Restore Experiment

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: Phishin
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
It is possible it thinned the oil slightly? I honestly can't tell you what effect it had on the OP when I used it, it was a long time ago and the car had an idiot light.


When I called RESTORE yesterday, technial support said that the carrier was virgin straight 50 weight oil. So, No....it didn't thin my Rotella 15w40.

Perhaps all the Copper, Silver, and Lead is plugging my filter slightly? That would cause a decrease in OP, right?


Anything is possible, are you using the same brand oil and filter as before? Any cold start noises after the car sat overnight? If not then as long as you have adequate oil pressure at hot operating temps I wouldn't be worried, especially if you get a slight pop in compression and reduced oil use. Keep us posted.

 

[Phishin]

Originally Posted By: demarpaint
are you using the same brand oil and filter as before? Any cold start noises after the car sat overnight?


My buddy changes my oil at his work. It was a VIOC, and in the past few weeks, it changed to a Jiffy Lube (Pennzoil oils). He does it for me for $10. VIOC used a generic looking white oil filter. Now Jiffy Lube has some black filter that has multi-colored label on it. I'll take a peak at it later today and report back.

So, there is a different filter now on the truck. So maybe that's why there is a change in the operational OP?? Is that possible? Maybe it has a weaker ADBV spring or something? Or the filter media is letting the oil go through the media easier?

As far as cold start noises.....this truck has always had them since I've purchased it. It's always had a rattle when I start it, that goes away in approx. 20 seconds....no matter what filter I use. Best filter I've put on this truck tho is a Purolator Classic. Might be piston slap...could a rod knock temporarily at start up? Also, when fully warmed up, if you park the truck running, it will develop a tick in a minute or two. Raise the RPM's (rev the motor) for a few seconds, and the tick disappears back at idle. Let it idle for another 2-3 minutes, tick comes back. I think it's a leaky lifter that "pumps up" when the OP rises.

 

[SteveSRT8]

^^^Exactly. Why don't the additive haters get that?

If you just want to keep it running and don't want to spend a lot an additive might just do something positive and you don't risk much at all.

 

[skyship]

Originally Posted By: Quest
Given the rate of oil consumption (in the form of burning) and suspect that cyl1 oil control rings are the culprit, I bet ya the oil control rings are so "stuck" that nothing can penetrate, cleanse and restore the function for the control rings anyways.

And those who put their faith into the use of things like AutoRx and even Kreen will definitely be disappointed.

*yeah, I've torn enough oil burning small Japanese engines to come to that conclusion*

Q.


True, but it is sometimes worth trying a fuel additive and a good blast down the highway. The spray in variety have much more effect than the tank additives, but if they don't help then the only solution is to take the head off and soak them overnight.
Stuck rings are very rare with modern engines, but can happen if the engine has not been run for a few years and oil additives are normally a waste of time as you need to get the solvents right onto the rings to stand any chance of them working.

 

[expat]

Originally Posted By: skyship
Originally Posted By: Quest
Given the rate of oil consumption (in the form of burning) and suspect that cyl1 oil control rings are the culprit, I bet ya the oil control rings are so "stuck" that nothing can penetrate, cleanse and restore the function for the control rings anyways.

And those who put their faith into the use of things like AutoRx and even Kreen will definitely be disappointed.

*yeah, I've torn enough oil burning small Japanese engines to come to that conclusion*

Q.


True, but it is sometimes worth trying a fuel additive and a good blast down the highway. The spray in variety have much more effect than the tank additives, but if they don't help then the only solution is to take the head off and soak them overnight.
Stuck rings are very rare with modern engines, but can happen if the engine has not been run for a few years and oil additives are normally a waste of time as you need to get the solvents right onto the rings to stand any chance of them working.


Why take the head off?
Inject something down the spark plug hole.
My choice would be MMO, and leave it overnight, then crank the engine (plug out) in the morning.
If required, repeat 2-3 times

 

[skyship]

Originally Posted By: expat
Originally Posted By: skyship
Originally Posted By: Quest
Given the rate of oil consumption (in the form of burning) and suspect that cyl1 oil control rings are the culprit, I bet ya the oil control rings are so "stuck" that nothing can penetrate, cleanse and restore the function for the control rings anyways.

And those who put their faith into the use of things like AutoRx and even Kreen will definitely be disappointed.

*yeah, I've torn enough oil burning small Japanese engines to come to that conclusion*

Q.


True, but it is sometimes worth trying a fuel additive and a good blast down the highway. The spray in variety have much more effect than the tank additives, but if they don't help then the only solution is to take the head off and soak them overnight.
Stuck rings are very rare with modern engines, but can happen if the engine has not been run for a few years and oil additives are normally a waste of time as you need to get the solvents right onto the rings to stand any chance of them working.


Why take the head off?
Inject something down the spark plug hole.
My choice would be MMO, and leave it overnight, then crank the engine (plug out) in the morning.
If required, repeat 2-3 times


Correct, if you have a petrol it is easy just put some solvent down the plug holes, for some silly reason I was thinking this was head gasket related because you can get stuck rings from head gasket failures.
If you pour solvents down the plug or injector holes use something that is not too bad if mixed with the oil because some of it will get past the rings. If it's a diesel change the injector O rings and any Copper washers etc.

 

[skyship]

This is a previous thread:
Restore thread.
The base oil is an SAE 30, so it's not an STP type thickner, it just glues some micro particles into cylinder scratches. Not sure how long such a treatment will last, probably not long.
It makes much more sense to switch to a major brand HM oil a grade thicker, because if the cylinders and rings are in bad shape you will be burning oil anyway.
If micro particles could restore old engines the major engine oil companies would have included them in an HM oil as it would be a big seller, but all the research so far has only demonstrated a temporary effect.

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: Phishin
Originally Posted By: demarpaint
are you using the same brand oil and filter as before? Any cold start noises after the car sat overnight?


My buddy changes my oil at his work. It was a VIOC, and in the past few weeks, it changed to a Jiffy Lube (Pennzoil oils). He does it for me for $10. VIOC used a generic looking white oil filter. Now Jiffy Lube has some black filter that has multi-colored label on it. I'll take a peak at it later today and report back.

So, there is a different filter now on the truck. So maybe that's why there is a change in the operational OP?? Is that possible? Maybe it has a weaker ADBV spring or something? Or the filter media is letting the oil go through the media easier?

As far as cold start noises.....this truck has always had them since I've purchased it. It's always had a rattle when I start it, that goes away in approx. 20 seconds....no matter what filter I use. Best filter I've put on this truck tho is a Purolator Classic. Might be piston slap...could a rod knock temporarily at start up? Also, when fully warmed up, if you park the truck running, it will develop a tick in a minute or two. Raise the RPM's (rev the motor) for a few seconds, and the tick disappears back at idle. Let it idle for another 2-3 minutes, tick comes back. I think it's a leaky lifter that "pumps up" when the OP rises.



It could very well be the filter. As I mentioned earlier if you have safe oil pressure at operating temps I wouldn't worry about it. In a case like this Restore has a purpose and might help stretch a few extra miles out of an old tired engine, and reduce consumption better than tossing a heavier or even thinner oil at it. What is wrong with that? Naturally the peanut gallery rushed in and dumped in the thread as usual, I was expecting that as well.

Nothing wrong with trying a piston soak either, you never know.

 

[TuBon_gRips]

Originally Posted By: skyship
you can get stuck rings from head gasket failures.


????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

 

[Phishin]

I have done 8-10 piston soaks on this truck.....using MMO, Kreen, acetone, and Techron. Nothing has helped. Perhaps I have a broken ring.

Truck ran flawless down to Indianapolis this morning. Burned a half quart.....about half what it typically does. Nice!!

And twice about 4 months ago I did two big water injections.....about a gallon each time. That got rid of engine ping. I also have 2 bottles of HM Regane in the 22 gallon tank at all times for the past 10k miles.

 

[friendly_jacek]

Originally Posted By: Phishin
I have done 8-10 piston soaks on this truck.....using MMO, Kreen, acetone, and Techron. Nothing has helped.


If you do piston soaks after there is severe consumption for a long time, nothing will help as rings will be worn out by then.

There are posts on saturn forums where people tore engines after unsuccessful piston soaks and saw clean rings that didn't work anymore (for oil control that is, compression rings are usually fine).

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: Phishin
I have done 8-10 piston soaks on this truck.....using MMO, Kreen, acetone, and Techron. Nothing has helped. Perhaps I have a broken ring.

Truck ran flawless down to Indianapolis this morning. Burned a half quart.....about half what it typically does. Nice!!

And twice about 4 months ago I did two big water injections.....about a gallon each time. That got rid of engine ping. I also have 2 bottles of HM Regane in the 22 gallon tank at all times for the past 10k miles.


It might just be time to open up the engine and have a look, a rebuild might be needed if you plan on keeping the vehicle.

 

[Phishin]

New crate motor. No rebuild. Too many horror stories.

New GM crate long block with 3 year warranty is $1600 delivered. No core charge. No brainer as far as I'm concerned.

 

[demarpaint]

Originally Posted By: Phishin
New crate motor. No rebuild. Too many horror stories.

New GM crate long block with 3 year warranty is $1600 delivered. No core charge. No brainer as far as I'm concerned.


I got ya! I thought you'd do your own rebuilt. If not the GM crate LB is the way to go! No brainer indeed!

 

[Phishin]

UPDATE:

It's been 480 miles since I've put RESTORE in my oil. I actually put 2 cans of the 6-cylinder cans in.....which is 1 quart of material with a fresh OC of Rotella 15w40 and a "made by Purolator" oil filter called Motor Gard II.

I just got home from a 360 mile round trip to Indianapolis...All Highway. Typically, this high-way cruising would burn 3/4 quart down, and 3/4 quart back. I've done it many times. I know.

I burned 3/4 of a quart for the whole trip. So, consumption was cut in half. That's cool.

One an even more impressive not.....the truck runs a lot smoother. This isn't a "placebo" effect. This is a worn out engine. It sputters at idle, hiccups at time, has a nagging cough, etc. Idle is darn near like a new truck. Acceleration has no hesitation. Yeah, I still have the annoying hot idle lifter tick, but I didn't expect STORE to fix a collapsed/leaky lifter. But this engine runs a lot better, all around....idling, cruising, and accelerating.

This morning when I started it up cold....no typical blue puff of smoke either and that lingering burned oil smell.

So far, so good. I'm happy.

 

[demarpaint]

^^ Sounds good^^ BTW the smoother feeling is not in your head, its a better ring seal, and increased compression as a result. If you change the oil, and don't add more product the better running engine you're experiencing now will be short lived, unless you add more product.

Let us know if anything changes.

If you do change the oil see how long the effects linger, if you see oil consumption goes up, or the engine starts running rough again try adding half a dose, experiment a bit. Good luck!

 

[PTBH04]

Having used Restore Engine treatment before, I can attest to the having to use it every oil change. Years ago my mom had a Charger 2.2 that had low compression on cyl 2. When I checked the compression, 1,3 and 4 had right around 120psi, cyl 2 had like 85. With the Restore, cyl 2 2 would jump up to like 110. On cold starts without Restore it would run on 3 cyl til it would start to warm up, with Restore it started up on 4. This engine had over 150,000 miles on it and the car was not worth putting money into. It never smoked and actually used little oil, usually around 1 qt every 3000 miles. She finally got rid of it when it had 175,000 miles cause the rack&pinion was shot and it needed front wheel bearings as well.

 

[Phishin]

Here is an update.

I've put 700 miles on my truck since my trip to Indianapolis I did right after adding the Restore.

The first positive outcome was already posted near the bottom of page 2: That right after adding Restore, my truck burned 1/2 the oil it typically does on this highway trip.

The second positive experience: I've logged 700 miles since the trip to Indianapolis (since 2/10/2013) and I've only burned 1/3 of a quart. That's a decent improvement also. This is mostly driving around town.

I'm liking the results!! And overall, the truck has never ran this smooth and even. No hiccups, misses, or a rough running or idling engine anymore. It must have smoothed out the compression quite well. I'll do a compression test when it warms up a bit here in Indiana to confirm.

I pulled the plug in cylinder #1, which usually fouls fairly quickly and after approx. 700 miles of driving since replacing it, it was pretty darn clean. Way cleaner than I expected based on previous results.

 

[SteveSRT8]

Awesome results by the sound of it.

I am impressed that a can of additive could have such dramatic effects...

 

[Trav]

It sounds like it may keep you going till you can do the engine. You can beat that.