I think GTX is [censored]

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Who else has had bad experiences with castrol gtx? I always hated it in my truck. Got dark after 1200 miles and thats what previous owner(father) always used @3-4K ocis, so cleaning gunk wasn't the case. I just have a bad perception about it. Who else ?
 
Not me. GTX is a fine oil and has served me well.

I can't see how you can judge an oil's performance because it looks dark.
 
The color of an oil has absolutely nothing to do with how good it is or how long it has left. If that is your reason for disliking it your reason is baseless.

Doesn't mean you don't have the right to feel that way( you do )but it is a flawed view. Unless you have a UOA showing the oil is dead/causing excessive wear at 1200 miles, or the engine is banging way or something, you are off base( not meant nasty ),

GTX is as good as any other conventional name brand oil with the same cert's. I have used it for many years( decades actually )when running regular conventional oil and always found it to be a good oil.
 
Originally Posted By: D189379
I think if they could separate all of the posts on this entire site by fact or opinion, there would only be a page or two of fact posts.



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My Burb liked GTX HM. It stopped a RMS leak that Valvoline NextGen MaxLife promptly reintroduced. The GTX HM was also nice and quiet.

Also, I had a 1996 Nissan Sentra that was run for many good miles on GTX conventional for years. I knew nothing about oil at that time, but I never had any problems with the engine internals in the nearly 8 years (and maybe 160k miles - too long ago to remember) my family owned the car.
 
I feel more-or-less neutral about Castrol. Never had any problems with their oil, I just don't like the fact that they don't give out much real info about their oils. I would use it without hesitation if it were on sale at a good price.
 
I used it for several 5k OCIs in my Explorer V8 and when they took the heads off to replace gaskets at about 50k miles they commented on how clean it looked.
 
Its posts like this that are turning long term knowledgeable users away from this site. Theres no more factual posts anymore, its all opinions and arguments. I miss how BITOG was when I first registered.
 
GTX in my opinion is an average oil. There are several other conventional oils available that have better additive packs. PYB and QSGB are two examples. Both have superior cleaning abilities due to having a larger dose of calcium. Don't forget the higher doses of moly. You can settle for average or get excellence. PYB and QSGB offer more bang for the buck.
 
Originally Posted By: volk06
Its posts like this that are turning long term knowledgeable users away from this site. Theres no more factual posts anymore, its all opinions and arguments. I miss how BITOG was when I first registered.


That and the PCMO section is the new "General" forum. I know the search function kinda sucks, but having all that unrelated info in one forum doesn't help.


Opps, I think we're going off topic
lol.gif
 
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I`ve been using GTX/Syntec Blend/Syntec ever since I started driving in the early 80s. Still using it to this day.
 
The colour will indicate that material is being suspended in the oil, some of that may be oxidized and converted basestock and vii some will be wear particulate and combustion products. True synthetic should have less oxidized and converted stock so there is a smidgen of truth to what the OP worries about. I find the VSP shows less rapid colour change and less toasted-on varnish seen down the fill hole and on the VVT mechanism housing which are plainly visible, compared to other premium oils i've used the past few years.
Summarising: qualitatively speaking if the oil gets dark AND there is little varnish and the engine power balance and efficiency remain good, the oil should be a quality serviceable oil.
You can legitimately add these observations to your quantitative database.
Your GTX (sample) purportedly meets ILSAC spec. Who knows how across lot to lot that quality is maintained.
 
Originally Posted By: volk06
Its posts like this that are turning long term knowledgeable users away from this site. Theres no more factual posts anymore, its all opinions and arguments. I miss how BITOG was when I first registered.


Sometimes it takes baseless posts such as this to educate those that aren't in the know. I'm not baseless but I'm sure a loooong way from knowing what so many on this board know. There is much to be learned from an accurate response. Lots of lurkers afraid to post or ask.
 
Originally Posted By: Zaedock
Originally Posted By: volk06
Its posts like this that are turning long term knowledgeable users away from this site. Theres no more factual posts anymore, its all opinions and arguments. I miss how BITOG was when I first registered.


That and the PCMO section is the new "General" forum. I know the search function kinda sucks, but having all that unrelated info in one forum doesn't help.



Opps, I think we're going off topic
lol.gif






We may see more quantitative analysis in the racing section where there will be more engine teardown and tangible wear measurements. You wont see that in PCMO - only infrequently and spotty which will have no statistical validity. Don't see that changing. And UOA are limited. unless someone is analyzing trapped filter metallic particulate along with the chemical conversion wear shown on the UOA. A "BAD" uoa may actually be a lube which prevents less severe wear or catastrophic failure - especially in a racing high loading scenario.
 
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Originally Posted By: NHHEMI
The color of an oil has absolutely nothing to do with how good it is or how long it has left. If that is your reason for disliking it your reason is baseless.

Doesn't mean you don't have the right to feel that way( you do )but it is a flawed view. Unless you have a UOA showing the oil is dead/causing excessive wear at 1200 miles, or the engine is banging way or something, you are off base( not meant nasty ),

GTX is as good as any other conventional name brand oil with the same cert's. I have used it for many years( decades actually )when running regular conventional oil and always found it to be a good oil.
+1

Oil color does not indicate quality of the oil. In fact, it can be a good thing that an oil changes color quickly - that indicates that the oil is trapping contaminants and keeping them suspended. That is what you want oil to do.
 
Originally Posted By: The_Captain
GTX in my opinion is an average oil. There are several other conventional oils available that have better additive packs. PYB and QSGB are two examples. Both have superior cleaning abilities due to having a larger dose of calcium. Don't forget the higher doses of moly. You can settle for average or get excellence. PYB and QSGB offer more bang for the buck.


Unfortunately a $25 UOA does not indicate if one oil has a better add pack than another. If it meets the required specs for a certain vehicle I would run it without hesitation.
 
Originally Posted By: volk06
Its posts like this that are turning long term knowledgeable users away from this site. Theres no more factual posts anymore, its all opinions and arguments. I miss how BITOG was when I first registered.
tell me about it. I only come back to check for deals
 
Originally Posted By: NightRiderQ45
Originally Posted By: volk06
Its posts like this that are turning long term knowledgeable users away from this site. Theres no more factual posts anymore, its all opinions and arguments. I miss how BITOG was when I first registered.
tell me about it. I only come back to check for deals


Well, everyone has to learn at some point. If they don't ask how will they ever learn? Not every BITOG member has the knowledge all others do. The OP feels the oil getting dark at 1200 miles means something bad. It may or may not.

Instead of posting that he is an idiot and ruining the site take a minute and explain what it really means then he will know. I would say those who won't help a new member out with a question and just complain about the good old days may be more of a problem then those they complain about.

Also, where are the opinions and arguments in this thread, in the responses, that have people offended? I simply see folks answering the question. Not sure how anyone can answer differently than myself and others have?
 
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Originally Posted By: Brent_G
Originally Posted By: The_Captain
GTX in my opinion is an average oil. There are several other conventional oils available that have better additive packs. PYB and QSGB are two examples. Both have superior cleaning abilities due to having a larger dose of calcium. Don't forget the higher doses of moly. You can settle for average or get excellence. PYB and QSGB offer more bang for the buck.


Unfortunately a $25 UOA does not indicate if one oil has a better add pack than another. If it meets the required specs for a certain vehicle I would run it without hesitation.


Well for $25 you do get to see the basic additive pack. Calcium, moly, boron, etc. Granted there are a lot of other substances that do not show up in a basic oil analysis such as the compounds that make up the base stock and other stuff they may claim as proprietary. $25 does give you a general idea what standard additives a company add to it's oil. Read my post again, I never said GTX was a bad oil only that there are other choices that offer more bang for your buck. The UOAs will back up that statement.
 
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