What oil to use for mower engine

littlemoney · 20 February 2019 at 2:22PM

I have an 24 year old Hayter autodrive mower with a Briggs and Stratton Quantum engine. As it is getting more and more expensive to service each year I want to give it a miss this year. I have checked the oil level and the dip stick tells me to add more oil.

I have no oil specifically for mowers but I have oil given to me after my car was serviced. On the bottle it says that the oil is Multivis C3 5W-30. Can I use this to top up my mower and save money

The Briggs and Stratton web site recommend their own mover 4 stroke lawn mower engine oil SAE 30.

https://www.briggsandstratton.com/eu/en_gb/support/faqs/browse/mower-oil-type-and-capacity.html

Yet further down the same page they state:

Can You Use Synthetic Lawn Mower Oil? Yes!
We have recently modified our engine oil recommendations to state that you may now use a synthetic 5W30 or 10W30 oil in all temperature ranges. We recommend the use of Briggs & Stratton Fully Synthetic Premium Long-Life Oil. The use of this high quality detergent oil assures compliance with Briggs & Stratton warranty requirements regarding the use of appropriate oil.
Engine break-in procedures using synthetic oil remain the same. Please keep in mind that the use of synthetic oil does not preclude you from performing your regularly scheduled lawn mower maintenance (i.e. check oil, change oil, etc.)

I am now very confused have different recommendations from the Briggs & Stratton web site and advice from the more knowledgeable would be much appreciated.

If I have to buy more oil can I use the mower once before topping up as the oil level is just on the line saying Add Oil. Thanks

molerat · 20 February 2019 at 2:39PM

With an engine that old anything wet and slippery will do. Be aware though that using a fully synthetic may clean all the crap out of the engine and cause it to use a fair bit of oil.

littlemoney · 20 February 2019 at 3:54PM

molerat wrote: »

With an engine that old anything wet and slippery will do. Be aware though that using a fully synthetic may clean all the crap out of the engine and cause it to use a fair bit of oil.

As I don't understand engines or oil. Is the Multivis C3 5W-30 I have a fully synthetic oil and is there a cheap alternative I could buy if I don't want to use it.

Inner_Zone · 20 February 2019 at 4:15PM

Halfords sell garden equipment oil, I use the 4 stoke version in my Honda generator:

https://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/SearchRouter?langId=-1&storeId=10001&catalogId=10151&action=search&srch=garden+oil

molerat · 20 February 2019 at 4:24PM

littlemoney wrote: »

As I don't understand engines or oil. Is the Multivis C3 5W-30 I have a fully synthetic oil and is there a cheap alternative I could buy if I don't want to use it.

https://www.morrislubricantsonline.co.uk/multivis-adt-c3-5w-30.html

Multivis ADT C3 5W-30 is a mid-SAPS synthetic engine oil formulated to meet the demands and fuel efficiency expectations of the latest petrol and diesel engines, where a low viscosity oil is required.

Fully synthetic oils used in an old engine tend to clean out all the carbon that is stuck in the rings and valve guides which effectively form a seal. That said, it is a lawnmower not a racing car and as long as you check the oil level regularly there will be no problem.

https://www.halfords.com/motoring/engine-oils-fluids/gearbox-oil/halfords-4-stroke-garden-engine-oil-1l

Any garden centre and many supermarkets stock 10w30 multigrade or single 30w garden machinery oil.

Justagardener · 20 February 2019 at 4:37PM

I have heard that you shouldn't mix synthetic and mineral. If you can get a drop of each oil on a dish and mix the two, as long as the mix doesn't turn cloudy it's good to use.
It is very easy to change the oil if you want to. Buy a very small cheap oil extraction pump (Amazon about £10) poke the pipe down the dipstick hole and pump! All the oil comes out and then just replace with your synthetic oil. No more service costs.
To give you an idea I use my Honda for roughly 18 hours a week for 8 months of the year and might get round to changing the oil every 2 years and have never had a problem in 30 years. So don't worry too much.

What oil to use for mower engine

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