Questions on Redline

[nucleardawg]

So I have been going through many many posts on Redline oil. Two questions remain as these are brought up continually in these posts. (1) Redline oil can harm the cats because of the elevated leels of ZDDP. (2) The esters used could potentially damage seals or cause the seals to leak.

My own take on this if you have a oil burner I could see the ZDDP damaging the cats though I am sure just the oil burning would also cause this. If these seals are already contaminated the cleaning done by the esters would uncover this exsisting problem.

I have used 10w-30 Mobil 1EP and I assume my engine is pretty clean. Does the cleaning ability of the esters in Redline and the PAO in Mobil 1 compare? Is one better then the other when it comes to cleaning?

The Redline is noted for its ability to withstand heat. In the winter with colder temps and possibly shorter trips would moisture in the oil be something that could occur more so then another oil. Sorry for the multiple questions.

 

[dsmith41]

Redline is a great oil and it will do just fine in your vehicle. It will not hurt your cat if your car doesn't burn oil and I don't think excess moisture would be problem. It will be no different than Mobil 1 in that regard.

Now for my opinion. There will be no measurable difference with Redline vs. Mobil 1 EP. The only difference is in the price. Redline is way overkill for most daily driver applications.

 

[il_signore97]

To answer some of your questions:

Moisture accumulation will occur regardless of oil used. No oil can get around moisture/fuel accumulation as a result of very short trip driving. It will not be better or worse with Redline. The only difference is the oil's ability to work well in an environment containing moisture - that is the only potential difference between brands, and has to do mostly with additives I would assume.

Redline is typically praised for its cleaning ability due to the solvency of POE's, but I have no first hand experience with this. My engines are always spotless as seen through the fill hole running any high end synthetic (little to no cleaning occurs in my engine). The metal still looks shiny and brand new - not even a layer of varnish, and mine's been on Amsoil (PAO) for virtually its entire life.

I do believe the latest versions of Redline have less ZDDP than previous versions (as they do claim to be API SM compliant, although not certified). Someone correct me if I'm wrong... But in any case, if your car doesn't use a significant amount of oil, no worries running any higher ZDDP oil.

 

[GMorg]

My concern has always been seal swell and softening. I have the same issue with high mileage oils. If a seal swells and softens, then it could wear under the new pressure. As long as you stay with the seal swelling oil then you are probably fine. However, if you switch back to an oil that returns the seal to its original properties, then it may begin to leak as it shrinks or hardens.

I have no evidence that this actually happens, but I don't use high mileage oils for this reason - and I am not typically a worrier.

 

[bepperb]

I've never seen pics of an engine torn down after using RedLine for 200,000 miles. I assume it would be very clean.

There are tons of pics of engines running M1 for their lives, or for a short time, and it's cleaning ability is second to nothing.

I agree with your points about zddp not being as much an issue on non-oil burning engines, and I don't think esters are causing seal failures/leakage as they were 20 years ago.