engine treatments

[zendog35]

I see many auto parts stores sell various engine treatments like slick 50. They claim to improve the longevity of your engine. Are they worth the investment? --Zen

[Vintage911Racer]

I hate to say it, but I used Pro long in one of my racing motors, and it have over 150 hours on it, and it looked perfect when it came apart. My mechanic asked what I was using in it... After I told him he said he was a believer. I guess I am too.

[Oh Haha]

The only product besides Castrol 20W50 used in my 911 is Engine Restore. I use the 8 cylinder can. I used it in a sb Chevy with a 300 nitrous setup. This stuff worked great! I use it in place of
a quart of oil. Although I haven't done any fancy shmancy studies on it, I saw the difference in my Chevy and will continue to use it in my vehicles. My Blazer gets a 6 cylinder can at every oil change. Hope this helps.

[tonythetarga]

does any of that stuff work with synthetic oil? Thanks and sorry for jumping in on the question.

[lvporschepilot]

I am going to key in on this,

Do not use anything with PTFE in it(which is just about everything). PTFE was developed by DuPont years ago and is a solid(powder too). PTFE was never ever meant to be put inside of an engine. It was originally developed in the 30's in an effort to find a new refridgerant due to the toxic gases that were currently used in refridgerators. The most common use we see this product for is in non-stick cooking pans. It bonds to metal just like it says it does but, through research it has proven to do nothing but harm. PTFE harms by "coating" parts of the engine that have no friction and low oil pressure. Also because PTFE is a powder, your oil filter will be collecting it and this presents the possibility for a clogged oil filter. NOTHING on this planet can stick to PTFE and dupont is not telling how they do this. In lay terms I suppose I would not recommend putting any powder in an engine no matter how slick they say it can make it due to the simple fact that it is in fact a solid(dust).

hope this helps- john

[lvporschepilot]

I almost forgot the number 1 numero uno biggest reason NOT to use any engine oil additive. There is not a single one automobile or engine manufacturer on this planet that uses one or recommends it. If these additives were so fantastic, someone like Porsche or Ferrari who is very on top of the oil game would be shouting about it. Porsche still recommends Mobil 1 and Ferrari still recommends Shell Helix. ONLY.

[HFR_Racer]

Some interesting reading about this subject here:

http://worldsbestoil.com/amsoil/synthetic/articles/snakeoil.htm

[scottb]

Hey Lubemaster, you out there?

What's your opinion of additives -- the real deal, or snake oil.

Inquiring minds want to know!

[lvporschepilot]

yeah lubemaster is the man, would love to hear what he has to say about this.

[PatrickB]

Originally posted by lvporschepilot
I almost forgot the number 1 numero uno biggest reason NOT to use any engine oil additive. There is not a single one automobile or engine manufacturer on this planet that uses one or recommends it. If these additives were so fantastic, someone like Porsche or Ferrari who is very on top of the oil game would be shouting about it. Porsche still recommends Mobil 1 and Ferrari still recommends Shell Helix. ONLY.

The same manufacturers that recommend changing the oil every 20,000 miles, whether it needs it or not...

[Brad01mc]

Hi!

I can't comment on the various additives, but I tend to agree that they shouldn't be used. This is a web site that I've know about for a while, so take a look and see...

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/images/lucas/lucas.htm

Of course this is a test of Lucas stuff, but I would tend to think the others would show similar results.

Brad

[qcwang]

Originally posted by Vintage911Racer
I hate to say it, but I used Pro long in one of my racing motors, and it have over 150 hours on it, and it looked perfect when it came apart. My mechanic asked what I was using in it... After I told him he said he was a believer. I guess I am too.

Hi Mark,

Just curious, did you ever have other motors with the same amount of hours on either dino or synthetic oil and it did not look perfect when it came apart? TIA.

[Vintage911Racer]

Quincy, the answer is yes... But wether or not that means anything I dont know. There are so many other factors that can have an effect on your engine as we all know, so it is hard to say.

[donstevens]

Zen,

There should be enough evidence here to convince you not to waste your money on an over the counter additive.

I had seen a version of the "Is the additive a negative" article before but the one that HFR_Racer references is the most complete version I have ever seen. The conclusion is the same regardless of what article you read or what oil professional is quoted. The bottom line is that virtually all modern oils are good products and good enough in 99% of the applications they are used. Particularly if is used in street cars and cahnged out every 3000-5000 miles. Any oil (unaltered) is going to perfrom well for that application.

I think Mark Scott's experience is one example where one quart of such a product amidst 10-15qts of the proper oil has little to no effect. I am sure the teardown report would have been as good regardless of whether he had the Prolong in there or not.

I happen to be an Amsoil user/dealer as I think their product is "better than most" but that is merely my opinion backed by a lot of study and lots of excellent used oil analysis results. It is not for everybody though and what I always claim is that every application is different and there is no magic product out there that is right for everybody.

Don

[lvporschepilot]

Didn't consumer reports do an extensive study on this a couple years back? I am unable to remember what the real results were but, it hovered around the idea that ptfe(teflon) should not be used in an engine. Dupont even started some sort of lawsuit about this whole issue in an attempt to detach themselves from their product that companies were using in a manner not as it was intended. I cannot remember the specifics but I certainly believe I got the idea.

[DUK]

Had a Valvoline engineer tell me once, "If an additive is needed I'm not doing my job and don't you think we would have it in our oil." Remember all oil has an "additive package" already in it. We used to have a running joke around the shop, ... "Any oil is good aslong as it gets changed regularly."

[HFR_Racer]

I'm considering using Valvoline VR1 Racing 20W-50 for the following reasons:

1) It's ashless oil (similar to those found in aircraft) which should reduce carbon build-up.

2) It contains ZDDP which serves as an extreme pressure additive. I believe that an extreme pressure additive is good idea because of the P-car valve-train design.

Any comments on this line of thinking???

[zendog35]

I would like to thank everyone for their advice on the subject. This discussion has given me significant information to assist me in making a decision on whats best for my engine. again thanks for the insight. --zen

[donstevens]

Originally posted by HFR_Racer
I'm considering using Valvoline VR1 Racing 20W-50 for the following reasons:

1) It's ashless oil (similar to those found in aircraft) which should reduce carbon build-up.

2) It contains ZDDP which serves as an extreme pressure additive. I believe that an extreme pressure additive is good idea because of the P-car valve-train design.

Any comments on this line of thinking???

This is sound reasoning for a racing application and I am sure the Valvoline racing oil is a good product.

I am not an expert on ash content and it's cause and affect in Porsche engines so I cannot comment on that. I do know that ZDDP is an element in lots of oils. In fact it is one of the primary anti-wear agents in Amsoil per your reference to the "Worlds Best Oil" site. Amsoil street and race oils have higher levels of ZDDP (but not too much) than most oils.

Having said that, your application dictates whether the Valvoline race oil you are considering is right for you. If your car is used as a warm weather race car and you change the oil frequently, that product is a fine choice. If however, you car is a street car, driven in all climates, you do a fair amount of short trips, and you want a long drain interval the racing oil is not a particularly good choice. While the racing oil may have some strong amounts of anti-wear agents, racing oil does not often have some of the additives that contribute to moisture netralization that is critcal in cool weather street cars. Plus, you did not mention whether or not you want a synthetic oil or not. I am fairly sure the vracing is not synthetic.

Don

[RG5]

Anyone ever heard of Mecacyl, it is a hyper-lubricant used as an additive to engine oil. Supposed to have miraculous properties.