1983 300TD, Rotella T Synth, 4,161 miles

[Ler]

code:

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Miles On Unit 184411 188572

Miles On Oil 4620 4161

Sample Date 3/13/2004 8/8/2004

Oil Type Pennzoil 20w-50 Rotella T 5w-40



Al 3 2

Cr 1 1

Fe 37 29

Cu 2 3

Pb 1 1

Sn 1 0

Mo 52 16

Ni 3 2

Mn 1 1

Ag 0 0

Ti 0 0

K 11 11

B 83 19

Si 5 4

Na 3 2

Ca 1966 3322

Mg 74 26

P 732 959

Zn 911 1185

Ba 1 1



SUS 210°F 79.1 78.8

Flashpoint 470 430

Fuel
Antifreeze 0.0 0.0

Water 0.0 0.0

Insolubles 0.5 0.4

TBN 5.2 N/A

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Blackstone comments:
Wear generally improved a little in the second sample from this engine. You dropped about 460 miles off your oil use and we think this is the main reason wear was lower. The oil's viscosity was high for a 5W/40 oil. If you are using an oil additive, this may be the cause, else it could be from the high soot levels we found. Soot often points to a combustion problem, but since upper-end wear (aluminum, chrome, and iron) was normal and no fuel was present, we really doubt it's anything to worry about. Try 5,000 miles on the next oil. We'll watch soot.

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I did this mostly to see the difference between a CI-4 rated oil vs. SL oil. Yeah, the viscosity was different, seasonal temperatures change, etc... My concern with the soot is that it may be indicative of blow-by, possibly gunked rings? I'm currently running Auto-RX with Delvac 1300S out to 3,000 mi, rinse phase for 3,000 mi, then I'll probably perform another UOA to see if the Auto-RX cleaning made a difference.

 

[toyvwbenz]

How is your oil consumption compared to the 20W-50?

 

[toyvwbenz]

I ask because I had about 3X the consumption with group III Duron 5W-40 vs. group II Pennzoil 15W-40.

I heard that MB sent out a TSB years ago recommendng only filling to half way between the high and low marks. I keep the level about 1/8 inch above the low mark on the stick.

I think your OCI is perfect for this vehicle. 4-5K miles keeps you out of trouble with the soot.

 

[Ler]

Didn't really notice a difference. I've heard this engine burns off oil faster the closer you keep the oil level to the max. When I do a change, I fill to the max- it drops to about 1/3 above min by about 2,500 miles, I top off, and it's back to 1/3 above min when I change at 5,000 miles.

 

[JHZR2]

20w-50 isnt the right oil for a 617.952 oil... make sure to use a HDEO, and be sure that your UOAs measure soot. 22-29ppm of Fe over 4500 or so miles is about right. Should be about 0.5-1% soot, depending upon fuel quality and additives used (rotella dfa works well and got me about .7mpg more on average).

Daimler benz did studies that showed substantially higher wear rates when soot got above 2%, make sure it doesnt get there. Delvac 1300s, delvac 1 5w-40 are great oils for this engine. From my experience, I got my average MPG up from ~27.5 to ~29 going from 1300s to a 50/50 mix of 1300s/delvac 1. No significant mpg increase from going to 100% delvac 1, but a bit more soot carrying capacity and a synthetic for piece of mind.

If you use HDEOs, you dont really have a need for auto-rx. Dropped my oil pan at about 206k to do the turbo drain gaskets, and the pan was perfectly clean; no sludge, goop or anything in there!

JMH

 

[JHZR2]

the fast consumption above 1/2 mark was more typical of the 240d engines... Teh oil would make its way out of the main seals and get burned, etc. 300s didnt have so much of an issue, but with the 8qt sump, I wouldnt worry about going 1/2 quate low, youll be fine.

JMH