Like KGMTech already said, worry more about servicing the Constant Velocity Transmission than some sludge in the engine. The CVT is weak point in this car. The transmission is not rebuildable on these and a replacement unit will set you back $4K. You can't even buy parts for them. I would just use a decent synthetic and change it every 5k or less.
Another Sludge Engine help Question pls. *w/pics*
- Thread starter jgscott
- Start date
**SEE POST #19**
Yep. We were cross posting.
Time for some @High Performance Lubricants Synthetic Engine Cleaner EC30.
I'd skip the flush, and give the HPL engine cleaner a shot with an inexpensive synthetic oil, and change the filter at 2,000 miles. Then top up and dumping the oil and filter again at 4K miles. Have a peek and decide from there if another treatment is warranted, and possibly running it a little longer.
A sticky, right above your thread, would be worth reading.
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/high-performance-lubricants-engine-cleaner.347347/
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/high-performance-lubricants-engine-cleaner.347347/
My advice based on experience with VQ40's - almost the same but longer stroke.
I wouldn't mess with oil flushes. M1 EP, short intervall a couple rounds. VQ's shear oil anyway - or so they say - long timing chains.
Wouldn't hurt to change out the valve covers to get rid of top end sludge - gaskets likely leaking anyway. Since the spark plug tube seals are hard to swap, its best to get two new plastic valve covers from Nissan - there like $50 and include the seals already installed. You can do the spark plugs while your at it - my guess is they are original as well based on maintenance. No urgency, but it would be on my list.
VQ's have solid lifters, so if there not clicking while warm at idle its a good sign of decent oil pressure.
There should be a PCV valve on one side, and a crossover breather tube between the covers. I would replace the PCV valve and make sure those tubes are clean. There probably hard as a rock, so you may just want to replace them. Again OEM pricing on the tubes are only a few bucks.
I second the CVT service.
Looks like a nice car. Good luck!
I wouldn't mess with oil flushes. M1 EP, short intervall a couple rounds. VQ's shear oil anyway - or so they say - long timing chains.
Wouldn't hurt to change out the valve covers to get rid of top end sludge - gaskets likely leaking anyway. Since the spark plug tube seals are hard to swap, its best to get two new plastic valve covers from Nissan - there like $50 and include the seals already installed. You can do the spark plugs while your at it - my guess is they are original as well based on maintenance. No urgency, but it would be on my list.
VQ's have solid lifters, so if there not clicking while warm at idle its a good sign of decent oil pressure.
There should be a PCV valve on one side, and a crossover breather tube between the covers. I would replace the PCV valve and make sure those tubes are clean. There probably hard as a rock, so you may just want to replace them. Again OEM pricing on the tubes are only a few bucks.
I second the CVT service.
Looks like a nice car. Good luck!
I think you mean hydraulic lifters/lash adjusters will get noisy with low oil pressure. Solids like shim on bucket or use adjusters will not.
As someone posted these engines love Mobil 1 0w40 and it cleans very well.
Nope - VQ engines have solid lifters with no lash adjustment - if the lash is out your supposed to replace the lifter - Nissan sells them in 0.0008 (or 0.02mm) increments. No one ever changes them that I know.
They all tend to click a bit on cold start. Once warm they quieten down, but if you have low oil pressure once warm, they tend to sound like a watch at idle - not a lifter knock, more like a uniform light click and more than one of them.
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Run a HM oil like Maxlife red bottle, QS HM or any synthetic HM you want. For an additive, I would add Rislone Engine Treatment at every oil 3k oci for a while to slowly clean it up if you wanted. My brother had one of these and they are super sweet cars enjoy it and also change the cvt fluid.
Yes I had already read it before I posted. 22 pages. That thread and this is now becomming confusing to someone who is not as experience with all those products. I appreciate everyones diffrent recommendations. For myself and others who might see this thread and advise, it seems most are saying there is a danger of dislodging sludge materials and causing damage. But then the advise is to run diffrent products like HPL. Which the HPL site says little more than it Racing oil? https://www.hploil.com/whyhpl
Not everyone is a Chemical Engineer, understanding the details of what does what? I'm still reading here. Yes I did ask and again.... make no mistake that I truly do apprecate Everyone's post. Learned alot from you Guys.
So far before I got it:
- 500-600 miles ago the prev short time owner did a oil change and ran Motor Medic Motor flush for 5-10 mins, then with with a Wix filter, Wal mart High Mile ful sys, Dextros 5-30 oil and did a new oil chnage.
- I did a oil change and Nissan Filter 250 miles ago with Walmar High miles same 5-30 oil.
- I was next going to just do 3k changes about 2-3 times in a row with ( few Mobile 1 Extended protection 3k-4k Oil chnages with either the Nissan filters or Fram Ultra. Also going to take the Valve covers off do a little cleaning plus Gaskets and the Oil Pan and pick up screen cleaning.)
So which cleaner, or cleaner oil to run if thats the consensens? That won't dislodge and damage? Give me you Vote on Yes, No? Which please. Thanks!!!!!!! Consider you are helping a Sludge clean for Dummies. Me.
Yes I had already read it before I posted. 22 pages. That thread and this is now becomming confusing to someone who is not as experience with all those products. I appreciate everyones diffrent recommendations. For myself and others who might see this thread and advise, it seems most are saying there is a danger of dislodging sludge materials and causing damage. But then the advise is to run diffrent products like HPL. Which the HPL site says little more than it Racing oil? https://www.hploil.com/whyhpl
Not everyone is a Chemical Engineer, understanding the details of what does what? I'm still reading here. Yes I did ask and again.... make no mistake that I truly do apprecate Everyone's post. Learned alot from you Guys.
So far before I got it:
- 500-600 miles ago the prev short time owner did a oil change and ran Motor Medic Motor flush for 5-10 mins, then with with a Wix filter, Wal mart High Mile ful sys, Dextros 5-30 oil and did a new oil chnage.
- I did a oil change and Nissan Filter 250 miles ago with Walmar High miles same 5-30 oil.
- I was next going to just do 3k changes about 2-3 times in a row with ( few Mobile 1 Extended protection 3k-4k Oil chnages with either the Nissan filters or Fram Ultra. Also going to take the Valve covers off do a little cleaning plus Gaskets and the Oil Pan and pick up screen cleaning.)
So which cleaner, or cleaner oil to run if thats the consensens? That won't dislodge and damage? Give me you Vote on Yes, No? Which please. Thanks!!!!!!! Consider you are helping a Sludge clean for Dummies. Me.
This is the High Performance Lubricants Engine Cleaner.
https://www.advlubrication.com/collections/automotive-lubricants/products/engine-cleaner
Unlike engine flushes off the supplement shelf, HPL's EC is a fully formulated oil with a heavy duty motor oil (HDMO) additive package including robust detergent and anti-wear chemistry. The base oil is ester, a group V synthetic base that has excellent cleaning properties. Also unlike some flushes, it readily blends into your current oil without negative affects on viscosity and additive reactivity, and it can even have a positive affect on volatility, shear stability, and thermal stability depending on what oil you add it to.
I'm not a fan of products like Marvel Mystery Oil (MMO) and Seafoam as they're mostly just pale oil with a little bit of alcohol and naphtha. The alcohol and naphtha are the solvents but both are fully evaporated before 200°F so they're serving no use once the engine reaches full operating temp. They are extremely low viscosity (2.5-3 cSt @ 100°C) which is undesirable. The same applies to any other quick flush product. They're more gimmick than functional product and almost always negatively impact the oil's performance and service life in some way.
If you want to avoid supplements altogether, using an oil that already has a high amount of ester will give you the cleaning affect just the same or better as using the HPL EC. HPL's PCMO and HDMO lines, in the store in the link above, all contain a good bit of both ester and alkylated naphthalene (AN), another group V synthetic base oil with good cleaning properties (and good friction reduction properties). Driven LS30 also contains a good bit of ester, as does Red Line's HP line.
A high mileage oil is unlikely to help much with cleaning. The main thing about HM oils is additional seal conditioner additive to help prevent dry rot and leaks with old seals. They may have slightly higher viscosity (within the grade) and a touch more detergent in some, but that's really about it. Their cleaning ability isn't much different than non-HM API oils.
MMO = Marvel Mystery Oil.
Sure they are adjustable you just have to swap it out instead of swapping a shim or adjusting a screw under the bucket and shim like on older Audi engines, same difference. The noise is not coming from a solid lifter due to low oil pressure, why would it? With no pressure and no oil in the top end it may get noisy because of wear taking place.Nope - VQ engines have solid lifters with no lash adjustment - if the lash is out your supposed to replace the lifter - Nissan sells them in 0.0008 (or 0.02mm) increments. No one ever changes them that I know.
They all tend to click a bit on cold start. Once warm they quieten down, but if you have low oil pressure once warm, they tend to sound like a watch at idle - not a lifter knock, more like a uniform light click and more than one of them.
With just a few psi it is enough to keep the oil light off. There are a lot of other hyraulic components in that engine that will make noise with low pressure.
It's a bit funny to me that there are folks using (I've used it too in multiple cars!) the HPL EC have shown pics of some solid-chunks of crud in their filter but are worried about a flush product doing the same thingYes I had already read it before I posted. 22 pages. That thread and this is now becomming confusing to someone who is not as experience with all those products. I appreciate everyones diffrent recommendations. For myself and others who might see this thread and advise, it seems most are saying there is a danger of dislodging sludge materials and causing damage. But then the advise is to run diffrent products like HPL. Which the HPL site says little more than it Racing oil? https://www.hploil.com/whyhpl
Not everyone is a Chemical Engineer, understanding the details of what does what? I'm still reading here. Yes I did ask and again.... make no mistake that I truly do apprecate Everyone's post. Learned alot from you Guys.
So far before I got it:
- 500-600 miles ago the prev short time owner did a oil change and ran Motor Medic Motor flush for 5-10 mins, then with with a Wix filter, Wal mart High Mile ful sys, Dextros 5-30 oil and did a new oil chnage.
- I did a oil change and Nissan Filter 250 miles ago with Walmar High miles same 5-30 oil.
- I was next going to just do 3k changes about 2-3 times in a row with ( few Mobile 1 Extended protection 3k-4k Oil chnages with either the Nissan filters or Fram Ultra. Also going to take the Valve covers off do a little cleaning plus Gaskets and the Oil Pan and pick up screen cleaning.)
So which cleaner, or cleaner oil to run if thats the consensens? That won't dislodge and damage? Give me you Vote on Yes, No? Which please. Thanks!!!!!!! Consider you are helping a Sludge clean for Dummies. Me.
. A can of LM engine flush isn't going to "dislodge chunks" and ruin the engine idling it for 15 minutes. I vote as I said above...use the LM Engine Flush, drain, fill with whatever oil you want adding a bottle of the HPL EC, go 2-3K, drain, then go with a normal oil change schedule with whatever oil you like to use.It's a bit funny to me that there are folks using (I've used it too in multiple cars!) the HPL EC have shown pics of some solid-chunks of crud in their filter but are worried about a flush product doing the same thing
Thank you Sir! Now this is what was confusing and a bit scary to me about. Again I appreciate each and every point of view and advise from all the post.
This is a good plan, don't go nuts with flushes or even disassembly; change the CVT fluid instead.
Nothing scary about the LM product (or the HPL product), I've used the LM flush product many times in multiple vehicles....this site is so overly paranoid about these things without any basis that I've ever seen. Many folks use these products without issue. Good luck with the car!
**SEE POST #19**
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