Years ago when our engine oil got very dirty, we would drain out the dirty oil, then add two quarts of kerosene and 2 quarts of clean oil and run the engine for 15 minutes. Then drain out the dirty mixture and then add new fresh oil. The oil would then remain clean for the longest time. I have one hydraulic valve that must be hanging up and want to try this to see if I can free it up. The tappet is very noisey when the engine is cold but then quiets when it warms up. The engine is a V6 Buick Century. Anyone have recommendations or agree with this old practice???
Years ago when our engine oil got very dirty, we would drain out the dirty oil, then add two quarts of kerosene and 2 quarts of clean oil and run the engine for 15 minutes. Then drain out the dirty mixture and then add new fresh oil. The oil would then remain clean for the longest time. I have one hydraulic valve that must be hanging up and want to try this to see if I can free it up. The tappet is very noisey when the engine is cold but then quiets when it warms up. The engine is a V6 Buick Century. Anyone have recommendations or agree with this old practice???
I wouldn't do it on an engine that I really cared about, but I think it has a good chance of working. Sounds like a sticky hydraulic lifter and that's the kind of thing that a good flush can rectify. Might want to try something like Auto-RX on an otherwise good engine though. No personal experience but it sounds like one of the few additive/flush products that doesn't make the guys at BITOG shudder in horror.
I'm the last guy to EVER believe in snake oils, but I'll tell you what, you go get you a can of RESTORE from auto parts or walmart and i'll bet the noise will go away IF it's just a sticky lifter. It won't fix worn parts. It's in a chrome, black and red can. Get the big v-8 size.
OH and BTW, the kerosene procedure won't hurt. But it probably won't help either. Kerosene does not cut the varnish that causes sticky lifters.
If the lifter is sticky you can buy Rislone or Marvel Mystery oil, or you can use kerosene. If the cam lobe is worn it won't fix it, but usually a worn lobe does NOT quiet down when it warms up.
Not very quickly, at any rate - but I have had it work. I like MMO better though - and using ATF you can go to 25% if you are not going to drive it hard or long.
The makers of Slick 50 were actually sued by DuPont because of their use of PTFE ("Teflon") because of concerns of engine damage and DuPont's assertion that it was impossible for PTFE to behave the way that Slick
I often throw a quart of ATF in about a week before the oil change. ATF is very high detergent, and will knock a lot of dirt loose,& hold it in suspension so when you do your oil change it gets flushed out. When you change your oil catch it after a highway run, the drain plug should be so hot you have a hard time handling it. I've done the flush kerosene flush, i can't say it is all that effective, & BTW diesel is pretty much oil and kerosene, so that works too.
What it claims to do. Slick 50 is a Teflon suspension which claims to coat/impregnate the metal parts with a friction reducer. The manufacturer of Teflon, DuPont, says their product MUST NOT be used in an engine. I've tried the stuff and found no increase in fuel mileage over the duration of the test and only minor reduction in operating temperatures. A total waste of money. Their FUEL SYSTEM product Synchron,works about as well as MMO when used in the fuel system. However, they call it an "8,000 km" fuel treetment, making it sound like there is some residual action. All it really means is if you use it every 8000 km you will keep engine combustion chamber deposits in check. Rislone and MMO are simply solvents/detergents/oxidation inhibitors to reduce the viscosity of the oil when cold,disolve gums and carbon deposits, and help prevent further deposit formation. When used as directed they do EXACTLY what they claim to do. By removing deposits that cause rings to stick they will reduce oil consumption and improve compression if sticky rings are the problem. By removing gum from lifters they will quiet noisy engines if sticky/dirty lifters are the problem. By removing deposits from oil galeries, rocker shafts, etc they will improve lubrication to the valve train, reducing wear and noise - if reduced oil flow due to deposit buildup is the problem.
Now, the thing is, with extended drain intervals on hot-running highly stressed engines deposit buildup IS a known and well documented problem - and removing the offending deposits WILL improve the performance, sound, and life of the engine. These are 2 products that when used as directed WILL do what they claim. I've used both over 40 years with very good results. MMO added to an aircraft engine that had sat for a few years and had compression/leakdown test results that indicated the engine should NOT fly came back up to PERFECT readings within less than 20 minutes of ground run-up. Added to the fuel it also helps remove/reduce lead buildup on valve stems of engines like the older Continental 85 HP that were designed to run on 87 octane avgas (which had less lead than today's LL100 which is about the only "avgas" you can buy most places today)which causes "morning sickness" - or sticking valves when the engine is first started.
Might want to try a different brand of motor oil. I had a wicked piston rod knock in my last Blazer. Tried a couple different brand of oil, and tried heavier weights. Catsrol was the brand that quieted the rod knock for more than two days.
I do field service for a living and drive vehicles till the wheels fall off. So far my highest mileage vehicle when retired to junk yard was a 1990 caravan with about 450,000 miles or so. A little unsure cause the odometer broke for awhile.:) Although It had a engine swap near the end, maybe 400,000 miles
In any case my older vans get noisey lifters etc. Slick 50 silences that, espically the noise after a vehicle sits for awhile./ I devote one van to big deliveries and back up if the primary one breaks....
Never checked mileage or temperature but that noise disappears.
I use it every few oil changes. so the cost isnt a killer
I don't know what's "possible" but when Slick 50 first hit the market I saw a lawnmower engine supposedly treated with it run for about an hour with no oil in the crankcase. It had supposedly been running all day every day the previous week.
A couple years later I dumped some in my '81 Olds-88/350 beater and didn't change the oil for about a year.
In -30 temps that was the only car on the block that would start, and I mean two pumps of the throttle hit the key and vroom.
I parked that thing for almost 3 years before giving it to an out-of- work neighbor with 5 kids that had his wife and month old infant killed in a head-on in their only vehicle.
I've used kerosene to flush a lifter ; as you suggest, NOT the same approach.
When a quart low on oil, just add less than a quart of kerosene to an already warm engine. Drive it for a short rode trip and then change the oil. If it works, and cleans any *speck of sand* out of the lifter it will be noticed. Any worn parts will still be noticed as damaged and needs repair.
The Marvel Mystery Oil suggested it a good idea, imho.
I've also used Auto Transmission fluid in fuel systems. A full tank of fuel and one quart to ATF in the tank. It cleans the system, carb and removes moisture. Granted these were older vehicles... Also have added ATF to engine oil as mentioned above. Many oils have had detergents in them.
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