Autorx & Oil Recommendations Please

[kdcdq]

First of all, I am new to this forum but I have been changing my own oil for almost 30 years.

Background:
I live in the Houston area, and my beat-to-death Chevy K-10 4X4 4.3L V-6 hunting truck has 110K miles (lots of "hard" miles) on it. I have always used either a synth-blend or full synthetic oil with 3K OCIs, and my old truck runs great. I read all the good things in this forum about Autorx, so I bought a bunch of it; I have been through one Rx cleaning cycle in this truck, and I am on the tale end of the first 2K miles "rinse" cycle.

I am am leaving for a two week hunting trip in Colorado right after Labor day. It is almost exactly 1000 miles from my house to where I will be hunting in Colorado, and since I am trying to follow the high-mileage/fix-the-seal-leaks Rx directions and use conventional oil for the second Rx 1K miles cleaning and 2K miles rinse cycles, my trip to Colorado appears to be an excellent time to finish my Rx processes.

The scenario:

Temperatures during my hunting road trip will range from 90+ degrees in Texas to 20 degrees in the mountains of Colorado. I have lots of different motor oils in my garage, so here is what I was thinging about:

1) Change oil/filter just before leaving for Colorado with either Chevron Supreme 10W30 or Havoline 5W30 + Autorx.

2) Begin Rx "rinse" cycle in Colorado with a new filter and use either Havoline 5W30 oil or Trop Artic's excellent 5W30 oil made from group II stock. With temperatures in the Colorado mountains as low as 20 degrees, 5W30 oils would seem to be the right viscosity to use while in Colorado, and either oil should be able to handle possible 90 degree temperatures during the trip back to Houston.

Because I am new to Autorx, I am solliciting any & all opinions regarding which oil or oils would work best in the scenario described above.

Thanks in advance!!!

 

[SSDude]

Delvac 1300, would seem ideal for you application.

 

[427Z06]

Since it sounds like you've done very good oil maintenance on your truck, your plan is sounds very good.

But...playing armchair tweeker for a moment, I'd start with your initial plan. Change just the filter with the same oil as you started. Then, right before you head back to Houston, change oil/filter to Delvac 1300 or Delo 400 for the trip back.

There, that'll learn ya' to ask such questions.

Have a safe and fun trip.

 

[Bruce T]

kdcdq, I think combining your hunting trip with the 2nd ARX app is an excellent idea, as long as your Chevy V-6 can still pull your load up the Colorado mountains. Despite claims to the contrary, ARX probably cleans its best on the long, warm highway trips. If you have oil leaks, bring some spare quarts of oil and check your oil level often.

I like your original idea of using 5W30 or 10W30, either is fine down to 20 F. You want thinner oil, so it can splash ARX around everywhere for cleaning, plus the thinner oil will pick up/carry heavier sludge. The ARX cleaning esters should keep your engine lubricated while you're driving in the mountains. See MolaKule's posting on viscosity:

http://theoildrop.server101.com/cgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=5;t=002005

[ August 20, 2004, 03:58 PM: Message edited by: Bruce T ]

 

[Bruce T]

I would also use a thinner oil during the ARX rinse phase, for a thorough rinsing and carrying of sludge.

[ August 20, 2004, 04:45 PM: Message edited by: Bruce T ]

 

[427Z06]

quote:

---

Originally posted by kdcdq:
First of all, thanks to SSDude and 427Z06 for your time and efforts in this posting!

427Z06,
I wanted to be sure that I understand your suggestions, which are:

1) After arriving in Colorado (1000 miles on oil, filter, and Autorx), only change the filter.

2) Do my driving/hunting "thang" (might drive 200-300 more miles in CO.).

3) Just before heading back to Houston, change the oil/filter using a good HDEO 15W40 oil.

Is that pretty much it?

---

Yes. That's it.

I also like the idea of using a good HDEO 10w30 instead of the 15w40, but since once you start back to Houston your engine will be running the entire trip, I think the HDEO 15W40 oil will be plenty thin for the flush phase, as opposed to someone just doing daily 20-25 minute drives.

[ August 20, 2004, 06:24 PM: Message edited by: 427Z06 ]

 

[kdcdq]

First of all, thanks to SSDude and 427Z06 for your time and efforts in this posting!

427Z06,
I wanted to be sure that I understand your suggestions, which are:

1) After arriving in Colorado (1000 miles on oil, filter, and Autorx), only change the filter.

2) Do my driving/hunting "thang" (might drive 200-300 more miles in CO.).

3) Just before heading back to Houston, change the oil/filter using a good HDEO 15W40 oil.

Is that pretty much it?

 

[Bruce T]

You could almost flip a coin on the rinse oil, since heavier oil would warmup on the 1000 mile highway trip, but he still has another 1000 miles of city/highway driving in Houston.

[ August 21, 2004, 02:57 PM: Message edited by: Bruce T ]

 

[427Z06]

I have a feeling he won't be breaking out the snowblower and down jackets during September in Houston.

 

[Bruce T]

True, the oil will probably warm up enough to thin down, unless he is only making a few short trips per day. Personally, I don't see any compelling reasons to use a higher viscosity oil than the owner's manual recommends, especially since his engine still runs great at 110K miles. I don't think the extra detergents in an HDEO will offset the reduced rinsing effect by a heavier oil, but I could be wrong. It's certainly up for debate.

[ August 23, 2004, 10:08 AM: Message edited by: Bruce T ]

 

[crashz]

A HDEO in the Chevy 4.3 is a good combination anyway. For some reason they like a thick oil and usually run a little smoother. With a long highway trip back to Houston, I think its a good choice for the rinse cycle. With the extra detergents and soot control, the HDEO could only benefit the cleaning phase. Thats what I've been running in my girlfriends car for the rinse phase and we've noticed excellent cleaning and no more watery sludge on the oil cap.

 

[Bruce T]

I must yield to anyone who has experience with this particular engine.