Oil Additives ????

[kirknbr]

I have read a lot of threads here about the use of additives in engine oils. I find it amazing that the use of additives in (seemingly) perfectly good engines with high quality oil would even take place. Additives do have a purpose - seals, leaks, increasing certain properties. The last part is where the rub is. Yes you can increase AW, EP, viscosity, or any other parameters you choose but you are creating an imbalance of chemicals and are creating mixtures that are not compatible and can destroy the oil itself. Every action has a reaction. If you improve one thing you will most likely be decreasing some other benefit. Now start trying to measure and predict the reactions with the wear metals that are in the oil, the heat and the by products from too much heat or not enough heat + water + fuel + coolant +??? = ???

All this will most likely end up as an acid and will require an oil to be changed sooner then if you would have not added anything. There are some additives that do not mix well with the base oil. This why there is a shelf life. The blending process is a precise process that is very hard if not imposable to duplicate in the crankcase. Now with all that said..... If your engine is suffering from another problem and you cannot fixit (leaking seals, smoke from exhaust (leaky rings), ETC use an additive that will help. Your engine already has a problem your not going to fix it by just changing the oil are additive. The additive might buy you some more time but it will not fix wore out parts. I almost think if they sold a kit with base oil and additives so people could mix their oil them self’s it would sell. Hmm…

 

[tomcat27]

yes, people seem very passionate about brand x additive for their car. I even saw a thread recently where the guy added 3 additives at once!!!!

for the most part they only make the seller very rich. the person that holds the patent for the original STP oil treatment has a very nice lakefront home around here!

I have never added anything to my oil.. period.

 

[bruce381]

you are correct but some additions of "additives" on the blending end will improve things not worsen anyway the word "additives" is in my mind the wrong wording.

In that most all lube oils are "additized" meaning having additives in the base fluid perhaps a better way to indicate adding a additive to a base lube oil should be perhaps saying
"aftermarket additive"
make sense?
bruce

 

[kirknbr]

Yes - I may have not used the right wording. Mixing aftermarket additives with oil in your good engines crankcase is a not a good idea. Using good oil from the start is a better option then making bad oil better. Keeping oil clean from the start is better then trying to clean oil.

 

[bruce381]

You are correct I'm not knocking your wording in that everyone says 'additives" like they are bad I think the better wording as I sais is "aftermarket Additives"

I like your Vibration analyst cert I'm a CLS but at work our vibration trending is when a pump bearing seizes, LOL.
bruce

 

[kirknbr]

Thanks. I am certified in several other PdM Technologies but I only put down the ones I work with on a routine. (Ultrasonic’s, & Infrared thermography and I’m also trained by PdMA in use of the MCE/max for motor circuit analysis.) I thought about the STLE CLS &OMA certs. and still my get my CLS this year but that is only if I can get my company to flip the bill. The company I work for prefers the ICML rather then the STLE so we will see. The Mobius iLearn pruducts are very helpful in getting ready for the vibration test. Good Luck!
I try not to get too involved with this type of forums and motor oils. People have very strong opinions and views about their oils they use. I don't have any data to challenge anything (just my thoughts or my own opinions) so I only comment when I see something that sparks an interest. The use of aftermarket additives is something I wonder about from time to time.