Rotella Trials

Well, this is done. I let it soak until yesterday afternoon, for a total of 108hrs. I also changed the fuel filter and oil w/the new mix outlined in my post above, but with a slight mod:

-2 qts Rotella 5W-40 synthetic
-2 qts Mobil 1 0W-20 synthetic
-1 qt MMO

Initially when cranking the engine manually and looking through the spark plug holes, I could see the level of MMO go up or down as the stroke of the pistons would rise and fall. When I did it yesterday, I didn't see the level rise @ any time, which would mean that it was in fact making it past the rings.

I put the old plugs in and it smoked for about 30 mins and didn't seem like it was going to let up, so I waited until LATE last night to drive it on some open road to clear it out. It was smoking so much, it was like a dense fog that wouldn't lift. Literally like a smoke screen. After about 20 miles, it was all done. I got up this morning and changed the spark plugs before work (got it down to 30 mins now) and it rides appreciably smoother. That could be a combination of the new plugs and oil change, though.

It'll be interesting to see if the maintenance will cause the gas mileage to increase. I'm looking forward to seeing if the oil consumption decreases over the next 3k miles.

FWIW I use Pennzoil Ultra class synthetic because of its detergents. Price is about $25 per 5 qt jug at Wal-Mart, so less than Seafoam but maybe on par with Rotella. They appear to be more than just marketing smoke; from their website and the bottle itself:

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Pennzoil Ultra™ 0W-40 is the only motor oil trusted to be factory fill in every Chrysler® SRT8® HEMI® engine, and the new 2013 SRT® Viper®. And it's the exact same oil that Team Penske uses right-out-of-the-bottle in the IZOD IndyCar Series.

[Pennzoil Ultra Euro is] the only motor oil exclusively recommended by Ferrari North America.

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Isn't it kind of dangerous putting liquid into cylinders? I don't know how much clearance there is between the top of the piston and the cylinder head, but if you have too much incompressible liquid, something has to give.

I have been running non synthetic Rotella in all my vehicles for over 10 years now. Honda Goldwing, Volvo VNL 770 with the Volvo 465 D12, my 1999 VX and my 2013 Yamaha FJR 1300. The VX might use a quart in 3000 miles.

Rod

It is dangerous if you put too much in and crank it over with the spark plugs installed.

Couple of squirts in each cylinder, wait and then first crank over with the spark plugs still out, and you are fine.

PK

Quote:

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Originally Posted by PK

It is dangerous if you put too much in and crank it over with the spark plugs installed.

Couple of squirts in each cylinder, wait and then first crank over with the spark plugs still out, and you are fine.

PK

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+1. I stuck shop towels over the holes for a few cranks to get out anything that might still be sitting. Afterwards, I stuck the old plugs back to smoke everything out.

So its been more than 6 months since the last post. Where is everyone at now with their oil consumption after making a change to Rotella? Or after the MMO trick?

I'm just curious as I seem to have to add anywhere from a 1/4 to 1/2 a qt everyday. I drive highway to/from work for a round drop of 50 miles and the speeds are average around 65-70, I do my best to keep the rpms under 2500, but sometimes you have to pass people lol. It's rather annoying as everyone knows. I love the VX, but I'm getting to the point of do I put $20 in the gas tank or $10 in the tank and $10 in oil? lol.

Haven't done the Rotella but I do use Lucas motor treatment it is thicker and slows usage. However I am more around a quart every 1000 miles you definatley have an issue above and beyond the heavy oil use.

You can also try to replace your PCV with an oil catch can. Opinions are varied on it's effectiveness but I've been running one on the Amigo for a year now and seem to burn less oil.

It's weird. When I first bought mine i only had to add about a 1/4 every fill up so... 250 miles. I've owned it for a just a little over a year and has progressively gotten worse. To the point of I almost want to get rid of it. randomly though it won't use any. Such as I checked it monday and had to add a 1/2qt. Then it went down about a 1/4 from the full like on the dip stick (didn't add any oil) and it stayed there the next two days, then thursday I had to add a 1/3 of a qt and then 1/4qt this morning. My driving distance or style didn't change at all though. I'd love to take a road trip in it, but scared to lol. Now if I could put in an oil level sensor in the pan and then a fill tube in the glove box so I can fill it while driving... I'd be okay lol.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by GAMEON

It's weird. When I first bought mine i only had to add about a 1/4 every fill up so... 250 miles. I've owned it for a just a little over a year and has progressively gotten worse. To the point of I almost want to get rid of it. randomly though it won't use any. Such as I checked it monday and had to add a 1/2qt. Then it went down about a 1/4 from the full like on the dip stick (didn't add any oil) and it stayed there the next two days, then thursday I had to add a 1/3 of a qt and then 1/4qt this morning. My driving distance or style didn't change at all though. I'd love to take a road trip in it, but scared to lol. Now if I could put in an oil level sensor in the pan and then a fill tube in the glove box so I can fill it while driving... I'd be okay lol.

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Find and fix the leak this is way more than the typical oil burning.

There is no leak. I have checked under the vehicle, valve covers, oil pan and everywhere else for any signs of leakage. there is none.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by GAMEON

There is no leak. I have checked under the vehicle, valve covers, oil pan and everywhere else for any signs of leakage. there is none.

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But there are places it could leak that you can't see. A pressure test is the only way to be sure. That oil has to be going some where I do not think it could even burn off that quick. But hey just giving my opinion.

It's not in the coolant. I would think by now that if it's hiding somewhere in the engine it would be leaking out somewhere by now or there would be a hole in my block lol. The undercarriage is clean from any and all oils also. I just purchased some products from BG Products to put in the oil. Gonna try it next week and see what happens.

Just saw this thread. I'll chime in that I swear by Rotella-T full synthetic. I use it on my Mitsubishi GTO & I'll be using it on my Vehicross. If you have oil burning problems that seem to get WORSE with Rotella, that's probably because your engine needs major work. Rotella has SUBSTANTIALLY more cleaning agents than conventional "gasoline engine" oil--because of federal regulations that limit the detergents in "gasoline engine" oil. In reality, a 10w30 is a 10w30 regardless of what engine it goes in. Those higher amounts of detergents in Rotella-T full synthetic are going to clean out a lot more gunk between changes than other non-diesel oils.

Part of the problem is that on older engines, there is already more gunk inside the engine, and the detergents may be entirely used up in the first 1,000 miles of an oil change interval--meaning that for the remainder of the time, you're just adding MORE gunk back into the engine. This is even worse when you use conventional oil instead of FULL synthetic...because full synthetic is much more homogenous & much less prone to sheering forces, etc (and complex engine physics that would probably bore you to tears). I change my oil usually every 3-5,000 miles with Rotella-T and I never seem to have any problems as a result. Same reason why I completely flush my transmission fluid every 15,000 miles--also with full synthetic. (My trans fluid looks nearly new when it's being purged).

Not even the best oil filter in the world will save you from the negative effects of using a crappy motor oil.

/ my $.02