AutoRx and Seafoam question

[coffee]

Hi All,

I have a peculiar question and want some feedback.

I am at the 1k mark of the AutoRx cleaning phase and want to know if it would be okay for me to just finish up right now with a Seafoam treatment and start using the oil I want to use instead of waiting the 2.5k and another 3k rinse phase.

I do not put a lot of miles on my cars and it is going to take a long time to go through all the phases on my cars with the recommended AutoRx treatment cycle and I feel I could just run Seafoam to finish up the cleaning and then add my Rotella T 15w40 for my normal 5-7k OCI.

With all that said, what do you all think?

Thank you.

 

[TurboJim]

What is your hurry, why not let ARX slowly do it's thing? Seafoam will not give you the same results as ARX. Dumping ARX now seems like a waste of money.

 

[Volvohead]

I think you are wasting the ARX if you do. Why did you even bother to start?

If you want the benefits of the product, you need to follow the instructions.

Seafoam is not in the same league as ARX in this application, IMO.

Patience.

 

[coffee]

Well, I guess the only issue I really had was the fact that one of the vehicles has 5w20 oil here in the AZ summer and I wanted to get the 15w40 in there as soon as feasible. I am cool with holding off if necessary and I only wanted to see if the idea had any merit. Thank you for the input.

 

[Volvohead]

Well . . . at the end of the day it is your money and your cars. If you feel you need to move on, then move on. The only person who needs to be happy with the results is you.

Not sure why you'd ever be running 5w-20 in a red block, however. Those engines thrive on thick 30s and 40s. At least the ARX will improve the lubricity of the oil charge as it does its thing.

 

[coffee]

I only did the 5w20 due to all the readings and posts about thinner is better but I am going with Rotella T 15w40 after the Auto/Rx phases and that is why I wanted to know if it is worth waiting.

 

[Frank]

Auto-Rx is not compatible with solvent additives. I don,t understand why the hurry ? Auto-Rx works while you drive you don,t have any special delays in it,s application.

 

[coffee]

I will stick with it then as this is the feedback I was looking for. Thank you all.

 

[Volvohead]

I've seen all the talk too. But thinner is not always better. It's particularly in vogue at the moment due to fuel economy. But there's no such thing as a universal, one-size-fits-all recommendation.

Besides some Volvos, older BMWs, and many VWs, a light viscosity oil generally doesn't belong in most marine engines. Anywhere you have high shearing loads, ring tension or design factors, or any issues with dilution, you can't go too thin.

If it's a quality 5w-20, it should protect adequately, but you may have some consumption issues. If that happens, top off with 15w40 and dose the top off with the proper proportion of ARX (the old mix ratio was 2oz/qt which should still work fine).

Once all is done, I'd try the RTS 5w-40 in the red blocks as a regular fill. Right now my '97 NA white block is loving the stuff.

 

[jonny-b]

Coffee, another thing to considder, is the fact that ARX gives additional protection.
Even if your 5/20w oil gives less protection than a 15w40 the ARX TOGETHER with the 5/20, will give better protection than the 15w40 alone.
Just keep it in there, and don't worry.

 

[Tempest]

Quote:
Even if your 5/20w oil gives less protection than a 15w40 the ARX TOGETHER with the 5/20, will give better protection than the 15w40 alone.

And this is based on?

 

[coffee]

Well, the oil is Motocraft Syn Blend 5w20 and I think it will be fine for the remainder of the cleaning phase. Then I will be putting MC 15w40 in for the rinse phase. When all is said and done I will use Rotella T Triple Protection 15w40 for 5-7k OCI's.

 

[Gary Allan]

coffee, you may learn how 5w-20 works out after all

Any consumption yet?

 

[coffee]

None yet and you may be right.

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: Tempest
Quote:
Even if your 5/20w oil gives less protection than a 15w40 the ARX TOGETHER with the 5/20, will give better protection than the 15w40 alone.

And this is based on?


I'd be interested myself?

Frank D

 

[Rick20]

Coffee,

I am confident that you arrived at the right choice in continuing with just the current ARX application. One only has to review a couple UOA wherby ARX in just the smaller maintenance dose was run on a couple motors that were suffering from rather severe fuel dilution issues, whereby the oil viscocity was found to be compromised. Yet UOA showed a significant improvement in wear metals with just a maintenance dose installed, as compared to a full blown cleaning dose.

Remember that the three esters that comprize ARX are all known to be lubricity enhancers. The primary cleaner is a lanolin type ester that has acid scavenging properties as well as friction reduction qualities. The polyol ester components provide for high temp oxidative stability and oil film formation, and lastly the aliphatic esters, act as extreme pressure protectants.

As far as using a lighter weight or lower visocity oil to maximize ARX effectiveness, I would tend to disagree. Your oil choice should be speced towards the individual motor requirements. The chosen rinse oil should be in spec for the motor as well.

Do a little search research and you will find what I am posting to be true.

 

[coffee]

Thanks for the input, Rick20! I do have a 15w40 oil for the rinse phase and am happy to be sticking with the complete AutoRx phase. I am glad I checked with everyone first. Thanks again.