Oil darkening very quickly: dump it?

Pennzoil motor oil
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Audioquest

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I did my first oil change on my 2009 Hyundai Accent this past Summer at 6000kms (3750mi). I used 2/3 Castrol GTX 5W30 and 1/3 Motomaster F1 Synthetic 5W20 (mfg by Shell Canada) and an OEM oil filter. I did the mix because I wanted to get rid of the remaining jug of GTX I had sitting around.

I've put about 4000kms (2500mi) on this oil and it is a very dark brown already. Winter is coming up and I'm starting to get a little antsy about draining this concoction early and putting in a synthetic 0W20 or 5W20. Or, should I just leave it in for the manufacturer's recommended oci of 6000kms?
 
Originally Posted By: Onmo'Eegusee
Leave it in. Color means little.


I agree.

From what I have observed, castrol gtx gets dark quickly.
 
If it were me I'd just go ahead and change it out sometime before it gets tooo cold.

But I guess I'm just weird like that, and I would want a synthetic for winter also.
 
I was taught by my old school dad to change oil on a new car early for the first 2 OCI's. I'd change it and use a 0W20 synthetic for the winter.
 
Go the normal OCI. Nothing wrong wih the oil. I use up all my "orphan" quarts the same way. Never a problem. The real issue is how cold it will be when you hit 6000. Sometimes I'll do my "Winter OCI" a bit early right before the weather really turns so I can make it through all the bad weather.
 
COLOR DOESN'T MEAN ANYTHING.

I had to type it in caps.
Different oil additives react differently. Some never turn the oil dark, some do almost instantaneously.
 
You just contradicted yourself.

Originally Posted By: hpichris
COLOR DOESN'T MEAN ANYTHING.


Followed by:

Originally Posted By: hpichris
Different oil additives react differently. Some never turn the oil dark, some do almost instantaneously.


OIL DARKENING MEANS SOMETHING TO ONE DEGREE OR ANOTHER.
 
I didn't contradict myself.

OIL DARKENING MEANS SOMETHING TO ONE DEGREE OR ANOTHER.

Some oils barely change color. It means nothing in his application. It means nothing in a sense that his oil is not going bad.
 
1st the consensus of the board experts *chemists, tribologists and engineers) is that oil color change **in general** are irrelevant under performance parameters.

However, let me clarify. This is not scientific more than a personal non-academic experience. Parents had an engine, daily driver under extreme conditions. at 175,000 I changed it to Mobil 1. Within 72hrs the oil had become like tar ... thick even when hot and FULL of visible solids. This continued for 2 more oil changes and stopped until the vehicle was totaled some 75,000 miles later. For anyone in there right mind to argue the color change was of zero significance would be grossly arrogant. No oil changes this rapidly especially with the presumed presence of carbons solids visible. Some cleaning occurred and the oil as designed carried these contaminants. I fully stand behind my observations. On a cleaner engine the oil takes a 1,000+ miles to change, and even then I never saw those kinds of solids in it.
 
that's like saying that your house changed color.... while it was burning down. the color change then was pretty minor with all else going on
 
great thread ... really rich
thumbsup2.gif
 
1. Just fisnish out the OCI if you can. If it bugs you change it.

2. Oil color can mean something. It can mean cleaning is happening or the additives and their reactions are causing it.
 
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