, used a fuel additive, and he estimated it is 125-135kW. I doubted it but it does perform well. Any opinions as to what these mods will yield?

I bought the car to do motorsport only basically in road registerable category and am not keen to spend big money until I know the characteristics. I'm ex Classic Mini enthusiast and a well-known race driver advised me they have similar to mini handling characteristics and I hope that proves to be true.

At 270K & blowing a little smoke I need to be considerate with worn oil rings & if the load is too heavy - ie., needing to drop back a gear and sustain 7000+ I wont play hard and just suffer a slower time. Competition against others is not my thing. I'll then go regularity etc just for the fun of circuit events.

15+ years ago I had a Rolla 4WD and learnt that those things would go >400K before the engine needs any surgery and this gave me faith that the bottom end and compression are a good engine for hard work (even though the 4WD wasn't 4A-GE). Is this the case with the 4A-GE? I also found with internet research the generic engine is Cosworth (Ford / Lotus) - that excited me too.

I have found some cars last longer with more compatible oils. I'm very pleased you recommend Penrite - in my car club the company gave me a lot of information which I presented one club meeting evening. They are great and Aus made! Your help Hiro is appreciated.

[Hiro]

Standard workings; 16V head smallport Red-top with extractors sports exhaust and running a pod only. Category only allows these mods. My mechanic mate tuned it last weekend, used a fuel additive, and he estimated it is 125-135kW. I doubted it but it does perform well. Any opinions as to what these mods will yield?

You'll find it'll probably be ~70-80kw at the wheels. 135kw at the flywheel (I hope that is what he was estimating, if it's at the wheels he's been huffing too much paint. HP instead of kW is another possible option) is a massive reach for a car which only had 100kw from the factory, and the intake/exhaust usually only adds ~5-10kw. Best 16V result I've seen on a DD dyno is about 94rwkw, and that is a _very_ worked street engine running heaps of compression and heaps of cam

At 270K & blowing a little smoke I need to be considerate with worn oil rings & if the load is too heavy - ie., needing to drop back a gear and sustain 7000+ I wont play hard and just suffer a slower time. Competition against others is not my thing. I'll then go regularity etc just for the fun of circuit events.

15+ years ago I had a Rolla 4WD and learnt that those things would go >400K before the engine needs any surgery and this gave me faith that the bottom end and compression are a good engine for hard work (even though the 4WD wasn't 4A-GE). Is this the case with the 4A-GE? I also found with internet research the generic engine is Cosworth (Ford / Lotus) - that excited me too.

All A-series engines burn oil, but it isn't terminal (usually valve stem seals, but stuck oil-control rings are also common) and as long as you keep an eye on oil levels they will run until the cows come home. My 7AFE has 387,000km on it, completely un-opened - it burns through a sump of oil in about 5,000km, and is smokey on first startup, high rpm and engine braking, but still pulls like a champ and feels like it could do another 100,000 easily before.

As for the whole Cosworth thing, it's a bit of an urban legend that seems to grow over time - the 4AGE does share some design characteristics with the Cosworth BDA and has the same kind of power/performance, but it is by no means a copy (main differences include the BDA being 1601cc instead of 1587cc for the 4A, bore centres are different, valve angles are different, distributor is in a different spot, BDA has a two-piece head whilst the 4A has a single-piece) etc etc.

This gets compounded by the fact that Toyota had a partnership with Lotus (NOT Cosworth) in the 70s/80s, which explains why the Lotus Excel has a Toyota diff, gearbox, MA61 wheels and door handles; the M90 concept/prototype ran a 4AGE; S4 Esprits ran AE86 tail-lights; and Lotus are rumoured to have assisted with the design of the AW11 MR2.

[XC9000]

Hiro. I'm very grateful for your efforts and indeed respectful of your senior knowledge with these machines. I am more comfortable with reality that is 135kW at the maximum, at the flywheel.

Interesting you mention sticking oil rings; this car blew smoke the day I bought it, but hardly blows blue smoke now. Maybe... I hope.

Thanks also for your clarity on Cosworth. Fortunately I only told my brother that story, and I can Easily set the record straight!

Any tips on how to strip window tint? Sides and rear are way to dark. Thx. Wayne