Originally Posted By: k24a4
Correct, the 0w-20 was full synthetic.
Because the head is Aluminum I was assuming, perhaps incorrectly, that valves out of lash might contribute to higher Al levels. That said, Al falls within the normal range and I am not that concerned. FWIW, Mikeysoft tested the FF on his '13 Accord using (3) labs, his Al was (20) using Cat and Als (wix), (7) with Blackstone. Mikeysoft
FF UOA My first UOA on this car was through Blackstone, with Al at (2)so it could be a lab thing.
First UOA
I'm more concerned that the high Al levels in my Civic constitute piston wear or bearing wear (modern bearings are soft AL, not Pb). I don't think lash is a likely cause, though I could be wrong. My car makes no valve noise, and that's the criteria in the manual for adjusting the lash early. I've only got 50k on my car.
I saw Mikeysoft's UOAs and that has prompted me to send my latest sample to two labs. I've got the OAI/Polaris one back now, and I expect Blackstone by this afternoon. I'll post them when the Blackstone report comes in. We'll see how different the Al levels are, the OAI report shows ~20ppm, just like the previous two.
Quote:
My confidence that the engine will outlast the body shall not be breached by a few ppm of Aluminum.
Forgot to add in the original post that the current fill is PP SM 5w-20, no moly additive.
LOL indeed, I repeat that to myself every time I see a UOA on the car. I'll be interested to see how the PP does.
I actually sent my two samples in early, just as the OLM hit 10% and I'm basing my next fill on the results. Given the high Al in the OAI sample, I'm going to use M1 AFE 0w30 for my next fill instead of M1 AFE 0w20. I figure increasing the viscosity but maintaining the same additives should be a good test to see if higher viscosity can help.