BETA engine oil and coolant recommendations

[Roach1948]

I need to get the oil and coolant for my new BETA engine and below are listed the grades of oil from the manual. Would anybody recommend a particular "brand" of oil or coolant or can I go to Halfords and buy any with the same grade?



Gear Box ATF 0.3litres
Engine Oil Sump SAE 15W/40 2.5 litres
Coolant 50/50 water/anitfreeze 2.1litres

 

[sailorman]

all grades are as follows
C/C
the first C denotes diesel oil the second letter the higher the letter the better spec the oil i.e C/F4 the best non synthic oil

you will see that on some " petrol" oils the spec denotes diesel as well, its all a marketing ploy

 

[Roach1948]

So should I go C/F4 or should I go synthetic - I am not really sure what the difference or pros and cons are? I really am out of my depth when it comes to engines.

 

[sailorman]

C/C
C/DC/F4
all ok
go to a local factor / parts shop dont pay more than say £10 for 5 lts

do a search on here 4 oil filter references pay about £ 3.00 each

 

[Topcat47]

Been round this buoy myself recently.

1. Most marine diesels run on mineral oil. This is one case where better quality oils (synthetic or semi-synthetic) are worse for the engine.
My Yanmar manual advises against synthetic or semi-synthetic oils. Check your manual.

2. I'm told that Halfords do a mineral oil. Motor factors usually keep a "Comma" mineral multigrade. I got mine from an agricultural engineers this year. Castrol also do one, but I@ve not been able to find it this year.

3. Make sure it's formulated for diesels. Don't rely on the spotty youths to know which is which (Esp at Halfords).

4. Coolant at 50/50 strength is best mixed yourself. Although you may get some readymixed from Halfords or another motor factor, it's usually more expensive.

 

[macd]

The other replies seem to tell you all you need to know, but I wouldn't hesitate to contact Beta direct with any future queries. Very helpful people.

 

[Roach1948]

Thanks for all your help. A local tractor outlet is helping me out. I will make the coolant myself as you say....

 

[TrueBlue]

I don\'t really understand -

Ah, but, well, but I do slightly -= Beta's advice is basically, don't put too good a quality oil in your engine (I suppose they are bothered about the bores getting glazed). The recommended grades are API CC or CD or CE and do not use oil for diesel turbos.

That's very informative, but that specification of oil is hard to find ,or at a "reasonable" price. The modal type of lubricant available is SAE 10/40 which is semi synthetic and Beta say do NOT use. Where one can find 15/40 is it often marked "suitable for turbo diesels". Grudgingly, Beta say as long as the product is not labelled "for turbo engines", then that is probably OK. Even so most oils are now API CF grade which is too good.....


AAAAARRRRGGGHHH!

I spent a lot of time consulting motor factors (!) and even agricultural merchants who can supply, but wanted about £11 per gallon in 25l containers. In the end I found a reasonably ready supply from ASDA at £7.99 per 5l and it is a branded product, Havoline - from Texaco.

Now the above pricing is not of much consequence to those with small engines, but mine takes 10l a time and I should change my oil 2.5 times a year, so a little effort is well rewarded!

Now you've got chapter and verse, I hope it will save folks ringing up Beta Marine!

 

[pappaecho]

Re: I don\'t really understand -

If you want crap oil, with API C or D specification you must look in the most unusual places - DIY sheds seem to do a good range of "Cheap" oils that I would not put into a lawnmower.
I have just had a BV1305 Beta engine fitted and the manual says
15/40, but not for turbo diesels.
On the API front the higher the letter, the better the oil performs and the longer it maintains the pH of the system. Hence an oil which returns J or K on a petrol engine may only return F on a diesel, because the diesel produces more acidic free radicals, which means that it will not maintain the correct pH for a longer period, on diesel compared with petrol. This is why usually a diesel engine requires more frequent oil changes than petrol, and why recent low sulphur diesel oil has changed this rule.
I would go for the best API grade for normal diesel engines, as it will give longer pH protection and hence wear and tear.
As marine engines are expensive and oil is cheap, change the oil more frequently than the maker recommends.
My diesel Jaguar says 15K mile oil changes ... but only 12k for petrol! I change at 7000 miles regardless

 

[AlistairC]

Re: I don\'t really understand -

c14p! I've just put some 10-40 semi synthetic magnatec in my beta.

 

[KREW2]

We have been using this for as long as I can remember in three Mini Betas at our club. After installing a new Beta 25 in my boat I sent Beta Marine a picture of this oil asking about it's suitability. They replied saying it was ideal.

 

[wonkywinch]

Does this beat the record for replying to old threads? The thread is over 15 years old and some of the posters not seen here for over a decade.

 

[Biggles Wader]

Does this beat the record for replying to old threads? The thread is over 15 years old and some of the posters not seen here for over a decade.

Be nice to know if their engines expired because they used the wrong oil all those years ago! My bet is they either rusted away or are still going fine whatever oil was or was not used.

 

[Supertramp]

Lots on oils on other threads. There are decent quality mineral based oils available. I use Mobil 1000 X1.

ATF is necessary for the gearbox.

Check the antifreeze type - there are two types in Halfords and mono ethylene glycol is recommended by Beta.

Simplest way is to buy through Beta. Don't forget the engine anode.

Does it matter? I don't want to be the first to find out!

 

[vyv_cox]

We have been using this for as long as I can remember in three Mini Betas at our club. After installing a new Beta 25 in my boat I sent Beta Marine a picture of this oil asking about it's suitability. They replied saying it was ideal.
View attachment 168582

API CI-4 ticks all the boxes