2008 Dodge Ram 3500, 14.5k miles, Rotella T6

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Oct 1, 2010
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Location
Michigan
Weather is warming up. Towing travel trailers. 14,500 miles on this OCI.

Polaris comments:
OXIDATION is at a SIGNIFICANT level. Drain interval may be over-extended, or unit may be running too hot. Viscosity is
MODERATELY HIGH. Causes include contamination, oxidation, incorrectly identified viscosity grade, or adding a different
viscosity grade to the component. VISCOSITY INCREASE may be due to lubricant oxidation. Base Number is SLIGHTLY LOW. As
Base Number depletes, the ability to neutralize acids is diminished. Cylinder region metals (pistons, rings, liners etc,) are at a
MINOR LEVEL; Soot is at a MINOR level and is not yet cause for concern. Monitor future samples for increasing levels. Elevated
soot reduces combustion efficiency and may indicate varying load conditions, malfunctioning EGR, exhaust restriction, or a
timing/air-to-fuel ratio imbalance. Maintenance action indicated at time of submission (fluid/filter change , filtration, etc.) will
have corrected the issue this system is exhibiting. No further maintenance action is recommended at this time. Please provide
missing application and sump information.

Polaris has flagged oxidation on this sample as significant. I shortened this interval 20% to reduce oxidation, yet it has increased over the last sample. And KV100 has increased out of grade, even more than the last sample. The Cummins engine has a jacket water oil cooler, and coolant operating temperature has been steady at 200F regardless of whether I am towing or not. I need to start reading oil temperature separately. Maybe a Scangauge?

Soot at 2.2% should have been lower than the previous sample, but it was the same despite the shorter OCI. I have been getting an intermittent error code complaining about Low EGR Valve voltage.

I supplemented the new fill of RT6 with 5.5 oz of Redline ZDDP additive to see if it could reduce the oxidation. But based on this UOA, I don't think it will help much. The oxidation problem seems to be trending worse.

Dodge-UOA.PNG
 
Looks to me like you are wearing out your truck with long oci's. I don't think adding the zinc will help. The oil still has plenty in it.
 
I don't understand why vehicle owners neglect to change the oil and then wonder why the engines wear out prematurely

oil is cheap, engines are very expensive, just change the oil more often
 
Not all engines have an actual oit temp sensor even if OBD has an oil temp reading. It will be a calculated value in that case and is completely useless. Maybe check if you can find a part number for an oil temp sensor?
 
YIKES !!!! 14K?? Isn't that pushing it, even on a diesel ?????


And im the goof who does my OCI's @ 5000K with Shell or Mobil full syn
crazy.gif



Dave
 
Al and Cr tending lower. Good there. Wonder if oxidation and soot would be normal, or close to normal, if did a 8-10K OCI given EGR in there? Emissions stuff kind of forces shorter OCIs. Wouldn't be too concerned unless an 8-10K OCI didn't help.

Iron still artificial from added iron to fuel, so won't really be able to tell anything about the iron for another OCI or two. But trending in right direction.

My 2 cents.
 
Guessing since this tows in all crazy MI weather- You are getting to the stage where the truck is just aging.

216K is darn good- she might be ready for shorter OCIs and some high mileage oil.

Pretty sure she's earned it...
smile.gif
 
I'd say try a new oil, despite being a good one, RT6 isnt up to the task here for the OCI you want for your business.

Or be willing to go with a much shorter OCI, which may not be an option. I don't think a bit of a zinc additive at this point will fix it.
 
That oil cannot handle the high oil temperatures that engine is creating. It's worth monitoring the oil temperature especially towing. Back down the OCI or try a different lube.

JMO
 
Originally Posted by 2004tdigls
I don't understand why vehicle owners neglect to change the oil and then wonder why the engines wear out prematurely

oil is cheap, engines are very expensive, just change the oil more often


I didn't add the Redline to decrease wear. ZDDP is also an anti-oxidant.
 
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Originally Posted by claluja
Al and Cr tending lower. Good there. Wonder if oxidation and soot would be normal, or close to normal, if did a 8-10K OCI given EGR in there? Emissions stuff kind of forces shorter OCIs. Wouldn't be too concerned unless an 8-10K OCI didn't help.

Iron still artificial from added iron to fuel, so won't really be able to tell anything about the iron for another OCI or two. But trending in right direction.

My 2 cents.


I only used the Better Diesel FBC additive for about half this OCI. And on the OCI before this one, I wasn't using it at all. It is a little curious that Iron wear rate was lower in this UOA, despite the use of the FBC, but Iron wear isn't the thing that's worrying me now. I'm going to continue using the fuel additive to keep the DPF clean, so I'll just assume that part of the Iron reading is coming from the FBC.
 
Originally Posted by daves87rs
Guessing since this tows in all crazy MI weather- You are getting to the stage where the truck is just aging.

216K is darn good- she might be ready for shorter OCIs and some high mileage oil.

Pretty sure she's earned it...
smile.gif



She's just maturing. My old truck went 577,000 miles on 30,000 mile oil changes. But it didn't have all those cursed emissions systems. And the irony of it all is my old truck only smoked a little more than my new one.
 
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Originally Posted by addyguy
I'd say try a new oil, despite being a good one, RT6 isnt up to the task here for the OCI you want for your business.

Or be willing to go with a much shorter OCI, which may not be an option. I don't think a bit of a zinc additive at this point will fix it.


I have been thinking of trying Delvac 1, but it is harder to find and more expensive than Rotella T6, which I can get at any Walmart in the nation.

Shorter OCI is probably inevitable. The first oil interval I did with the truck was Delvac 1300 Super at 11,000 miles, and it did not thicken out of grade. But the Oxidation reading was 21, which is in the ballpark of the readings I've been getting with RT6. It doesn't seem possible to me that Delvac 1300 conventional would be more oxidation resistant than RT6, and that is leading me to think that something is degrading in the EGR system. I talked to my local diesel truck mechanic yesterday, and he said he has about 50 reconditioned EGR coolers and control valves for my model of truck, so I am planning to have them installed this week after I get back from North Dakota. I checked prices on Rock Auto last week, and the cheapest that I could get a cooler and control valve for was $1020. This emissions carp is expensive. My mechanic says he can hook me up with reconditioned parts for about $500.
 
Originally Posted by A_Harman
Originally Posted by claluja
Al and Cr tending lower. Good there. Wonder if oxidation and soot would be normal, or close to normal, if did a 8-10K OCI given EGR in there? Emissions stuff kind of forces shorter OCIs. Wouldn't be too concerned unless an 8-10K OCI didn't help.

Iron still artificial from added iron to fuel, so won't really be able to tell anything about the iron for another OCI or two. But trending in right direction.

My 2 cents.


I only used the Better Diesel FBC additive for about half this OCI. And on the OCI before this one, I wasn't using it at all. It is a little curious that Iron wear rate was lower in this UOA, despite the use of the FBC, but Iron wear isn't the thing that's worrying me now. I'm going to continue using the fuel additive to keep the DPF clean, so I'll just assume that part of the Iron reading is coming from the FBC.


On iron content, my guess would be less overnight idling in freezing temperatures menas less fuel dilution and thus less iron in the oil from the fuel.

Also, not sure but iron may also act as an antioxidant.
 
rather an oxidant I think... PSA uses an additive in the diesel fuel (added automatically after fueling up) to reduce the temperature for soot to burn. The latest generation uses iron in a liquid molecule. Apparently reduces the burn temp by 100C.
 
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Better Diesel FBC will alter your Fe rates; it will skew the Fe in a UOA because it uses Fe to improve the soot burn-off in the DPF (or something like that). It will also have the propensity to alter oxidation. I cannot discuss the chemistry; beyond my skill set, but I accept it for what it is. This FBC phenomenon has been discussed before.

We really cannot compare this UOA to others without additives; not the same apple in the basket of oranges.
 
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This has my curiousity. The oil thickening seems excessive for the miles on this oil. I wonder how many hours are on these runs. OP. Have you been tracking hours at all?
 
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