What should I do with "extra" oil?

I did an experiment when I worked at an auto parts store. I took a bunch of disguarded oil jugs, tipped them up to let them drip into a 1 gallon jug. After a week or so the first 1 gallon was nearly fully. Only did it to test the old wives tale that you can't mix oil.
So a mix of every weight, every brand the store sold and then some went into my riding lawnmower. That lawnmower ran like that for years till I sold it.
Mixing different motor oils doesn't appear to do anything bad.
If it works for you, great. “Ran good” is hardly a definitive analysis, though.

Your lawnmower isn’t representative of anything I own, so, you’ll understand if I don’t try out your test on any engine of mine.
 
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I worry about additive clash so I don’t mix oil from different brands.

Extra oil gets run in the OPE.
 
QS 5w40 Euro is on the thinner side of the 40W viscosity range. I'd use it in that Kia in the summer. I've found that my nieces 2013 Kia Optima 2.4 (with 158K) uses virtually no oil when I put 5w40 in it while it uses quite a bit when lower viscosity oils are used.

I agree with Astro14 in post # 9....if I were going to mix oils (and I often have)....I'd stick with mixing oils of the same brand for the reasons he stated.
 
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1) buy a portable generator. 5W - 40 is great generator oil in all temperatures. Tractor supply sells a really nice 1000 Watt generator that can power most forced air natural gas furnaces during an outage. Rig a power cord to power your furnace so it plugs into a wall socket by the furnace. Be sure to tie gnd and neutral if it's a modern furnace. Some modern furnaces will not complete the start sequence if the generator has a floating neutral. A 16 ga. extension cord is good enough, you don't need a more expensive 12 GA. to just run a forced air furnace.

2) get a small oil dispensing can (amazon sells them) and use the oil to lube your hedge trimme r blades before each use, and every 15 minutes of use if you use them that long, and before putting it away everything.
 
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Yes it’s an “old wive’s tale”. As noted already in this thread, any oil that passes ASTM D6922 (also part of an API license) will be miscible. But that’s all it guarantees.

Plus ASTM D6922 is a bit more rigorous than your auto parts store test.
Probably not. It took I believe 6 years to use that gallon of super mix oil in my riding lawnmower. So it was kept on a shelf, in a shed for years, heated probably to 260f, ran for about 2 years till the oil was black as night then replaced with more of the same mixed oil but now older oil. Yeah my test was likely far worse than ASTM s6922.
 
Probably not. It took I believe 6 years to use that gallon of super mix oil in my riding lawnmower. So it was kept on a shelf, in a shed for years, heated probably to 260f, ran for about 2 years till the oil was black as night then replaced with more of the same mixed oil but now older oil. Yeah my test was likely far worse than ASTM s6922.
Do you know what ASTM D6922 tests? "black of night" is not one of the criteria.

Hint, the criteria is miscibility. Did your parts store test determine that?
 
I'm going to be getting a 2019 Kia Sportage (2.4l) someday this week, after its been through service. It has 98k miles and looks to be in really good shape.

I'm going to change the oil to Valvoline Restore and Protect 5W30. But I have this jug of Quaker State 5W40 Euro Oil and I was wondering what's the best thing to do with it? It's a 5 qt system and I believe the jug has just under 4qts, so not enough for a full fill. I'm conflicted on what to do with it.

- Mix it with the Valvoline? 20/80, Or 50/50, perhaps?
- Use it as a top off?
- Something else?

I myself am leaning towards mixing the two, using the Euro oil like an additive. But what does BITOG think? Y'all are smarter than me
Don't change the oil since it was serviced. Run 3-5k miles.

Then use your restore and protect. Next you can use the QS 5w40 as a "booster" for the third oil and 4th oil change - approx 50/50 QS 5w20.

Does this used Sportage have a recent new engine (I hope) ?

- Arco
 
Why is mixing not good?
9000 posts you better know! 🤓

There is professional advice, "don't do what I do anecdotes" and "don't do this in your race car" (Lake Speed Jr.) advice.

Roll of the dice if a frankenbrew will work better same or worse than the "Single Malt" DP in a pass car engine.

You want Vegas odds on a Kia engine?

Regardless, most of the time my top offs and blends have done well. Look at my wife's Crosstrek UOA for killer brews.

Sadly those "components" of success have disappeared from the market - Arco
 
John Deere motor oil says on the back of the oil "shelf life 5 years".
But I've ran 25 year old group one oil and it didn't kill my lawnmowers.
Agree. LSJ came out with a video a few months ago claiming that such oil is no longer usable. Now we have folks cutting open their oil bottles and thinking that means something. I think most of of aged folks know that was junk science and incorrect information and to mitigate simply twerk your bottles.
 
I'm going to be getting a 2019 Kia Sportage (2.4l) someday this week, after its been through service. It has 98k miles and looks to be in really good shape.

I'm going to change the oil to Valvoline Restore and Protect 5W30. But I have this jug of Quaker State 5W40 Euro Oil and I was wondering what's the best thing to do with it? It's a 5 qt system and I believe the jug has just under 4qts, so not enough for a full fill. I'm conflicted on what to do with it.

- Mix it with the Valvoline? 20/80, Or 50/50, perhaps?
- Use it as a top off?
- Something else?

I myself am leaning towards mixing the two, using the Euro oil like an additive. But what does BITOG think? Y'all are smarter than me
Send it to me. I can use it I. Family and friends vehicles
 
I have mixed things for a REALLY long time to use up the partials, normally as top off quarts. They quite often could be different viscosities also. Best choice, probably not overall but when you get the sale stash "better" oils it happens unless I buy more. PP Euro L 5W-30 is the current larger supply.

Conundrum- what should be done with HPL EC30/EC40? I know it is only recommended to be used to prep for full HPL use but if Ok for that, I'm ok with it.

Someday I hope to be in a better position that I can stick with one and maybe even just HPL. The extremely short trip direct injection ones get shorter OCI's so hard to justify.
 
I have 3 vehicles that have partial quart fills, two at 4 1/2 qts, one at 5 1/2 qts. I long ago stopped being brand loyal and use ST, PP, NAPA, Providence, QS, M1, as I find them at good prices or rebates. Two take 5w20 one takes 5w30. With 1/2 qts left from a jug, I just mix the left over 1/2 quarts and use them for a change when I have enough on the two that call for 5w20. One car has 222,000 miles, one has 105,000 miles and they run fine and are always still full at each 5,000 OCI.
 
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