Synthetic oil: facts, fiction, myths & BS

[jamz]

I found this article on my computer as I was searching for a file. Thought I would go ahead and post it!

Synthetic oil: facts, fiction, myths & BS

1) Is synthetic oil:
a) any good
b) worth the money
c) really any better

2) Will synthetic oil:
a) cause my engine to leak
b) make it impossible to return to conventional oil
c) hurt my older/higher mileage car

3) What *see below* of synthetic is the best
a) weight
b) brand
c) full or semi synthetic

After what seems like several years of reading technical, and proprietary BS from several different manufacturers of synthetic oils and experimenting on my own cars, these are the 'fun facts' I came up with, in no particular order except when I remember them to write them down.

OK, first with the basics. Conventional oil is made in nature, and is refined by man. Once refined into a useable product, with the proper additive packages etc. it is sold as engine lubricant. All well and good. BUT, conventional oil, like all things are made of molecules. The molecules in conventional oil vary widely in size from very small to very large, and hive HIGH concentrations of paraffin or more simply, wax. As it sits on the shelf, this is not a problem, but once it is subjected to heat, pressure and friction; things start to happen. As the level of heat rises in the engine, the first molecules to be affected are the smallest ones. They can only withstand (absorb) a certain level of heat before they evaporate or burn off (this is one of the "where the hell did my oil go" things). The next to be affected are the midsize molecules. They absorb the heat, and do what they are supposed to do, form a film between the engine's moving parts. The last to be affected are the large molecules. The only problem is that they are too big, and don't fully 'melt' or 'convert' into a full liquid form. They stay semi solid (relatively speaking) and kind of 'gummy.' These are the particles that stick to things and aren't removed during an oil change, as a result, being 'sticky,' they grab onto more molecules like themselves AND combustion by-products. Repeated cycles of this create a 'stew' of burnt oil residue, grit, and acidic particles (sludge). Why is sludge bad? For starters, as it builds up, it can narrow and eventually clog oil passageways, leading to oil starvation in certain areas of the motor. They also block the parts they are coating from the fresh lubrication oil in the system, too after time, any properties they had as oil are burned off, leaving behind a gooey, abrasive mess that is also HIGHLY acidic. This 'acid paste' eats and corrodes gaskets and metal parts increasing tolerances which can make moving parts have a 'sloppy fit.' Now that these parts are moving around in directions they were never meant to, wear increases dramatically. Usually the first indication that anything is 'wrong,' are the leaking gaskets, since they are the 'weakest link' in the chain.

Here comes the first myth: "You can't use Synthetic oil in an older/high mileage motor, it will cause leaks etc."

Send up the BS flag. Synthetic oil DOES NOT CAUSE leaks, it DOES expose leaks already there. Remember how I said that the acidic paste will eat the gaskets out of your car? Well to a point, they will also partially SEAL the leaks by their very nature of being a sludge. Synthetic oils have some awesome cleaning additives in them, and they make quick work of sludge build up. So after time, what you have is a few pieces of old gasket, AND hardened sludge forming an imperfect seal between the two engine parts. When you introduce a synthetic oil, with it’s superior cleaners into the engine, it actually cleans out the ‘sealing’ sludge and the loose gasket pieces that were being held in place and EXPOSES the leak. The leak was already there, the synthetic didn’t cause it, it merely exposed it.

Another myth, along the same lines: “After I switched to synthetic, my engine started ticking (making other noises)”

Remember the part I said about the high acid concentration in the sludge eating away at the actual metal of the engine parts and increasing tolerances? Well this is it. With the sludge/varnish cleaned away by the synthetic, the worn parts are now ‘free to move’ in their areas, and what you hear is the now loose parts rattling against each other.

In keeping with this same scenario, you might hear “Synthetic oil made no difference at all” In some cases that might actually be true. In a severe case, the FIRST fill of synthetic may have actually overloaded itself with all the gunk accumulated inside the motor, and can no longer function as it was designed. PLUS (and I’VE had this happen) CLOGGED THE FILTER with all the crud. Picture taking a fresh quart of $50/qt Liquid Platinum Ultra Synthetic Oil (no such thing, just making a point), mixing it with a second quart of road tar, then putting it in your engine…You’re not accomplishing much and MAY be hurting your motor. Moral of the story? If in doubt, FLUSH the motor first and plan on changing the oil again earlier than you normally would to make sure that you get as much of the junk out of the motor as fast as possible. You may even want to change the filter every 1,000 miles between the first few oil changes and topping off the oil at those times, just to be sure of getting all the gunk out.

[jeremy96gase]

Good read, but where is the rest? Could you link us to the site you found this on?

[jamz]

Well, this was actually an article on my PC. I'm digging around for the rest. This is from the old Grand AM Power days :)

[ROKTMAN]

Pretty interesting article.Didn`t know that stuff.

[jeremy96gase]

I've read a lot of the stuff that Bob the oil guy wrote, but the writing style is a little differant.
http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/

[Videoman]

In the long run, synthetic is best. It may cost more but just like a well taken care of ride, it's something you can rely on. Good thread.

[CarPimp]

Wonderful article, if you have more, please post them. Thanks.


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