Hello all,
I am bringing back to life my father-in-laws 87 Monte SS. It has sat in his basement since the early 90's and not started very much. I am finishing up with checking everything over before I attempt to cranking it and I want to know what is the best oil and additive I need to be putting in the engine to pretty much break it in and make sure everything is lubed up nicely.

Is there a preferred oil (Additive) and filter that is best for this engine?

 

Assuming you replaced the fan belts, radiator and heater hoses, coolant, cleaned the fuel tank, flushed the fuel lines, rebuilt or replaced the fuel pump, replaced the fuel filter, and rebuilt the carb or injector system (depending on what it has), put a can of SeaFoam in the tank per directions,… assuming you did all that, replace the oil that's in there with straight 30W, one or two bottles of Marvel Mystery Oil, and install a new oil filter.
After the engine runs through an entire tank of the SeaFoam treated gasoline, do another oil change with whatever oil you expect to be running moving forward and a bottle of Marvel's, and change the oil filter again.
Good luck.

 

I guess I forgot to mention he bought it new and only put 2,600 miles on it. So hoses are in like new condition....at least on the outside. Flushed the coolant with no water or debris and it still tested good. Oil was dark but no debris, belts have 0 cracks and look new, tank was dry of any gas as he emptied it before storing it. I put a battery on it and everything works like it would be from 87. I have replaced the plugs, wires, and drained the oil and new filter. I put marvel oil in the cylinders through the plug holes to lube the cylinders.

Another question is should I take the valve covers off to lube the top-end or will marvel oil be sufficient to quickly lube the top end once I start it?

 

Rubber parts (hoses, belts, tires, etc.) have a shelf life of 7-10 years. I'm a chemist who's been working in the chemical industry for over 30-years and I've been driving the same car every day since 1984, but what do I know? You're welcome to put your life in the hands of stuff that's unknown in age but I wouldn't. To put it another way, a seven-year old egg looks like new on the outside but would you still eat it?

However much time, effort and money you put into this car will be based on what you want to do with it. If you simply want to get it running so as to sell it, why bother with pulling the valve covers? If you want to keep it and enjoy for years to come, why cheap out and not get new rubber?

As for making sure everything in the engine is lubed before starting, if it were me and I wanted to keep this car, I would have the fresh oil and Marvel in the pan, pull off the valve covers, pull the distributor, and use an oil pump priming tool to prime the lubrication system. While the priming tool is doing its thing, I would rotate the engine by hand and visually observe each rocker to make sure oil is going up each push rod and flowing over the rocker stud ball. I would go so far as to rotate the engine at least four times, thereby giving the camshaft at least two full rotations, while using the priming tool. But, to reiterate, that's just what I would do. Your mileage may vary.

 

I wasn't coming across the way it seems so I appreciate the advice. I will definitely be replacing everything before driving it and yes we will be keeping it.

Thanks for the input.