Slick 50

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From what I understand the original is a completely different product than the current offering.

If you're interested in the subject, this video interview with John Bishop might be of interest.
 
Originally Posted By: skyactiv
Wasn't Pennzoil behind it because I seem to recall them selling oil packed with a quart of it??

QSHM I believe.
 
Quote:
The Federal Trade Commission has charged Quaker State - Slick 50, Inc., the manufacturer of Slick 50, the best-selling auto engine treatment in the U.S., with making false and unsubstantiated advertising claims. According to the FTC, ads for Slick 50 that tout tests showing improved engine performance are false and its claims of reduced engine wear are unsubstantiated.

Quaker State - Slick 50 is based in Houston, Texas. Since its 1978 introduction, Slick 50 has attracted about 30 million users world-wide. Slick 50 retails for about $18 a quart, and the company claims to have about 60% of the engine treatment market.
 
Slick 50 started out in the late 70s.It was owned by at least 2 companies.Petrolon being one of them.Yes,near the end of its regular life,it was also sold in a pack with either QSGB or PYB as an oil change pack.PTFE was its claim to fame,they couldn't use the name Teflon because they bought foreign market PTFE as Dupont wouldn't sell the Teflon to them.Dupont came out years after introduction with a statement claiming that Teflon/PTFE has no function in a motor oil and they will not sell to anyone planning to use it for such.Other companies also copied Slick 50,and some even touted TWICE as much PTFE as the major selling brand.None use PTFE anymore that I am aware of.This being said,I used it a few times,and it didn't do any harm,that I could tell.
 
Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
Was Slick 50 the one that was supposed to contain Teflon?


I used to contained PTFE, the generic Teflon°. Dupont, the parent company of Teflon, has said that they never recommended Teflon, or PTFE in an engine oil.
I once got into an argument with a chemical engineer who believed Slick 50, the old version with PTFE, was beneficial to an engine. I asked him what temperature that was needed to fuse PTFE to metal. He gave me some unusually large temperature from his text book. I asked him if that temperature was ever exceeded in an internal combustion engine. He said that this temperature was exceeded in the combustion chamber. I then asked him if Slick 50 ever got into the combustion chamber. There was a long pause and he wouldn't talk to me about Slick 50 ever again.
The original version of Slick 50 has been swept under the carpet and nobody likes to bring up the subject any more.
 
Originally Posted By: cashmoney
Snake oil


Yep, but I fell for it anyway back in the day. It seemed to improve performance and mpg, but maybe that was just the fresh oil in my old Plymouth.
 
Originally Posted By: Kruse
I once got into an argument with a chemical engineer who believed Slick 50, the old version with PTFE, was beneficial to an engine. I asked him what temperature that was needed to fuse PTFE to metal. He gave me some unusually large temperature from his text book. I asked him if that temperature was ever exceeded in an internal combustion engine. He said that this temperature was exceeded in the combustion chamber. I then asked him if Slick 50 ever got into the combustion chamber. There was a long pause and he wouldn't talk to me about Slick 50 ever again.

The surface conditions required for adhesion is far more of a problem. If that engineer thought that temperature was the only problem then he sure wasn't much of an engineer.
 
I tried a bottle way back in the mid 80's in my 83 Silverado 305, must be good stuff. Truck still running with original block and heads
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Originally Posted By: Malo83
I tried a bottle way back in the mid 80's in my 83 Silverado 305, must be good stuff. Truck still running with original block and heads
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BOOM! Nailed it.
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I recall that Fram sold oil filters with PTFE impregnated into the element for slow release.
Walmart stocked them.
 
We didn't have the internet back then to easily do research and debunk these kind of claims. I remember my dad fell for it too, and he's a smart guy.
 
Quaker State high mileage use to contain slick 50. I used it in my old Pontiac sunfire I had in high school and college. Beat the [censored] outta that car when I was a teenager and it never burned a drop of oil.
 
The Quaker State "Slick 50" was very different and contained no PTFE. It was basically a thicker base oil fortified with a lot of conventional additives and detergents IIRC.

So it's not so much snake oil as it was/is overpriced swill...
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I've used the QSHM with 50 in it without hesitation (bought at Ollie's Outlet) but would not buy a separate bottle for the asking price...
 
Scotty Kilmer promotes Slick 50 Engine treatment in his new video. His testimonial seems to be that he have been using the stuff for his car and the car doesn't burn any oil even at 239k miles.

Still seems snake oil to me.
 
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