Noise vs wear?

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The "I want to like PP..." thread got me thinking...

Since some oils tend to be "quieter" than others, is there any correlation with the amount of noise vs wear? Or even wear metals in an UOA? Or is the noise only a nuisance?
 
I'd prefer an oil that produces less noise w/o bumping up a grade. Issue or non-issue I'd rather hear less noise.
 
Since the "noise" that people are referring to is with engines in good condition it's first and foremost very much a subjective thing. All engines have a certain "noise" and the quality of that "noise" is what some find pleasant or not.

Personally I've never noticed a noise difference an oil brand or even a different grade can make to an engine's sound although some people swear by it. So yes I would consider it only "a nuisance" if it bothers you and I wouldn't conclude any wear advantage in using an oil that seems to be quieter. Heck we have never proven one API brand produces less wear than another API brand anyway and a $20 UOA certainly won't tell you.
 
The modern engines with OHC's are a lot quieter than the early ones were .
As a former mechanic I always listen for certain noises that tell me something but a small rattle on cold start , valve train noise , a little piston slap when cold and the like are not harmful noise in most cases but I find there is too much worry on here .

If one wants to play with different oils be my guest....just sayin .
 
I'm sure straight 50 weight would make a lot of engines quieter than 5W30 on a hot summer day. I bet the 50 weight would show higher wear numbers.
 
Originally Posted By: itguy08
Or is the noise only a nuisance?


I believe that it's only a nuisance. But like demarpaint said, if you're going to pay for oil anyway, you might as well buy oil that runs quiet in your engine. Oil makes no difference in some engines. Our Acura's 3.5L is one of those. I can't hear a difference no matter what I use. Conventional/synthetic. 0W-20/5W-20/0W-30/5W-30. I've run them all. Doesn't matter. Oil does make a difference in other engines. Our Honda's 2.4L is one of those. It runs loud on Valvoline white bottle 5W-20 and SOPUS synthetic oils.

It's no big deal. I certainly don't lose sleep over it. I simply choose an oil that runs quiet.
 
Another mental experiment: diesel vs gasoline. Imagine the noisy clacking diesel sound (while idling). And diesel laboring while accelerating. So, why does it outlive gasoline engines?
 
Originally Posted By: friendly_jacek
Another mental experiment: diesel vs gasoline. Imagine the noisy clacking diesel sound (while idling). And diesel laboring while accelerating. So, why does it outlive gasoline engines?


Diesel noise and longevity are two disconnected things. The noise is generally from the injection pump system and high compression ratios. Longevity comes from heavy duty internals, enlarged crankshaft journals, larger bearing surfaces, etc.
 
Originally Posted By: friendly_jacek
Another mental experiment: diesel vs gasoline. Imagine the noisy clacking diesel sound (while idling). And diesel laboring while accelerating. So, why does it outlive gasoline engines?


A lot of people think that noise is from the engine and imagine pistons slapping and the like . Nothing could be further then that , the noise from a diesel isn't from the engine at all !
 
Originally Posted By: nitehawk55
Nothing could be further then that , the noise from a diesel isn't from the engine at all !


OK, I'll bite. Where is the noise from again?
 
Originally Posted By: CATERHAM
Since the "noise" that people are referring to is with engines in good condition it's first and foremost very much a subjective thing. All engines have a certain "noise" and the quality of that "noise" is what some find pleasant or not.



Exactly...some engines naturally sound like sewing machines, others nearly none.


IMO more noise in a.given engine = more wear, with the caveat that some oils conduct sound better than others.
 
Originally Posted By: skyactiv
I'm sure straight 50 weight would make a lot of engines quieter than 5W30 on a hot summer day. I bet the 50 weight would show higher wear numbers.


I'm sure it would too .
 
Originally Posted By: friendly_jacek
Originally Posted By: nitehawk55
Nothing could be further then that , the noise from a diesel isn't from the engine at all !


OK, I'll bite. Where is the noise from again?


Injector pump/injectors .

We had a setup at one of the shops I used to work at where you had the injector pump off the engine and the injectors to test everything out . You could swear it was a diesel running , it made the same exact noise !
 
Interesting responses - all of them. I always figured a certain amount of noise was normal. and was wondering since they all sounded metallic if it correlated to more wear since metal/metal is usally noting you want to have going on long term.

I would suppose that as long as the noises don't last more than a second or so it doesn't matter. I had a Mustang with 175k that ticked like crazy at idle. Didn't seem to bother it much.

The thing that amazes me is Diesels - idle them and they sound like marbles in a tin can. Put load on them and they sound almost like a gas engine.
 
Diesel works almost as gas detonation. They have high turbulence in combustion chamber, big clearnaces, huge inertia by beefenup parts. All contribute for intensity in noise.
But gas engines have to be smooth or you should try the best to smoothen it out.
 
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