How often do you service your AU engine?

[Sox]

Originally Posted by rowan194

Started it up today after a couple of days sitting idle and the lifters clattered like hell for a second or two. :-\ Usually it's a lighter ticking after driving for some time. I don't think I've ever heard a noisy clatter at startup with this car.

The thicker oil is more to lessen leaks in old engines, right? I thought that my engine was burning a bit of oil, but I checked just before I changed it and the level hasn't dropped. So should I stick with something thinner to be a bit more friendly to the lifters and the engine overall? I was looking at Magnatec Fuel Saver 5W-30, is that too thin for a series 3 I6?

It helps to know the service history and usage.

A well maintained engine can go for several 100,000k's without any undue wear, hence can still use the grade of oil recommended from the start.

Engines with infrequent oil changes and a constant hard life can show a lot of wear after just 100,000k and might need a slightly thicker grade to take up clearances which have grown.

Something else to consider is what part of OZ you live, north or south.
If you were towards the top end it probably wouldn't hurt to go up to the next grade.
OTOH, if you were in Tas, it would probably be sensible to use whatever was recommended by Ford for pretty much all of it's life.

Personally, I wouldn't stray too far away from standard no matter what.

[AU Mont]

Originally Posted by b2tf

What I meant to say was that if the engine is nice and clean inside then any oil coming out of it would theoretically be clean also.

having run shell ultra a couple falcons ago, fresh oil went black within a week, but when having the rocker cover off for cam swaps and having the head off for the typical gasket change the motor was like it had been steam cleaned which was surprising considering the colour of the oil that came out of it.

i guess i attributed that to the oil doing its job

[AU Mont]

double post

[rowan194]

Originally Posted by Sox

Engines with infrequent oil changes and a constant hard life can show a lot of wear after just 100,000k and might need a slightly thicker grade to take up clearances which have grown.

To be honest, it was neglected for a period a few years ago. I don't remember exactly but I think it was about 25,000km and 1 1/2 years between changes. It's probably worth mentioning that the reason it was serviced at that point was simply because I learned how to do it, rather than there being a strange noise, rough running, smoking etc which required it. So hopefully I dodged a bullet there. Since then it has been serviced every 10,000km.

Growing clearances would mean that starts consuming oil, right? As mentioned above, I don't think it's doing that yet.

I'm not really wanting to try anything too radical, more wondering if I've gone in the wrong direction, to thicker, when the engine may be able to handle thinner just fine. I wouldn't mind improved economy but obviously engine wear at this age is also a concern.

Oh yeah, I'm in Melbourne. Not too hot, not too cold, four seasons in one day.

[Sox]

Originally Posted by rowan194

To be honest, it was neglected for a period a few years ago. I don't remember exactly but I think it was about 25,000km and 1 1/2 years between changes. It's probably worth mentioning that the reason it was serviced at that point was simply because I learned how to do it, rather than there being a strange noise, rough running, smoking etc which required it. So hopefully I dodged a bullet there. Since then it has been serviced every 10,000km.

Growing clearances would mean that starts consuming oil, right? As mentioned above, I don't think it's doing that yet.

I'm not really wanting to try anything too radical, more wondering if I've gone in the wrong direction, to thicker, when the engine may be able to handle thinner just fine. I wouldn't mind improved economy but obviously engine wear at this age is also a concern.

Oh yeah, I'm in Melbourne. Not too hot, not too cold, four seasons in one day.

Clearances growing means bearings are wearing increasing the crank to bearing clearance, pistons and bores wearing with piston slap on it's way, rings will also wear which will lead to increased oil consumption.
If you're not burning any noticeable amounts of oil, then you're probably ok to use normal grade oil.

It's worth pointing out that all engines burn some oil, it's simply a by-product of all internal combustion engines. Every single down stroke of each piston will leave an ever so tiny film of oil on the bores. This gets burnt with normal combustion.
Obviously as rings wear and sealing is reduced, more oil is burnt.

Oil can even sneak through valve stem seals and guides, but this is much much less so on a healthy engine.

I would regard Vic as a cooler part of the country, so I wouldn't hesitate to recommend whatever Ford advised from new.

[Maka]

Rowan194, i was just wondering if it was better to try some nulon lifter free up if the lifters are a bit noisey? Also from what ive been reading on the net is that magnatec is not that good- you're not the first to suffer from lifter noise at morning startup on that stuff. The fact that you're motor has around 200,000kays on it and as long as the motor wasnt thrashed in that "non serviced" period i agree with sox, run the recommended factory spec oil or a 10w40 semi/full synthetic oil and keep the oil level full at all times. Fyi- well maintained au i6 motors are barely run in at 200,000 kays and the most kays on a au i6 motor ive ever seen was 1.3 million. Hope you sort it out mate.

cheers,Maka

[rowan194]

Hmm now that I think about it I think it was actually Nulon lifter free that I used, not worn engine treatment. It didn't seem to make much difference, and the instructions say it needs to be used every oil change, which makes me think it just thickens the oil, or something similarly non permanent. The strange thing was that with the old oil the noise was fairly subtle, I could only hear the ticking when going past a kerb or a fence and the sound reflected back. After the oil change, the racket yesterday for a couple of seconds was certainly audible.

Note the clatter at startup was actually once I'd changed AWAY from Magnatec. It's only with the thicker oil that it's making the more horrible noise, which is why I'm thinking I've probably gone in the wrong direction with regards to viscosity. So what I need is a high kilometre oil that has the extra protective additives, but is NOT thicker to compensate for leaks. All of the high kilometre oil products I've seen are thicker...

BTW: the service was neglected but the engine certainly wasn't thrashed during that time, in fact I'm probably a little too laid back, I doubt it often goes over 3000RPM. I gave it a minor italian tuneup yesterday on a quiet 80km/hr road but even then I only got up to 4500RPM in first.

[blueoval]

My engine is supercharged.

It has stock internals, runs low boost, and I run 40% E85 and 98 petrol with it. The engine has done over 200,000km now and no excessive lifter noise.

I use Nulon Hi Tech Fast flowing full synth oil. 10w40 (black label on orange bottle) every 10,000km. The oil comes out dark, but never black. Every second oil change I use the LiquiMoly engine detox to help remove built up oil scum from oil galleries that the oil changes don't get rid of.

At first when I did this detox, the lifters did have some noise after a fresh oil change. I ignored it till the next oil change. Did the detox again and the lifter noise reduced significantly. I found that it took a few goes with the detox to rid a lot of the gunk that may have been in there for some time. I also noticed the detox release some extra hp because of it.

At 200,000km its not that old as long as the engine has been taken care of and all maintenance services have been done.

I also feel that since I am using full synthetic oil, that I can get away with longer service intervals with the added protection. If I was using mineral oils, I would be changing it every 5000km.

[rowan194]

I've read that changing from mineral or semi-synthetic used over a long period, to fully synthetic is a bad idea in older engines and will cause oil leaks, because it cleans out bits of gunk that may be holding together a seal. Same deal with oil flush products, they may clean TOO well.

I used an oil flush product once when servicing after the period of neglect, but haven't used it since.

Thoughts?

[AU Mont]

to be honest i reckon you could pour a bucket of mud into an OHC I6 and still get 500,000km's from it

i wouldnt worry toooooo much about it

[Day-mow]

Change your oil often enough and I think you'll be ok. Again engine cleaner is good. Might need to run it though a few times and remember injectors tick a bit as well

[Racecraft]

AU i6's alone and not the Windsors....

They would weap enough that topping them up with fresh oil was enough....

They aren/t worth $200 2nd hand but they never played up....

Why spend $30 on oil + $5 a filter and your time 'X' times a year on something that is bullet proof.............

[rowan194]

Originally Posted by Racecraft

Why spend $30 on oil + $5 a filter and your time 'X' times a year on something that is bullet proof.............

Because I can't afford to be without a car right now.

I used to pay $120-$140 for a minor service at the dealer (you know, where an apprentice changes the oil then spends 5 minutes visually checking everything else) so even with extra changes doing it myself is still cheaper. Not to mention the time saved, compared with dropping my car off at the dealer, catching public transport home, catching public transport back to the dealer, ...

The engine may be bulletproof but I do notice a big difference when I change the oil, so I think that's one good reason to reduce the interval.

[Maka]

Why spend $30 on oil + $5 a filter and your time 'X' times a year on something that is bullet proof.............[/QUOTE]

^Thats GOLD^

Lol lol lol now ive heard it all!

Racecraft- i didnt know you are a engine building guru?!!! I'm sure ol' Roushy
would agree with ya mate!

[EF-MattyB]

AU V8 - New filter and 10-40 Fully synth oil every 10000klms. My avg fuel is about 12.7l/100. (I like the sound of a V8 when it revs.....)

[Maka]

Rowan194,how ya going with it mate?Any luck yet?

[blueoval]

Im gonna try the ULX110 with my next service. Have heard excellent things with this oil.

[Maka]

Sounds pretty promising blueoval! got to admit i havent heard of it before but from what ive just read this ulx110 oil seems the go if your'e in the market for top tier oil,how expensive? Nothing too crazy i hope lol !

[rowan194]

Originally Posted by Maka

Rowan194,how ya going with it mate?Any luck yet?

No more horrible clattering at startup, guess it took a few days for the new oil to work its magic.

Still a faint clatter when the engine is running, and it's not the injectors. Maybe one of the lifters is a bit beyond spec? Funny thing is that it's very hard to hear when the engine is idling and I'm sticking my head under the bonnet or near the wheel to try to figure it out... I really only hear the sound reflected off parked cars and hedges as I drive past.

[blueoval]

Originally Posted by Maka

Sounds pretty promising blueoval! got to admit i havent heard of it before but from what ive just read this ulx110 oil seems the go if your'e in the market for top tier oil,how expensive? Nothing too crazy i hope lol !

I heard $79 for 5L. Thats about $10 more than the Nulon Full Synth I was paying for.

Was also told to flush out the old full synth oil currently in the engine with cheap mineral oil for 15mins in a running engine before changing to ULX110 as the full synth properties are prone to break down the mineral oil properties it has.

I will get the cheapest oil I can find when the time comes. Then put in the good stuff after.

Have a look at this video on a comparison between full synth and ULX110. Read into the video what you will, but I think it's worth giving it a shot.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLMo6-gFX4c

[Maka]

Just had a look at that ulx110 dyno run blueoval, thanks for putting the link up! Impressive results from the dyno run, well worth the dollars i reckon! The kw increase is awesome!

[Sox]

Sorry if I sound a little pessimistic here, but that video and the claims I read on their website sounds just a bit to good to be true.

I'm sure it's decent oil, but those improvements, nah.
Sounds like a good marketing department to me.

Originally Posted by blueoval

I heard $79 for 5L. Thats about $10 more than the Nulon Full Synth I was paying for.

Was also told to flush out the old full synth oil currently in the engine with cheap mineral oil for 15mins in a running engine before changing to ULX110 as the full synth properties are prone to break down the mineral oil properties it has.

I will get the cheapest oil I can find when the time comes. Then put in the good stuff after.

Have a look at this video on a comparison between full synth and ULX110. Read into the video what you will, but I think it's worth giving it a shot.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLMo6-gFX4c

[Day-mow]

Originally Posted by Sox

Sorry if I sound a little pessimistic here, but that video and the claims I read on their website sounds just a bit to good to be true.

I'm sure it's decent oil, but those improvements, nah.
Sounds like a good marketing department to me.

sox im very confident its not a marketing ploy. if you look at a lot of drag racer's (small guys up to victor bray) they're wearing a ULX110 sticker.

there is also a WRX work shop here that swears buy it for theyre cars. and i know for a fact that vid isn't rigged.

[Sox]

Originally Posted by Day-mow

sox im very confident its not a marketing ploy. if you look at a lot of drag racer's (small guys up to victor bray) they're wearing a ULX110 sticker.

That means bugger all, plenty other drag cars have brand XYZ stickers.

there is also a WRX work shop here that swears buy it for theyre cars. and i know for a fact that vid isn't rigged.

Fair enough, supply the evidence to support this fact (not a YT video).

[Day-mow]

Wiggy mk2 was there when it was filmed. It's all 100% legit.

As lots of drag racers in America use the product as well.

Each entitled to their own opinion. But I'm convinced this product is quality.

[megaphat]

On my old AU forte
Changed the oil every 15,000km. Some generic 10W-40. Ran like a beaut at 280,000km.

[Maka]

Rowan194, good to hear you're getting on top of it, if the noise still persists after a while, it may be a idea to rip you're rocker cover off and inspect you're valve springs just to eliminate any valve spring breakages. Also a oil pressure test wont hurt either, hopefully with some kays on the new oil the noise will disappear.

cheers, Maka

[blueoval]

Originally Posted by Sox

Sorry if I sound a little pessimistic here, but that video and the claims I read on their website sounds just a bit to good to be true.

I'm sure it's decent oil, but those improvements, nah.
Sounds like a good marketing department to me.

Well I will be giving it a shot next oil change to see if there are significantly noticeable improvements.

It will be a seat of the pants determination, and I will be frank and unbiased with the review I give it.

I'll be interested to see what kind of differences it makes. It's the only way to really tell if this is all hype or not.

[Dave_Obsession]

Worst case scenario, if Shav doesn't like it he can always change back...

[FreddyDUZ747]

I can vouch for ULX110 being a good oil,the gear oil is very good alsoIt suits my application well,its track proven.

With synthetic oil I used to have a few light ticks on cold start,not no more with ULX110.