Second Opinion - Oil Test Library

Oil Test Library
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Year	Make	Model	Mileage	Oil Brand	Oil Spec	Change Interval	Type of Use	RO#	Notes	Picture of Sample
BMW
1997	BMW	528i	141,983	Valvoline, Full Synthetic	5w30	10,000 Miles / 6 Months	Highway	161012001	Well defined soot and ash rings visible. Interval possibly too long for engine with this many miles. Click image for larger view.
1997	BMW	740iL	85,437	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Mixed	161211005	Micro-particles barely visible indicate a poor quality oil filter that has become clogged. Thick soot ring typical with heavy city driving. Air filter was also found to be overdue for replacement.
1997	BMW	Z3 supercharged	57,543	Valvoline, Full Synthetic	5w30	3,000 miles / up to 12 months	Mostly city or in storage	161208004	Oil is very clean. Since this car is stored most of the time, a once yearly oil change will be more than sufficient.
Honda
1989	Honda	Civic	151,214	Castrol	10w30	3,000 Miles / 3 Months	City	161025006	Engine running good, driver had been changing oil very regularly. Interval could easily be extended to 5 months / 5,000 miles to save money. Regular "All-Climate" oil from lube shop seems to be working well for this engine.
1989	Honda	Civic	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	City	161025006	Sloppy sample shows two spots, but is still usable for analysis. Click image for larger view.
Hyundai
1991	Hyundai	Scoupe	144,250	Valvoline, All-Climate	10w30	3,000 Miles / 3 Months	City	Neglected, but recently better maintained	1,000 miles since last service This follow-up test after recovery from severe neglect shows that the oil is in good condition now.
Nissan
1995	Nissan	Pathfinder	Unknown	Valvoline, Full Synthetic	5w30	5,000 Miles / 8 Months	City		Oil change interval extended to great length by using Full Synthetic oil. Oil was left in for later test. This is my personal vehicle which gets heavy stop-and-go city use only. Click image for larger view.
2003	Nissan	Maxima	52,093	Valvoline, All-Climate	5w30	5,000 miles / 5 months	City	161027002	The multiple circles in the center of the sample are because the dipstick of the late-model Maxima is very dificult to get a sample from. Three attempts were needed to get enough oil for a decent test.
2006	Nissan	Altima	6,387	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	Mixed	161030002	This was the first oil service for this car. As seen in the test - perhaps the first service should have come sooner. Then after high quality oil is installed and the engine fully "broken-in" the interval could be extended.
SAAB
1995	SAAB	900 4 cyl non-turbo	72,944	Valvoline, All-Climate	10w30	3,000 miles / 3 months	City	161031005	Normal interval that could have gone longer. Customer requested an oil change in preperation for a long distance trip. Could have easily gone on the trip without worry AND saved money.
1997	SAAB	900 4 cyl	180,782	Mixed at different shops	10w30 and ?	4-6,000 miles / 6 months	Hwy	161030004	This car likes the highway use, oil still in good condition, could have gone even farther. Click image for larger view.
1997	SAAB	9000 Aero	156,855	Valvoline, MaxLife	10w30	15,000 Miles / 10 Months	Mixed	161025005	Greasy glob of goo on the dipstick caused a curious test result. The oil otherwise looks very clean. Oil pan inspection did not show any sludge buildup. Dipstick tubes sometimes collect debris when the dipstick gasket gets brittle and causes unfiltered air to get sucked into the engine.
1999	SAAB	9-3	99,123	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	City	161219003	Too much oil on test card, but results still useable. Oil looks great!
1999	SAAB	9-3 SE	80,841	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	City	170207001	Oil is dirty but not used up yet. Debris in test sample caused by early stages of sludge buildup. Engine sucsessfully treated with crankcase detergent BG QuickClean. Driver advised to shorten interval to 2 months until sample test shows no debris. Click image for larger view.
1999	SAAB	9-5	76,547	Unknown	Unknown	5,000 Miles / 5 Months	Mixed	161003004	Oil is depleted with high soot content. Oil changed on time (for this car and use pattern).
1999	SAAB	9-5	109,802	Valvoline, All-Climate	5w30	5,000 Miles / 5 Months	City	161025003	All climate oil seems too dark, but has no debris. Oil upgraded to full synthetic for better protection.
1999	SAAB	9-5 4 cyl	135,968	Valvoline, Maxlife	10w30	Unknown Possibly 20k miles	Hwy	161108001	Interval was too long. Oil type worked well to protect engine, but this test shows high soot content and oil is almost completely spent. Click image for larger view.
1999	SAAB	9-5 4 cyl	113,069	Valvoline, DuraBlend	5w30	3-5,000 miles / 3 months	Mixed	161211002	Normal for this vehicle
1999	SAAB	9-5 Wagon	93,987	Valvoline, DuraBlend	5w30	4,600 Miles / 5 Months	City	161017002	Minor ash ring in center
2000	SAAB	9-3	86,744	Unknown Following 8-10k mile factory rcd	Unknown	7,000 Miles	Mixed	161024001 Pic 1 of 4	Test shows high soot content and sludge chips/debris in center. No engine wear symptoms like warning lights or noises yet. Immediate attention required! Click image for larger view.
2000	SAAB	9-3	86,744	Unknown	Unknown	7,000 Miles	Mixed	161024001 Pic 2 of 4	Same car after BG Quick-Clean added and 10 min. running
2000	SAAB	9-3	86,744	Valvoline, DuraBlend	5w30	New Oil	Mixed	161024001 Pic 3 of 4	Same car with new oil
2000	SAAB	9-3	86,744	-	-	-	-	161024001 Pic 4 of 4	Same car. Using a super-thin light source, the side wall of the oil pan was inspected and found to be fairly clean. Oil sump screen could be restricted. Repeat detergent treatments and shorter interval recommeded until the test look normal.
2001	SAAB	9-3	55,567	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	City	170213002	Severe case of sludge buildup causing oil flow restriction. Engine suffered permanent damage. Click image for larger view.
2002	SAAB	9-3	69,491	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	City	161208007	Oil is very clean. Small debris caused by not wiping the dipstick before getting a sample. Second test (not pictured) looked normal.
2002	SAAB	9-3 Viggen	44,202	Valvoline, Full Synthetic	5w30	3,000 miles / 3 months	City	161201001	Oil is worn and due for service. High performance car is driven hard by owner.
2002	SAAB	9-5 4 cyl	68,836	Valvoline, DuraBlend	5w30	5-7,000 miles / 6 months	Mixed	161121004	Oil leak has forced extra top-off oil between services, looks normal
2003	SAAB	9-3	69,967	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	City	Unknown	Very clean oil with ferrous metal shavings in solution, indicates internal damage. Sample cured over a small magnet for effect
Toyota
1991	Toyota	Pickup 4 cyl	164,091	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	City	161218008	Vehicle mostly in storage, driven intermittently for short trips.
2004	Toyota	4Runner 4.0L V-6	37,500	Valvoline, Full Synthetic	5w30	5,000 miles / 5 months	City	161102001	Looks normal for this car. Click image for larger view.