Shell at Precision tune

[urrlord]

I stopped at a Precision Tune in Macon,Ga. that was running a o/c special- 18.90.(last month it was 16.90),Pretty much cheaper than doing it at home in most cases.I had added 20 oz of transmission fluid a week ago to do some mild cleaning while waiting til payday to get an o/c.

My wife had an o/c there a while back and they were using Mobil 5000.When I stopped in this time I asked what oil they were using.Shell GTS 500 was the answer.Because there were some problems with keeping a steady supply of Mobil 5000 they switched to Shell.I know Shell is said to be pretty good oil,just not common around here,so I gave the go ahead.

My 93 Tracker 4cyl 5 spd got a fill of 5w30.Later I went online and could not find a listing for Shell gts 500,not much info on Formula Shell either.Lots of info on Rotella.

I looked at PQI reviews of Shell.The 10w30 test from a few years ago looked like it had a good add pack.The recent test of 5w30 showed what appeared to be a lesser add pack.I plan on a 5000 mile run with mainly highway usage.

I also noted some posters here had stated oil consumption went up a bit with their Shell usage.They had no idea why it increased.
Any feed back?

 

[Garak]

Are you sure about the name they gave you? You can search for Shell product data sheets here. I couldn't find anything among the U.S. sheets with the name 500, GTS, GTS 500, or even GT5 (in case I misread your post). I don't even recall such a name among North American Shell products going back thirty years.

 

[Trav]

Sure it isn't Shell Helix HX5?

 

[Rand]

i would skip the transmission fluid in the engine oil thing..
its not a good thing to do.

 

[Donald]

Use a cleaner intended for the engine. Kreen or Auto-Rx.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: Trav
Sure it isn't Shell Helix HX5?


I had to reread his post to ensure it was Georgia, USA, as opposed to Georgia, the former SSR.

 

[volk06]

most likely forumla shell

 

[urrlord]

I'm thinking it was Formula Shell,since I too could not find any mention of a Shell 500 or GTS either.I was just a little disappointed in the PQI analysis of the 5w30.The threads I found here about increased consumption was a little dismaying.If my consumption goes up appreciably I'll resurrect this thread with my experience.

The transmission fluid was around 10% of the fill so I do not think it caused any problems in the 400 miles or so that it was in there.I would not use a full fill of it as some do as a flush(an auto engineer has posted that they ran 100% atf in engines to accelerate bearing wear)nor would I use a quart substitution for the length of an o/c as some do either(unless as an experiment w/a beater).Many people swear by atf as a mild cleaner.

Ny Tracker is used with an unclear maintenance history so i figured a little gentle cleaning was in order.The friend (he had bought it used from a ricer)I bought it from usually does o/c's if nothing else.However he had loaned it to another friend for about 9 months and got it back with a noisy engine and that was cured with an o/c.
I've never seen Kreen around here,did not have the bucks for Rx.I did however have an old bottle of type A atf and used it as a top off.Hopefully this little engine w/149k will keep on ticking.

 

[Garak]

I wouldn't worry about Formula Shell. Yes, some people have consumption issues with it. Some people also have consumption issues with Mobil 1, RP, GTX, PYB, QS, GC, and any other brand or viscosity you could possibly list. As for transmission fluid as a cleaner, nope. SOPUS didn't convert Formula Shell (or any other product they market) from SM/GF-4 to SM/GF-5 by adding a pint of ATF per five litre jug; neither should you.

Formula Shell is a quality oil that can often be had at a very good price. Use it with confidence.

 

[dave1251]

Once again Garak has offered very sound and sensible advice. I agree with his recommendations.

 

[urrlord]

Never said I added atf to the Shell fill.

Although after thinking about this I'm going to have to keep an eye out for some Formula Shell as a top off.Just to keep the o/c observations clear by not mixing add packs.Or I may have to spend some time on the PQI website looking for a similar add package.Formula Shell oils are not common around here as I noted earlier.