Why the huge obsession with adding MMO?

[meb]

Duh! Okay, I used this in a car that sat for a year...I put it in the crank case and drove the car for 150 miles and then parked it. A year later I drained all fluids and replaced the filters. The car had 188,000 miles on it when it was parked...my son drives it now and heput another 45K on this motor and swears I did 'something' to the motor to make it work so well.

I think Sea foam works too...

 

[Jimmy9190]

I use MMO in every fuel fill and I use it in my oil for the last 750 miles of each OCI as a cleaning agent. My truck runs great with MMO, much better than it ever did without it. I get better power, a smoother and quieter idle, less noise from the engine and a nice side effect is a 1 to 2 MPG increase. I use it in the fuel for the UCL benefits, not solely to increase MPG. I have nearly 134,000 miles on my truck now, and MMO keeps my old truck running great.

MMO works for me, and countless other users too. It may not work as well for some people but that does not mean there are no good benefits from using MMO. I think it's a great product and my only regret is not having discovered it sooner. I have read and done extensive research on MMO and have yet to find even just one documented claim of MMO damaging any engine or fuel system.

 

[Robenstein]

I have seen it help clean out a dirty engine. Sure you could use a high priced and high detergent synthetic to do much the same. But MMO and conventional or a cheaper blend do it for less cash. I know it quieted the lifters in my wife's 3100 Pontiac where Maxlife and Pennzoil High Mileage did not.

It has its uses, but its not a magic tonic. Works for keeping carbs clean and works to quiet some lifters and clean out some piston rings. Not all, but some.

 

[gfh77665]

Originally Posted By: badtlc
Originally Posted By: gfh77665
Originally Posted By: badtlc
As an engineer, I know full well there is nothing designed or engineered to "perfection." Everything in this world can be improved, including oils. If you don't think an oil can be improved, I'm guessing you assume there will never be anymore new oils coming out or reformulations?


New oils and reformulations will be driven by government mandates, not innovations. Wether or not the "improvements" are actually improvements will be open to intense debate.


Oh, yeah, that makes total sense considering everyone makes bottom of the barrel API SM oils that have no discernible differences.....


OK smart guy, which oils in general has a better add pack, todays SM or the recent SL?

 

[shpankey]

I used MMO in my gas to break in some new High Pressure Fuel Pump internals. Worked great!

 

[Spyder7]

This sounds like a solid plan. Will be using MMO instead of Seafoam, because I believe the MMO to be effective enough as a cleaner, and less harsh/abrasive than Seafoam.

It (MMO) will be going into the crankcase first over the winter as a cleaner in conjunction with either 5W30 PP or Syntec ( I prefer syn in the winter, regardless of OCI length, for better lubricated cold starts in sub-zero temps). Then when the weather warms up in the spring, I'll run just plain dino in the crankcase (likely PYB or GTX, depending on pricing) for a final short OCI and then do the MMO piston soak using the method you posted above (and change the factory plugs out).

Then I hope to stretch the OCIs out to 10,000 km (2 to 3 oil changes a year) using either PP or Syntec and M1 EP filters.

Lots of "ifs" and "then" in the plan outlined above, but that's the plan. The goal is a cleaner engine, piston rings freed up, and lowered oil consumption.

At any rate, its already running much better than when I bought it in May (having done some short OCIs already, replaced air filter, PCV valve, cleaned the throttle body and MAF sensor, and run a Regane cycle), and I'm expecting the engine to be in the best shape its been in for years after I've done the above.

-Spyder

 

[StevieC]

10,000 is doable but I would want to use a semi-synthetic like Kendall or something because those engines are known for oil consumption and coked rings and this OCI will not be possible unless an oil can handle the abuse and not coke the rings.

 

[Lethal1ty17]

why not just do the ring soak now and cut down on the oil burning. no use in waiting.

 

[Spyder7]

That's a good question. I guess the answer is simply that I have a big enough "to do" list now on the car (minor body work, replacing the damaged oil pan) and where I do it in my driveway, I'm limited in terms of time, budget, and suitable weather.

Another constraint is that I'll be on call many days throughout the rest of the summer and fall, and I can't refuse to go in because my car is in pieces and the pistons are soaking in MMO. Losing the shift (mostly 12 hour) means losing a big chunk of cash, and cabbing it back and forth would run $60+ (I'm not close to my work).

So given the above, I'll eat the $20 or so I'll burn in the meantime in consumption, clean the engine out over the winter with synth and MMO, and get the bodywork done and oil pan replaced before it gets too wet (typically starting in October is the beginning of our short rainy season before the snow comes) out. Then next spring I'll do the piston soak and change the plugs at the same time.

My shifts right now are almost all 12 hour nights, which isn't helping either - especially being back on call, most days that I'm not working, when I may have to leave to go in on less than half an hour's notice.

-Spyder

 

[Lethal1ty17]

what exactly is your job that you're on call?

and sounds like you have it planned out. do a bunch of us a favor and take before and after pics of under your valve cover.

 

[Spyder7]

I do addictions treatment at the provincial detox.

-Spyder

 

[Lethal1ty17]

let 'em sniff some MMO, smells like wintergreen oil, which is actually one of he ingredients.

edit: probably not a good idea.

naloxone ftw.

 

[Spyder7]

Sniffing solvents isn't much of a problem these days

Although we can't allow even hand sanitizer out of the office (70% alcohol, and there are people who will drink it). Street drugs, like hydromorph, oxys, coke and crack, mostly being brought in from out west (particularly AB), is the big problem here now. We don't treat them where I work, but kids as young as 12 are getting hooked on the above stuff.

Its not yet as bad here as it is in B.C. (where people in vancouver and victoria are openly shooting heroin and smoking crack right in public and in broad daylight), but its getting there. Just more invisible, unless you're either a part of the lifestyle or work in addictions services.

/end off topic rant

-Spyder

 

[sciphi]

My fiancee is starting a job in addictions counseling shortly. My hat's off to you, it's a tough, and necessary, field.

Back on topic: I'm obsessed with adding MMO to my gas because it flat works. Tracking fuel economy, I've noticed slightly higher mileage with MMO in the gas over the past 15k miles. The engine also runs smoother. When my brother filled the car without adding MMO, the fuel economy dropped. Adding the MMO on the next tank brought it back up. I drive a lot, so having a little extra fuel economy is good. For the extra $1 a tank, I'll gladly save $2 on fuel.

 

[mechtech2]

I never noticed any obsession with MMO here.
Some have good reasons to use it, and some have reasons not to.

It helps clean thing sin the fuel system, and certainly helps keep things clean. It is a decent top end lube [valves, valve sealing, ring seal]. I use it in the tank because of alcohol infused gasoline, and I don't want a premature fuel pump failure. A little lube helps - at least it is in the right direction. This I use a lot - almost all the time.

In the oil? Sometimes it is a good thing. Many modern cars do not get sludged like older ones. It's value is becoming less important, esp with modern oils. But it can help thin things for winter, and provide a definite cleaning - once again, in the right direction. I certainly don't think we should use it all the time, though.

 

[3311]

Are there any good before and after picture/threads? Seems like the only thing I have seen, not that have really looked, is it "fells better" kind of review. I'm not doubting anyone but I would really like some a few pieces of hard evidence.

 

[Lethal1ty17]

i now use MMO with every fill up, only about an ounce or two, but thats an ounce or two more than it would have had. i know for a fact that my injectors are sparking clean, had them out about a month ago, and even soaked them in MMO just for kicks and giggles, my valves were astonishingly clean for a vehicle with 121k on it and showed nothing but bare metal, not even stained any color at all. i'll try to remember to get a pic of my mileage list, but its pretty irrelevant because halfway through i stopped caring about mileage and started having fun.

is MMO necessary in a crankcase? not necessarily, if your vehicle has only been run on synthetic oils, or even conventional oils but has done so on a regular schedule, then there is likely little to clean out, however if you purchased your car used like many people here, the maintenance records are kind of a gray area and unknown for the most part, and MMO is a safe bet here.

like i said i've used it with success and actually noted an improvement, so i will keep using it.

 

[znode]

Originally Posted By: Lethal1ty17
i now use MMO with every fill up, only about an ounce or two, but thats an ounce or two more than it would have had. i know for a fact that my injectors are sparking clean


Which means that your injectors are sparkling clean not due to the MMO, but rather on their own. Which means that again, there is no evidence that MMO did anything.

I tend to be extremely skeptical about unscientific, vague, multivariable and sometimes untestable claims of "improves things". I see a lot of parallels between that and the "naturopathic", "holistic" "medicine" industry. And most of them (ahem, homeopathy) precisely make their money by selling stuff proven by all of science to do exactly nothing. Of course some might even cause harm.

Now MMO may have had a purpose in the carbureted engines of WWII fighters, but even if it did, it doesn't mean that it serves any positive purpose in modern EFI (even DFI), high-tolerance engines today. You're essentially adding the stuff that is unfit to be in Group II/III basestock, back into your oil. Why? Any benefits that you might get in a slight increase in solvency is countered by the fact that 1) you're diluting your oil down, perhaps out of viscosity and 2) introducing highly active chlorinated aromatics into your sump. Why would you possibly do that willingly?

If it really hurts-nothing-and-helps-everything, you don't think the combined R&D of Shell/XOM Infineum, Chevron Oronite, Lubrizol, Afton, and Vanderbilt never once thought to buy out MMO and put it into their addpacks?

 

[Lethal1ty17]

actually, before running the 2oz per fillup, i used half a bottle of MMO, went out and bought another for use at every fillup.

i added some because when i had parts of my engine apart, i found spots of sludge, and apparently our synthetic oils werent cutting it. using something that isnt required to me certain criteria like engine oil, which is somewhat limited on the cleaning power they can put into their formulations, allows you to clean a bit better, added some MMO before i changed it last time, helped somewhat, now im just running straight Ultra.

regardless, i still have proof that MMO works. as ive mentioned before with out 1999 honda accord, used to burn lots of oil. MMO soak and MMO in the oil fixed that. also turned the new oil dark fairly quickly too so it much be cleaning something.

 

[badtlc]

Originally Posted By: gfh77665


OK smart guy, which oils in general has a better add pack, todays SM or the recent SL?


This is easy. API SM is the reason Pennzoil makes PYB, PSUV, PP and PU. Obviously, those are in different packages but the same oil because the only reason they exist is to meet the API SM certification.