Schaeffer 5W30, 5K miles, Sentra SpecV 2.5L

[Bror Jace]

The detailed results of my last oil sample sent to Blackstone Labs:

'03 Nissan Sentra Spec-V QR25DE 2.5L 4-cyl
Schaeffer 5W-30 synthetic blend
Hastings LF240 filter
5,009 mile interval (April to August)
Current mileage on vehicle: 22,612
No make up oil used.

Notes from Blackstone: ". TBN = 2.3, vs. 2.5 last sample. Client's (Terry's) comments being e-mailed direct to you. Note barium (additive) in this oil."

The following are my parts-per-million readings.
Schaeffer / Red Line / Universal Averages:

Aluminum 3 / 8 / 3
Chromium 1 / 2 / 1
Iron 14 / 23 / 10
Copper 8 / 7 / 5
Lead 4 / 12 / 3
Tin 0 / 0 / 0
Molybdenum 139 / 278 / 72
Potassium 0 / 0 / 6
Boron 1 / 15 / 47
Silicon 12 / 15 / 12
Sodium 4 / 17 / 7
Calcium 1857 / 2348 / 2128
Magnesium 4 / 7 / 230 (Blackstone error?)
Phosphorous 781 / 1077 / 821
Zinc 943 / 1122 / 994
Barium 57 / 14 / 2

Flash Point: 385F (should be above 355F)
Fuel: less than 0.5% (should be less than 1.0%)
Sustained viscosity @ 210 60.6 (should be between 53 and 62)
Antifreeze: 0%
Water: 0.0% (should be less than 0.05%)
Insolubles: 0.4% (should be less than 0.6%)

All other values (for rare metals) not listed above are zero (0)

I'll have some comments / interpretation of the above in a bit ...

--- Bror Jace

 

[zoomzoom]

how long did you have redline in for and which viscosity did you use?

 

[dropitby]

Looks good from my untrained eye Copper is 8 mine was 10. Did you use any FP or LC at all.

Did you drain I am sure you did what did you put in next.

[ August 31, 2004, 11:00 AM: Message edited by: dropitby ]

 

[Bror Jace]

zoomzoom, the Red Line viscosity was 5W-30 was well, although it ended up as 62.4 at the end of the interval: 5,719 miles.

Trends are definitely moving in the right direction.

Average mileage went from 28.3mpg with Red Line to 31.0 with Schaeffer ... and these are averages tracked on an Excel spreadsheet over many months. Couldn't be happier with this 175hp beast's average fuel economy.

Barium might be trouble, though ... might be my pre-cat coming apart. I'll have to search Schaeffer results here and see if I see other results with this element.

Yes. dropitby, I used Fuel Power (about 2oz. every other tankful) for the latter half of this interval.

--- Bror Jace

 

[Pablo]

Seems to be one of the higher Bariums...enema, anyone?

Whad up wid da Ba?

Metals do look lower than Redline, but are the miles, conditions similar?

 

[pinoy99]

Looks good. What's the sump size? Maybe LC could lower the insolubles a bit.

 

[zoomzoom]

well given that redline had about same amout of miles as this sample the choice is clear for your engine. Schaeffer wins hands down!

Maybe you coud run it to 7.5K next time?

 

[zoomzoom]

I keep noticing that Schaeffer always produces lower Iron numbers than other synthetics?

How are they doing this?

Is this formulation you use semi-syn?

 

[Terry]

zoomzoom, wrong conclusion. Schaeffers is a great oil but the difference in wear is not oil chemistry but dirt.

na,si, tell all..


Terry

 

[dropitby]

I will stick with my Pure One then.

 

[zoomzoom]

Terry this could be the case..However I just looked at my UOA's and compared the Na and Si level between the two of my best UOA I have and despite one having quite a bit more of those two(Si and Na) the wear rates are pretty close???

Whay would this be the case?

here are the numbers:

Miles on engine * 63300 * 72100
MILES ON OIL * 9300 * 8800
OIL * M1 10W-30 * GC 0W-30
ALUMINUM * 7 * 5
CHROMIUM * 1 * 1
IRON * 24 * 21
COPPER * 8 * 5
LEAD * 13 * 12
TIN * 0 * 3
MOLYBDENUM * 72 * 9
NICKEL * 0 * 0
MANGANESE * 0 * 1
SILVER * 0 * 0
TITANIUM * 0 * 0
POTASSIUM * 2 * 0
BORON * 108 * 7
SILICON * 21 * 11

SODIUM * 9 * 2

CALCIUM * 3084 * 2986
MAGNESIUM * 25 * 110
PHOSPHORUS * 791 * 699
ZINC * 920 * 837
BARIUM * 0 * 0
VISCOSITY * 68.2 * 66.9
FLASHPOINT * 435 * 425
FUEL * ANTIFREEZE * 0 * 0
WATER * 0 * 0
INSOLUBLES * 0.4 * 0.5

* * M1 10W-30 * GC 0W-30
ALUMINUM per 1000 * 0.75 * 0.57
CHROMIUM per 1000 * 0.11 * 0.11
IRON per 1000 * 2.58 * 2.39
COPPER per 1000 * 0.86 * 0.57
LEAD per 1000 * 1.40 * 1.36

 

[deepsquat]

Have we seen a bad report from a Bobzoil engine yet ...this stuff is amazing ...notice that it only took 1 OC interval (OCI) for the Bobzoil to do a great job ...but when redline comes into play ...we always here "BUT it's cleaning up the engine..give it a few more OCI and it will be doing great "...HUH

 

[Bror Jace]

zoomzoom, the oil I used was:

http://www.schaefferoil.com/datapdf/701.pdf

Pretty good stuff. TBN retention (starts out as 7.1) should be better with the stuff I have in there now. I'll go until the first week in December and change it again ... probably close to 5,000 miles.

Still haven't decided what I'm gonna run this winter. Strongly considering 2 quarts Mobil 1 0W30 and filling the rest of the sump with Schaeffer ... about a 45%/55% mix. GC is not an option for me in this area and I don't really want to stock up with another brand of oil with so much Schaeffer on hand.

Pablo, not really sure of the composition of the pre-cat'.

I just know it will ruin the engine if enough gets in.

---- Bror Jace

 

[dropitby]

Is this part of the recalls they had because they took a long time to give me a answer if my car was on the list. (recall)

 

[dropitby]

2002-2004 SE-R Pre-Catalyst

Applies to 2002 SE-R models in the following Vehicle Identification Number range:
3N1AB51**2L700019 - 730181

Applies to 2003 SE-R models in the following Vehicle Identification Number range:
3N1AB51**3L716572 - 736783

Applies to 2004 SE-R models in the following Vehicle Identification Number ranges:
3N1AB51**4L727627 - 730593
3N1AB51**4L736618 - 738436

Reason for Recall
There is a possibility that certain engine operating conditions may cause damage to the pre-catalyst. Material from inside a damaged pre-catalyst could enter the engine and result in increased oil consumption. If the engine oil level is not checked on a periodic basis and drops below the low level, and the driver continues to operate the vehicle ignoring noticeable engine noise, engine damage may occur which could result in a fire. Man I was really sweating this becaues I LUV my SE-R as we all do I hope they do you right.

 

[SSDude]

This oil is a great match for Lube Control. It would lower your insoluables and help with TBN retention.

 

[Terry]

zoomzoom, I would be happy to spend the time required to properly diagnose and analyze your results. As a professional analyst you understand that unless you know a subject very well it is difficult to build a database of knowledge in a relatively short amount of time to properly make informed and educated decisions about a particular subject.

Please contact me through; www.bobistheoilguy.com/terry.html

Terry

 

[Bror Jace]

pinoy99, the sump is a little over 4 quarts ... something like 4.4 or 4.5 quarts. A change is about 4.2 quarts ... just enough to overflow a gallon jug.

Red Line was run in the (extremely cold) winter ... with a defective/warped OEM air filter element. This element was replaced when I changed the oil in April.

I have no desire to go much past 5,000 miles on this oil change. The TBN being around 2.3 is a nice safety margin. Schaeffer at $3 is a great bargain and I have enough to last me another 12 months.

Pablo, as I said above, I strongly suspect the pre-catalytic converter (mounted on the exhaust manifold) may be going bad on this car and bits are being sucked back into the motor (barium contamination). '03 was a year that they just started to get this thing right ... but mine may be faulty.

In extreme cases, the cat' guts completely ruin the motor.

Now, just how much data do I need before going to Nissan and hoping they'll see the same signs and replace the pre-cat' before the motor is damaged?

--- Bror Jace

 

[Pablo]

BJ - I hit send before I saw your 7:16 post....but...holy Moses, what a way to die. Sucked (in reverse, so to speak) into the engine. Please tell me it's not some ceramic....and why is it made from Barium. I'm baffled?? Got a link?

 

[Patman]

Bror, if you suspect the pre cat could be going bad, and Nissan won't do anything about it, why don't you just replace it out of your own pocket so you can save your motor from a premature death?