Sludge. Beating a Dead Horse on this one!

[accent2012]

Originally Posted By: chainblu
I'll probably catch some flak for this, but I don't care.
Back when I worked for an express lube, there was some (older) guy who would come in and request ANYTHING but Quaker State. I would MAKE SURE he got Quaker State in that engine, despite what it said on the receipt (probably said Pennzoil).

When he would come back for the next OC, he would proudly pull out the dipstick and show us the golden colored oil on it and say "You can tell I don't use Quaker State, huh".

I'd ask "What can we do for you today"?
"Anything but Quaker State"!

I was going to tell him the truth one day, but I left before I could.


You might have given him a heart attack if you told him the truth lol.

 

[GumbyJarvis]

Originally Posted By: alwayson
So Gumby, what is your recommended OCI on Mobil 1 0w40 on a car that does 99% driving in the suburbs at low speeds, traffic lights etc.??


My point isn't telling you what your oci should be, but use some common sense. I'm not saying "hey these are the only 3 driving styles" im saying perhaps perform a used oil analysis or a series of them, to see where you stand on an oci. If you can't afford a used oil analysis, then use your better judgment. If you haul a 6000 lb load up a mountain, a 10000 oci isn't going to be good for that engine. Versus driving 60+mph in a car on mostly highway is a waste at a 3000 oci

 

[alwayson]

Originally Posted By: GumbyJarvis
Originally Posted By: alwayson
So Gumby, what is your recommended OCI on Mobil 1 0w40 on a car that does 99% driving in the suburbs at low speeds, traffic lights etc.??


My point isn't telling you what your oci should be, but use some common sense. I'm not saying "hey these are the only 3 driving styles" im saying perhaps perform a used oil analysis or a series of them, to see where you stand on an oci. If you can't afford a used oil analysis, then use your better judgment. If you haul a 6000 lb load up a mountain, a 10000 oci isn't going to be good for that engine. Versus driving 60+mph in a car on mostly highway is a waste at a 3000 oci


How does 7k sound?

 

[ProfPS]

To me, sludging had more to do with engine design than oil chemistry - remember the late '90s Toyota engines sludging due to poor PCV systems?? My '92 2.3 Ford Tempo had a PCV system recall. PCV systems have come a long way from the early days of emission controls, engine gas recirculation and ventilation.

Also, don't forget that transverse mounted engines with temperature relay controlled electric cooling fans is fairly new. There were a few engines with electric fans before the '80s, but they were new and temperature relays were not perfected - my parent's '74 VW Rabbit overheated at times. Before electric cooling fans, engine cooling was dependent on the mechanical, clutch controlled fan connected to the water pump and fan speed was based on engine speed: low fan speed in stop-and-go traffic in the middle of the summer. When electric fans were introduced in the '80s computer systems in cars were new and using temperature relays and controls were not perfected as they are today.

Yes, oil chemistry was not as advanced as it is today. With the primitive cooling and PCV systems oil ingredients were exposed to temperatures that cooked the viscosity out of them - thus causing sludge build-up. You could probably use any of the old myth Penn-Sludge, Quaker-Sludge, or ??-Sludge oil from the '70s and use it in a modern engine for a 5-7k OCI's with no signs of sludge.

 

[tig1]

I had terrible sludge problems with QS in the 60s. Switched to Valvo, an improvement. In the 70s switched to Mobil 1 5w20. I tripled my OCI and never to suffer from sludge again.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: ProfPS
My '92 2.3 Ford Tempo had a PCV system recall. PCV systems have come a long way from the early days of emission controls, engine gas recirculation and ventilation.


I was lucky. With my 1983 LTD with the 2.3, I had no PCV issues. There was no sludge, either, but LPG does keep things pretty clean. The last half of its life was almost entirely highway miles, too. It's first half saw QS, second half GTX.

 

[addyguy]

Originally Posted By: Garak
Originally Posted By: addyguy
Had aREAL issue with a guy with an old VW Golf that wanted GTX 20W-50 in it. We wouldn't do it, b/c it was not called for...he ended up getting the store manager involved, lecturing her on how much we didn't know, and he was a VW mechanic, and maybe if we listened, we'd learn something...


First off, thanks to the OP. What he said should be common sense to most of us here; barring that, it should be a sticky for those without common sense.

As for the GTX 20w-50, if this guy was a VW mechanic, why wasn't he changing his own oil? Barring that, why wasn't he going to a VW dealership or an independent European mechanic?


Health problem - had arm in sling from shoulder surgery, I think. As for the VWE dealership point, we were in a fairly low-income ara - most folks that used that store were after cheap.

 

[Garak]

To be honest, 20w-50 was probably in the manual as an appropriate choice under certain weather conditions. I, personally, wouldn't have wanted something thicker than a 15w40, unless it was experiencing problems with that grade.

 

[cfromc]

I'm glad I do my own oil changes after hearing these stories about people refusing to put the oil that the customer wants in the car or deliberately putting in a different oil out of spite.