LSJr Motor Oil Geek on fuel additives

[5thgennissanaltima]

The Motor Oil Geek posted a video this week saying he thinks fuel additives do protect against piston wear, and are just as important as quality oil. It's lengthy and technical but that's his conclusion. I always add a bottle of Regane plus a dose of UCL with every tank. Definitely happy to see an industry professional like Motor Oil Geek come out supporting extra additives.

 

[Jetronic]

But what the additives are or are not isn't disclosed. Nor what fuels have these, and since when.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

The Motor Oil Geek posted a video this week saying he thinks additives do protect against piston wear, and are just as important as quality oil. It's lengthy and technical but that's his conclusion. I always add a bottle of Regane plus a dose of UCL with every tank. Definitely happy to see an industry professional like Motor Oil Geek come supporting extra fuel additives.

Why? Do you use non top tier fuels? Does REGANE advertise reduced (engine) ring/cylinder wear ? I would not use UCL on a Di engine. What UCI? I would say you are throwing money out the car window better used for more fuel or groceries.

I have left UCI and detergents to my ODPE and even that doesn't work any more on my poorly designed TORO equipment that won't allow fuel out of the tank bung!

 

[Foxtrot08]

Bad topic for him to cover.

Fuel quality, around the U.S. changes dramatically depending on a lot of factors. I agree with him that in general, premium fuel is better than regular gas for your engine. But over all, is it “worth it” and how much of a difference will it make in the life of your engine (assuming stock, normal daily driver) is debatable.

Did the refinery recently have a turn around? Or is it at the end of its cycle?

Are you getting blended fuel off the midstream? Refinery fresh? Who’s the terminal?

What’s the tanker fleet hauling it like? What’s the station tank maintenance look like?

At approximately $.80-1.00 more a gallon going from 87e10 to 93e10 - what’s your cost?

Rough napkin maff. If you want a car to last let’s say 250,000 miles. It gets 25mpg. At $3.20 for 87e19 - that’s $32,000 in fuel. 93e10 - $42,000 in fuel. (All napkin maff.)


Is it worth the extra $10,000 in fuel for a non-performance car? That’s 1/4th of a new car, or a solid down payment on a new one saved.

Just food for thought.

He also deleted my comment on the YouTube video, saying the same about fuel quality across the country…. Weird.

 

[cheesepuffs2]

But what the additives are or are not isn't disclosed. Nor what fuels have these, and since when.

This is what I don't like, is that fuel additives are all a guessing game. I have no idea if Sunoco has an inferior additive blend compared to ExxonMobil, or if Citgo is good, or anything else...

 

[Lavrishevo]

The point of the video is keeping your fuel injection system clean. When the spray pattern is compromised fuel is sprayed directly on to the cylinder walls this promotes more wear. In other words, clean you fuel system often. There are many good products out there. B12 Chemtool is a favorite among many. Regular old Techron works too, but it’s not as powerful.

 

[5thgennissanaltima]

But what the additives are or are not isn't disclosed. Nor what fuels have these, and since when.

He states friction modifiers which sounds like UCLs to me. I go between Lucas fuel treatment and Rislone fuel injector cleaner which are both mostly lubricants. I can't always get top tier so just make a habit of using Regane as well which boosts cleaning power.

 

[Jetronic]

He states friction modifiers which sounds like UCLs to me. I go between Lucas fuel treatment and Rislone fuel injector cleaner which are both mostly lubricants. I can't always get top tier so just make a habit of using Regane as well which boosts cleaning power.

It doesn't sound like UCL to me. You would need something besides a typical hydrocarbon chain to have a meaningful impact.

 

[SubieRubyRoo]

He states friction modifiers which sounds like UCLs to me. I go between Lucas fuel treatment and Rislone fuel injector cleaner which are both mostly lubricants. I can't always get top tier so just make a habit of using Regane as well which boosts cleaning power.

Which of those “lubricants” have flashpoints higher than the temperatures in the running cylinders?

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

The Motor Oil Geek posted a video this week saying he thinks fuel additives do protect against piston wear, and are just as important as quality oil. It's lengthy and technical but that's his conclusion. I always add a bottle of Regane plus a dose of UCL with every tank. Definitely happy to see an industry professional like Motor Oil Geek come out supporting extra additives.

TBF he's saying the additional FM's in premium fuel result in less wear when compared to non-premium fuel. The video does not draw a correlation between FM used in retail gasoline and an over the counter UCL.

Of course that's not going to stop the UCL fans.

The other issue is that the video doesn't take it a step further by showing how the additional wear translates into engine lifespan. Probably because it's not statistically relevant.

 

[Jetronic]

Which of those “lubricants” have flashpoints higher than the temperatures in the running cylinders?

Well, if fuel dilution is a thing, adding stuff to the sump through the fuel is definitely possible. But oil and fuel are a plenty in the ring pack (especially on oil burners), so the question becomes what do we want to add there.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

A certain Fuel brand claims wear reduction with the use of their fuel, and presented here is an initial study to validate such claims. It appears a proprietary and undisclosed FM/AW package is added to this particular brand's fuel and it is shown to be effective in substantially reducing ring/cyl wear.

 

[5thgennissanaltima]

Why? Do you use non top tier fuels? Does REGANE advertise reduced (engine) ring/cylinder wear ? I would not use UCL on a Di engine. What UCI? I would say you are throwing money out the car window better used for more fuel or groceries.

I have left UCI and detergents to my ODPE and even that doesn't work any more on my poorly designed TORO equipment that won't allow fuel out of the tank bung!

Why not use UCL on a direct injection engine?

 

[ARCOgraphite]

I think Shell V-Power was mentioned at the beginning of the video. I recall saying to myself last night when this video popped up."that's too bad, we dont have a good Shell station around here - just swamp water pushers". Plus I don't require premium or even care about this with my current vehicle.

 

[H. Swanson]

Cool video.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Why not use UCL on a direct injection engine?

I might ask why are you using pricey Lucas refuse and not just a good ND30 motor oil that might cost maybe three bucks a qt?

I postulate with the extreme pressure and fine oriface of D.I. , the addition of long stringy polymers and paraffins would adversely impact proper atomisation and stress the pump. Plus, I tried it with a couple commercial products and the engine ran poorly LOL, and I was some what biased that it would run "better" as often seen on my carbureted engines in the past. I did use a high treat rate of around 100:1. (Approx 1 fluid oz. per Gal)

 

[Patman]

The problem with this video for me is that it makes it look as if engines that run on regular 87 octane fuel are going to have such high wear rates but in reality there are a considerable amount of people who have hundreds of thousands of miles on their engines and have never once used premium fuel (or any additional additives either) I don’t use premium in my Civic, nor do I ever use any other additives but I do use Costco gas almost exclusively, and they claim to have a lot more detergents than other brands.

For my Corvette I have never used any additives either but I have run nothing but Top Tier fuels in it since day one and I have recently switched over to Shell 93 and will likely use that exclusively from now on (I have especially enjoyed getting a 17 cent per liter discount there the last few months as well as getting $40 worth of free gas thanks to the Air Miles promotions recently)

 

[Foxtrot08]

The problem with this video for me is that it makes it look as if engines that run on regular 87 octane fuel are going to have such high wear rates but in reality there are a considerable amount of people who have hundreds of thousands of miles on their engines and have never once used premium fuel (or any additional additives either) I don’t use premium in my Civic, nor do I ever use any other additives but I do use Costco gas almost exclusively, and they claim to have a lot more detergents than other brands.

For my Corvette I have never used any additives either but I have run nothing but Top Tier fuels in it since day one and I have recently switched over to Shell 93 and will likely use that exclusively from now on (I have especially enjoyed getting a 17 cent per liter discount there the last few months as well as getting $40 worth of free gas thanks to the Air Miles promotions recently)

I can DM you a price sheet that comes off a service that you pay for, when you buy wholesale rack. It has my name on it which is why I don’t post it publicly.

You’ll notice the options you get.


Terminal / price and in my area you get a choice of: 87e10, 89e10, 93e10, 87e0 or 90e0. Mind you the choices will change slightly region to region. But, there is no choice for “I want more detergents.” Or any special options.

There is no “top tier” branding choice either. Yet, I’m buying from Marathon / Sun / Husky / Ergon like… anyone else would. Sheetz, Walmart, Costco, Getgo, etc.

On the branded side it’s a little (a lot) more complicated. My sister company (my family still) owns and/or manages about 500 gas stations that are a major brand.

 

[puellarum]

It's always on sale for $7 a pop at your local auto parts store. It's not going to hurt anything. Who cares really

 

[Patman]

I can DM you a price sheet that comes off a service that you pay for, when you buy wholesale rack. It has my name on it which is why I don’t post it publicly.

I would appreciate that, thanks!