I elected to use the AutoRX at the suggestion of a fellow BITOGer who I recently met. He is an experienced mechanic that has used AutoRX, Lube Control, and various other additives in the past. Upon removing my oil cap and peering into my crankcase and putting his finger in it and inspecting my oil and the side of the crankcase, he came to the conclusion that there was a varnish build up and I should give the AutoRX a go. Given that and the information I gleaned on BITOG upon perusing several members experience with the product I decided to give it a whirl.

And if you are coming from the perspective of a thorough before and after inspection of the valve train or whatever, I'm not going that route.

Many BITOGers claim an improvement in fuel economy and oil consumption following an AutoRX application. I know my present fuel economy and can certainly tell if that changes. Lastly, since I want to switch to synthetic, I thought the benefits AutoRX is supposed to add to seals would possibly pay dividends down the road, particularly moving to a 0W-30 synthetic oil.

I have yet to see anyone refer to AutoRX as snake oil and have seen numerous rave reviews.

 

Does that mean what you were using before wasn't that good?

btw I never said arx was snake oil or whatever.

 

give it up rmurdoch
you embarrass yourself every day

 

No, I firmly believe that the Castrol GTX 5W30 I have been using for the most part since day 1 is very good that is why I've used it. I may have been guilty in the past of not changing the oil often enough, ie. in terms of months, not distance. For example, I went almost 21 months between October 2001 and July 2003, during which time I only drove the Maxima 5,800 miles and changed the oil and filter for a 2nd time in July 03. So less than 3K per oil change during that period of time was not too long in terms of miles but 10 or 11 months between changes perhaps was.

So that is why I am going to try the Esso XD-3, 0W30, because one of its strong points is it lends itself to longer OCIs and is great for cold startup. If I were to stay with Castrol, I think I would force myself into 6 month OCIs and I always seem to go longer.

What's your opinion, Jeff92SE, am I getting too hung up on 6-month OCIs? I believe the 3k, 3 month standard perpetuated by the luby-loos is nothing but a money grab and is overkill.

 

I think you're totally right--the key is to change often. My problem with synth is the sheer cost. It is superior, however, the marginal benefit is many times the marginal cost. I just picked up a case of Castrol GTX 5W30 for $1.39/qt. at Pep Boys. The Castrol will easily be good for 5k when used with a Nissan OEM filter.

By the same token, if a car comes filled at the factory with Mobil 1, the owner should continue to use it.

On the gas thing, the key is to do what the owner's manual recommends. Mercedes Benz made a statement that their cars can run on regular in many parts of the world. Even the money advisor websites and magazines have beaten the subject to death--if you put a grade of gasoline that your motor does not require, you will see no benefit. You will not get any more performance, nor will you get better mpgs. Our cars seem to need 91 according to the manual, and that is below super but above mid-grade. Probably a typo.

 

And what have you contributed to this thread?

 

Very easy. 100% amsoil top to bottom. Filter at 6K full change at 12K. I could go further according to my oil analysis. The funny thing is at 12K miles, it still tested better than castrol GTX fresh from the bottle.

I got into using Amsoil after I was rebuilding a motor for a racing friend of mine. It was his race motor that he ran all season and before teardown we did a leakdown and compression test and it was still well above what tolerances. This was a dirt track motor ran 2 times a week with about 54 nights on it. I was sold after that. The thing looked like almost brand new inside.

 

I bought an 01 I30 with about 27K on the odo. I changed the oil and added Auto RX to the cranckase. I am now in the Auto RX rinse phase, where dino is used and the OCI is short.
I'll change the filter at about 1K and run the rinse oil for at least 2K.
Probably I'll switch to Red Line and 7.5K OCI. I have used Red Line in My 3.5 L V6 Isuzu engine and have had superior test results. If you do a search on BITOG for SLX you will find the UOA posted. The truck is an 99 Acura SLX which is a rebadged Isuzu Trooper. I have over 100K on the SLX with no breakdowns or failures. It uses about a half quart of Red Line 10-30 every 3.5K. I use 7.5K OCI and K&N oil filters on the SLX even when there is a significant amount of 4 wheeling involved. I also have Auto RX (rinse phase) in the SLX.

 

Just changed mine yesterday and put in Castrol GTX 5w 30. The dealer did the first oil change free and they listed 10w 30. Not sure what brand they used but I can say this about the castrol. It sure see,s to run smooth as silk after I put it in and it seems to rev a bit faster now too. I think I am going to stick with this castrol and change it ever 2k.