Absolutely. Glad you brought that up. Reminds me that I need to get something off my chest about that area of thought.quote:
I suspect you could likely tell more about an engines condition doing a trended analysis, using the SAME type and brand of oil, vs. seeing different oil each time. Am I correct?
I will tell a customer about a problem I see, tell them to research it, i.e. change or check or correct. Sometimes the owner checks, lets say the air filter and it "looks" ok to them but the Si is screaming high and bearing or cylinder wear is outta site and they ignore it for another interval. Hoping a different "brand" of oil, oil additive, or oil filter ( include bypass types) will correct the issue.
I try to be diplomatic but if we ID an issue it must be fixed or the new oil or interval will still stink. Fix mechanical issues first before moving to trick chemistry or filtration techniques. This is basic automotive repair theory but to read some of the comments on here, by many I have nothing to do with, you would think INCORRECTLY, that I suggest cooking a brew before repairing the basics. WRONG.
I was a wrench turner long before I was a lubricant analyst.
Many of the "tricks" that are shared here by chemists and tribologists are techniques used to keep a race car on the track, keep a generator up in a nuke plant, or make a pump keep running for another 30 days. Not a replacement for good automotive maintenance practices!
Fix it, then trick it ! You can quote me on that.
TD