2012 Sprinter; Amsoil 0w-40; 18k km

[Gadgethound]

Good evening all,

I could use a little help understanding the data in the attached oil analysis. This is the first time I've had the oil analyzed since I deleted the DPF and all related emissions systems and switched to Amsoil Signature Series Max-Duty Diesel 0W-40. I installed Amsoil's bypass filter system as I want to take the oil change interval to 30,000km. The time of sample was 18,000km. My main concern is oil breakdown and thickening. I noticed on the test that the viscosity at 100 degrees C is 14.4. Is this number too high? Has the oil thickened? I am concerned about cold startup protection - over the last year the engine has been making a "clack-clack" noise for about 1 seconds after startup. I've read that these OM642 engines are known for sloppy timing chains. The hydraulic tensioner can sometimes take a bit to pump up.
This engine works very hard on a regular basis pulling my loaded van over numerous mountain passes here in central British Columbia. I monitor the oil temperature in the crankcase via OBD and it regularly reaches 100C, I can't imagine what the temperature of the return line from the turbo charger must be. Ouch!

Questions:
1) Can this oil take the abuse of 30,000km worth of high temperature operation in this undersized turbo diesel engine?
2) 12ppm iron. Is that from crankshaft wear? is 12ppm considered below average considering the sample interval?
3) What about the viscosity test of 14.4 @ 100C? Is this normal for a 0W40 engine?

Thanks in advance,

Steve

 

[Costas00]

To start with... I must say that this oil analysis report looks excellent for this amount of milage and for this mercedes diesel engine. If you are concerned about 12ppm of iron over a 18000km oil change interval you should try and search other uoa report for the om642 engine and you would be astonished to find that on most reports the iron wear is over 50 to 60 ppm with the highest I have seen until now to be 160 ppm. Maybe the deleted dpf helps with that. Did you also deleted the EGR? The TBN number shows that you can run the oil longer and I have searched on amsoil's website and the kinematic viscosity at 100 deg. Is 15.7 cst. So no oil thickening here....maybe a bit of oil shear due to heavy use or a bit of fuel dilution. The only thing you should check is the timing chain rattle on start up. You may need an new tensioner or chain.

 

[JHZR2]

I wouldn't have any problem with continuing to use that oil. It can still disperse more soot, has tbn reserve left, and viscosity looks good. Low wear metals too...

 

[Audios]

You can search my posts for a comparison against my 07 Gl320. I think my iron was almost 100 ppm using low SAPS, so going to Rotella next run.

 

[Pelican]

All those who have not followed MB maintenance to the letter have lived to regret it. It's your vehicle & your money, but don't be penny wise & pound foolish.

 

[JLTD]

Low wear, oil viscosity still in grade, and TBN still at 5? Might make it to 30,000 km but I'd be doing a few UOAs along the way.

 

[Bailes1992]

If you have no EGR or DPF I would be tempted to go with a full-saps ACEA A3/B4 type oil. How cold does it get in BC? Do you need a 0w?

With the largest bypass filter you can get your hands on and some well timed oil filter changes you could probably get away with no oil changes at all.

 

[Gadgethound]

Thanks for your input everyone!
I wonder if the 1.5 micron bypass filter I installed also might be filtering out some of the wear metals. Any thoughts on that? ..or are wear metals typically less than 1 micron?
I deleted everything that could be problematic, that includes EGR and also the PCV no longer goes back into the intake before the turbo.

 

[m37charlie]

I believe, although I cannot immediately come up with a reference, that an OM642 has a 30kkm OCI in Europe with 228.5/51 or 229.5/51 oil. Your deleted state and BP filter reinforces this. The BP filter increases capacity significantly but may give a falsely lowwear picture because it catches tiny particles that otherwise would be ground into effective solution which is what mass spec is detecting. Your oil is in stellar condition. What is your sump capacity and that of the bypass system?

 

[Gadgethound]

Thank you Bailes1992, I'll look into ACEA A3/B4 type oil, although I'm delighted with the way this fill of Amsoil is performing so far. I think I'll take it to 30,000kms and test again. Considering how hard I push this little engine, the oil will take a horrible beating with the summertime temps we get here. (daytime temps are regularly over 38C/100F) If this oil makes it through the summer still looking good, then I'll have no choice but to join the Amsoil bandwagon.

m37charlie - In it's stock state, the engine takes about 13 quarts of oil. Interestingly, with all the emissions crap in place, I had problems with the engine oil level increasing due to fuel dilution during DPF regen.
I've heard that Mercedes has increased the OCI in all their new Sprinters to 30,000kms, this goes both for the OM642 V6 and the little 2L 4 banger they introduced in 2016. I can't imagine a 30,000km OCI is a good idea considering the low saps crap oil that Mercedes recommends.
Once I added the bypass filter, I found my system capacity increased from 13.25 - about 14.5 quarts. I am using the smallest filter that Amsoil sells, I may switch up to a bigger one just to get the increased capacity.
The bypass kit:
https://www.amsoil.com/shop/by-prod...ngle-remote-bypass-system/?code=BMK21-EA
The filter:
https://www.amsoil.com/shop/by-prod...nts/ea-bypass-oil-filter/?code=eabp90-ea

Very few people modify their sprinters. If anyone is looking to install a bypass filter on your OM642, PM me, I'll send you some info.

 

[Tikka]

Hi Gadgethound
I think your wear levels look very good. Compare with my analysis done on my OM642 in my Jeep.


Oil was in vehicle 6 months and covered 4000 miles. PETRONAS Syntium 5w/30

Density @ 15.5c (g/ml) 0.855
Viscocity @ 100c (cSt) 12.00 cSt

Calcium (%) 0.261
Zinc (%) 0.119

Wear Metals in ppm
Cr 1
Pb 0
Ni 1
Sn 0
B 60
Fe 28
Mo 5
Si 9
V 0
Al 4
Cu 2
Na 10

Analysis reveals Oil to be in good condition and suitable for further use. We would advise change at 12 months.( Millers comment)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
That Amsoil in your OM642 would appear a very good Oil.

I had mine tested due to concerns over many cold starts and short journeys over relatively low mileage.

Why do you think of this Engine as 'under sized'?

Oil is relatively cheap. Any need really to push on further with the OCI ?

Tikka.

 

[Gadgethound]

Hello Tikka!

The wear metals in your Jeep's oil look very good as well! Your engine may be doing better than mine considering my 1.5 micron bypass filter system is probably removing some of the wear metals from the oil, resulting in artificially low wear numbers.
The OM642 can be a bit small for a high roof Sprinter van that's loaded close to full weight capacity on a daily basis. I live and work in a semi-arid mountainous desert area, so that little engine gets a good hill climb several times a day!

Good point about pushing the oil change interval.
I discovered a few years back that the low-SAPS 229.52 oil that MB recommends for our OM642 engines lubricates poorly compared to other cheaper synthetic oils. By the end of the 20,000km recommended OCI, these engines are chewing themselves to death. No wonder we are hearing about lots of timing chain failures, seized crankshafts, etc. It seems that the MB engineers forgot about proper lubrication in favor of protecting the DPF. So once I discovered that, I had my truck's DPF and related emissions equipment removed so I can run whatever oil I want. I'm hoping the 0w40 Amsoil I'm running now will protect the engine well.