What motor oil are you running in your Vortec?

[df2x4]

So it looks like the Blackstone test will cost me $30? What info will they provide and what would it tell me about my engine?

All kinds of stuff. Basically the condition of the oil itself (how degraded it is, additive levels) and whether or not there's any foreign materials in it. Everything from coolant to microscopic metal flakes.

 

[Supercharged111]

All kinds of stuff. Basically the condition of the oil itself (how degraded it is, additive levels) and whether or not there's any foreign materials in it. Everything from coolant to microscopic metal flakes.

And this tells you if you're eating bearings, timing chain, etc.

 

[df2x4]

^ Exactly.

 

[99SUB4X4]

5W-30 Mobil 1. When it's on sale at Costco I stock up. Usually pair that with a Wix filter. Did the same thing for my previous '98 Suburban and '95 Z28 Camaro. No complaints!

 

[1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2]

All kinds of stuff. Basically the condition of the oil itself (how degraded it is, additive levels) and whether or not there's any foreign materials in it. Everything from coolant to microscopic metal flakes.

And this tells you if you're eating bearings, timing chain, etc.

Thanks guys! I may order the kit before my next oil change and see what results I get. I may need to post the results for some help understanding the info

 

[Ehall8702]

I change my oil every 5k because I haven't done a used oil analysis. Owner's Manual says 7500 miles for whatever a factory fill was, I assume dino oil. If the analysis says the oil is good, then there is zero risk to the extended intervals.

Just personal preference then, and oil analysis cost money too, but you never know when there was a bad batch or an off addative even from factory. Kinda like gambling i guess. I don't gamble , my oil provider says they suggest changing at 3k or 3 months like most oil manufacturers do. I prefer safe and just change it and KNOW my engine is safe ya know. Have lots of other things on my truck is rather spend cash on besides a crate engine or my time putting one in if I got sum faulty oil or something dumb happens. To each thier own I guess, but I know my **** is good how I do it. I spend $27 every 3k on oil and filter and get to look my truck over on the hoist while I'm doing it and k ow EVERYTHING is good. I think my biggest issue with going that long vs 3 or 5k is ppl neglect to look everything else over like u r supposed to when you do an oil change. On our trucks everything is starting to get pretty old and needs greased and lubed and looked over and waiting 25k between changes means there is very little chance anyone is gonna roll under thier truck to inspect and check **** inbetween oil changes .

 

[PlayingWithTBI]

Basically the condition of the oil itself (how degraded it is, additive levels) and whether or not there's any foreign materials in it. Everything from coolant to microscopic metal flakes.

I think this would be important in engine oils too - in our hydraulic systems, some of which had a capacity of ~2500 gallons (AW68 or AW100 - AW signified Anti-Wear or higher zinc content), we had "kidney loop" filtration set ups that ran 24/7. We took monthly samples and looked for contaminants at different levels from 5 microns to >100 microns but the biggest determination of when we had to change the oil was the TAN (Total Acid Number) which cannot be filtered out but will eat metal surfaces and components.

This is why I said earlier, I don't want to get into this argument again, everyone has their own opinion with some (more or less) validity for each. YMMV

 

[df2x4]

Thanks guys! I may order the kit before my next oil change and see what results I get. I may need to post the results for some help understanding the info

No problem! If there's anything you don't understand they'll explain it to you much better than we can I'm sure, they're super knowledgeable and nice people. They also give you a detailed text description of what they find (in addition to the numbers) and if they see any potential issues. Basically if there's a problem, you can be sure they'll let you know about it.

 

[df2x4]

I think this would be important in engine oils too - in our hydraulic systems, some of which had a capacity of ~2500 gallons (AW68 or AW100 - AW signified Anti-Wear or higher zinc content), we had "kidney loop" filtration set ups that ran 24/7. We took monthly samples and looked for contaminants at different levels from 5 microns to >100 microns but the biggest determination of when we had to change the oil was the TAN (Total Acid Number) which cannot be filtered out but will eat metal surfaces and components.

This is why I said earlier, I don't want to get into this argument again, everyone has their own opinion with some (more or less) validity for each. YMMV

Blackstone does something similar to TAN analysis for engine oil samples, TBN or Total Base Number. It's $10 additional charge, and it's the test you want them to run if you're interested in extending your change interval. (Or just to see how yours is working out)

https://www.blackstone-labs.com/do-i-need-a-tbn/

 

[Supercharged111]

Just personal preference then, and oil analysis cost money too, but you never know when there was a bad batch or an off addative even from factory. Kinda like gambling i guess. I don't gamble , my oil provider says they suggest changing at 3k or 3 months like most oil manufacturers do. I prefer safe and just change it and KNOW my engine is safe ya know. Have lots of other things on my truck is rather spend cash on besides a crate engine or my time putting one in if I got sum faulty oil or something dumb happens. To each thier own I guess, but I know my **** is good how I do it. I spend $27 every 3k on oil and filter and get to look my truck over on the hoist while I'm doing it and k ow EVERYTHING is good. I think my biggest issue with going that long vs 3 or 5k is ppl neglect to look everything else over like u r supposed to when you do an oil change. On our trucks everything is starting to get pretty old and needs greased and lubed and looked over and waiting 25k between changes means there is very little chance anyone is gonna roll under thier truck to inspect and check **** inbetween oil changes .

I hear ya, but you spend $27 every 3000 and I spend around $35 every 5000, and I always end up with either a K&N or Mobil1 filter too. I justified the 5k interval years ago because by my math it was the same cost as dino every 3k, but less work. I have enough other never ending catch-up maintenance on my truck that I stay apprised to most everything on it. I have 270k now and it burns the same amount of oil it did at 200k without the blower. Any time I lift a valve cover it's squeaky clean in there. 3000mi intervals are a thing of the past. Oil has gotten better and EFI goes a long, long ways toward keeping your oil clean.