I wasn't going to post this after the disaster the original thread turned into, but I just reviewed my PMs and have over a dozen requests for updates. I don't have time to update everyone individually, so it looks like I'm doing a follow-up thread anyway. I appreciate, in advance, the lack of personal attacks and name-calling, thank you.
So I haven't quite made it to 1500 miles on the 25% canola blend yet and I'll be dumping it and sending in a sample when I do. I also haven't driven much in the last 2.5 months, a total of maybe 50 miles in the 9 weeks leading up to last week, about 100 miles since then. Prior to parking it, the engine was running great, the oil seemed to have a lot of life left in it (I wish I had send in a sample at 1300 miles so I had numbers to back this up), smelled like motor oil, felt like motor oil, looked like good clean oil, engine running great. I'd posit that I could have run this oil to 6k, or farther, had I not parked it. When I have reason to drive more frequently again, I'll repeat the test and hopefully provide results to back that up.
Now the bad: Like I said, everything was going great until I let it sit and rot for over 2 months. Just before I started driving it regularly again (last week), the oil had begun smelling rancid, now feels a little thicker than it probably should, has darkened up a lot, I can tell it's oxidized quite a bit, and the engine is definitely running like it's due for an oil change.
This is all subjective, of course, since I haven't sent my sample in yet. No worries, that'll come soon enough; I want to run this oil up to 1.5k, which will happen tonight, first.
It is also important to note that this oil was put in on February 3rd, so it's a bit over 6 months old. A decent OCI for a vehicle that's been driven, and driven hard. I stress my engine and, by extension, my oil, with a heavy foot, frequent redline, and extended runs at high RPMs. I've had Mobil 1 graciously bow out ofter only 3 months of service and this oil was still going strong after 3.5, until I parked it.
My (inconclusive) analysis, at this point, is that canola is a good (I'd like to say excellent, but won't without numbers to back it up) additive for a daily driven vehicle, but horrible for a short-tripper or rarely-driven car. My basis for this is the consistency of performance and lack of apparent degradation, even under high-stress, high-load driving conditions, while I was frequently driving the car, coupled with the rapid deterioration of the oil when left to sit.
Would I run this again? Absolutely! And I will, when I have reason to drive it at least 3 or 4 time a week. My next fill, however, will be 4 quarts of 5w30 Royal Purple, which I know, from experience, will last much better in storage.
Don't bother jumping me for not posting a UOA; just stay tuned and you'll see it for yourself.
Thanks to all who were interested in this experiment and all who will take interest in my results.
So I haven't quite made it to 1500 miles on the 25% canola blend yet and I'll be dumping it and sending in a sample when I do. I also haven't driven much in the last 2.5 months, a total of maybe 50 miles in the 9 weeks leading up to last week, about 100 miles since then. Prior to parking it, the engine was running great, the oil seemed to have a lot of life left in it (I wish I had send in a sample at 1300 miles so I had numbers to back this up), smelled like motor oil, felt like motor oil, looked like good clean oil, engine running great. I'd posit that I could have run this oil to 6k, or farther, had I not parked it. When I have reason to drive more frequently again, I'll repeat the test and hopefully provide results to back that up.
Now the bad: Like I said, everything was going great until I let it sit and rot for over 2 months. Just before I started driving it regularly again (last week), the oil had begun smelling rancid, now feels a little thicker than it probably should, has darkened up a lot, I can tell it's oxidized quite a bit, and the engine is definitely running like it's due for an oil change.
This is all subjective, of course, since I haven't sent my sample in yet. No worries, that'll come soon enough; I want to run this oil up to 1.5k, which will happen tonight, first.
It is also important to note that this oil was put in on February 3rd, so it's a bit over 6 months old. A decent OCI for a vehicle that's been driven, and driven hard. I stress my engine and, by extension, my oil, with a heavy foot, frequent redline, and extended runs at high RPMs. I've had Mobil 1 graciously bow out ofter only 3 months of service and this oil was still going strong after 3.5, until I parked it.
My (inconclusive) analysis, at this point, is that canola is a good (I'd like to say excellent, but won't without numbers to back it up) additive for a daily driven vehicle, but horrible for a short-tripper or rarely-driven car. My basis for this is the consistency of performance and lack of apparent degradation, even under high-stress, high-load driving conditions, while I was frequently driving the car, coupled with the rapid deterioration of the oil when left to sit.
Would I run this again? Absolutely! And I will, when I have reason to drive it at least 3 or 4 time a week. My next fill, however, will be 4 quarts of 5w30 Royal Purple, which I know, from experience, will last much better in storage.
Don't bother jumping me for not posting a UOA; just stay tuned and you'll see it for yourself.
Thanks to all who were interested in this experiment and all who will take interest in my results.