Mechanic recommended MMO

[EType]

Hello BITOG!

This board is a fantastic resource and I hope you can give me some advice on MMO.

Ever since my mechanic recommended MMO, I have been reading threads here and am sorry to say I am still confused.

My mechanic recommends MMO because he feels it will quieten down various noises that I mentioned to him.

But my research indicates that no manufacturer, not oil company recommends adding MMO. Also, I cannot find anything related to testing and long term effects from MMO.

My last concern is to do with thinning of oil. In a few posts, there were warnings from MMO advocates that MMO would thin oil. Then I found many other threads where people warned about the US using too thin oil because of CAFE. So if our oil is already too thin, is it safe to make it thinner?

Like I said I'm a little confused. Perhaps I need to read more (there is a lot to read).

But can anyone tell me if MMO is safe? Why would my mechanic recommend it when the manufacturer and oil companies won't?

 

[demarpaint]

Do you have faith in your mechanic? Spend some time in the oil additive section and read up on MMO, there are guys for it, and guys against it. The bottom line is you'll be the person making the decision, that decision will be based on your findings since you will be hearing lots of pros and cons.

Some mechanics actually think out of the box......

 

[Donald]

Find a NEW mechanic.

The only mystery about MMO is why people still use it.

 

[GreeCguy]

Before I say anything, I will be bold to say I am a huge fan of MMO. I've used it to free stuck pistons on motors that have sat for years and I've used it as a piston soak to free carbon from the combustion chamber. I've used it in my fuel tank to lubricate my fuel pump and fuel system. I like the way it smells. I'm currently running a quart in my daughters van to flush the motor which has been neglected for a while, (her husband is "oil change challenged").

But . . . . . I have to ask, why did your mech. recommend MMO? What problems are you having?

Be warned, there are going to be plenty on this site that hate MMO and will tell you all the evil reasons why you shouldn't use it. But I've been using it for 30 years now and have loved every minute of it.

 

[demarpaint]

Look One Pro, One con......... Wait make that two Pro's. I've written lots success stories about it.....The rest of the haters will be here in short order. If you're trying to silence a ticking lifter your mechanic is honest and someone I'd stick with. He could easily bang you for major repairs, at least he's giving something with a long successful history a shot first. You can always rip into the engine if it doesn't work.

 

[Doog]

Originally Posted By: Donald
Find a NEW mechanic.

The only mystery about MMO is why people still use it.


LOL...at what's coming....

 

[KCJeep]

You'll find mostly positives from people that have used it. Some will say they noticed no benefit (fair enough). You'll have a hard time finding any real negatives from actual users. There will be plenty of sheeples who can't stand the thought of deviating from what some bean counter wrote in a manual, and it drives them nuts if anybody else does either.

I love the stuff but that's me. For you however, I'd suggest go ahead and try it. It is cheap, it does work for some purposes, and there is virtually no potential downside regardless of what the sky is falling sheeples might tell you. It might clear up your tick but there is no real downside if used properly, so it's a cheap, can't hurt to try kind of experiment IMO.

It will thin your oil, I'd not be concerned about 10% or so, but if you're going to try a stronger dose than that a simple jump in oil grade will cover it fine. I consider the optimum dose in the crankcase about 15%.

 

[Swissdieselfan]

What exactly is supposed to be wrong with your engine and does it have a turbo charger??

Playing with oil additives is an act of last resort, most old engine related problems can be helped with a major brand high mileage oil and shorter OCI's.

The main risks of using drive around oil scorers:

1/ The oil filter or oil pump intake screen blocks.
2/ You dissolve the varnish helping an old oil seal function and start an oil leak.
3/ Debris from the sump obstructs the oil feed line to the turbo or damages the bearings (The oil thinning effect is only a longer term issue)
4/ Some of the solvents can degrade gas engine oil seals (Current warnings for GM and hyundai in particular)

Liqui moly who make a scourer in addition to their safer idle only flush, do include a specific warning about use for severe sludge cases:

One 300 ml can is sufficient for engines with oil capacities up to 5 litres of oil. After adding the product, drive as usual for about 100-300 km but avoiding full acceleration and then change the oil and oil filter.
In extreme cases of contamination, repeat the cleaning process and, if necessary, clean the oil screen in the oil sump. Oil-Sludge Scourer can be used before each oil change

 

[andyd]

Read the label on the bottle and know that if you follow the directions,the very worst thing is that no harm will come of it. I have used MMO for yrs in my small engines and such. It appears to have made them start easier and run smoother. I have used it in my car's gas and it made the car seem to run better. Even the wife commented on how well the car was running. No increase in MPG was noticed so I dont add it regularly. But I would use it if a car developed a carbon deposit trouble.

 

[EType]

Thank you for the responses.

So many here are saying there is no harm.

However manufacturers and oil companies say not to add unapproved additives. They do have approved additives such as Techron.

I wonder what it is that they know that we don't and vice versa.

 

[Swissdieselfan]

Originally Posted By: andyd
Read the label on the bottle and know that if you follow the directions,the very worst thing is that no harm will come of it. I have used MMO for yrs in my small engines and such. It appears to have made them start easier and run smoother. I have used it in my car's gas and it made the car seem to run better. Even the wife commented on how well the car was running. No increase in MPG was noticed so I dont add it regularly. But I would use it if a car developed a carbon deposit trouble.


There are far better fuel additives available than MMO and most manufacturers have an approved or recommended one. If your engine doesn't have a turbo charger then flush additives are safer, although if you really can't be bothered or are unable to clean at least the sump and oil pump screen if you develop a sludge problem, then an idle only flush like that made by Amsoil or Castrol is far safer to use, although even idle flushes can start oil leaks.

 

[Hollow]

You still haven't answered the important questions being asked.

WHAT VEHICLE/ENGINE/ETC?

WHY WAS MMO RECOMMENDED?

 

[Ga129]

I think it's perfectly fine as long as you are using a good synthetic oil/fiter combo and aren't planning on driving past 4-5k miles on that OCI. I used it in a 6.5k mile OCI (1qt mmo/4qt synthetic oil) once and after that many miles I think the mmo had broke down and the oil was spent at that point. But the car was running much better after that. Many others recommend adding the MMO 500-1000 miles before your oil change, and adding it to the gas right before you fill up so your upper cylinders are clean and lubricated. But like stated before, everyone has their own opinions about it.

 

[Voltmaster]

I am a fan of MMO currently have it in my gas tank and oil. Doing my oil change in sunday so I do it 300-500 miles before oil change.

It does the cleaning just dont use it all time because it creates HCl acid and some other stuff you dont want in engine and pistols all the time.The TBN will drop significantly , so dont push your OCI.


I recomend it for people who buy a used car , or just been not taking care of the car, as a cheap way of cleaning out some gunk.


Techron for fuel injector is best deal and i think seafoam and autoRX is better deal for engine over all.


Any additive is not recomended for engine , just buy good synthetic such as Mobil1 , PP , PU , ect to keep engine going. Damage cannot be undone , and those oils will clean.

 

[jrustles]

Originally Posted By: Donald
Find a NEW mechanic.

The only mystery about MMO is why people still use it.


+1

 

[demarpaint]

Having seen this topic beaten to death more times than I can count, one of my observations is the majority of people against the product never used it.

 

[Clevy]

Originally Posted By: Donald
Find a NEW mechanic.

The only mystery about MMO is why people still use it.


Because it works,that's why they've been in business for 90 years.


Originally Posted By: Swissdieselfan
What exactly is supposed to be wrong with your engine and does it have a turbo charger??

Playing with oil additives is an act of last resort, most old engine related problems can be helped with a major brand high mileage oil and shorter OCI's.

The main risks of using drive around oil scorers:

1/ The oil filter or oil pump intake screen blocks.
2/ You dissolve the varnish helping an old oil seal function and start an oil leak.
3/ Debris from the sump obstructs the oil feed line to the turbo or damages the bearings (The oil thinning effect is only a longer term issue)
4/ Some of the solvents can degrade gas engine oil seals (Current warnings for GM and hyundai in particular)

Liqui moly who make a scourer in addition to their safer idle only flush, do include a specific warning about use for severe sludge cases:

One 300 ml can is sufficient for engines with oil capacities up to 5 litres of oil. After adding the product, drive as usual for about 100-300 km but avoiding full acceleration and then change the oil and oil filter.
In extreme cases of contamination, repeat the cleaning process and, if necessary, clean the oil screen in the oil sump. Oil-Sludge Scourer can be used before each oil change
Originally Posted By: Swissdieselfan
Originally Posted By: andyd
Read the label on the bottle and know that if you follow the directions,the very worst thing is that no harm will come of it. I have used MMO for yrs in my small engines and such. It appears to have made them start easier and run smoother. I have used it in my car's gas and it made the car seem to run better. Even the wife commented on how well the car was running. No increase in MPG was noticed so I dont add it regularly. But I would use it if a car developed a carbon deposit trouble.


There are far better fuel additives available than MMO and most manufacturers have an approved or recommended one. If your engine doesn't have a turbo charger then flush additives are safer, although if you really can't be bothered or are unable to clean at least the sump and oil pump screen if you develop a sludge problem, then an idle only flush like that made by Amsoil or Castrol is far safer to use, although even idle flushes can start oil leaks.


Ahh yes. Skyshio and his turbo spiel again. How often do you need to be told this isn't Europe and turbo'd vehicles make up a very small percentage of all the vehicles on North American roads. So drop it.
Mmo doesn't cause leaks anymore than synthetic oil does,so drop the fear tactics.
You haven't used the product skyship so what can you even add to this thread. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. AS USUAL.
Skyship,post in threads where you actually have experience. Like if someone asks why they had a turbo runaway. Or maybe that bus experiment. You got lots of info on that.
Skyship. I am going to follow you around and post right behind you. Get used to me,discrediting every junk post you write.

Op. ignore whoever this guy is today. I use mmo regularly,I've even got an intake mister that mists mmo into my intake so it has a steady feed of mmo at all times.
Dermapaint has been using the stuff for 40 years. If you want actual facts from a man with experience using it in countless applications then I suggest just messaging dermapaint directly. It will save you a headache reading a thread filled with posts where the poster has an agenda.
And I suggest ignoring swissdieselfan/Bodensee/skyship. If you look up his previous comments before being banned you'll see he all his posts say read the manual,use what they tell you,don't use additives blah blah blah.
Then he will write a bunch of lies like flush additives causing a turbo vehicle to runaway,and all kinds of absolute horsedung.
He is nothing but a troll. Treat him as such.
Mmo is great stuff. Use as directed. They have been in business for 90 years for a reason. And guys who use it seem to continue using it,so there must be some kind of benefit.
Pm dermapaint. He will give you the straight facts,considering he's used it for decades.

 

[Tempest]

Be aware that MMO is made of oils intentionally removed by the refiners that make motor oils. It is considered a contaminant.

Use it as a short term flush at best.

 

[Kruse]

Originally Posted By: Donald
Find a NEW mechanic.

The only mystery about MMO is why people still use it.


But if the same mechanic would recommend ARX (or whatever Frankie now calls it) you would give him praise and put him on a pedestal. Besides, you also recommend Amsoil. So are you saying you need to use ARX with your Amsoil?
BTW, I don't recommend oil additives...unless they are absolutely needed.

 

[Mystic]

I think Clevy has some of the best ideas here. He says listen to people like demarpaint who has almost 40 years experience using MMO. In comparison some of these people who constantly put MMO down have probably never even used the stuff. Kind of like somebody who has never seen UFOs telling somebody who has seen them that there is no such thing as UFOs and the person seeing them is just crazy. Clevy himself has a lot of experience with MMO. Listen to the people who have actually used the stuff.

And then we have Swissdieselfan (Skyship?) (Bodensee?) who has to have an owner's manual handy or an OEM document before he can comment on anything. But every time I bought a new car the dealership seemed to always have there own supplements, including oil supplements, they were ready to sell to the car buyer. And I am talking about new car dealerships. I can remember when GM had their own official oil supplement. And I can remember Valvoline selling an oil supplement. And I can remember Skyship, for that matter, talking about trying Ceretec and talking about gold dust as an additive in motor oil. And in another post here Swissdieselfan was unable to supply the research data requested to support his authoritative sounding claims.

Marvel Mystery Oil has been around for 90 YEARS! Where is the data to prove that it destroys engines? There must be data available if it is destructive to engines. Perhaps these people who are so anti-MMO can supply the data to prove that MMO destroys engines. Unless and until they do so, then I am going to assume it is safe to use as long as a person follows directions.