Originally Posted By: Jim Allen
I am really surprised at how quickly the TBN dropped but it may hold at 2.5 for a long while. How is the vehicle driven? Is it a short hopper?
I agree with your conclusions about the orifice given it's parallel flow. I had forgotten that's how you set yours up. Parallel flow is very slow acting versus bypass and, as you know (bit others may not), it works via DP at the primary filter to shunt oil over to the secondary. Having talked at length to the Pareto Point people (MagDog parallel system), I know what a delicate balance it can be to achieve parallel flow.
Have you, or how have you, verified that you are getting flow thru the secondary filter? If you aren't, or it's very low, along with the driving situation that could account for the dropping TBN. Again, I suggest you have a particle count (optical) done. That is one way you could verify that the secondary filter is in the look and doing some work.
I've felt the filters and used a thermal gun to check temperature. I can feel the bypass filter can pulsing with the oil pump, just the same as I can with the full-flow. The bypass filter heats up quickly, base to dome, and is just a few degrees cooler than the full-flow.
It is a hybrid, so the engine shuts off regularly and is often off for several minutes at a time. My coolant temperature is usually in the 160-170 range, and the highest temperature I have measured on the outside of the oil filters is around 175 degrees.
The first half of this OCI was during winter, during which there were quite a few short trips made. I currently live about 6 miles from work, through town, so it doesn't really get a chance to stay at temperature. There may also be some fuel dilution issues, simply due to it being a hybrid and the engine starting and stopping frequently. Fuel dilution can lead to increased oxidation, which would deplete the TBN. The UOA that showed a 100C viscosity of 8.4 cSt was done after a good long road trip. Many of the additive levels appeared to also be slightly higher in that one, which could account for the previous ones containing some fuel. I have also been using a bottle of Red Line SI-1 fuel system cleaner just after each UOA, which could potentially be having a negative impact on the detergent pack due to ingress via fuel dilution.
But then again, this is Pennzoil Ultra SN 5w-20, which is new enough that we don't really have a baseline to determine TBN retention of this product.
The oil is significantly more clear in appearance on the dipstick; even with 8,200 miles on it; than any of the previous non-bypass OCI's with less than half of the miles/time.