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I can confirm the MC cartridge filter for the 2.3 since the added center tube support exhibits almost no twist/crush after a 5k run. I had a PureONE that did distort, but even that one held up acceptably. The Motorcraft is by far the best value and I highly recommend it. Remember: the filter cap...

1. Shell Rotella T Synthetic 5w40 2. Havoline 5w30 (pre-DS) I haven't run Maxlife long enough to be certain, but its worked well so far. What was more surprising as what did burn more. The old Mobil 5w30 dino, Mobil-1 (all weights), all seemed to burn 2x more than the Shell and Havoline (1qt/3k...

Looks good to me. A little rust on the hex, some normal deposits, all the insulator/electrode/mixture colors are normal. Full throttle cuts are only to check conditions at full throttle, mostly applicable to racing engines. If it were my engine, I'd inspect a little closer on the wear and other...

I've had my '95 SL1 from about 45k to now about 104k. Oil weight had no difference in oil consumption. Yes, you heard that right, no difference. Oil brands do make a difference. I liked to run Havoline 5w30 until recently, when I made a switch to MaxLife. I've used Rotella T Synthetic 5w40 in...

I'm a big believer that driving hard every now and then is good for the equipment. Break-in, just drive normally for 500mi or so, then give her the beans! A couple hard, full power shifts will do to get some heat in the clutch, clean it up, and take off any glaze if there's any. And like most...

I would like to know how the EPA does the shift schedule on a manual. There's less drivetrain loss, so it seems to me that at low speeds to get the same acceleration out of a manual, you need slightly less energy to do so. My own mpg on my 6 is stellar, the same or better than my Saturn with an...

Running a lean engine can only increase combustion temperature to a point, eventually you will run 'lean of peak' and temps decline. Maximum power is made with a richer mixture than you would get at peak cylinder temps, therefore, it takes a significant leaning to get the engine to operate below...

The zig-zag pattern is kinda nice once you get used to it. No button to press, just hold the brake and shift. However, Toyota decided to have '3' to the left of 'D', so that when you shift from 'R' to 'D' and a back and left angle, you often end up in '3'. Of course, I've seen people drive off...

Excellent report. BA was operating the 777 within normal limits and yet somehow formed ice in the fuel system. The fuel system icing inhibitor mentioned would likely be the best interim solution. Since I deal with small turbine aircraft, they all require it, known by its trademark Prist...

I did a little searching. Its an ACAC ARJ21. General Electric will provide the engines (CF34-10A) and Rockwell-Collins the avionics (Pro Line 21). Those are modern systems, but not groundbreaking in any way. The CF34-10 series engines are used on the Embraer E-series, and Pro Line 21 avionics...

If you owned a 2.3L MZR you'd know it doesn't have much low-end power, and its awful if you have an auto trans. The reviews of the 2.5 suggest its taken care of that. And yes, 5w20 all around!

I used 3in1 on an older, cheap department store bike for a couple thousand miles with no ill effects over 10 years. Now that I have a nicer bike (an entry level bike shop hybrid), i was looking into this very issue. It appears 3in1 is a fine lubricant, not the top of the line, but has good...

If China can build a jet that meets FAA standards, I'll fly it. They likely won't be able to make it competitive with the likely MD-80/DC-9 replacements (737, A-320, E-190/195, Bombardier C-series) without some serious cost cutting, so it can only come from antiquated engines and avionics.

I'm finding the synthetic/dino debate moot on a street car as long as the oil is changed before its used up. Wear is more a function of driving style and trips. Modern engines and oils are much improved from 10 years ago. Seeing an engine with spotless internals and great UOAs running on dino...

Most mornings I'd start to move as soon as the idle starts to settle. The few where the car gets to warm up a little is when I have to brush snow or ice off of it. Either way, limiting RPM and acceleration til temps start coming up on the coolant temp gauge is good practice, though sometimes you...

These modern engines spec'd for 5w-20 seem to run good with a wide variety of oils. The benefits of full synthetic seem only to be seen by those who see the limits of high/low oil temps, extended changes, etc on a regular basis. For everything else, I see no evidence that an SM dino or semi-syn...

I replaced the fluid on my Mazda this spring with a Mityvac. Use petroleum jelly around the bleeder screws, works great. However, I'll need to convert the garden sprayer I have to apply pressure to the master reservoir for the clutch. Mityvac + vasoline did not work there! Why on such a new...

If you would have seen the oil coming out of my cars last week, you'd have thought I was abusing them. In 5.5 months one did about 1500 miles, the other 3800. Both looked as dark as you could get without calling it jet black. I would put my faith in an oil minder over my sixth sense. Absent of...

Its been over a year since I've flown a piston-engined aircraft professionally (or for pleasure for that matter!). I learned a couple things about those engines: -Oil is cheap, even FBO's that jack up AeroShell to $7/qt (I would go through a case between oil changes on a PA-23F Aztec) -Keep the...

The SL1 has been a fairly noisy motor. Fresh oil changes do seem to help, but I've noticed small changes between brands (not enough where I can rule out psychological). With that in mind, I'll say Maxlife so far seems to have an improvement over Havoline, similar to how Rotella T synthetic did...