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I'm fairly sure that all vehicles made in the USA have a check oil light, even my step dads 1973 ford f-250 has one...
How far can the car go without oil?
- Thread starter sbergman27
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I had a 1971 Mercury Comet (Ford Maverick) that was abused while in college. Anyway, halfway on the way home (200 miles) it developed a really bad valvetrain rattle (very loud). So I decided to turn back. Going about 60 mph the engine suddenly exploded. The car shook violently till I brought to a stop. I got out and ran from it as a dense grey/black smoke came from under the hood. I got the courage to go back to it after a while and popped the hood. Everything was coated with black oil, including part of the windshield. Not sure what happened but I was stranded.
Anyway, I cranked it back up and it ran like if had only 4 out of the six pistons. The oil light was on and I couldn't get it over 20 mph. Drove it back about 100 miles ( 5 hours) down some country roads while it overheated and clanged. I turned up the radio real loud while the cows turned to stare at me. I got her back.
After that I checked the dipstick and there was no oil on it. I junked it. I also ran the same car without water in the middle of summer in Texas. It got to the point where the pistons were banging really bad, so I pulled over. And I could hear something boiling in the block (oil?, smoke from the oil breather cap). Smelled real bad, like a diesel freight train.
I believe the engine was all iron back then. New high tech aluminum engines of today wouldn't last.
Anyway, I cranked it back up and it ran like if had only 4 out of the six pistons. The oil light was on and I couldn't get it over 20 mph. Drove it back about 100 miles ( 5 hours) down some country roads while it overheated and clanged. I turned up the radio real loud while the cows turned to stare at me. I got her back.
After that I checked the dipstick and there was no oil on it. I junked it. I also ran the same car without water in the middle of summer in Texas. It got to the point where the pistons were banging really bad, so I pulled over. And I could hear something boiling in the block (oil?, smoke from the oil breather cap). Smelled real bad, like a diesel freight train.
I believe the engine was all iron back then. New high tech aluminum engines of today wouldn't last.
Originally Posted By: modularv8
I had a 1971 Mercury Comet (Ford Maverick) that was abused while in college.
Hey, I had a '70 Maverick in college!
Quote:
The car shook violently till I brought to a stop.
Well. they always did lope more than a bit at idle. I take it you mean more than that. ;-)
Quote:
I junked it.
Yeah. That's what happened to mine. Well, I didn't do it. Understand that in my 47 year life I've had 5 cars. And of those, I still have 4 of them. I get attached to them. My dad junked the Maverick without telling me about it.
I had a 1971 Mercury Comet (Ford Maverick) that was abused while in college.
Hey, I had a '70 Maverick in college!
Quote:
The car shook violently till I brought to a stop.
Well. they always did lope more than a bit at idle. I take it you mean more than that. ;-)
Quote:
I junked it.
Yeah. That's what happened to mine. Well, I didn't do it. Understand that in my 47 year life I've had 5 cars. And of those, I still have 4 of them. I get attached to them. My dad junked the Maverick without telling me about it.
Firstly there is a big difference between no oil on the dipstick and no oil in the engine. I have told this story before, but since this thread is on running an engine with no oil I will tell it again:
Local BMW dealer had several cars stolen one night from their shop. Thieves had access to the locked cabinet that had the keys for cars in for service. One car had no oil in it as it was being drained overnight. Thief was able to drive the car for about 15 minutes before engined seized and car was abandon at the side of the road.
Local BMW dealer had several cars stolen one night from their shop. Thieves had access to the locked cabinet that had the keys for cars in for service. One car had no oil in it as it was being drained overnight. Thief was able to drive the car for about 15 minutes before engined seized and car was abandon at the side of the road.
Originally Posted By: sbergman27
Would the (residual) polar molecules of ester synthetics be expected to do significantly better than the residual of an oil with nonpolar molecules?
Esters can definitely be a factor. The Castrol TV advertisement from the 1990s was based on a Syntec formulation containing a special high lubricity polyol ester we (Hatco) developed for them. Castrol reported that most competitive oils failed within 20 minutes after an oil drain, while the Syntec containing the ester ran for over two hours, after which they stopped the test. They were impressed and designed the TV ad around it.
I'm sure engine design and operating conditions also play a role.
Tom NJ
Would the (residual) polar molecules of ester synthetics be expected to do significantly better than the residual of an oil with nonpolar molecules?
Esters can definitely be a factor. The Castrol TV advertisement from the 1990s was based on a Syntec formulation containing a special high lubricity polyol ester we (Hatco) developed for them. Castrol reported that most competitive oils failed within 20 minutes after an oil drain, while the Syntec containing the ester ran for over two hours, after which they stopped the test. They were impressed and designed the TV ad around it.
I'm sure engine design and operating conditions also play a role.
Tom NJ
I knew a guy who did exactly that. He drained the oil out of an old 70's 6 cylinder Dodge truck motor and started it up at a high idle to see how long it would run. It ran about 45 minutes and then locked up. He let it cool down, started it up and ran it for another 30 mins or so before it stopped again. He went out the next day and started it up and ran it for another 30 mins and then it locked up for good.
Q:How far can a car go without oil?
A:All the way to the junk yard.
Que robot laugh.....ha ha ha ha ha
A:All the way to the junk yard.
Que robot laugh.....ha ha ha ha ha
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Originally Posted By: cchase
Originally Posted By: sbergman27
These folks who run miles and miles without oil... don't they wonder, even a little bit, what the oil pressure warning light on the dash means? Do they just make a mental note to ask their spouse about it when then get home?
Maybe they are just so used to their "Check Engine" light being on all the time, without noticeable ill-effect, that they think they can do the same with the oil light?
Many vehicles don't have any kind of low oil pressure or level warning.
UH,WHAT??
Originally Posted By: sbergman27
These folks who run miles and miles without oil... don't they wonder, even a little bit, what the oil pressure warning light on the dash means? Do they just make a mental note to ask their spouse about it when then get home?
Maybe they are just so used to their "Check Engine" light being on all the time, without noticeable ill-effect, that they think they can do the same with the oil light?
Many vehicles don't have any kind of low oil pressure or level warning.
UH,WHAT??
Last edited:
I think what the poster meant was removing the drain plug, draining the oil and then starting the engine, there's a big difference between low oil and no oil. I think the answer to the original question is, it depends on the engine. If it was a Gen 1 SBC with hydraulic lifters it would probably stall as soon as the oil pump lost its prime. The lifters would collapse and the intake and exhaust valves wouldn't open and close.
Of course a stock engine with the valves adjusted on the tight side might run, but I couldn't imagine anyone actually being able to drive it(ticking time bomb.) I would like to think if this happened the person would have sense enough to turn the key off long before any real damage was done, but we all know that's not always the case.
Now a modern engine could probably run for quite some time...
Just my 2 cents.....
Of course a stock engine with the valves adjusted on the tight side might run, but I couldn't imagine anyone actually being able to drive it(ticking time bomb.) I would like to think if this happened the person would have sense enough to turn the key off long before any real damage was done, but we all know that's not always the case.
Now a modern engine could probably run for quite some time...
Just my 2 cents.....
Originally Posted By: lexus114
Originally Posted By: cchase
Originally Posted By: sbergman27
These folks who run miles and miles without oil... don't they wonder, even a little bit, what the oil pressure warning light on the dash means? Do they just make a mental note to ask their spouse about it when then get home?
Maybe they are just so used to their "Check Engine" light being on all the time, without noticeable ill-effect, that they think they can do the same with the oil light?
Many vehicles don't have any kind of low oil pressure or level warning.
UH,WHAT??
Older trucks often don't have warning lights from what I've seen.
Originally Posted By: cchase
Originally Posted By: sbergman27
These folks who run miles and miles without oil... don't they wonder, even a little bit, what the oil pressure warning light on the dash means? Do they just make a mental note to ask their spouse about it when then get home?
Maybe they are just so used to their "Check Engine" light being on all the time, without noticeable ill-effect, that they think they can do the same with the oil light?
Many vehicles don't have any kind of low oil pressure or level warning.
UH,WHAT??
Older trucks often don't have warning lights from what I've seen.
My 75 Ford Granada had a red Engine light,which was for low oil pressure or high engine temp.I allway`s thought that was rather odd.
Driving without oil, you say?
Weird 'snake oil' tests, you say?
Ask, and ye shall receive!
http://www.molyslip.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/su84.pdf
Weird 'snake oil' tests, you say?
Ask, and ye shall receive!
http://www.molyslip.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/su84.pdf
I liked those Big-Ole Ford T-Birds.
Originally Posted By: sbergman27
I just ran into an interesting post here.
Here's an excerpt from one of user TRD VVTi's posts on that page:
Quote:
How far can the car go without oil? It really depends. I've seen cars go for 30 miles without oil and have seen cars that locked up after just seconds of running. For some reason Toyotas seem to fair well though. I've seen an Avalon run for over a half hour without oil and then still keep running for over 15 minutes after running at 4,000 RPM's (rough estimate from memory).
Is this even reasonable? I've certainly never tried it myself. I do remember a Syntec commercial once, where they did this.
A car will seize up after a few seconds to a Mintue without Oil. DONT BELIEVE THE ZMAX COMEMRCIALS.
Im kinda susprised.. You can run a car for like "5 Minutes with NO ANTIFREEZE (Ive done it) but No OIL.. No. It will Seize.
.. If One wanted to Bash products liek SeaFoam, this would be the palce to do so, as not even SeaFoam will save you there. Ansd NO they dont say it would....
FWIW, Ive always heard that "20@-50" and/or "Synthetic Oil" would provide "Better" protection in the case of a Catastrophic Engine Overheat. Is THIS True?
I just ran into an interesting post here.
Here's an excerpt from one of user TRD VVTi's posts on that page:
Quote:
How far can the car go without oil? It really depends. I've seen cars go for 30 miles without oil and have seen cars that locked up after just seconds of running. For some reason Toyotas seem to fair well though. I've seen an Avalon run for over a half hour without oil and then still keep running for over 15 minutes after running at 4,000 RPM's (rough estimate from memory).
Is this even reasonable? I've certainly never tried it myself. I do remember a Syntec commercial once, where they did this.
A car will seize up after a few seconds to a Mintue without Oil. DONT BELIEVE THE ZMAX COMEMRCIALS.
Im kinda susprised.. You can run a car for like "5 Minutes with NO ANTIFREEZE (Ive done it) but No OIL.. No. It will Seize.
.. If One wanted to Bash products liek SeaFoam, this would be the palce to do so, as not even SeaFoam will save you there. Ansd NO they dont say it would....
FWIW, Ive always heard that "20@-50" and/or "Synthetic Oil" would provide "Better" protection in the case of a Catastrophic Engine Overheat. Is THIS True?
A couple of years ago I noticed a trail of oil leading from a driveway about a mile down the road from me. It led up the driveway and onto the road in the direction I was going. About a mile up the road the oil trail petered out and finally vanished.
About 5 miles further sat the neighbors late 1980's rust bucket Chevy pickup.
When I returned home that day the pickup was gone from the side of the road; I assume it was towed home. It was sitting alongside his garage, where it still sits today.
About 5 miles further sat the neighbors late 1980's rust bucket Chevy pickup.
When I returned home that day the pickup was gone from the side of the road; I assume it was towed home. It was sitting alongside his garage, where it still sits today.
Originally Posted By: Pop_Rivit
A couple of years ago I noticed a trail of oil leading from a driveway about a mile down the road from me. It led up the driveway and onto the road in the direction I was going. About a mile up the road the oil trail petered out and finally vanished.
About 5 miles further sat the neighbors late 1980's rust bucket Chevy pickup.
When I returned home that day the pickup was gone from the side of the road; I assume it was towed home. It was sitting alongside his garage, where it still sits today.
That's a pushrod design at about 5 miles with no oil.... not bad,or should I say,too bad.
A couple of years ago I noticed a trail of oil leading from a driveway about a mile down the road from me. It led up the driveway and onto the road in the direction I was going. About a mile up the road the oil trail petered out and finally vanished.
About 5 miles further sat the neighbors late 1980's rust bucket Chevy pickup.
When I returned home that day the pickup was gone from the side of the road; I assume it was towed home. It was sitting alongside his garage, where it still sits today.
That's a pushrod design at about 5 miles with no oil.... not bad,or should I say,too bad.
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