Volvo D2-40F Engine Oil

[xcw]

I'm about to change the oil in my D2-40F and am somewhat confused about which oil to use. I'd prefer to avoid paying the premium for Volvo oil so am looking for an alternative ideally available at Halfords or EuroCarParts. I understand the SAE15/40 part but am totally confused about all of the other numbering e.g ACEA E7 etc. Any suggestions about what I could use?

 

[RichardS]

I would check whether the manual recommends mineral, semi-synthetic or synthetic oil. Once you have that sorted you can buy the appropriate Halfords/ECP 15W-40. I think yours is a modern engine and, if so, a modern diesel auto 15/40 mineral oil will be fine.

For a modern engine there are other non-mineral options available but that's a whole new can of worms.

Just noticed that Volvo VDS-3 seems to be the standard recommended oil at 15W-40 and that is a mineral oil, There is also a Volvo VDS-3 synthetic oil but that is a lower viscosity 5W-40 oil so I wouldn't use the Halfords equivalent of that unless it is specifically recommended in the manual. I am sure that the manual will recommend VDS-3 mineral.

There is also a Volvo VDS-4 which is designed for extended oil change intervals and will be synthetic so best avoided unless specifically recommended by Volvo for extended change intervals for your engine and that is something which would be worth the additional expense for you as the Halfords equivalent will also be more expensive.

Richard

 

[xcw]

I would check whether the manual recommends mineral, semi-synthetic or synthetic oil. Once you have that sorted you can buy the appropriate Halfords/ECP 15W-40. I think yours is a modern engine and, if so, a modern diesel auto 15/40 mineral oil will be fine.

For a modern engine there are other non-mineral options available but that's a whole new can of worms.

Just noticed that Volvo VDS-3 seems to be the standard recommended oil at 15W-40 and that is a mineral oil, There is also a Volvo VDS-3 synthetic oil but that is a lower viscosity 5W-40 oil so I wouldn't use that unless it is specifically recommended in the manual. I an sure that the manual will recommend VDS-3 mineral.

There is also a Volvo VDS-4 which is designed for extended oil change intervals and will be synthetic so best avoided unless specifically recommended by Volvo for extended change intervals for your engine and that is something which would be worth the additional expense for you.

Richard

Many thanks Richard, most helpful. I note that the manual says Mineral based oil either fully or semi synthetic may be used.

 

[lw395]

I'm about to change the oil in my D2-40F and am somewhat confused about which oil to use. I'd prefer to avoid paying the premium for Volvo oil so am looking for an alternative ideally available at Halfords or EuroCarParts. I understand the SAE15/40 part but am totally confused about all of the other numbering e.g ACEA E7 etc. Any suggestions about what I could use?

ACEA E7 Stable, stay-in-grade oil providing effective control with respect to piston cleanliness and bore polishing. It further provides excellent wear control, soot handling and lubricant stability. It is recommended for highly rated diesel engines meeting Euro I, Euro II, Euro III, Euro IV and Euro V emission requirements and running under severe conditions, e.g. extended oil drain intervals according to the manufacturer's recommendations. It is suitable for engines without particulate filters, and for most EGR engines and most engines fitted with SCR NOx reduction systems. However, recommendations may differ between engine manufacturers so Driver Manuals and/or Dealers shall be consulted if in doubt.

If they ask for an oil that meets E7, it might be an idea to go along with that.
I'm sure someone will be along to recommend recycled muck from a French supermarket in due course.

 

[Tranona]

Many thanks Richard, most helpful. I note that the manual says Mineral based oil either fully or semi synthetic may be used.

You don't need the synthetic oils. The Volvo standards cover the whole range of engines from the simple low output engines such as you have to monster turbo engines turning out several hundred HP.

You are unlikely to do more than 150 hours a year which is the normal oil change interval and is the equivalent to about 5000 miles in a car with mixed use. If you are a high hours user then changing oil every 150-200 hours is sensible. My last boat (with a Volvo 2030) was used for charter and did around 600 hours a year with oil changes at 150 hours. Was running perfectly, burning no oil when I sold it at 3500 hours.

 

[RichardS]

Many thanks Richard, most helpful. I note that the manual says Mineral based oil either fully or semi synthetic may be used.

That's interesting and gives you a very good range to choose from. I notice that the thinner synthetic oil 5W-40 is only recommended for operation up to 20 degrees so I would avoid that even for the UK and certainly for the Med. The lowest minimum recommendation is actually VDS-2 15W-40 and any modern diesel auto 15W-40 will meet or exceed the spec of that oil.

Personally, if it was my engine, I would use a semi-sythetic 15W-40 from Halfords or, even better, any motor factors. I use the same in my Yanmars which are a similar design age to your Volvo and, although not quite as cheap as a mineral 15W-40, will be better for the engine.

Richard

 

[Tranona]

ACEA E7 Stable, stay-in-grade oil providing effective control with respect to piston cleanliness and bore polishing. It further provides excellent wear control, soot handling and lubricant stability. It is recommended for highly rated diesel engines meeting Euro I, Euro II, Euro III, Euro IV and Euro V emission requirements and running under severe conditions, e.g. extended oil drain intervals according to the manufacturer's recommendations. It is suitable for engines without particulate filters, and for most EGR engines and most engines fitted with SCR NOx reduction systems. However, recommendations may differ between engine manufacturers so Driver Manuals and/or Dealers shall be consulted if in doubt.

If they ask for an oil that meets E7, it might be an idea to go along with that.
I'm sure someone will be along to recommend recycled muck from a French supermarket in due course.

Few of those requirements relate to a low powered simple engine such as the OP has. That sort of oil is used in high specific output engines such as many small turbo diesels producing 70-100 BHP/litre and is expected to go more than 10000 miles between oil changes. A far cry from a D2 40 which produces only 35 BHP/litre or so.

 

[VicS]

I'm about to change the oil in my D2-40F and am somewhat confused about which oil to use. I'd prefer to avoid paying the premium for Volvo oil so am looking for an alternative ideally available at Halfords or EuroCarParts. I understand the SAE15/40 part but am totally confused about all of the other numbering e.g ACEA E7 etc. Any suggestions about what I could use?

I can see nothing on offer from either Halfords or Euro Car Parts that meets the specification stipulated in the engine manual

The viscosity grade of 15W/40 is no problem but nothing meets the ACEA or API specs, and of course not the VDS spec.

Of what is offered by Halfords and Euro Car parts I would choose Castrol GTX ( partly because I always use Castrol oil whenever I can) or Halfords part synthetic 15W/40 but they only meet ACEA A3/B3 and API SL/CF ( B3 and CF being the specs for diesel engine oil).

The trouble is as Tranona points out VP only market two grades of diesel engine oil which have specs which far exceed what is required by a humble yacht auxillary

 

[Heckler]

ACEA E7 Stable, stay-in-grade oil providing effective control with respect to piston cleanliness and bore polishing. It further provides excellent wear control, soot handling and lubricant stability. It is recommended for highly rated diesel engines meeting Euro I, Euro II, Euro III, Euro IV and Euro V emission requirements and running under severe conditions, e.g. extended oil drain intervals according to the manufacturer's recommendations. It is suitable for engines without particulate filters, and for most EGR engines and most engines fitted with SCR NOx reduction systems. However, recommendations may differ between engine manufacturers so Driver Manuals and/or Dealers shall be consulted if in doubt.

If they ask for an oil that meets E7, it might be an idea to go along with that.
I'm sure someone will be along to recommend recycled muck from a French supermarket in due course.

Why be nasty with comments like that? You dont know for starters where the base oils come from, the forumite that has told us you can get the multigrade oils still in french supermarkets is also a well renowned expert in such matters!
Wind yer neck in!
Stu

 

[lw395]

After all, what would Volvo know?

 

[RichardS]

After all, what would Volvo know?

Well , one thing Volvo don't know is how to manufacture engine oil ..... which is why they get someone else to make it.

Unless the Volvo-branded oil is a similar price to the 15W-40 semi-synthetic from the motor factors, one would have to be a bit doolally to pay extra for a Volvo label.

Any modern diesel oil from the big producers will massively exceed API CH-4 which is the minimum requirement for the D2.

Richard

 

[Quandary]

After all, what would Volvo know?

Well, the thing I think they know most about, is how to extract a premium for something relatively ordinary?
And also of course, how to paint Perkins engines green!

 

[pvb]

We keep seeing threads agonising about which oil to use in a small boat engine. These engines are tiny, totally understressed, and you could put practically any sort of engine oil in them without materially affecting their life expectancy. Just go for a reasonably-priced 15W-40 diesel engine oil and it'll be fine.

 

[lw395]

We keep seeing threads agonising about which oil to use in a small boat engine. These engines are tiny, totally understressed, and you could put practically any sort of engine oil in them without materially affecting their life expectancy. Just go for a reasonably-priced 15W-40 diesel engine oil and it'll be fine.

And yet we see lots of people needing to re-engine their yacht.
A boat engine is not like a car. The boat does not devalue to zero in 20 years.
The economics of putting the best possible oil in a boat are quite different to a car.

 

[RichardS]

I'm not sure that re-engineing is that common, but I accept that it is more common that re-engineing a car because the age profile of boat engines must be much older than car engines.

I do agree that there are advantages in using the best oil suitable for the engine, within a sensible price range, of course. I wouldn't use manufacturer-branded oil unless it was as good a value as the volume-label products but I am prepared to pay the extra for a better oil because of what I perceive as the advantages. These have been discussed many times before, but an example which springs to mind recently was when I checked my oil a couple of weeks ago. It was last changed in 2015 and after 50-odd hours is still dead on the full mark and still exactly the same clarity as when I changed it, such that it's not easy to see the level on the dipstick.

Whether the lack of any black carbon breakdown deposits in the oil is particularly important in the scheme of things, I know not. However, given the small additional cost, I would rather have clear bright oil right up to the time I change it rather than the "traditional" black diesel engine oil which others seem to be happy with.

Richard

 

[DickieT]

We keep seeing threads agonising about which oil to use in a small boat engine. These engines are tiny, totally understressed, and you could put practically any sort of engine oil in them without materially affecting their life expectancy. Just go for a reasonably-priced 15W-40 diesel engine oil and it'll be fine.

Exactly. For years I have used Shell Rimula R4X. Obtained from my local fishermans supply depot, last lot £55 for 20 litres. An oil from a reliable company (!) and used by fishing fleets day and night for much harder work than us yachties would ever envisage for our little engines.. Even for Volvo, their "Volvo" oil must be their biggest hype/ripoff yet - and they are the experts for taking a very ordinary spare and transforming it to some priceless object. Do not see it so much now but remember being able to peel off the Volvo label and see the true supplier of the oil underneath, BP I seem to recall was once fairly popular. Small boat engines die from lack of use and neglect, seldom bearing or bore wear from inferior specification oil !

 

[Tranona]

And yet we see lots of people needing to re-engine their yacht.
A boat engine is not like a car. The boat does not devalue to zero in 20 years.
The economics of putting the best possible oil in a boat are quite different to a car.

But very rarely because the mechanics are worn out and usually after 20-30 years of misuse. The last word is deliberate. The typical yacht usage is the worst possible for an engine. Short periods of use under light load at infrequent intervals totalling maybe 150 hours a year then left idle in often damp and cold. To put that in perspective there are 8760 hours in a year.

Most of the engines that are replaced are obsolete saltwater cooled engines and it is anciliaries that start to cause trouble rather than the bits that rely on oil. Being so old and made in very small quantities spares inevitably become expensive and difficult to obtain.

Having said that 30 years life in such conditions is a pretty good deal - what other complex mechanical consumer goods give that sort of life? as i mentioned earlier if you use small diesels hard and regularly you can expect 8000+ hours which is over 50 years of "normal" use. However normal use for most yachtsmen is a pattern that is not helpful to long life.

The usage my old 2030 got on charter would have clocked up 8000 hours in around 12-13 years, mostly running for several hours at a time at 2400 rpm. Pretty sure it would still be running well, like all the other high hours engines I came across in the charter business.

 

[vyv_cox]

I'm sure someone will be along to recommend recycled muck from a French supermarket in due course.

I wouldn't describe Total Oil's products in quite such a derogatory manner but perhaps you know more about them than I do?

 

[macd]

I wouldn't describe Total Oil's products in quite such a derogatory manner but perhaps you know more about them than I do?

Improbable.

 

[Bobc]

We keep seeing threads agonising about which oil to use in a small boat engine. These engines are tiny, totally understressed, and you could put practically any sort of engine oil in them without materially affecting their life expectancy. Just go for a reasonably-priced 15W-40 diesel engine oil and it'll be fine.

I agree completely. Common or garden mineral 15W-40 will be fine.