Oil change when discoloured?

With my '96 with 160,000ks (100,000miles) and an engine which is OK but has at one stage been denied enuff oil-changes,...I'm trying to lengthen its life by changing the oil/filter at 3000ks (1800miles) as at this mileage the oil has lost its translucency.

Sound like a waste of oil? The reasoning I'm using is that the oil once black (or light brown) it has become loaded with contaminants and it should be turffed.

Jason

Reply to
Jason James
Loading thread data ...

Don't waste your $ - damage already done at 100k. If it has evidence of oil gelling - you can flush the engine but it may dislodge crud that gets sucked into oil pump. Save your $ towards a replacement vehicle.

Reply to
Wolfgang

A bad PVC valve can make oil get dirty quicker, Also you can get your oil tested so see if it is realy bad . I know 2 people running 9000 on synthetic because they have oil analyzed. for me 9000 is to long, but

3000 may be to short, it depends on driving conditions , Old motors always dirty oil quicker.
Reply to
mark Ransley

Hi Jason If you are using a quart or near in 3000 you may have ring blowby ,Also Quaker state makes a high milage oil that is supposed to swell valve seals. Also running 10 30 is ok above the manufacturers temp ratings. that could make your oil cleaner by reducing blow by, and consumption. I think fuushing a motor is to risky, but your oil pan is probably full of crud, dropping and cleaning it would not hurt.

Reply to
mark Ransley

Too true, but with city driving how soon does a reco or new motor dirty othe oil's colour?

I thought (perhaps erroneously) that 3000ks or 1800miles was not all that bad

Jason

Reply to
Jason James

The car doesn't use oil, except for the normal amount you'd expect in any engine. I dont have to add any at 3000ks.

I guess the question is: if oil changes colour, what impact does that have on the oils ability to further contain combustion products? Question maybe too general I suppose.

Jason

Reply to
Jason James

MAY have "ring blowby?"

Listen .... EVERY engine ever made has compression blow by the rings. It's not possible to acheive a perfect seal. Some of BMW's high performance M3 engines use 1 qt of oil per 1000 miles .... this is normal but has little to do with commpression ring leakage.

Reply to
Philip®

Short of regular oil analysis (and the associated costs that could been be spent on simply changing the oil), once the oil actually goes from brown to black .... that's a safe point to dump the old stuff.

Reply to
Philip®

That's what I thought,...anyway $19 for a change of oil and filter stacks up pretty weill against the cost of the fuel for 3000ks,...its all a matter of perspective.

Jason

Reply to
Jason James

Couldn't hurt. A couple of more frequent than usual oil changes can drain a bit more of the contaminants out due to the detergent additives in the new oil. Check out auto-rx.com for a more effective, gradual method of cleaning without risk of dislodging particles, then stick to a regular pattern of oil changes. Personally, when the oil becomes discolored I would change it. On mine, I notice at first it is clear on the dipstick, then over time, the discoloration begins at the bottom and creeps up. This is with the engine cold. With the oil hot, it never looks significantly discolored. Also, when cold, the discoloration never extends alll the way up to the full mark prior to the 5,000 mile change interval with synthetic. There is always a portion near the top of the reading on the stick that looks clean. The conventional wisdom is that you don't judge oil condition by its color - that darkening oil is just doing its job and you change by mileage and/ or time not appearance. But my view is that engine oil is cheap insurance, and if the dark oil did its job, time for a change to fresh oil.

Reply to
Daniel M. Dreifus

I was tired of looking at blackened oil on the dip stick. So, I changed to pennsylvania oils....which I had been told are parrafin based and keep their clarity. And, Viola!...the oil stays clean looking. Been doing this at 2,000 mile intervals till recently on my 1987 Camry....The oil still stays clear and no oil loss. Engine performs like new....while the rest of the car is falling apart. Quaker State and Penzoil are good choices (same company), IMHO.

Marty

Reply to
Marty009

Jason you never stated at what mile interval your car oil was being changed at when you indicate it wasnt being serviced right, also my figures were in miles not KM , Isnt toyota going to a 5000m or 8000 km change? . I feel 3000m or 8000km normal yes. Oils are continualy improving with additives , there is little comparison of modern high quality oil to oil made 15 years ago.

Reply to
mark Ransley

Marty, maybe its not cleaning quite as well?

Reply to
MDT Tech®

There was a time many years ago when Quaker State oil came from Pennsylvania. That day has long since passed.

Reply to
Mark A

Hahahaha... You are working with VERY dated information. LOL You won't find any claims for "Pennsylvania crude" on either product for the past 25 years.

Reply to
Philip®

I have no knowledge of the period of abuse or how long oil was left in the engine except to say it was too long as it left sludge behind.

Now given one has a dirty engine and it has 100,000 miles on it, do you spend megabucks having it stripped and cleaned? In my case I elected to just give it more frequent oil changes once the oil appeared to be turning black, which in this engines case is 1800miles.

This makes the best of a less than desirable situation.

Jason

Reply to
Jason James

A friend got an old camry once 80000 miles and the previous owner probably changed the oil every 10000 miles, - 16000 km, or more. it was so cruded up the cylinder head oil returns were blocked, and when you ran it the motor was 1.5 quarts low , it all stayed in the valve cover. We pulled the cover and cleaned the crud and return holes. Last I heard the car was fine at 180000 miles, . Some crud is normal in all high milage motors. I use synthetic , change at 4000 and I have crud at

86000 . Maybe compare it to a maintained old motor. If you are not burning or consuming to much, and compression is ok than you motor may be just fine . toyotas are well made, and run a long time even when abused.
Reply to
mark Ransley

Hmmmm. I ran Mobil1 10w-30 in a Geo Prizm from odometer 10k miles.

5k mile change intervals. When I sold the car with 285k miles on it, there as no varnish (nor sludge) to be found ANYWHERE in the valve train area. Pictures are posted in Yahoo Groups, Toyota_Only.
Reply to
Philip®

Thanx Philip and others for informing me that Quaker State and Penzoil are no longer only Penn. oil. I guess I have been buying them for 20 years for the wrong reason...and maybe paying more for it. Any suggestions on which brands are best quality?

Marty

Reply to
Marty009

Quaker State and Pennzoil are as good as other conventional oils. More important is getting the correct viscosity. If you want to improve the quality of the oil, use a synthetic blend, or a full synthetic. Mobil 1 is the best generally available full synthetic. Several companies make decent synthetic blend oils.

Reply to
Mark A

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.