✨HPL Results✨: Did 3,000mi make a Difference?

[ARB1977]

I bought my 15 Tacoma 4.0L in 16 with 30K miles. Since then I’ve used AMSOIL Signature Series for a few 10K intervals and mostly XL for 6000-7500. Granted it has 125K.

 

[RugopsOP]

If your happy? I'm happy I don't see any difference. What does it look like in the oil filter?

Well I'd like to have seen a little improvement. I understand it wasn't gonna be a magic bullet but TBH I shouldn't worry about the aesthetics of it.

@demarpaint @xgmad I know engine blowby isn't ideal for obvious reasons, but I assume that all cars that burn oil have some sort of blowby? And as stated it only burns a quart every thousand to 1500 miles. Which isn't quite considered "excessive" depending on who you ask.

For it to have that much varnish and some sludge build-up now, it's obvious that the oil and oil changes were not on the right track for the first 160K miles. I've seen engines with 180K miles on them that look like new inside from good oil and OCI maintenance.

My other Tib, V6, was at 180k and looked brand new under there. No hard yellowing or nothing. And that too suffered from oil burning but eventually was healed.

 

[Deleted member 89374]

Well I'd like to have seen a little improvement.

You used the product incorectly.

What are your expectations from this thread, and you will you proceed going forward?

 

[RugopsOP]

You used the product incorectly.

How so

What are your expectations from this thread?

I said last month that I'd return and share the before/after.

 

[ZeeOSix]

I know engine blowby isn't ideal for obvious reasons, but I assume that all cars that burn oil have some sort of blowby? And as stated it only burns a quart every thousand to 1500 miles. Which isn't quite considered "excessive" depending on who you ask.

I'd ensure the PCV system is working 100%, and replace the PCV valve if you haven't already done it recently.

 

[demarpaint]

Well I'd like to have seen a little improvement. I understand it wasn't gonna be a magic bullet but TBH I shouldn't worry about the aesthetics of it.

@demarpaint @xgmad I know engine blowby isn't ideal for obvious reasons, but I assume that all cars that burn oil have some sort of blowby? And as stated it only burns a quart every thousand to 1500 miles. Which isn't quite considered "excessive" depending on who you ask.

I hear ya. IMO in a case like yours, cleaning if any, gets varnish redeposited due to the blow-by, since this is a very slow cleaning process. I'd be willing to bet a flush, which FTR I'm not a fan of, would probably work well in your case since there's a good chance the HPL might have actually softened things up. The area you wiped is what has me thinking that way. In a case like yours I might be inclined to give a flush a shot.

 

[THORROMIG]

I'd ensure the PCV system is working 100%, and replace the PCV valve if you haven't already done it recently.

My thoughts exactly...

 

[fantastic]

Throw some 10w-40 or 15w40 High Mileage to help with burn off & keep on truckin'.

 

[spasm3]

And he only used 3/5 of a quart initially. Then added the rest later.

So, yeah, used HPL, but not much and not for very long, on a really varnished engine.

I wouldn’t expect much, either.

It's possible there's just too much insoluble varnish deposit to effectively remove it. It could also need a more aggressive approach. The HPL PCMO and HDMO oils clean more aggressively than the HPL Engine Cleaner. The EC is designed as a transition, to remove loose sludge and carbonous deposits slowly before switching to the more aggressive PCMO or HDMO. If it was me, I would replace a whole quart with the EC and run to 230,000 miles. Then switch to the PCMO.

Exactly, as Astro14 stated, he used a partial quart of the HPL cleaner and the rest later in an oil burner. The HPL cleaner is LESS aggressive than their oil. So gradually adding small amounts is not going to do much.

 

[RugopsOP]

I'd ensure the PCV system is working 100%, and replace the PCV valve if you haven't already done it recently.

Was replaced recently with OEM. Tested it at 224k

Exactly, as Astro14 stated, he used a partial quart of the HPL cleaner and the rest later in an oil burner. The HPL cleaner is LESS aggressive than their oil. So gradually adding small amounts is not going to do much.

If it's less aggressive then why does the HPL Engine Cleaner instructions tell the user to use a 1:5 ratio?

Throw some 10w-40 or 15w40 High Mileage to help with burn off & keep on truckin'.

Already use 10w40.

 

[wwillson]

If it's less aggressive then why does the HPL Engine Cleaner instructions tell the user to use a 1:5 ratio?

Because they don't want their much more aggressively cleaning engine oils to plug filters. The idea is to start out cleaning slowly.

 

[spasm3]

If it's less aggressive then why does the HPL Engine Cleaner instructions tell the user to use a 1:5 ratio?

Because its designed as a gentle light cleaner before using their ester oils. PM them, HPL will tell you the same.
But if you used less than a quart at once, and its burning oil, you never got a 1:5 ratio.

 

[cheesepuffs2]

I wouldn't worry about the varnish. Does if look pretty? No. But if the car otherwise runs fine, and by that I mean that as long as the oil consumption is at a reasonable level for you to stay on top of and the engine otherwise runs ok, then I wouldn't sweat it.

 

[RugopsOP]

I wouldn't worry about the varnish. Does if look pretty? No. But if the car otherwise runs fine, and by that I mean that as long as the oil consumption is at a reasonable level for you to stay on top of and the engine otherwise runs ok, then I wouldn't sweat it.

Yeah I think I'm just going to leave it. It is mostly superficial. I may, one day, try the Berryman B12 treatment down the spark plug holes since I have a can or two in the garage somewhere for the rings.

 

[ChrisD46]

7 years of ownership and 3k oil intervals....and THAT much varnish? Wow. I guess that blows away a few theories.

Maybe a bad PCV valve ?

 

[02zx9r rev2]

I bought my 15 Tacoma 4.0L in 16 with 30K miles. Since then I’ve used AMSOIL Signature Series for a few 10K intervals and mostly XL for 6000-7500. Granted it has 125K.

View attachment 160172

That looks brand new

 

[OilUzer]

20 years old car with 225K miles, I just do regular oil changes with nothing too fancy and/or expensive. Other stuff might start going wrong before the engine.

With your 3K miles OCI, you may end up spending over %7-15 of the car value just on oil changes every year ... Financially it wouldn't make sense!

 

[RugopsOP]

Maybe a bad PCV valve ?

Already replaced and even more recently tested.

 

[facility1]

what about auto rx-plus ,and a off the shelf synthetic like havoline pro-ds 5w30 for about 3-4 k and see what happens,and some fuel /injector cleaner of good reputation at least couple of times during the oci stated may help

 

[doublebase]

Well, you had fun, right? That’s what we do, we try to fix things with cleaners and our own maintenance regime...it’s fun, it’s better than nothing, and if it works we did it. It was us, our procedures and ideas. Problem is it rarely works. And that’s ok, this is an oil site, this is fun. It probably won’t work for many of us (freeing up rings in their groves, cleaning out the spacer in the oil control ring, cleaning varnish off the high point of a valve train).

But none of it is your fault...that engine had a lot of miles on it BEFORE you got your hands on it. And I bet you can easily put another 100,000 miles on it. And who knows? Maybe in that time some of that varnish will come off with shorter intervals using a higher quality oil/filter.

If you weren’t burning through a quart every 1,000 miles I’d suggest running HPL oil for your intervals, and then pull that valve cover off in another 20,000 miles to take a look. But you’d be spending some money doing that.