Should I be running HM oil?

[hate2work]

Car is a 1980 Citation V6 AT with 54k miles. Inherited it 3 years ago with 50k original miles on it. It only gets driven by our teenager 1 mile to work and 1 mile back about 4 days a week, and then an occasional longer trip twice a month or so. Current fill is Durablend 10W-30, and is getting dark with only 1000 miles/6 months on the oil. Car doesn't use or leak a drop of oil. The inside of the engine is fairly dirty, and my plan was to slowly switch it over to PP and let that clean it up. But I bought a bottle of the Amsoil engine cleaner, and could use that right before the next OC.

Questions-

Should I use a HM oil for the seals? Is there one that would also help clean the engine?

Should I use the engine cleaner? Or stick with my plan of using PP to clean it?

 

[Steve S]

Is there a problem with the seals ? run the Amsoil per instructions then add the PP.

 

[hate2work]

Originally Posted By: Steve S
Is there a problem with the seals ? run the Amsoil per instructions then add the PP.


No, just that they are 30 years old.

 

[dsmith41]

I don't think a HM oil is necessary because it doesn't leak or use oil. Use a cleaner like Auto Rx or something like that followed by a good synthetic or dino at a good OCI and you'll be fine.

 

[DanJ]

Hard to imagine a Chev Citation as getting close to a classic car . My wife had one many of years ago when she was in high school. Wasn't that Chevy's first FWD vehicle?

My '04 Sienna has 75K and I have been using Valv HM blend with good results. I've been going with around 7K-8K OCI. I'm thinking of getting an UOA done on the next change.

Dan

 

[jorton]

From Amsoil distributor's website:

"Can I use AMSOIL Synthetic Motor oil in my high mileage vehicle?

Certainly! The best practice for introducing high mileage vehicles to synthetics is a three step process. If your vehicle has more than 75,000 miles, first use Amsoil Engine Flush as mentioned above. The next step then is to use AMSOIL's Extended Life 5W-20 Synthetic Motor Oil (XLM)along with an Amsoil EaO Oil Filter for 7,500 miles, then the last step would be to use AMSOIL 100% Synthetic Motor Oil and a new EaO Filter. By following the above steps, you will help your high mileage engine clean years of sludge, grime and varnish that has accumulated."

Amsoil engine cleaner should b ok as long as you follow manufacturers instructions. Substitute your PP for the other 2 steps.

 

[rewote500]

Originally Posted By: hate2work

Car is a 1980 Citation V6 AT with 54k miles. Inherited it 3 years ago with 50k original miles on it. It only gets driven by our teenager 1 mile to work and 1 mile back about 4 days a week, and then an occasional longer trip twice a month or so. Current fill is Durablend 10W-30, and is getting dark with only 1000 miles/6 months on the oil. Car doesn't use or leak a drop of oil. The inside of the engine is fairly dirty, and my plan was to slowly switch it over to PP and let that clean it up. But I bought a bottle of the Amsoil engine cleaner, and could use that right before the next OC.

Questions-

Should I use a HM oil for the seals? Is there one that would also help clean the engine?

Should I use the engine cleaner? Or stick with my plan of using PP to clean it?




Mobil 1 High Mileage is good for cleaning. Although only driving 8 miles per week may take awhile.

 

[hominid7]

Originally Posted By: hate2work

Car is a 1980 Citation V6 AT with 54k miles. Inherited it 3 years ago with 50k original miles on it. It only gets driven by our teenager 1 mile to work and 1 mile back about 4 days a week, and then an occasional longer trip twice a month or so. Current fill is Durablend 10W-30, and is getting dark with only 1000 miles/6 months on the oil. Car doesn't use or leak a drop of oil. The inside of the engine is fairly dirty, and my plan was to slowly switch it over to PP and let that clean it up. But I bought a bottle of the Amsoil engine cleaner, and could use that right before the next OC.

Questions-

Should I use a HM oil for the seals? Is there one that would also help clean the engine?

Should I use the engine cleaner? Or stick with my plan of using PP to clean it?




I'd switch to a good quality dino 5w30 due to the shorp trips. If reliability is not a concern, taking it out once a week for a nice long spirited drive may help clean it more than anything else.

If it's not leaking, i'm not sure HM oil would be a benefit. It may actually make things worse due to the added viscosity and the short trips.

Due to the short trips, changing it every 6 months regardless of mileage may be a good thing.

 

[dwendt44]

If you can find HDEO oil in 10W-30, try that for a short oil change.
It had high detergents and should help clean.
The 'cleaner' can be used just before a change of course. If used properly it won't hurt, and you've already got it.
As it's a cheap old car, expensive oil seems counter intuitive.