Tell me your fave choices of oil for a neglected engine

Whatever oil you go with, add a 1/4 quart of Marvel Mystery Oil. That will loosen up the carbon, and sludge, and I would change the oil filter only after the first 1000 miles and then top off what was lost from the filter only change.
Unless its a Fram Ultra ;)
 
There are not really any "lower quality" oils from API SL on forward.. just different base stocks.
Well I think some meet minimal standards while others clearly outperform them. Or is it all a marketing scam
Wait, so now engine oils are capable of cleaning up engines? LOL

I got raked over the coals for asking about the same thing here. Any google search on the topic brings up plenty of posts on bitog saying do short OCI with decent oil and it should help clean some stuff up.

Would be nice to see some definitive data that shows they either clean existing engine crud or they don't, or to what degree. There is a lot of conflicting info on the internet about this topic. :) Oil companies have a lot of plain marketing wording that says they clean up existing deposits and some even claim to do it to a generally specified degree.

Any ideas why it is an often recommended thing to do by some but said to do nothing by others? Genuinely curious. :unsure:

Edit: To the OP, I used Pennzoil Ultra Platinum FS for two short OCI in my used van I purchased this year. For what it's worth, my first two changes were jet black by 1k miles. I'm at over 1k on a new oil change and the oil is pretty clean looking. Can hardly even see it on the dip stick. Does that mean anything? I don't know, but the color of the oil sure was nasty at first!
I hope so or the marketing is false.
 
Well I think some meet minimal standards while others clearly outperform them. Or is it all a marketing scam

I hope so or the marketing is false.
Marketing scam.

If it says API Sx it meets those standards.

Same as "Unleaded Gasoline, May Contain Up To 10% Ethanol." Has to be gas or it can't be dispensed or sold as such. It's all gas.
 
Marketing scam.

If it says API Sx it meets those standards.

Same as "Unleaded Gasoline, May Contain Up To 10% Ethanol." Has to be gas or it can't be dispensed or sold as such. It's all gas.
But yet you have top tier fuel and other fuels with less additives.
 
Seems like if the engine already has debris buildup inside, and it runs fine, then just making sure it doesn't get worse over time, regardless if it actually cleans up existing stuff, would be the easiest goal to achieve. Bonus points if existing stuff flushes out over time.(y)
 
What will "outperform" get you in the long run? In what way can it outperform?
Well I would assume better performance, less oil burning, less wear etc. If what we are led to believe is correct, deposits are bad.
 
The Valvoline restore oil (for cummins) is supposed to do just that, clean up sludgy dirty engines. Its $$$though.
Numerous people point to this oil's ability to clean a dirty engine. What characteristics of the oil help it to clean an engine: what additives, what type of oil or base stock, etc? Does the 40wt clean as well as the 30wt? Does it mainly work on the rings, or will other area and parts of the engine get cleaned? How many miles or hours should the oil be kept in the engine? Will it really dissolve or clean sludge, or do some people just say that because they believe it to be true? Are there any tests/videos that show a before and after scenario?

While I'm somewhat skeptical of all the claims I've read, I'm mostly interested in understanding how the oil does what is claimed for it, and also wondering if it could have any benefit in car's engine. A cleaner engine couldn't hurt, right?
 
Numerous people point to this oil's ability to clean a dirty engine. What characteristics of the oil help it to clean an engine: what additives, what type of oil or base stock, etc? Does the 40wt clean as well as the 30wt? Does it mainly work on the rings, or will other area and parts of the engine get cleaned? How many miles or hours should the oil be kept in the engine? Will it really dissolve or clean sludge, or do some people just say that because they believe it to be true? Are there any tests/videos that show a before and after scenario?

While I'm somewhat skeptical of all the claims I've read, I'm mostly interested in understanding how the oil does what is claimed for it, and also wondering if it could have any benefit in car's engine. A cleaner engine couldn't hurt, right?
Here's what Valvoline claims...
 

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I would run a regular conventional oil and change every 1,500 miles for the first few OCIs.
 
New or neglected engine.
 

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Whatever oil comes in your favorite color bottle.

We really choose oil based on whatever comes in a container that we really like or matches the clothes we are wearing that day.. don’t be fooled /s :D

For me, most of the time it's the pretty bright-ish blue one that costs the least. Its API SN Plus just like that shiny silver one. The black one has an allure that makes me think about it; the yellow ones make me think of urine.

..or is it /s ? ;)
 
My go-to short-interval oil is the Havoline ProDS smart change box. $17.xx for 6 quarts at Walmart.
 
I can't think of any specific engine oil that WOULDN'T do SOME form of benefit to a "neglected engine" *I assume "sludged up," that must have been determined somehow. Or just a hunch, "I think this engine is neglected based on how it runs."
 
HDEO. After running 2 years on synthetics ( Castrol) in my Jeep, the first two fills of HDEO yielded results that of a steel wool pad. Pitch black oil with large debris in the oil filter. Clean as a whistle in just a few k miles, and ever since.
 
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