Oil analysis service?

[theksmith 5,778]

doing it every oil change would be excessive. i did it for 2 reasons... first just to see how the new engine was doing overall - i.e. i might be alerted that it was a POS and already wearing rings or something and then i could consider selling it instead of hanging onto it forever. the other was because i was smelling a sweet or rich smell and after exhausting all my other troubleshooting methodologies i wanted to see if there was some major problem i had missed in the engine - the analysis is a pretty surefire way to see if there is an engine issue. once you've paid to replace an engine, you get a little paranoid.

 

if i had done analysis even a year before my previous engine failed, i probably would have known there was a small combustion leak and would have also known how good/bad the rest of the engine was doing and could have perhaps done just a head gasket job instead of eventually overheating the thing to the point that i felt i needed to replace it.

 

so i could see doing it once or twice a year to get early warning if there's an impending issue that could be dealt with before it gets worse. if i owned vehicles that were under warranty like you, then i probably wouldn't worry about anything either.

 

and i don't worry about brand - whatever dino oil Jiffy Lube throws in there every 3k works just fine. i do still believe in 3k changes for "heavy duty or offroad use" of my old technology engine though - especially since i'm getting cheap Jiffy Lube filters. if someone buys synthetic oil and premium filters and the manufacturer recommends 5k or longer intervals on their rig, then i'm sure that's fine for them too.

[samwhite 1]

Jim and others,

 

In service monitoring aka crankcase monitoring is most useful with large diesel fleets. A diesel engine has a far longer lifetime than a gas engine and holds quite a bit more oil. The trick is to monitor the oil so that you can detect a problem before it happens and it can be corrected. In a gas engine it is cheaper to simply change the oil. A diesel locomotive contains 1000 gallons (yes gallons) of oil so you don't want to change the oil until you have to. Now I say crankcase oil but gear oils and hydraulic fluids are also commonly tested by the same method. The important word in this technology is monitoring or trending. A single test is not all that definitive except for things like soot, water and glycol. The operators of gas engines often blend various types and brands of oils which complicates the analysis. For example if you run standard mineral oil and add a quart of synthetic your oxidation number go off the charts when actually there is nothing wrong at all. Any Caterpillar dealer, for example, Empire Machinery in Mesa, will run your oil. Their labs are top notch and the price is pretty cheap.

As for your comment about sex? I have no comment. I would get into too much trouble.

[scottL 185]

whatever dino oil every 3k works just fine.

 

Amen. & if i recently swapped an engine i'd definitely be a little paranoid.

[91AzXJ 2]

I bought my XJ with 132k on the clock. It was used as a fleet SAR vehicle and serviced regularly. When I got it, there were already the usual oil leaks (VC gasket, Oil Pan gasket, rear main). I changed them and now have 216k on it. I once again have a rear main seal leaking and some blowby. Even with the minor issues, I expect to see 250k+ before I decide to do any major engine work. Had I owned the vehicle since new, I would probably have done a oil sample every 25-30k miles which equates to once every 1-2 years. I should probably do one now just to see how worn the engine really is but then again, I enjoy the mystery of not really knowing.

 

I will probably do one on my wife's Liberty since it is low milage and continue at the intervals mentioned above even though I have another 100k miles of warrantee on it.

[Russ Chung 54]

So $25 per analysis times 27 samples = a lot of money (over $650) for what?

Jim,

 

I have now done 32 samples over the past 100,000 miles (I now have 240,000 miles on my 2005 Jeep). Using Schedule B, I would have changed oil and filter about 33 times (Schedule B calls for oil and filter changes every 3,000 miles, which is what I was doing while my Jeep was under warranty and before starting oil analysis). Since starting oil analysis, I have changed oil 9 times based on the sample results; the intervals have ranged from 4,000 miles to 17,000 miles. The shorter oil change intervals have been because the oil is dirty, the longer intervals have been when the additives have been used up or when the oxidation reading gets high.

 

I use Mobil 1 synthetic, each oil change costs about $60 (sometimes when the oil is on sale, I can get a filter and six quarts for $50. I have paid about $900 for oil analysis (including the postage and the sample supplies) and about $500 for the oil and filter changes for a total of about $1400. If I had continued changing oil every 3,000 miles, I would have spent about $2,000. YMMV.

 

Russ

[samwhite 1]

Jim,

 

I have now done 32 samples over the past 100,000 miles (I now have 240,000 miles on my 2005 Jeep). Using Schedule B, I would have changed oil and filter about 33 times (Schedule B calls for oil and filter changes every 3,000 miles, which is what I was doing while my Jeep was under warranty and before starting oil analysis). Since starting oil analysis, I have changed oil 9 times based on the sample results; the intervals have ranged from 4,000 miles to 17,000 miles. The shorter oil change intervals have been because the oil is dirty, the longer intervals have been when the additives have been used up or when the oxidation reading gets high.

 

I use Mobil 1 synthetic, each oil change costs about $60 (sometimes when the oil is on sale, I can get a filter and six quarts for $50. I have paid about $900 for oil analysis (including the postage and the sample supplies) and about $500 for the oil and filter changes for a total of about $1400. If I had continued changing oil every 3,000 miles, I would have spent about $2,000. YMMV.

 

Russ

 

Russ,

 

 

You can save a little money by dropping off your oil at the Cat dealership. I work with Dr. Dave Wooten who is now retired from Ethyl and has formulated many commercial packages. You are correct that when using synthetic oil changes are not necessary anywhere near as often as the suggested schedule B. The people as Mobil figure that if you pay four times as much for the oil you only need to change the oil one fourth as often. I am not sure that 3000 mile interval is still recommended anyway. It really depends on the additives the blenders put in the oil. You do need to change the filter regularly. Testing simply ensures not only when the oil should be changed but also is very useful in determining when a mechanical event has occurred so you can make the appropriate changes before failure. In a heavy duty diesel this is a big thing. Some Cat engines cost over a million dollars. But in a personal vehicle, driven by a single individual who is familiar with all the nuances of that engine, you probably would know if you had a clogged air filter or had started getting a coolant leak into engine. All that said “a pound of prevention is worth an ounce of cure”. Did I get that right?

[91AzXJ 2]

The service history on my wife's Liberty shows the previous owner changed the oil every 2500 miles. It has 23k on it so it ran 12k/yr which is a little less than average so I don't understand the frequency of the changes.

[Russ Chung 54]

Loren,

 

According to my 2005 Jeep Wrangler Owners Manual:

 

MAINTENANCE SCHEDULES

There are two maintenance schedules that show the required service for your vehicle.

First is Schedule B. It is for vehicles that are operated under the conditions that are listed below and at the beginning of the schedule.

• Day or night temperatures are below 32°F (0°C)

• Stop and go driving

• Excessive engine idling

• Driving in dusty conditions

• Short trips of less than 10 miles (16.2 km)

• More than 50% of your driving is at sustained high speeds during hot weather, above 90°F (32°C)

• Trailer towing

• Taxi, police, or delivery service (commercial service)

• Off-road or desert driving

• If equipped for and operated with E-85 (ethanol) fuel.

NOTE: If ANY of these apply to you then change your engine oil every 3,000 miles (5 000 km) or 3 months,

whichever comes first and follow “Schedule B” of the “Maintenance Schedules” section of this manual.

NOTE: Most vehicles are operated under the conditions listed for Schedule “B.”

Second is Schedule “A”. It is for vehicles that are not operated under any of the conditions listed under Schedule “B.”

 

I don't know what the maintenance schedule for your wife's Liberty is, but if it is similar to my Wrangler, then the oil changes could have been based on the 3 month interval instead of the 3,000 mile interval.

 

Russ

 

 

[samwhite 1]

I have attached an application note that describes the various things that can be analyzed in used oil. This is from my part of the universe which is the infrared part of the analysis. There are many other tests that can be done. I hope it will be of some help when looking at a report.

Appnote.pdf