A few years ago there were a lot of oil additives that were made up of chlorinated paraffin's and they were the saviors of all engines if you believe the ads. They even treated engines and said they drained the oil out and then drove the cars around a race track or in city traffic. They touted the 3-ball test with a torque wrench as absolute proof that this product would protect your engine against all evil. Is it possible that all these promoters were messing with us? AS a group of consumers were there enough people out there that believed the hype to support the lavish lifestyle some of these promoters were able to live while saving mankind? And where are they now?
What happened?
- Thread starter OneEyeJack
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The stuff obviously works...there's no more engines to fix.
I laugh at all the Teflon based additives that have disappeared.They started in the late 1970s and ran until Slick50 got its can kicked by the Feds.In between there were any number of brands that claimed "more" Teflon and the "Most" Teflon over Slick 50.I believe K Mart even had its own brand of Teflon-like additive..... Where oh where are they now?
Various oil companies tried chlorinated paraffin's a long time ago. They worked, but they caused corrosion and other issues. So they gave up on those. But somewhere along the line somebody found out about this research and decided to make some quick money putting out expensive products that used this chlorinated paraffin technology. They knew it would work, but they probably knew why the oil companies had dropped research on stuff like that.
So we wound up with various junk, scam products that were heavily advertised and maybe worked in the short term but caused problems in the long term. There have been several companies that have been fined by the FTC. Not all of these companies were using chlorinated paraffins. For example, STP was fined twice by the FTC, the makers of Duralube were fined, the makers of Slcik50 were fined, etc.
But some have never been fined as far as I know. For example, the makers of MMO have never been fined. And Lubegard has never been fined.
There are products that work and products that are scams. What else is new?
So we wound up with various junk, scam products that were heavily advertised and maybe worked in the short term but caused problems in the long term. There have been several companies that have been fined by the FTC. Not all of these companies were using chlorinated paraffins. For example, STP was fined twice by the FTC, the makers of Duralube were fined, the makers of Slcik50 were fined, etc.
But some have never been fined as far as I know. For example, the makers of MMO have never been fined. And Lubegard has never been fined.
There are products that work and products that are scams. What else is new?
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Ever pinch a lubricated screwdriver blade like Andy used to do?
This is a previous thread on CP snake oils:
Chloro thread
The authorities should ban all oil and fuel additives that are not OEM approved or at least subject to API checks on the safety and effectiveness of their contents.
Chloro thread
The authorities should ban all oil and fuel additives that are not OEM approved or at least subject to API checks on the safety and effectiveness of their contents.
I don't like being dictated to when it comes to what products I use and do not use. And authorities from on high can make mistakes and be wrong. I don't like for somebody on top of the mountain telling me how to live my life. I want to be able to use what motor oil I want to use, what oil filter, what brand of gasoline, and if I choose to use a fuel system cleaner or a oil supplement I want to be able to use it. That is called freedom.
Freedom certainly gives a person the chance to make mistakes. I have made mistakes about some oil supplements. But it also gives the person a chance to maybe use something that can cure a problem with a vehicle that otherwise would require a lot of expensive maintenance.
I would rather have the freedom to make my own mistakes rather than have some AUTHORITY who maybe does not even know anything telling me what to do. I would rather think for myself.
Freedom certainly gives a person the chance to make mistakes. I have made mistakes about some oil supplements. But it also gives the person a chance to maybe use something that can cure a problem with a vehicle that otherwise would require a lot of expensive maintenance.
I would rather have the freedom to make my own mistakes rather than have some AUTHORITY who maybe does not even know anything telling me what to do. I would rather think for myself.
Originally Posted By: Swissdieselfan
The authorities should ban all oil and fuel additives that are not OEM approved or at least subject to API checks on the safety and effectiveness of their contents.
Well, I guess you could extend that to aftermarket parts also.
The thing is, OEM's may not care too much once their product is out of warranty. Or if it means admitting an error of design or production.
I would not use an additive in a new engine (it would likely void the warranty for, one)
But there ARE cases/situations where problems or simple eccomomics dictate intelligent use of an additive.
When I had a stuck piston ring, after years of storage, would you insist I remove the piston to clean it?
In my case a proven, inexpensive, readily available additive cured the problem very well.
The authorities should ban all oil and fuel additives that are not OEM approved or at least subject to API checks on the safety and effectiveness of their contents.
Well, I guess you could extend that to aftermarket parts also.
The thing is, OEM's may not care too much once their product is out of warranty. Or if it means admitting an error of design or production.
I would not use an additive in a new engine (it would likely void the warranty for, one)
But there ARE cases/situations where problems or simple eccomomics dictate intelligent use of an additive.
When I had a stuck piston ring, after years of storage, would you insist I remove the piston to clean it?
In my case a proven, inexpensive, readily available additive cured the problem very well.
Totally correct expat. OEM parts are super expensive and without competition the cost of those parts would be worse. And powerful engineers who are above accountability make mistakes in design of automobile systems all the time at the automakers.
I know of a guy who used to be the service manager for various new car dealerships. When mistakes were made by powerful engineers above accountability they would have to deliberately make a part fail so that they could get a replacement that was properly designed. And they had to conceal the fact that they deliberately made the poorly designed parts fail. In the real world things like that go on at dealerships all the time.
Look at the sludge monster cars that were made by Toyota, Dodge, and others. The engines were so poorly designed that sludge formed readily inside the engines.
This idea that papa knows best is incorrect. Maybe somebody like Swissdieselfan has never ending confidence in the authorities to always get things right but in the real world it is very different. The authority figure on top of the mountain is often clueless. And people on the front lines have to deal with the mistakes and avoid insulting the powers that be.
This is not to say that all of these engine cleaners and oil supplements are good. The vast majority are just junk. But I have lived long enough I am never going to trust in the authority figure on top of the mountain the way Swissdieselfan does.
I know of a guy who used to be the service manager for various new car dealerships. When mistakes were made by powerful engineers above accountability they would have to deliberately make a part fail so that they could get a replacement that was properly designed. And they had to conceal the fact that they deliberately made the poorly designed parts fail. In the real world things like that go on at dealerships all the time.
Look at the sludge monster cars that were made by Toyota, Dodge, and others. The engines were so poorly designed that sludge formed readily inside the engines.
This idea that papa knows best is incorrect. Maybe somebody like Swissdieselfan has never ending confidence in the authorities to always get things right but in the real world it is very different. The authority figure on top of the mountain is often clueless. And people on the front lines have to deal with the mistakes and avoid insulting the powers that be.
This is not to say that all of these engine cleaners and oil supplements are good. The vast majority are just junk. But I have lived long enough I am never going to trust in the authority figure on top of the mountain the way Swissdieselfan does.
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