Valvoline FS Maxlife vs Ravenol DXG leaks

[SubieRubyRoo]

So, I'll make this short. Had Ravenol in my Subaru about 2 years back, and OCI was cut short at about 6k because it leaked enough (ends up on exhaust, smells very much bad) I ran out of Ravenol makeup. I then ran an OCI of VMLFS way longer than I intended (around 10,500 miles and about 8 months) and barely had to add anything, maybe a cup to a pint during the whole thing. Friday, I decided the Ravenol thing was a fluke, either oil or car related and decided to run it again since I had a couple 5Ls on the shelf. Well, by Sunday morning the drip is back, enough that if I let the car idle with the hood up you can see what's burning off the exhaust.

Question is, I thought d1G2 oils had similar seal conditioners to what's likely found in VML. Is the PAO/Group V oil just that more aggressive on seals? Should the drip reappear in less than 100 miles? And I don't need "well fix the leak" because I know that, but I'm not going to drop a couple hundred bucks (maybe a grand?) to pull the engine and replace some seals on a 16 year old vehicle that's just a work car. I'll obviously just go back to the VML after this OCI and use the other jug in my other vehicle.

 

[53' Stude]

Stick with the Maxlife

 

[Ignatius]

My Subaru likes Valvoline Synthetic Maxlife and as highly as I think of Ravenol I think I would stick with what is producing the best results.

Within the last year I had a 2003 Audi Allroad that had developed serious leaks that just were not cost effective to fix. I live near Blauparts and buy a fair amount of stuff from them, they also have a 2003 Audi Allroad with the notorious 2.7L engine like mine had. I went in and talked to their staff to see what they might offer for solutions and based on my parameters they honestly told me to just keep putting the cheapest Audi spec oil in to fill in for what leaks out. And I was totally willing to spend some money on Ravenol in hopes of it making a difference but they were very much on the level with me which I appreciate.

 

[wpod]

All oils have seal conditioners in them.

 

[OVERKILL]

All oils have seal conditioners in them.

This. All oils are blended to be gentle on seals. That said, Maxlife and other "high mileage" products are designed to slightly swell seals, that's why they are advertised with the capability of slowing or stopping leaks. It sounds like this is working for you, so I'd continue to use a high mileage oil since, as you noted, replacing the seal/gasket isn't viable on this vehicle.

 

[PimTac]

Run the Maxlife. No more smells very much bad.