and thus the reason i'll be throwing it in my galant once i run my ARX treatmentS
cheap oil
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From the Consumer Reports 4 1/2 million mile oil test published in 1996:
Testing Slick 50 and STP
We also tested Slick 50 and STP Engine Treatments and STP Oil Treatment, each in three cabs. (Slick 50 costs $17.79 per container; STP Engine Treatment has been discontinued.) All three boast that they reduce engine friction and wear.
The engine treatments are added with the oil (we used Pennzoil 10W-30). They claim they bond to engine parts and provide protection for 25,000 miles or more. We used each according to instructions.
The STP Oil Treatment is supposed to be added with each oil change. It comes in one formulation (black bottle, $4.32) for cars with up to 36,000 miles, another (blue bottle, $3.17) for cars that have more than 36,000 miles or are more than four years old. We used the first version for the first 36,000 miles, the second for the rest of the test-again, with Pennzoil 10W-30.
When we disassembled the engines and checked for wear and deposits, we found no discernible benefits from any of these products.
The bottom line. We see little reason why anyone using one of today's high-quality motor oils would need these engine/oil treatments. One notable effect of STP Oil Treatment was an increase in oil viscosity; it made our 10W-30 oil act more like a 15W-40, a grade not often recommended. In very cold weather, that might pose a risk of engine damage.
Testing Slick 50 and STP
We also tested Slick 50 and STP Engine Treatments and STP Oil Treatment, each in three cabs. (Slick 50 costs $17.79 per container; STP Engine Treatment has been discontinued.) All three boast that they reduce engine friction and wear.
The engine treatments are added with the oil (we used Pennzoil 10W-30). They claim they bond to engine parts and provide protection for 25,000 miles or more. We used each according to instructions.
The STP Oil Treatment is supposed to be added with each oil change. It comes in one formulation (black bottle, $4.32) for cars with up to 36,000 miles, another (blue bottle, $3.17) for cars that have more than 36,000 miles or are more than four years old. We used the first version for the first 36,000 miles, the second for the rest of the test-again, with Pennzoil 10W-30.
When we disassembled the engines and checked for wear and deposits, we found no discernible benefits from any of these products.
The bottom line. We see little reason why anyone using one of today's high-quality motor oils would need these engine/oil treatments. One notable effect of STP Oil Treatment was an increase in oil viscosity; it made our 10W-30 oil act more like a 15W-40, a grade not often recommended. In very cold weather, that might pose a risk of engine damage.
They're not talking about S-50 or STP. And lurking right beneath the surface of this thread is the question of the impact of the reduction of certain additives in the current SM formulations as compared to the SL and earlier formulations. With that in mind, quoting an 11 year old Consumer Reports criticism, valid though it may be, of Slick-50 and STP really doesn't answer the mail as to the question the OP posed.
What kind of car/truck, WadeDog? Seems the consensus has been lately (by the folks in the know, that is), pushrod V-8s with fancy cams or hard running, engines that race, and in other words, conditions that lead to occasional metal-to-metal contact, can use the zinc. Adds are handy for older cars, I'd imagine, that want to get their 72 Vette up to, what, SF, or SG additive levels? They actually need it, too.
Newer DOHC 4 bangers and family car six's that aren't stressed, aren't raced, don't need the extra zinc. The turbos may need syn, or to run thicker or thinner, but they don't need more zinc. They did some pretty hideous testing, abuse really, of the engines and oil that certify API SM, and ILSAC GF4 and the dual designation means most PCMO have around 800PPM/ZDDP maximum, and those are pretty stout oils for 90% of the street cars out there, and quite without extra, third-party zinc.
Further, the zinc in SJ and SL (which you're creating with more ZDDP) levels are proving to foul cats in the long term. All that said, if you DID want to add zinc, why not run a bottle of Delo or some other diesel motor oil and at least get a balanced dose? Folks talk about additive clash created by mixing motor oil brands and grades and then here's folks creating their very own add-clash with third-party adds. Ever see the numbers on VSOT? Tons of moly, tons of zinc, tons of other stuff. Does the Colorado need it? Bet the manufacturer doesn't think so, but we all makes our choices. 777 is pretty savvy, he has his reasons, I'm sure.
Then there's the possibility you're diluting a far better base in the motor oil with the carrier oil of your additive. THAT is another subject. What kinda car ya have again?
Not saying they can't on any level, but when turbos are discussed in this venue, the considerations are typically those of viscosity and base oils, syn v. dino..
Still and all, bearings in a turbo are enduring a different stress than the tappets, pushrods, rockers and cams in a typical V-8, are they not? Dunno if a SLOB or VSOT enrichment would be an appropriate add for a turbo.
Still and all, bearings in a turbo are enduring a different stress than the tappets, pushrods, rockers and cams in a typical V-8, are they not? Dunno if a SLOB or VSOT enrichment would be an appropriate add for a turbo.
Well, who's to say without an independent testing process using a controlled environment, vehicles, UOA, VOA with and without SLOB, with and without VSOT, or any of the other additives, controlled usage of the vehicles, and so on? How to quantify "oxidative stress" without testing in all conditions severe and not? Folks are dumping this stuff into their engines and have no clue how these adds affect the base oil, the original additives, or how this stuff will behave in any given vehicle. And further, they're adding to, by all accounts, the best PCMOs that have ever been formulated.
I dunno, enough of the old heads here that are in the bizz in all sorts of ways advise against this stuff, it's all there to read, and still folks add. To go out and buy a "cheap" oil (and a "cheap" SM/GF4 is still a great oil) in order to add "stuff" to it makes no sense.
Folks need to search out 427, Doc Haas, Terry and a few others and read what they have to say about the plain old OTC additives, some of it ain't pretty. It got me out of the habit, not that I had much of one to begin with. Again, my low-pop DOHC hardly needs the stuff anyway, but there are lots of pushrod V-8 cop cars running 5W20 Dino with no additives, regular OCI, and they all go to 200K with a LOT of idling, high-speed acceleration, high temps, really severe service. That's a pretty fair stress test right there. Absent the advice of a Terry-type of guy, someone who KNOWS, not just thinks this stuff, I can't see putting the stuff in late-model standard-issue street cars.
I dunno, enough of the old heads here that are in the bizz in all sorts of ways advise against this stuff, it's all there to read, and still folks add. To go out and buy a "cheap" oil (and a "cheap" SM/GF4 is still a great oil) in order to add "stuff" to it makes no sense.
Folks need to search out 427, Doc Haas, Terry and a few others and read what they have to say about the plain old OTC additives, some of it ain't pretty. It got me out of the habit, not that I had much of one to begin with. Again, my low-pop DOHC hardly needs the stuff anyway, but there are lots of pushrod V-8 cop cars running 5W20 Dino with no additives, regular OCI, and they all go to 200K with a LOT of idling, high-speed acceleration, high temps, really severe service. That's a pretty fair stress test right there. Absent the advice of a Terry-type of guy, someone who KNOWS, not just thinks this stuff, I can't see putting the stuff in late-model standard-issue street cars.
Look, all I'm saying is my engine shreds oil. Why would extra zddp/calcium be a big deal? Works for diesels to extend useful life of the oil.....I know that's not apples to apples but you get my drift. Oil formulas change all the time with no notice to the consumers. Brand X may have just switched addy pack suppliers while Brand Y may have switched base oils. Who knows what you're mixing in your car without even knowing it.
Well my email reply isn't working i see, sorry for the delay. I own a couple newer cars both 2000 and newer so i'm not really concerned with the extra zinc but i also have two older cars one daily driver 82 TA with a 305 and a hotrod with a soon to be 383/500hp engine for street/strip duties. so they need the extra zinc for the flat tappet lifters.
what about oils with alot of moly, does that do a good job of replacing the zinc a older car needs?
what about oils with alot of moly, does that do a good job of replacing the zinc a older car needs?
Originally Posted By: wadedog
What is a good cheap oil that needs a additives put in it, like the pink bottle additive.
Supertech at WalMart
What is a good cheap oil that needs a additives put in it, like the pink bottle additive.
Supertech at WalMart
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