slick 50
 

its time to change the oil again and ive got a bottle of slick 50 i got on sale. my friends rant and rave about how GREAT it is so i figured i would try it, but i wanted to get a few opinions on here before i throw a quart in my baby. i just ticked 108k... not sure if previous owners have regularly changed oil and/or ever used slick 50 or other additives in the past. last time i changed oil was when i got it, and it was low on oil at the time (if that means anything).... anyone have good/bad slick 50 stories?

p.s. its not regularly low on oil... lost about 0.5 quart in 3-4k miles, not too bad.

In general, I think additives are a bad idea.

In some cars with over 100 grand on the clock, it might be beneficial, but I wouldn't put any of that crap in an engine with low mileage and good compression.

regarding what you said hammer, they actually reccomend that you dont put it into cars with low mileage. reason being that it is so slippery that it does not allow enough friction for the pistons to score the piston walls (or something to that effect). this happened in a new car that a friend of my fathers had when he added slick 50 at his first oil change. he went through the first engine, had it replaced under warranty, then had the same thing happen again (the company didnt know he used the slick 50 the first time, and didnt know why the engine died) ... the second time he didnt get it covered because they found out he had used the slick 50. so i understand that low mileage is a bad idea, i was thinking over the 100k mark it may help though?

Personally, I'd never used any of those additives. There's tons of lawsuits against most of them. I think one or two of them were found to just be colored mineral oil.

I would not use any of that stuff its all bs imo (slick50,dura lube ect......ect......)

Man, this stuff was all the rage in the early 90's. When I was on active duty in the Navy, I remember a couple of guys selling this stuff on the ship for $75 a bottle. And, if it really did what it was claimed to do, it would well be worth the price. Today, you can pick this stuff up for $15 at WalMart.

I don't think it can hurt using the stuff and I am sure that most of the lawsuits that are out there are the result of car manufactures who do not want to pay for bills that they should be paying for and use an additive as an excuse.

One of my friends is the VP of a company that makes additives for just about every oil company out there. Motor oil is actually a pretty complex science. He once told me that if you want to do the best thing for your car, just use Mobil I and change it every 6-8k or when the pH starts to drop. Since that conversation, I have never used anything else other than Mobil I in any of my cars.

it actually is very very slippery, moreso than oil. thats the reason it ruins new cars. the problems that the stuff can (does?) cause is only relating to it being TOO lubricating.

5w30 synthetic...it doesn't get soo cold in Atlanta to use anything else, so I figured I stay with what the dealership suggested. Plus, I only have to worry about changing my oil twice a year. No problems here.

How do you know when the pH drops?:confused:

"Man, this stuff was all the rage in the early 90's" quote

Remember when the Govt. made them stop selling this stuff because of engine seizures back in the 90's?

The teflon particles were bonding to the piston rings causing ring failure...

Just use synthetic oil...it will be fine. I wouldn't use that CRAP in my lawnmower.

(Been a little slow to reply...just got back from vacation)

Oil pH? Well, the easiest way to check it is just to measure it. You can buy pH strips in the pool department at Walmart. Don't use titration style pH kits as the reagents will not work with oil.

However, I need to check to see what are the acceptable pH limts. I believe that oil pH is supposed to stay basic or above 7.0. As the oil is used the buffers will break-down and the pH will drop.

The pH of your oil will change based on the type that you use (organic vs. synthetic) and the type of load that the car is under. They have used this pH relationship to show that organic oil looses it's properties around 6-8k miles and with a good synthetic about twice as high.

Just curious, but, why would you only change your oil twice a year?