jaywestfall
I'm Awesome
I have a small leak in the block on my 1998 5.7 ext cab. When I changed to 10W30 it seemed to really slow the leak.
Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.
Nice.Degrade means degrade. Glad I could help.
I'm seeing oil consumption higher than expected for a low mileage 1999 Vortec 5.7l running with 10W/30.
On another thread there's one poster who says changing to a xxW/40 cuts consumption - eventually ( a gradual process, why not immediate?).
Trying to figure if I have an internal problem or is this just what these engines do. I've pulled the plugs and the worst I'm seeing is a very light brown/tan on the porcelain of some of them (and only on one side of a plug).
So I'm throwing out the following questions to try and find out what's 'normal' for these engines.
A. What consumption do you have in miles/quart?
B. What grade of oil do you run?
C. What mileage has your engine covered?
D. What colour shows on your spark plugs?
TIA.
Nice.
Does "Degrade" mean:
1. Viscosity breakdown?
2. Contamination with metal particles--aluminum, copper, iron, etc?
3. Contamination with soot?
4. Contamination with moisture?
5. Contamination with silica?
6. Contamination with coolant?
7. Contamination with fuel?
8. Vaporization of the volatile components?
9. Depletion of the additive package?
10. Something else?
Since I've proven over and over again, on multiple engines, using oil sampling/laboratory analysis that 7K mileage alone isn't enough to "degrade" oil, I'm wondering WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOUR ENGINE? 'Cause 7K miles should be a cakewalk with zippity-doo-dah for "sludging".
You show me a feedback fuel-injected engine that sludges at 7K, I'll show you an engine that has design flaws, or FIXABLE defects. An exception might be an engine that's driven short trips especially in winter, and doesn't warm-up. When my oil samples came back showing problems, in both cases it was because the thermostats had stuck open preventing the engine from achieving proper operating temperature. As would be expected, the oil had high moisture and fuel content. In both cases, replacing the thermostats resolved the oil contamination issues.
Oil analysis: It's a wonderful thing.
Yes, I am. So many folks don't even know that the service exists; or why it might be useful.you seem very passionate about oil analysis
Most any Diesel-equipment parts department will sell you an oil-sample "kit", consisting of a sample bottle, a mailing bottle, and the processing fee. You collect the sample in the provided bottle, put that bottle into the mailing bottle, attach a pre-printed mailing label, pay the postage for shipment to one of several labs, and wait for some results. If there's nothing wrong with the oil, they mail you a report in a week or three. If there's a problem, they notify you faster. I think some kits include the processing fee AND a pre-paid postage label.do you have a rec for a professional company that does that? Address/phone no
On the forums, I hear a lot about "Blackstone Labs" doing oil analysis. I've never used them.
We use Blackstone for the oil analysis on our BMW 3-series race car. All of our engine failures have been driver error (4-3 shift instead of 4-5) or oddball stuff (stock valvespring failed at 6,000 rpm) that oil analysis couldn't find. We've avoided a couple issues because of their analyses.
Personally, I haven't used it on my cars, but my wife's Chrylser 300 probably could have used it a couple years ago before it started ticking. Now we're just driving it until it drops.