Oil analysis ... wear metals

BodhiBenz1987 · **Posted:** Thu Sep 04, 2008 1:19 am

I had an oil analysis done on my CRD at 18,789 miles (the first analysis I have had). The car's first two oil changes were done by the dealer; I just did a change on my own during which I took this sample (so the sample is from the last batch of oil the dealer put in). Needless to say I'm not happy with these numbers:
Aluminum: 17 on my car/10 universal average
Chromium: 7/3
Iron: 134/45
Copper: 9/4
Lead: 8/3
Silicon: 36/16

Oil had 6,348 miles on it and was (as far as I was told) Mobil 1 0W40, and the filter was supposed to have been changed at the time the oil change was done. I don't understand why wear metals would turn up in an engine with this mileage barring some unusual event in the engine's life. Thoughts?

I did put in Mobil 1 0w40 this time and changed the filter with an OEM filter. I will run 3,000 miles and send another sample to see if anything improves.

Joe Romas · **Posted:** Thu Sep 04, 2008 7:21 am

Reading your post two questions come to mind :lol:

Everytime I take mine to the dealer, as little as possible, the service writer pushes their $19 oil change

I remind him again it's a diesel then he remembers it needs "special oil" :lol:

I wonder, as you indicated you also do, what was really put in your engine

Then further is a ZERO weight oil really apporiate most of the year in the US :?:

dgeist · **Posted:** Thu Sep 04, 2008 10:01 am

You may simply be still breaking-in the engine (for whatever that's worth) but I'd check again after a few hundred miles on your new (full synthetic) oil and filter and see if the numbers jive... and you may want to get a "better than stock" air filter. That can reduce you silicon numbers.

Dan

gmctd · **Posted:** Thu Sep 04, 2008 10:47 am

This Diesel engine has what few (I'd venture to say: NONE) do: twin counter-rotating balance shafts residing in their own bearings and casting and additional geartrain directly under the crankshaft - also has twin camshafts rotating in an aluminum casting - should show larger concentration of those metals over a non-balance-shafted single cam version - use a premium oil filter instead of the oem version - if that's silicon, it's part of the process - increased silicates would need specific address, as that's poor air filtration, particularly if you're using the oem air filter, or a K&N\deriv - whichever, pull it and scrutinize it for a clean area - silicates, fyi, is dirt.............

nursecosmo · **Posted:** Thu Sep 04, 2008 12:30 pm

I vote for the engine not being fully broken in yet at only 18K miles. My mileage did not really start going up until around 20k which tells me that everything was still seating.

john jr · **Joined:** Sun Feb 24, 2008 11:50 am **Posts:** 161

nursecosmo wrote:

I vote for the engine not being fully broken in yet at only 18K miles. My mileage did not really start going up until around 20k which tells me that everything was still seating.

dido

Ranger1 · **Joined:** Mon Oct 17, 2005 7:40 pm **Posts:** 1137

I had a 61 iron, 8 chrome and 16 aluminum with a 35 silicon reading. Too much silicon - I found the air cleaner tube connecting to the turbo had crushed slightly directly under the clamp, letting in unfiltered air. Replaced the air cleaner top (the part that has the MAF sensor on it).

After that, Si dropped to 13, Iron to 12, Chrome to 1, Aluminum to 4 with 5K miles on the oil, using TDT 5W-40 and an Amsoil EaO26 filter. Same drive, highway, no offroad, no dusty conditions.

Break-in notwithstanding, silicon reading is too high.

Good to see you're still around - iirc, you wrote an article on the Liberty CRD not long after it came out and were a little nervious about it at first. It was a great article.

gmctd · **Posted:** Thu Sep 04, 2008 1:36 pm

The 0-40 covers cold to hot, 0 for cold-weather starting on one battery, 40 for hot weather when thicker viscosity is needed for larger clearances - 'sides, it's synthetic, don't atall behave like dino excrement does under similar conditions

DarbyWalters · **Posted:** Thu Sep 04, 2008 4:40 pm

Do you have the EHM or SEGR? Both those should lower your AL numbers...without them you are running abrasive material (soot) thru the upper engine. Heavy EGR Diesels will do that. The Si is most likely unclean air in the intake system. I would think at 18000+ miles, break in metals would be at a minimum by now.

nursecosmo · **Posted:** Thu Sep 04, 2008 4:57 pm

DarbyWalters wrote:

Do you have the EHM or SEGR? Both those should lower your AL numbers...without them you are running abrasive material (soot) thru the upper engine. Heavy EGR Diesels will do that. The Si is most likely unclean air in the intake system. I would think at 18000+ miles, break in metals would be at a minimum by now.

If the oil had 6000 miles as stated, the engine was not finished with break in at 12000 miles unless BodhiBenz1987 does some heavy towing up hills, especially if it had Mobil 1 during the break in period.

onthehunt · **Posted:** Thu Sep 04, 2008 7:45 pm

Engine is not broken in. My wear metals didn't even out until after 40,000 miles.

dieselenthusiast · **Posted:** Thu Sep 04, 2008 11:58 pm

Oil analysis ... wear metals

Who is online