Fuel/oil additives, yes or no? Do any really work?
No oil additives. In any cars or trucks. I added 'heat' to the gas in my 400I for good measure and I had more fuel issues soon after. Were they related to the 'Heat' I do not know, but I did have to change all my injecters and a fuel pump soon after. I belive in fresh gas and clean oil. Maybe fuel stabilzers are good for cars that sit. Be careful.
I've used two fuel additives that worked well. 3M injector cleaner and AMSOIL PI. The rest of them are just airplane fuel and really don't do much to clean your injectors. I usually use two bottles in half a tank. The AMSOIL PI seems the better of the two. I would stay away from wetting agents in the cooling system. I've found that they increase the chance of internal corrosion. Never use any oil additive ever. Engine oil is either good or not. Oil should be homogeneous. So much so, that when you change from say a synth to a non-synth you should use a flush agent.
Mark All oil manufacturers add additives! It is not a single component to begin with. They call it their 'additive package'. Some are better than others. Also, many "synthetics " are blends of synthetic and petroleum oil that has been refined. Mobil 1 was originally 100% poly-alpha-olefin (except for the couple percent additives), but they have changed their formula away from 100% PAO. I am using RedLine 15-50 in my 400i; I started with 10-40 but the front seal was leaking and the slight heavier weight slowed it considerably (plus driving the car regularly. I don;t add anything else. Ken PE, Chemical Engineer
By homogeneous, I meant as it came out of the can. My point is Ken, that an oil manufacture might be just a little more qualified to choose which and the quantity of an appropriate additive in the production process. That is unless the Chemical Engineer in their lab has reduced his effort to what equates to standing in the local auto parts store and picking an additive based upon the attractiveness of the label on the container. Maybe I'm just over estimating the capabilities of Chemical Engineers in the petroleum industry. As for the RedLine, I used their synth for around 3 months (just before the tear down). I found that I lost oil pressure when the motor was hot. Which blend do you use and do you see the same thing?
Mark I'm using 15W50 now. The highest oil temp I have seen was 105C and oil pressure is never less than 6 bar; I sometimes see over 8 barg during heat-up, I think it is when the cooler kicks in. I started with 10W40 and oil pressure was the same, but I had more leakage at the front main seal. As for oil formulations, sometimes the accountants overrule the chemical engineers; spoken from experience! Ken
Wow Ken, my pressure would be at 6 bar when cold but as soon as it got hot the pressure would drop to around 1 bar. This is at idle. The pressure would increase to 6 bar at around 5000 rpm. I just looked at a spare can of the oil I was using and it wasn't RedLine. It was Amsoil ARO 20W50. Could there be that much difference in the oil or should I be looking for a problem in my engine?
Mark I never see less than 3 bar at idle even when hot. Once it dropped to about 2 going up a very steep driveway at low speed. I was worried for a minute, but it came right back. It is not your oil. The numbers you see are in the normal range per the manual. Yours are on the low side and mine on the high side. You might be getting some bypass on the relief valve if there is on in the system. Bruce The 8 bar is transitory for about 5 minutes and only if I get up to speed while water is up to temp. and oil is just coming onto the gauge. I haven't blown a Baldwin filter apart yet! They are truck filters and tough. Ken
Borates work unequivacably and are not present in most oils. these compounds soak into metal at a microscopic level and are considered part of nano lubrication technology. These products do not change your oil chemically and are an engine treatment and do not bolster the perfomance of your oil per say. Products are Z-max, "Avblend" the only oil and fuel additive approved by the FFA for piston aircraft. Another compound that differs from borates and instead is a hydrated Boron compound is called Motor-silk and is very good. Again these compounds do not change the chemical structure of oil but do alter and protect metal surfaces particularly Iron and steel.
Mark & Ken, it appears you have some significant swings on pressure whereas my pressure readings are always around 6 Bar (+/- a peg or 2) from start-up to 100 C. oil temp. & subsequent hi-rev stints (4-6K). Early in the manual, normal range of 64-92.5 PSI (4.4-6.4 Bar) is given, deeper in the man. normal range of 71-85 PSI (4.9-5.85 Bar) is described. Should I be concern?? Bruce edit: How low can low be to still be considered normal?
