Marvel Mystery Oil

[Seizer]

I changed the oil and filter today on my 96 Legacy. Been having a loud hydraulic lash adjuster tick. So I dumped a whole quart of the mystery oil in with 3 qts of 10W30 full synthetic. Should I change the oil sooner than normal? Should I change it in about 500 miles or does it matter at all, just change at next oil change?

 

Thanks.

[jayhawkroy]

Go over to bobistheoilguy.com and do a search on Marvel Mystery Oil. You will get a variety of opinions about this additive. I am skeptical of all oil additives, and this one, as I understand it, dilutes your oil, because it is mostly mineral spirits. The folks who do use it run it for only 500 miles or so and then do an oil change.

[felipe01forester]

I get mine changed every 3K or 3 months, whichever comes first (got it done today, in fact). With the mystery stuff, you'd probably want to have it changed a little sooner, but not every 500 miles. Maybe 2500 or 2000

[KStretch55]

You would use a quart if you intended to make an engine flush and help loosen any crud before changing the oil. But, a quart is too much if you plan not to change the oil soon. It simple physics that it will thin your oil.

I haven't looked at the label lately, but I think it tells you to use a few ounces if you intend to run it that way for extended periods.

[Seizer]

Wow after looking at "Bobs the oil guy" page I feel like throwing up. I just put an additive into a full synthetic lubricant. After reading this I think I will be going back to conventional oil too. Thanks for the info guys, and the bottle of the Marvel Mystery Oil, just says add a quart to crankcase oils and 4 oz to 10 gallons of fuel. That's why I figured on dumping the whole quart in with the oil change.

 

I also feel like throwing up for wasting $15 dollars on synthetic oil that I will now be draining very soon.

 

Oh well you live you learn. Just hope it doesn't cost the car engine anything.

[M@dM@x]

If you throw up please don't do it in your car. I had a chick do that once and it sucked.

 

Anyway, I tried the oil additives back in the day and never noticed an increase in MPG or engine performance. I just use regular 10w 30 in my Subaru every 3000 miles and she has gotten me and my family to 140k. Just use a good motor oil and you should be fine. I think Advanced Auto parts still has a deal on Shell.

[swi66]

The dirty little secret about oil additives is that they are selling you 50 cents worth of actual product, and packaging for whatever they charge for it. Also another thing they don't tell you is that use of any of these additives negates any warranty the oil manufacturers may have on their product as well as any manufacturers warranty on the car.

Once had my Subie dealer try and sell me a fuel system treatment, asked if there was a written warranty stipulating it would not affect the manufacturers warranty.........there was not.

 

I work for a lubricant company which manufacturers specialty greases and oils, the addition of any additive to a product may possibly decrease the characteristics of the main oil. For instance, an additive which may decrease wear may effect resistance to temperature extremes.

 

Oils are formulated specifically to meet manufacturers specs, generally SAE numbers, any additives changes things

 

swi66

[NOMAD327]

My experience with Chrysler products which had the Mitsubishi 3.0 engine with extremely tiny hydraulic lifters was that some brands of oil were better for quieting lifters than other brands. Havoline and Mobil were better, and Pennzoil and Quaker State were worse for example. I believe it had to do with the relative paraffin content of the oil. I frequently used an additive called CD-2 which really worked to quiet the lifters, but it had to be added anew with each oil change. Many other Chrysler guys reported equally good results with the Marvel Mystery Oil, which was about half the cost and easier to find than CD-2. I know CD-2 is very thick, and Marvel Mystery Oil is very runny, what the total effect on viscosity would be, I don’t know. I did not use any special change intervals with the oil mix, and ran the engines to very high mileage with no problems

 

[KStretch55]

I ran a spectrometric oil analysis machine for the military for about 10 years, mostly on jet engine oil. Primarily, MIL-L-7808, the oil used in the J-79 engines on F-4s, but also many others. Of course, myself and co-workers also ran our vehicle oil, too. Mainly just for kicks, but keeping a trend was a good way to get some advance notice of an impending problem.

 

The machine burns the oil and gives you a reading in parts per million (ppm) of the primary wear metals in the system, in this case a turbine, radial piston or vehicle piston engine. The wear metal levels in turbine engines are very, very low. Rarely over 10ppm for something like iron that's everywhere. Things like silver and copper were usually 3ppm or less. Reciprocating engines are very dirty in comparison. Sometimes reading in the hundreds of ppm and still normal. But, things are fine, as long as there is no sudden increase in the level or trend. If that happens it indicates something is wearing abnormally or the system or sample was contaminated somehow. It could be something as simple as when the crew chief took the sample a bubble formed across the top of the sample bottle and he couldn't tell if it was full, so he popped the bubble with his fingertip. Having handled steel tools or rubbed his hand against the aluminum skin, even coins in his pocket would cause a spike and the need for a resample. Ok, that's all background.

 

What we found on car engines was a vast difference from one oil brand to another, mainly caused by their additive packages. Pennzoil was one that I recall, it was always very high in Magnesium. I don't know what all of the different additives were intended to do, but some companies add a lot of stuff and others add very little. Some brands even come from common stocks prior to having additives added and being packaged. As a matter of fact, there was a period in the late 70s or early 80s when the common oil stocks that several major companies used for 10W-40 did not meet SAE specs. The problem was so widespread that several of the industry inspection intities and watchdogs recommended people switch to 10W-30 and not use 10W-40 until new stocks were in place. I guess my point is the most important property of oil is its viscosity and ability to maintain that viscosity. When the viscosity begins to break down the oil cannot maintain a film between moving parts and wear is increased. So, regardless of brand, most good quality oils are pretty much equal, as long as you change them as needed. An additive that's thinner than your base oil, will thin your oil and decrease it's viscosity. An additive that's thicker than your base oil, will increase it's viscosity. Thinner additives may be great for helping break deposits and gunk loose prior to an oil change. Thicker additives may be great for engines that are worn, but you're not quite ready to overhaul or you want to quite some of the clatter. But, both are really temporary tools.

Prior to the late 70s, all vehicle manufacturers recommended changing your oil every 5000 miles and the filter every other oil change. In the late 70s they found out that oil viscosity actually breaks down faster than previously thought. This may also have been partially an affect of emission systems introducing stuff back into the engine, too. Anyway, all manufacturers now recommend oil change every 3000 miles and I think most recommend filter change every oil change. Use additives carefully!!!

[blitz]

all manufacturers now recommend oil change every 3000

With very few exceptions, manufacturer recommended OCI's are 7,500-10,000 miles.

 

Dealer recomendations are 3,000 miles (and performed by them).

[BigMattyD]

I just had a problem with the lash adjusters on my 96 legacy. It was a very loud and annoying ticking that began pretty suddenly. I tried Seafoam in the oil and an oil change, but no help.

 

 

On the weekend I took a look at the rocker arms and found that a piece of gasket sealant had partially plugged one of the oil passages. I pumped up the HLA's with oil, removed the blockage, and have had zero tick since.

 

If this sounds like a possibility on your car, let me know and I'll give you more details. It was a pretty easy fix, and no matter how long I would have tried oil additives, it never would have solved my problem.

 

Matt D

[Seizer]

Wow KStretch, that's pretty interesting. I am an aircraft mechanic too, and quite frequently take soap samples from our aircraft. We ship our samples out to a lab for checking, typically Honeywell's labs. I also knew the gist of what they do, but not to the extent you explained the process.

 

Thanks for the input.

 

Anyone know what a set of lifters run for an EJ22 engine?

[Seizer]

BigMattyD I changed the gaskets on my valve covers last summer. I took off the rocker arms and inspected all the lifters, because I had a tick then. According to service manual all my lifters were within tolerance for the check, as far as I could tell. The tick comes and goes, the whole reason for the Mystery Oil was I figured I could just blast the carbon or what not that might be preventing it from pumping up right out. I appreciate the willingness to help, thanks again.

[82bratavenger]

Another note is that it is imparative to use the proper oil filter. Not one of the cheap Fram or STI specials from Wal Mart. There is a valve in the filter that helps prevent all the oil from running back to the pan thus keeping the pump from pumping dry on start-up. I am not an expert so if this needs tweeking feel free. It is just from my experience and study.

[99obw]

If you want a good cleaner try http://www.auto-rx.net. There are cheaper products, but nothing cleans as gently and completely IMHO.

 

I would drain that MMO ASAP, as when it's mixed 25% with a 30 weight you most likely have a 20 weight oil.

 

Supertech filters at Walmart are actually fairly decent, much better than Fram. If you look at the internal construction of a Fram they are the worst on the market, bar none. I am currently using Mobil 1 on the Jeep and Purolator on the Subaru for 10k mile intervals. I am thinking about switching to Baldwin filters, but they are hard to find. Baldwin primarily makes filters for semis.

 

Some good filter analysis...

http://minimopar.knizefamily.net/oilfilterstudy.html#harddriver

[Seizer]

I would drain that MMO ASAP, as when it's mixed 25% with a 30 weight you most likely have a 20 weight oil.

 

Yow my math skills suck, but your talking in my situation where its 3:1 correct? I just want to be sure, and believe me next time I am out I will be buying the oil and filter.

 

I've also gotten away from Frams because that's all I hear about them is that they suck. I usually buy Purolator Pure One's. Or a K&N filter.

 

Thanks for the advice 99obw.

[mentis]

If you want a good cleaner try www.auto-rx.net. There are cheaper products, but nothing cleans as gently and completely IMHO.

 

I would drain that MMO ASAP, as when it's mixed 25% with a 30 weight you most likely have a 20 weight oil.

 

Supertech filters at Walmart are actually fairly decent, much better than Fram. If you look at the internal construction of a Fram they are the worst on the market, bar none. I am currently using Mobil 1 on the Jeep and Purolator on the Subaru for 10k mile intervals. I am thinking about switching to Baldwin filters, but they are hard to find. Baldwin primarily makes filters for semis.

 

Some good filter analysis...

http://minimopar.knizefamily.net/oilfilterstudy.html#harddriver

That Auto RX stuff look awesome! However, the actual link is http://www.auto-rx.com ... I might order me some of that!

[lostinthe202]

That Auto RX stuff look awesome! However, the actual link is http://www.auto-rx.com ... I might order me some of that!

 

It's a 4 year old thread so the URL as posted could've been right. But post #12(?) has some interesting tid bits. Oil threads are "old hat' for many on this board. I'm not one of them as I know little about oil other than the fact that there are more opinions on oil, filters, and the change interval then there are species of insect on the planet.

 

Will-

[howards11]

I been using Lubegard products for years; mostly their oil additive.

 

Here's the link for their oil additive: Lubgard.

 

Comments guys?

 

 

~Howard

[mentis]

It's a 4 year old thread so the URL as posted could've been right. But post #12(?) has some interesting tid bits. Oil threads are "old hat' for many on this board. I'm not one of them as I know little about oil other than the fact that there are more opinions on oil, filters, and the change interval then there are species of insect on the planet.

 

Will-

LOL... my bad... didn't realize this thread was that old. Sorry to dig it up, I just found it through a link in another thread somebody posted . Good read though!

[lostinthe202]

Good read though!

 

Yeah, that one post was more informative then most oil threads I've read. And as an avid "searcher" I've read Paaaalenty of threads on oil. If there's one guaranteed way to start a fight, end a fight, be on both sides, or be on no side, and loose every attempt at each, it's to make a statement about what you "know" about oil.

 

Just some friendly advise

[mentis]

lol... yeah, well put . I must say though, that http://www.bobistheoilguy.com site's pretty great!