When Does Engine Wear Happen Most? Need Input

[lakestone]

Hey everyone, I’ve been digging into engine wear patterns and wanted to get your thoughts. Conventional wisdom says most wear happens during cold starts due to oil starvation, but I recently came across a video that challenges this (linked below).

MOD - Link to video removed IAW BITOG rules on profanity.

The guy tested 50 oil filters (25 pre-filled, 25 dry) and analyzed wear metals via oil samples. Surprisingly, there was no measurable difference in bearing wear between pre-filled and dry filters. He cited SAE studies suggesting engines wear most during warm-up, not initial startup. The reasoning? Components like piston rings and cylinders expand as they heat, creating friction until oil reaches optimal viscosity and pressure stabilizes.Key takeaways from the video:

• Bearings showed minimal wear regardless of filter prep.
• Oil analysis revealed iron (from rings/cylinders) far outpaced lead (bearings) in wear metals.
• SAE papers from 1953–2006 consistently tied peak wear to thermal expansion phases, not cold starts.

Has anyone else seen data supporting or contradicting this? I’m curious how oil viscosity, warm-up time, or maintenance habits factor in. Appreciate any insights!

 

[Brian123]

Hey everyone, I’ve been digging into engine wear patterns and wanted to get your thoughts. Conventional wisdom says most wear happens during cold starts due to oil starvation, but I recently came across a video that challenges this (linked below).

MOD - link removed.

The guy tested 50 oil filters (25 pre-filled, 25 dry) and analyzed wear metals via oil samples. Surprisingly, there was no measurable difference in bearing wear between pre-filled and dry filters. He cited SAE studies suggesting engines wear most during warm-up, not initial startup. The reasoning? Components like piston rings and cylinders expand as they heat, creating friction until oil reaches optimal viscosity and pressure stabilizes.Key takeaways from the video:

• Bearings showed minimal wear regardless of filter prep.
• Oil analysis revealed iron (from rings/cylinders) far outpaced lead (bearings) in wear metals.
• SAE papers from 1953–2006 consistently tied peak wear to thermal expansion phases, not cold starts.

Has anyone else seen data supporting or contradicting this? I’m curious how oil viscosity, warm-up time, or maintenance habits factor in. Appreciate any insights!

Buster and Patman will be by soon 2 answer your Question.

 

[ripcord]

Sorry, but I didn't watch the video. Startup wear is highly misunderstood. It's true that most wear happens when the engine is first started, but the accelerated start up wear is not primarily due to oil starvation. Wear happens more quickly at start up because the engine is cold. This has nothing to due with viscosity except at extremely low temperatures. When the engine is cold, the piston rings and cylinder wear more quickly. Also, anti-wear additives in motor oil are not fully activated until the oil and the engine surfaces are hot.

This chart is from the 1950's and is still valid as this is well verified and understood.

 

[kschachn]

Hey everyone, I’ve been digging into engine wear patterns and wanted to get your thoughts. Conventional wisdom says most wear happens during cold starts due to oil starvation, but I recently came across a video that challenges this (linked below).



The guy tested 50 oil filters (25 pre-filled, 25 dry) and analyzed wear metals via oil samples. Surprisingly, there was no measurable difference in bearing wear between pre-filled and dry filters. He cited SAE studies suggesting engines wear most during warm-up, not initial startup. The reasoning? Components like piston rings and cylinders expand as they heat, creating friction until oil reaches optimal viscosity and pressure stabilizes.Key takeaways from the video:

• Bearings showed minimal wear regardless of filter prep.
• Oil analysis revealed iron (from rings/cylinders) far outpaced lead (bearings) in wear metals.
• SAE papers from 1953–2006 consistently tied peak wear to thermal expansion phases, not cold starts.

Has anyone else seen data supporting or contradicting this? I’m curious how oil viscosity, warm-up time, or maintenance habits factor in. Appreciate any insights!

There are probably at least 10 existing long threads on this very topic, likely more. And I know there is at least one on this particular video. If you take the time to search around a bit you’ll find them.

 

[Astro14]

This is a duplicate topic. Please see the discussion, here:

Thread 'Freedom Worx ... video about pre-filling filters'
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/freedom-worx-video-about-pre-filling-filters.390994/