Oil analysis for my Q

[MinisterofDOOM]

Got my first report back from blackstone. Thought I'd post it for discussion.

Any thoughts on the high sodium levels? Oil used is Super Tech 10w30 dino.

Also, any thoughts on oil consumption? I'm adding between .5 to 1 quart every between oil changes (fairly strict 3000 mile interval, with at most a few hundred miles deviation either way). That may be entirely normal, it just seems weird to me since even at 250,000 miles, the Maxima never uses a drop of oil.



Sorry the image is so big. I wanted to keep it legible.

[qship96]

Wear numbers look good, but this 10w-30 oil sheared excessivly, it is now a light 20 weight oil at best, according to the viscosity test- unacceptable performance for an oil with such a short use interval.

Sodium number could be an additive, or a coolant leak- switch brand of oil and run 2700 miles and resample to see if results change to determine.

[Rex]

I've always been a fan of the Valvoline DuraBlend.

Will you be running a thicker oil during what UT calls "summer"?

[MinisterofDOOM]

Yeah, I'll probably go to a 10-40 for summer.

[Rex]

WOW, Da Beast is now over 205k?

I know it racks 'em up a little fast with the 4.08, but that's still 15k or more in less than 1 yr.

Man I miss that growl .

[qship96]

I would suggest going to mobil 1 in the 0w-40 year round at 5,000 mile intervals, which is conservative for this excellent true full synthetic group 4 PAO based oil- it will provide superior protection than most any other off the shelf, so called "synthetic" oil. If purchased wisely and run at 5K intervals, it will cost no more than what you are currently running{including filter and labor expense} and provide much better results.

Or go off the deep end, and seek out Redline, Motul, or Neo and prepare to pay through the nose for slightly better product than the 0w-40{only} Mobil One.

[MinisterofDOOM]

Thanks, qship. That's exactly the kind of feedback I was looking for. I'm pretty sure my dad runs Mobil's 0-40 (he runs some mobil 1 in them, I'm just not sure of the weight) in at least one of his cars, so we'll just have to buy in bulk from now on.

WOW, Da Beast is now over 205k?

I know it racks 'em up a little fast with the 4.08, but that's still 15k or more in less than 1 yr.

Yeah, I tend to put a lot of miles on my cars. The Max usually ended up with about 18-20k/year under my stewardship. The Q is sitting at a reported 210,000 right now, so that's right about 15k in 10 months (I have a dealer report from april 5th last year showing 192000 miles).

Most of it's from my commuting. 60 miles a day, 5 times a week, 52 weeks a year (I work EVERY day including holidays unless I take time off) is 15000 miles alone. Then there's all the recreational driving I do...

But I intend to make this car last. If the Maxima can hit 250 and still be dependable, the Q certainly can, too. With the fairly-new transmission and preventative maintenance, there's no reason this car can't see 300k and still kick a**. And given my habits, it'll be there in about 5 years.

[Panther in a Q45a]

For those who want to save money on oil analysis, I called a Caterpillar dealer and bought several bottles directly, and they mailed the stuff directly to me. They only charged $12.00 per analysis.

Seems like I ended up talking to the repair facility in Salt Lake City, Utah. One time I had a question on some trans fluid I sent in and the guys doing the testing were very willing to talk to me and extremely helpful.