Oil additives?

[Combwork]

What do people think? The oil companies tell me that their engine/transmission oils need no additional additives; that to add anything will make no improvement, and can actually do harm. The additive companies, (Fortis, Slick-50 and a shedload more) swear blind their additives will increase available power, reduce fuel use and extend the life of engines and gearboxes. Who's right? Some years ago I tried Slick 50 in a Rover V8 engine and the tickover speed went up by 100 rpm, so in that instance I guess internal friction must have been reduced.

I've now got a Fiat `Multipla' that has a slight transmission whine; not sure but I think it's from the diff rather than the gearbox itself. I only noticed it when I took the roof bars off (reduced wind noise) so you can see it's not exactly loud. I don't expect an additive to cure wear, but would a coating type additive like Slick 50 extend useful life?

 

[usedto]

My experience with the older transmissions taught me that a whine in all gears except high gear (direct coupled, before overdrives) meant that the needle bearings in the input shaft were going bad. Although a pain, it was a cheap fix.

Additives usually masks the problem, so when it finally breaks, it takes out all the synchros, cluster gear, bearings, and whatever other gear gets in the way of the shrapnel. In Muncie 4-speeds with an aluminum case, it usually takes the case with it.

Just my opinion.

 

[rickr15]

Bentpencil is correct that an additive will only mask a problem you already have. It can however extend the useful life of an engine or gearbox that is not already suffering from terminal illness.
This may sound a little basic but have you checked all the fluids? Most folks never do on a trans or differential until they get low enough to become noisy at which time its kind of late.

 

[240sx4u]

Look into the Redline product line of gear oils. It quieted down my whining transmission greatly in my 240sx and improved shift feel a ton!

Evan

 

[Yamaha1]

Use synthetic in your tranny and Mobil-I or a good HDEO like Delo 400 and you don't need any additives.

 

[LBPete]

What oil additives do best is separate fools from their money. The makers of slick 50 were sued by the US Federal Trade Commission over their claims about the product. They can no longer make those claims here.

Follow the oil and lubricant recommendations made by the car manufactures and you vehicles will have a long, healthy life.

- Pete

 

[Combwork]

Thanks.

You're right about checking transmission oil levels. I've only had the car four weeks so all I've done so far is drain and fill the engine (fully synthetic oil). Gearbox drain and fill are on this weekends list. I'm kind of oversensitive to engine noise, I know some differential gears whine from new but still outlive the rest of the car. On mine, it seems to be there in all 5 forward gears so hopefully, needle bearings are OK. With engine, gearbox and final drive all at the front it's not the easiest car to work on. There's a bit of clutch snatch, not too bad but it's there; if bentpencil's right, when the time comes round for a new clutch would be the time to check bearings.

One nasty thought. Why is the clutch snatching on a car with `only' 70,000 miles on it? Could the input oil seal have failed, letting oil out and dirt in? These cars have a strange two piece flywheel with some kind of rubber bushes between the parts. Meant to damp down vibration and let a diesel engine run quietly with a relatively lightweight flywheel. It's not unknown for the rubber to give way; if you're lucky all that happens is you lose all power, but I've heard of flywheels breaking up.................

 

[soundmotor]

An old motor guy once told me the only thing to put into one is oil. But, on my former VW Quantum I did put Marvel's Mystery Oil into it on a lark and it did indeed quiet an annoying upper engine ticking. In this ONE instance I know that an additive did something that was superficially beneficial.

My regular routine though is synthetic oil, don't have a preference, that I change between 6-7K. (I will usually do a filter only change 1/2-way to the full oil change too.)

Here is how this practice has worked out for me -

VW Quantum 2.2L 5 cyl. - ~180K (traded, running)
VW Passat 2.8L VR6 - ~175K (sold outright, running)
Audi A6 2.7t V6 - ~150K (totaled; alas, so young :cry
VW Jetta 2.0L 4 cyl. - ~116K (bought w/ 110K on the clock, 2nd oil change this weekend)

 

[stuartk]

I use only manufacturer-recommended oils and lubes.

The oil companies are very good at making lubricants by this point. Engine life has gone way up over time and it's mainly due to the superb modern lubricants.

 

[kcollins4]

I use only manufacturer-recommended oils and lubes.

The oil companies are very good at making lubricants by this point. Engine life has gone way up over time and it's mainly due to the superb modern lubricants.

Most oil and auto manufacturers sell "their" additives too.

 

[godzilla]

Marvel Mystery Oil...I used it in my old VW's. Stuff workd good to silence chattering/sticking valves and a whole slew of other noises. You can add it to either your gas or your oil.

 

[godzilla]

I use only manufacturer-recommended oils and lubes.

The oil companies are very good at making lubricants by this point. Engine life has gone way up over time and it's mainly due to the superb modern lubricants.

The one thing I don't like about this is how when I open my Fiance's Focus Gas cap cover it recommends using BP Gas...so, who's in cahoots with who?

I also don't go for the 3,000 mile oil change...If you listen to the "car Talk" on NPR they say every 3,000 miles is a ploy to sell more oil. New engines don't need to be changed that often. I go 5,000 until I hit 75,000 miles then I move it down to 4,000.

 

[Combwork]

Three for the price of one.........

It wa a sunny evening, so I jumped the gun and drained/changed the gearbox oil. No problems; the old oil seemed in good condition, slightly cloudy but not dark. Took the car for a run and LISTENED.......... There's a small load sensitive whine in all gears that varies with road speed but doesn't seem to vary with gear changes. Differential/final drive? There's a whine that goes up and down with engine speed even with the clutch down. I'm guessing alternator could be giving me a warning and finally, there's a delightful howl that comes in as the turbocharger spins up. Non of these noises are loud enough to be upsetting; they were only noticeable after I took the roof bars off (wind noise masking things?) and having a new cam belt fitted. This last could well have put the alternator bearing under heavier load (maybe).

Thanks for your advice everyone. Whether it's the new oil or maybe good timing work by the garage, but the car pulls very well.......... Jim.

 

[Switchblade]

Yamaha1 is right, if you use top quality synthetics you really don't need additives. HOWEVER, I have found all that said about Marvel Mystery oil to be true. The BEST additive I have ever found is called MILITEC, which was originally manufactured for firearms and other military equipment used in the middle east. This stuff works wonders, as it conditions metal. I used it in my Ford Lightning (supercharger, 410HP) and it DID give me a 1 mpg increase. I'll have to see how long the engine stays new but from all indications it's the real deal. Look here....
http://www.militec.com/

 

[dnewma04]

Almost every oil on the market has the additives you need in it from the beginning. Without them, I don't believe that they would get API or ILSAC certification. Synthetics are obviously superior, but if not recommended from the MFG, they are probably not needed. I used to use the 3k mile oil change recommendation, but now go by the computer in the car and change at approx 8k on conventional oils. Since my father in law came up with ILSAC and subsequently formed and chaired it, along with co-chairing API and heading up GMs fuel and lubrications dept, I figure I'll do what he says is best.

 

[dgwojo]

On a related note about additives, I have a 99 Ford Taurus with a 24 valve 3.0 Duratec, it has 155K on it now, I bought the car with 19k and from day one it has used a quart of oil every 600 - 900 miles, the dealer said the main seals are bad yet there's never a spot on the driveway, maybe it only leaks at highway speeds?? :scratch2: I don't want to drop mega bucks into a car with this many miles on it so additives were an option. A search on the internet about this problem suggested Auto RX as an additive, I tried a bottle of it, after 800 miles the oil level has not dropped at all, maybe this stuff actually helps, I have to leave it in for another 2200 miles per the instructions, it's an expensive additive but it will be worth it if I'm not dropping a quart of oil in every 600 miles!! I like this stuff so far, Dave. :yes:

Auto RX

 

[zman]

I have frequently used Lucas additives and for my VW ..Marvel mystry oil too.
But another additive ive found to really..NO..Really work is a product called seafoam.
Tranny , fuel injection , crankcase.
It does work.
Its still new on the market but it works better then anything ive used.
A good product.

 

[dgwojo]

I've also used Seafoam, works great for removing carbon from engines, the neighbors hate it because the engine smokes so bad right after the treatment!! Menard stores sell Seafoam for a good price, Dave.

 

[soundmotor]

On a related note about additives, I have a 99 Ford Taurus with a 24 valve 3.0 Duratec, it has 155K on it now, I bought the car with 19k and from day one it has used a quart of oil every 600 - 900 miles, the dealer said the main seals are bad yet there's never a spot on the driveway, maybe it only leaks at highway speeds?? :scratch2: I don't want to drop mega bucks into a car with this many miles on it so additives were an option. A search on the internet about this problem suggested Auto RX as an additive, I tried a bottle of it, after 800 miles the oil level has not dropped at all, maybe this stuff actually helps, I have to leave it in for another 2200 miles per the instructions, it's an expensive additive but it will be worth it if I'm not dropping a quart of oil in every 600 miles!! I like this stuff so far, Dave. :yes:

Auto RX

Is your oil loss the same winter or summer? If it is more in the warm weather, you might try going to a slightly higher viscosity oil than recommended and see if you net an improvement.

 

[dgwojo]

Is your oil loss the same winter or summer? If it is more in the warm weather, you might try going to a slightly higher viscosity oil than recommended and see if you net an improvement.

It's all year long, the suggested oil is 5w30, I've tried 10w30 as I didn't want to go thicker and possibly hurt the bearings, the 30w oil flows really quick, I've tried all the brands of synthetic and conventional, they all were consumed the same. With the additive you must use conventional oil, synthetic chemistry conflicts with Auto RX. My spark plugs stay sparkling clean, the air intake after the MAF sometimes has oil traces in it, after 900 miles still no consumption, life is good right now!! :yes: I was concerned that synthetic oil was the consumption culprit as my brother had a 1989 Acura Legend, synthetic oil would fill the spark plug wire wells with oil, conventional would not, the dealer had him switch and the leakage stopped, very strange!!