What are some things that can make Oil "Black?"

[Nick R]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: OilBlazer93

Now.. are you saying i should DRIVE it on the Highway for "A Few Hours" (Consider it done!) .. OR Change the Oil? (Driving it will make the Fuel in the Oil burn up, and i just top off with Oil ti get my -Lubrication back? My Engine is Tough...)

While it may burn the fuel and moisture off, the damage to the oil caused by the fuel may have been permanent.

Quote:

And in any case.. STOP Warming it up for 10-30 Minutes?

Yes. That is crazy. Turn on the ignition, put on your seat belt, turn on the lights, and start driving (gently).


I personally will remote start it no more than 5 minutes, so the heat can get a little bit of a head start, and it can be a little moody when first started, so I let it get everything flowing. But until the coolant temp is up most of the way, be gentler with it than you normally might. Don't need to granny it, but keep the RPMs down. Also when cold you get worse fuel economy, so....

 

[Nick R]

Originally Posted By: OilBlazer93
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: OilBlazer93

Now.. are you saying i should DRIVE it on the Highway for "A Few Hours" (Consider it done!) .. OR Change the Oil? (Driving it will make the Fuel in the Oil burn up, and i just top off with Oil ti get my -Lubrication back? My Engine is Tough...)

While it may burn the fuel and moisture off, the damage to the oil caused by the fuel may have been permanent.

Quote:

And in any case.. STOP Warming it up for 10-30 Minutes?

Yes. That is crazy. Turn on the ignition, put on your seat belt, turn on the lights, and start driving (gently).


Sounds like i should just get an Oil Change. I flooded by engine -Hella- Bad.

And IF i did any "Damage".. Im sure a nice, High Mileage Engine Oil will help Nurse it. Maybe even with some "NAPA Mos2 Moly in a Can!"

People like Thin Oil. However, m old-fashioned, and i believe my 10W-40 "Standby" will do the Job.


Your engine is I'm 99.98% sure, absolutely fine. No need for high mileage oils, or the MoS2 stuff. And go ahead and use whatever weight your car is specced for, unless you have a reason for using something else.

For example, my cavalier specs 5w30, and it runs fine. But it doesn't like thicker oil. Maxlife 5w30, which is a thick 30w, had a very obnoxious lifter tick. PP was thinner, and didn't do it. So I decided with this oil change (today actually) to switch down a grade to 5W-20, and so far it is perfect. No more tick.

Just remember, thick isn't necessarily better, and thin will protect your engine just as well

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: rudolphna
Also when cold you get worse fuel economy,

But not as bad as when sitting there idling.

 

[Nick R]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: rudolphna
Also when cold you get worse fuel economy,

But not as bad as when sitting there idling.


0mpg ftw!

 

[OilBlazer93]

Originally Posted By: rudolphna
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: rudolphna
Also when cold you get worse fuel economy,

But not as bad as when sitting there idling.


0mpg ftw!


I just think it is weird you can have "Fuel Dilution" And your Gaskets are perfectly fine. In any case, that seems to be the case.

 

[Nick R]

Originally Posted By: OilBlazer93
Originally Posted By: rudolphna
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: rudolphna
Also when cold you get worse fuel economy,

But not as bad as when sitting there idling.


0mpg ftw!


I just think it is weird you can have "Fuel Dilution" And your Gaskets are perfectly fine. In any case, that seems to be the case.


It's just that fuel bypasses the piston and rings, and ends up in the crankcase.

 

[charbaby]

I use the same oil(s) and filter brand on both my wife's 01 RX-300, 65000 miles and my 04 Altima 2.5S. Both cars have the same OCI and are driven similarly. The RX's oil stays cleaner looking much much longer and the Altima gets very dark quickly and has since new.

 

[charbaby]

The Altima has 44000 miles BTW

 

[OilBlazer93]

Originally Posted By: Char Baby
I use the same oil(s) and filter brand on both my wife's 01 RX-300, 65000 miles and my 04 Altima 2.5S. Both cars have the same OCI and are driven similarly. The RX's oil stays cleaner looking much much longer and the Altima gets very dark quickly and has since new.


OK.. I Give! Where do i get AutoRx?

Seems "My" Oil isnt even -completely Black, i can see the Dipstick through it.. its just ""Darker' Dark Brown.

I may change the filter and give it a shot of MMO and Mos2 Moly. If the Fuel Dilution really WILL Burn off...

(I know where to get Marvel Mystery Oil, not AutoRx.)

As long as that AutoRx (And MMO) does not cause any Gasket issues...

 

[Nick R]

Originally Posted By: OilBlazer93
Originally Posted By: Char Baby
I use the same oil(s) and filter brand on both my wife's 01 RX-300, 65000 miles and my 04 Altima 2.5S. Both cars have the same OCI and are driven similarly. The RX's oil stays cleaner looking much much longer and the Altima gets very dark quickly and has since new.


OK.. I Give! Where do i get AutoRx?

Seems "My" Oil isnt even -completely Black, i can see the Dipstick through it.. its just ""Darker' Dark Brown.

I may change the filter and give it a shot of MMO and Mos2 Moly. If the Fuel Dilution really WILL Burn off...

(I know where to get Marvel Mystery Oil, not AutoRx.)

As long as that AutoRx (And MMO) does not cause any Gasket issues...



He's not talking about Auto-RX, it's a Lexus RX-300. Auto-RX IMO, is no better than MMO, and MMO is both cheaper and easier to get.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Originally Posted By: highmilegeguy

Amazing the illogical arguments guys make to justify not changing the oil.
Do I smell another Oil Co stooge in sheep's cloth trying to convince good folk, heretofore driven by analysis and logic to "just change your oil" to be on the safe side!? A wonderful, logical, and environmentally friendly approach

 

[OilBlazer93]

Originally Posted By: rudolphna
Originally Posted By: OilBlazer93
Originally Posted By: Char Baby
I use the same oil(s) and filter brand on both my wife's 01 RX-300, 65000 miles and my 04 Altima 2.5S. Both cars have the same OCI and are driven similarly. The RX's oil stays cleaner looking much much longer and the Altima gets very dark quickly and has since new.


OK.. I Give! Where do i get AutoRx?

Seems "My" Oil isnt even -completely Black, i can see the Dipstick through it.. its just ""Darker' Dark Brown.

I may change the filter and give it a shot of MMO and Mos2 Moly. If the Fuel Dilution really WILL Burn off...

(I know where to get Marvel Mystery Oil, not AutoRx.)

As long as that AutoRx (And MMO) does not cause any Gasket issues...



He's not talking about Auto-RX, it's a Lexus RX-300. Auto-RX IMO, is no better than MMO, and MMO is both cheaper and easier to get.


I am happy that putting "MMO" in along with MaxLife, in ANY of my Vehicles, will not do harm.. and will Help!

And, back on OT: if i can see my Oil through the Dipstick (its a DARK Dark Brown, but i can see the crosshairs,) Then is my oil OK?

And ARCO: Not as bad as the Schaeffer's Trolls!

 

[Cup of Joe]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete

Can you point us to some study showing that dark oil shortens the engine's usable life? And how much exactly does it shorten it by?


I'm not taking a side, this is to further this particular discussion

Originally Posted By: GMorg
Gary Allen,

My real question for all who want to minimize wear is wether very short OCIs is actually worse than extended OCIs. Many of us use terms like "cheap insurance" and "fresh is better" and "the best oil is clean oil". I am not convinced that any of these terms have a basis in observation. (Again, I am excluding exhausted oil from this discussion. I do think that "too dirty" does exist.) Intuition can be valuable, but it should never trump observation IMHO. So, what can we observe and what does it mean?


From this thread
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/posts/179211/

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Originally Posted By: OilBlazer93
... if i can see my Oil through the Dipstick (its a DARK Dark Brown, but i can see the crosshairs,) Then is my oil OK?
If you can see oil thru the DS, then you got them X-RayEyes - better than betty davis eyes

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- I dont think the colour/darkness matters - if you are running a good filter and you are around 3 months and under 5K miles I would ignore anything unless it was lumpy and muddy

 

[pavelow]

To the OP....I've used the same oil (Shell Rotella Syn 5w40) and filter (Napa Gold) in two different engines and the oil got dark within a month in the VW and it stayed very clean in the Jeep for months. This oil and filter combo had previously been used for years in both engines, so it wasn't just a one time thing or fluke. It did it after every oil change. Different engines can do different things to oil. I personally wouldn't worry about it if you know your engine.

 

[The Critic]

Originally Posted By: highmilegeguy
I disagree.

When my vehicle was new, the oil stayed clean and clear for months. But now with 160 k miles, the oil gets quite black in a couple months.

It is probably because the engine has significant wear, resulting in more blow-by. This leads to more oil contamination and should be remedied with more frequent oil changes.