Thanks to everyone who responded to this thread with the intent to help. I’ll consider doing UOAs to check for the coolant leak. I had hoped someone would offer why checking for external leaks (which show up in most cases I’m aware of), looking for a coolant level drop, watching for exhaust smoke, or checking for coolant in the oil wasn’t sufficient. Or what kind of damage would likely be done if put off until the leak manifested itself in these ways. Or what the additional cost might be if put off until detected that way (the warranty issue is a good point, but doesn't apply in this particular case). Rather, it was implied that I must be stupid to question the value of UOAs and the potential severity and cost of a small, undetected coolant leak.
The original intent of this thread was to question the practice of using UOA trace metals data to select the brand and weight of oil to use. I thought that there might be scientific data to support the practice. That doesn’t appear to be the case. However, there is one important area of oil selection where the UOAs do appear to provide valuable information, and that’s in the area of synthetics.
The UOAs of synthetic oils posted here show the potential for extended drain intervals when using these oils. It’s clear that many synthetic oils last 2,3 or more times longer than dino oils. That’s specific, valuable information that’s missing from most owner’s manuals and the back of oil bottles. However, when it comes to dino oil, it seems the UOAs here simply support the commonly recommended intervals of 3 to 5 thousand miles (depending on environment and use) for essentially all the dino oils regardless of brand.
I’m not mad at anyone on this board, rather I consider it a good place to come for oil related information. I hope this thread has been useful, and perhaps it has brought to light the posting of less than factual information that occasionally does occur regardless of our efforts to be as accurate as possible.
The original intent of this thread was to question the practice of using UOA trace metals data to select the brand and weight of oil to use. I thought that there might be scientific data to support the practice. That doesn’t appear to be the case. However, there is one important area of oil selection where the UOAs do appear to provide valuable information, and that’s in the area of synthetics.
The UOAs of synthetic oils posted here show the potential for extended drain intervals when using these oils. It’s clear that many synthetic oils last 2,3 or more times longer than dino oils. That’s specific, valuable information that’s missing from most owner’s manuals and the back of oil bottles. However, when it comes to dino oil, it seems the UOAs here simply support the commonly recommended intervals of 3 to 5 thousand miles (depending on environment and use) for essentially all the dino oils regardless of brand.
I’m not mad at anyone on this board, rather I consider it a good place to come for oil related information. I hope this thread has been useful, and perhaps it has brought to light the posting of less than factual information that occasionally does occur regardless of our efforts to be as accurate as possible.
