How About Oil Clarity?

[Cristobal]

I know a lot of you guys do an oil analysis but I usually rely on oil changes at certain intervals as well as visual clarity.

After a winter trip to Central Nevada last November, I changed the oil of the 1996 Avalon. I used three quarts of Mobil 1 15W-50 synthetic and three of Valvoline Conventional 10w30 that I had around. All of it was SM.

The filter was the infamous Orange Can of Death. Instead of a #3614 Fram I used a #3600 which is longer and this bigger than original equipment.

The oil started out clear, was clear at 7000 miles, and only slightly darker at 8000 when I changed it out, last May 17. It still looked like honey draining out of the pan.

I average about 40 miles per day driving (I am at about 51.55 right now) and I think that has a lot to do with oil longevity. Most days involve at least 20 mile drives with the occasional 400 mile road trip.

So what are your thoughts?

P.S. I am switching these days to lighter stuff as I stashed up on NAPA synthetic, 10w30 and 5w30 last February when NAPA had a big sale. But I have not used it yet. It is full of Pennzoil Conventional 10w30 now; it has gone 2000 miles and is so clear you can hardly see the oil smear on the dipstick unless you look twice.

 

[rg200amp]

Oil color tells very little and is not a good way to judge oil quality or when you should change the oil.

 

[INDYMAC]

It sounds like that oil you had in there left a lot of bad things behind in the engine when you drained it...good thing you changed to another oil.

 

[cp3]

It would be interesting to see something on the used oil analysis regarding colour or clarity to see if there is any correlation.

Personally, I have never drained oil out of a car that looked anything like what I poured in. Heard people talk about it lots of times but never seen it for myself.

What I have seen with my cars...both changed same day, similar usage, different engines with different sump capacities. G6 darkened faster and OLM said to change, which I did. G6 oil now lighter but darkens with use and both OLMs indicate change in the same week. At the time of the change (1st for the G5 second for the G6), oil from the two cars was indistinguishable from each other. That to me says there is at least some correlation between colour and oil life, if you believe the GM OLM to be accurate.

Contradicting this is those stories like my BIL, uses synthetic and it always comes out looking like it went in.....

 

[mechtech2]

Long run times are good for the engine [vs. short trips]. This helps a lot.

Who would not want clearer oil? If your engine is clean internally, clear oil is good. Oil is SUPPOSED to hold particles in suspension [too fine for the filter]. Carbon and blowby gas turn it darker.
If this is not happening, you must not be producing crud very fast.
Thats good.
Another possibility is that the oil is lousy and not doing it's job. Not very likely.

 

[ahoier]

I've found Pennzoil conventional (as well as the typical dealer "bulk" Pennzoil conventional....same stuff, different holding container lol) stays "clearer" longer....really annoys me, cause you gotta put the dipstick into the light to see the gleam of the smear on the stick

But last OCI, I topped off with Mobil 1 5W-20...that's all I had in my garage at the time, other than a half-bottle of opened "SAE30" Castrol GTX...lol, wasn't gonna risk putting the GTX in there, being that it was already broken open at the seal....but after about 1000 miles, the oil "darkened" up....

and that was with 1 pint of MMO in the sump too even.....

 

[daves87rs]

Originally Posted By: mechtech2
Long run times are good for the engine [vs. short trips]. This helps a lot.

Who would not want clearer oil? If your engine is clean internally, clear oil is good. Oil is SUPPOSED to hold particles in suspension [too fine for the filter]. Carbon and blowby gas turn it darker.
If this is not happening, you must not be producing crud very fast.
Thats good.
Another possibility is that the oil is lousy and not doing it's job. Not very likely.


+1

 

[cp3]

Originally Posted By: mechtech2
Long run times are good for the engine [vs. short trips]. This helps a lot.

Who would not want clearer oil? If your engine is clean internally, clear oil is good. Oil is SUPPOSED to hold particles in suspension [too fine for the filter]. Carbon and blowby gas turn it darker.
If this is not happening, you must not be producing crud very fast.

Thats good.
Another possibility is that the oil is lousy and not doing it's job. Not very likely.


This is what I have always thought which makes my BILs claims more confusing. His is a city car, both mine see the highway daily.

 

[MolaKule]

Let's define some optical terms.

Opacity is a measure of how light is reduced as it travels through a material. An opaque material for example would be a dark ceramic disk or thick metal plate.

Transparency on the other hand is how much light is allowed to pass through a material. Clear glass is transparent.

Translucence or Diffuse describes light entering say a liquid with small particles and being reflected around the inside of the container.

PAO, GroupIII mineral oil, and ester Base oils are what we call, "water clear." Most additives are usually dark and amber colored and darken the oil mix a bit, but the formulated oil is still mostly clear in appearance with some coloration.

There are some AW and EP additives that contain dispersed particles that will make an oil somewhat cloudy. This does not mean the oil is inferior to a clearer oil and quite the contrary.

Most of the oils that come out of my two vehicles are dark amber/brown to black, but still somewhat translucent.

Now most used diesel oils come out black and opaque due to the color of the soot and the fact that soot is black carbon.

The color of used OR new oils is no indication of quality or condition.

Trending of used oil analysis (using three or more samples of the same oil in same engine) is the only way to determine oil condition and how it is interacting with your engine.