my first time! auto-rx virgin.

[mpvue]

had to update, if for no other reason to help ME keep track:
finally ready to change to the rinse stage. came up on 2700 miles or so (took a while!), hopefully I can get in a friends garage this weekend.
there isn't any more valvetrain noise, no ticking whatsoever. separate issue, I think I do have an exhaust leak, have to see when I'm under there.
timing belt went out also last weekend; that accounts for some of the clanking noise I heard up front (the tensioner was shot, as well as the tensioner pulley)and the P0300 (random misfire) OBDII code I was getting.

 

[rshaw125]

I thought you said the timing belt had just been changed? maybe they did not change the tensioner?
I have the mitsu 3.0 in my Voyager van. I had the belt and tensioner changed at 120,000 miles.I am now over 185,000 miles. The engines favorite oil is Valvoline maxlife 5W30.I have yet to put any AutoRx in it. I have a bottle waiting. The inside of the engine is clean. But I did have great success on my Dodge Intrepid with AutoRx cleaning the piston rings.

 

[mpvue]

Originally Posted By: rshaw125
I thought you said the timing belt had just been changed? maybe they did not change the tensioner?

the previous owner has receipts for a belt change, but from the looks of the tensioner and pulley, they did a chrappy job or used cheap parts or didn't change it out. I've got all OEM in there now, and my mechanic is really good. runs like a brand new truck.

 

[Rick20]

I am glad that your unit is now running strong. Sometimes I wonder what is the more durable part, the belt or the tensioner?
Shame.

 

[mpvue]

latest: I finally got around to changing out the clean phase oil for the rinse phase. it's just over 3K. (143K total)I think I added a qt and a half over the time to top off (she leaks a little also).
funny, the whole time that the ARX oil was in there, I didn't have ANY start up valvetrain ticking (this engine was always a 'ticker' before). this morning, she ticked for a second or 3.

unrelated, but this MPV is slowly killing me. last week during one of our PA little snow storms, the d*mn plastic radiator cracked, had no choice but to go to a local (good rep) garage, $400 later seems ok (had to get another plastic rad, no one makes a metal one for this car). and last night while under the car doing the OC, I noticed one of the front CV boots was ripped!
if it's not one thing it's another...

 

[Gary Allan]

Sorry to hear about your problems.

My 3.0 Mitsubishi had no noise during the clean and radical noises during the rinse phase. It ticked a few new ticks while others (the reason I bought the stuff) went away. All of them retreated as the rinse phase progressed.

 

[mpvue]

I'm about 500 miles into the rinse phase. no noticable consumption yet. she ticked like a somethin-somethin for a good 4 minutes at startup yesterday, never ticked while the ARX was in there.
I still have a way to go on this rinse. it'll take me forever to get to the 2nd treatment!

 

[occupant]

MPV vans are nickel and dime vehicles. Even the newer generation (99 or 00 redesign to current) aren't as reliable as some others. But you have to remember the basic idea of a minivan is a car chassis and drivetrain that carries a lot more weight and has a lot more frontal area than a typical compact sedan. Transmissions, axles, cooling systems, AC components, all of them have a harder job to do. But having the RWD chassis of the MPV (or Aerostar, or Astro/Safari) will be a benefit as it will be tougher than the other brands. I missed an opportunity to buy THREE 92-94 MPV vans for $1000. All of them ran and drove, they just had miscellaneous issues keeping them from passing inspection. I'm sure between the three, I could have made one perfect, one passable, and kept the other for parts or demo derby or storage or something.

 

[oilboy123]

Originally Posted By: mpvue
I'm about 500 miles into the rinse phase. no noticable consumption yet. she ticked like a somethin-somethin for a good 4 minutes at startup yesterday, never ticked while the ARX was in there.
I still have a way to go on this rinse. it'll take me forever to get to the 2nd treatment!


Are you sure that your oil filter is not in bypass from being full of junk. My Dads was on the second rinse and it would make some racket on start ups. I changed out that second rinse and cut the oil filter open.....

It was so full of sludge and junk that I about fell over.

You might be fine but on his motor I should have been changing the filters as per the sludge RX run. Some of the sludge getting broken loose was getting re-deposited in the engine.

 

[demarpaint]

I'm about 1000 miles into the second and final rinse. I changed filters halfway through the first clean and rinse phase and noted nothing out of the ordinary. Now in the second rinse 1000 miles into it, the oil is still clean. The oil pressure is lower than it usually is, but still in the normal range. It is a factory electic oil pressure gauge. Oil leak has stopped, oil use is less than before.

I'm wondering if I should change the filter at the 1500 mile mark or leave it since the others were the same as they always were at an OC?

 

[c3po]

Originally Posted By: demarpaint
I'm about 1000 miles into the second and final rinse. I changed filters halfway through the first clean and rinse phase and noted nothing out of the ordinary. Now in the second rinse 1000 miles into it, the oil is still clean. The oil pressure is lower than it usually is, but still in the normal range. It is a factory electic oil pressure gauge. Oil leak has stopped, oil use is less than before.

I'm wondering if I should change the filter at the 1500 mile mark or leave it since the others were the same as they always were at an OC?


Keep the oil filter on.

 

[demarpaint]

My thoughts exactly, thanks! What do you make of the slightly lower oil pressure? I'm not about to pull the sending unit and hook up a mechanical gauge up. Usually it reads center of the Letter "M" in Normal, now I'm at the center of the "O", using either 5W20 or 5W30 it makes no difference.

 

[oilboy123]

Originally Posted By: demarpaint
My thoughts exactly, thanks! What do you make of the slightly lower oil pressure? I'm not about to pull the sending unit and hook up a mechanical gauge up. Usually it reads center of the Letter "M" in Normal, now I'm at the center of the "O", using either 5W20 or 5W30 it makes no difference.


Cleaned up varnish, sludge etc equals less oil pressure. Would not give it a second thought.

You are probably OK leaving the filter. But like I mentioned if you have a pattern of getting a ticking at start up your filter could be getting clogged.

This I believe would be most likely to occur after the vehicle sitting overnight. At least it did on my Dads van.

 

[demarpaint]

Thanks, no ticking, nothing out of the ordinary, except that slight drop in OP, and the leak stopped . The Aerostar runs great, now once this weather breaks I'll get to give it a tune up, it's long over due.

 

[mpvue]

latest update: FINALLY finished the ARX rinse phase, give or take. got just under 3K on the rinse, but it's getting late in the season, I was running about a qt low, didn't have any conventional on hand, so...
I changed it w/ the 10W30 amsoil I have had for like a year now. this truck LOVES amsoil, even my wife noticed how much quieter it is. while on ARX, you know how it goes, noisy sometimes, quiet others, but it REALLY does its job.
I know I really should have done a 2nd application w/ the amount of miles it has (146K now) but at this point, I'm not sure how much longer this truck'll last. It just got hit by an illegal in front of the house (he took off, and some 'friends' of his came by later, arguing w/ his ins co now) and it's got a bunch of rust issues, so I might only keep it as long as my amsoil stash lasts! I have the rest of the case and another filter left, so I'm good for 2 more years.

 

[greenaccord02]

When I saw the thread title my first instinct was to come in and post, "DON'T DO IT - YOU'RE STILL A YOUNG MAN!" But I see it's an old thread. Rats.

 

[mpvue]

yes, old thread. I'm using it to keep track of what I'm doing.

 

[ZZman]

Good. We like long term tests.

 

[expat]

Originally Posted By: mpvue
latest update: FINALLY finished the ARX rinse phase, give or take. got just under 3K on the rinse, but it's getting late in the season, I was running about a qt low, didn't have any conventional on hand, so...
I changed it w/ the 10W30 amsoil I have had for like a year now. this truck LOVES amsoil, even my wife noticed how much quieter it is. while on ARX, you know how it goes, noisy sometimes, quiet others, but it REALLY does its job.
I know I really should have done a 2nd application w/ the amount of miles it has (146K now) but at this point, I'm not sure how much longer this truck'll last. It just got hit by an illegal in front of the house (he took off, and some 'friends' of his came by later, arguing w/ his ins co now) and it's got a bunch of rust issues, so I might only keep it as long as my amsoil stash lasts! I have the rest of the case and another filter left, so I'm good for 2 more years.


So..... considering that you may soon part with the truck, do you thing you got value for money from running Arx and Amsoil?

 

[chevrofreak]

Originally Posted By: greenaccord02
When I saw the thread title my first instinct was to come in and post, "DON'T DO IT - YOU'RE STILL A YOUNG MAN!" But I see it's an old thread. Rats.


Yet another very insightful post by greenaccord02 in an Auto RX thread.