What oil?

Unknown

Now that I am actually driving the '29 Town Sedan all over Los Angeles

County, I have to begin paying attention to things like routine

lubrication and routine maintenance.



Which raises questions about oil:

1. What modern oil is best suited to these old engines? I have had one

collector of many Hudsons say that the best bet is straight 40-weight

oil, but that is far enough from factory specs that i would like other

opinions. Since I live in Los Angeles, low-viscosity to deal with cold

weather is not a real issue. The last time I had the oil changed (at

Jiffy Lube) I had them put in a 10W30 Pennzoil product that was

"specially formulated for high mileage cars." It cost more than

standard, and with 7 quarts into the Hudson, the total bill ran to $50.

This is pretty expensive, especially if one follows the original

recommendations for frequency of oil change. Thus, questions #2, below.

2. How often should I change the oil? The User's Manual says every 500

miles. That is obviously a LOT more often than the recommendation for

modern vehicles. Given (a) the changes in oil chemistry and (b) the

fact that I do have quite a bit of blow-by and therefore probably some

acid buildup in the oil, what's reasonable?







Lew Phelps

Pasadena, CA

1929 Hudson Town Sedan

http://www.phelpsclan.com/Hudson