Originally Posted By: DanMiller
This is a good link that shows a great UOA and seems much better that M1
http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubb...rue#Post2700070
But look at the levels of calcium. They are literally almost half that of the M1. Calcium is a detergent.
Also look at the levels of Phosphorous and Zinc, these are anti-wear additives.
This is the problem with trying to compare different brands. If oil "A" has detergents out the ying-yang and tends to keep contaminants in suspension, those contaminants, which are in the 1-3 micron range (yes, they go straight through your oil filter) are going to show up on a UOA.
On the other hand if oil B, while still a good oil, isn't quite as good at doing the same thing, those same contaminants may end up settled in a corner somewhere, on the bottom of the pan....etc. Those of course will NOT show up in a UOA.
When you are looking at a difference of 8-10ppm (which is what we see in the linked UOA you are trying to draw a comparison from) you are not seeing enough of a difference to determine anything. From the numbers in that link, the only real conclusion that can be drawn is that the engine is wearing normally on all oils used, and the G-Oil will need to be changed out very soon, as TBN is almost fully depleted by 3,500 miles.
Remember, M1 0w40 is an extended drain oil. It meets basically all of the relevant Euro extended drain standards.
What does that mean? It means that it has to keep contaminants in suspension for Euro-spec OCI's. It has to do this to obtain those certifications. So it is additized out the wazoo in order to keep an engine clean for those intervals, which can be 25,000+ miles
This is not the case for the G-Oil. That doesn't make it a bad oil, so please don't misunderstand what I'm saying. But it doesn't make it as good an oil for the applications that a lubricant like M1 0w40 is required. In fact, it would be completely unacceptable to try to run Euro OCI's with it, as you would likely experience severe deposit, sludge and potentially varnish formation because the additives in the oil would be depleted.
What does all this mean? Well, it means that even though the UOA has slightly higher levels for iron and copper for the M1 0w40, that doesn't mean it wasn't protecting as well. In fact, it likely is protecting better, based on the more robust additive package. What you are seeing is the results of the cleaning nature of that additive package, which is part of what makes that oil what it is.
But the bigger issue here is the danger of conclusions drawn by people about what the numbers mean. In this case, you've drawn the conclusion that M1 0w40 performed "worse" than G-Oil. This is based on 8 and 10 ppm variances in iron and copper between the two oils and a single M1 0w40 reference point. It doesn't factor in that the oils were not run for the same duration. It does not factor in the potential effects of the extended drain oil's additive package on these numbers and contaminant suspension and because we lack a trend for either we are very limited in what, if ANY conclusion we can draw from this aside from the very obvious such as how long it can be safely used at this point. Information we don't even have for the one reference point
I understand the need for the warm and fuzzy "I'm running the best oil because I did a UOA and the numbers were low" feeling. But that is not their purpose. They are not accurate enough to be used in that way for starters. The particle size that they sample is too narrow, the margin for error is too high and to derive even the most basic of conclusions outside of obvious contamination issues, one has to trend them over hundreds of thousands of miles.
I always use this example, and I'm sure many tire of it, but I'll throw it out again for you to chew on.
Doug Hillary ran a fleet of OTR trucks on Mobil Delvac 1. These were 500HP Detroit Diesel powered trucks.
Oil change intervals were ~90,000Km
Condemnation point for iron was ~100ppm
UOA's were performed regularly to track contaminant levels and oil life.
Random tear down tests were performed on the trucks in service to determine wear.
At 1.2 Million Km's, a piston, liner and rod bearing were pulled from one of the engines and measured. Everything spec'd "as new". The cylinder wall still had visible cross hatching on it. The pictures are on this board, as is Doug's description of the tear down.
Using the BITOG UOA Posse's logic here, 100ppm of iron means those engines were coming apart. 100ppm, 100ppm
You guys get freaked out about 10ppm.
So how is it, that using 100ppm as his condemnation point, he was able to tear this engine down at 1.2 million Km's and still have things spec "as new". How is it that there were cylinder walls left here? I mean those are iron and he had 100ppm of iron for his OCI condemnation point, how is this possible???????
Because minute variances in metals between UOA's don't tell you about wear.
I came on this board thinking the same way you do. Wanting to use UOA's in the same way. I discovered I was wrong. My thinking was wrong and subsequently was told what the purpose of the tool really is. I'm trying to teach you that same lesson