Latest Used Oil Analysis at 7k miles!

[DanW]

I buried it in an air filter thread before, so I thought I'd put it where anyone interested can easily find it. This run was on Mobil 1 AP 0w20 with a Fram Ultra filter. It looks great, to me, considering it went in while break-in was still occurring. It looks like the wear metals are finally settling down. The oil had plenty of life left in it, and as usual with the Pentastar, there was no fuel dilution, which is exactly why I love that it does not have direct injection. Also, the silicon is way down, which surprised me since this run included a VERY dusty trip to Moab. The filter did its job well, and the silicates in sealers from break-in are pretty much gone. I replaced that air filter with a new one, so we'll see how it looks down the road. I put a jug of Pennzoil Ultra Platinum in it for the current run and will do another UOA at or just after 5k miles. Enjoy!

Compare to my previous oil analysis report: 3.6L Pentastar Used Oil Analysis of Factory Fill, 2000 Miles (Blackstone report)

Sponsored

 

[ely-bound]

DanW - Thanks for taking the time to complete the analysis and post. I have used Fram Ultra and Mobil 1 in past vehicles and it gives me great comfort to know this combo works well in the 3.6 JL. Thanks again.

 

[multicam]

I have to remember to do this on my first oil change!

 

[Ezun]

Hey @DanW, curious on your thoughts about putting a ,agent on your oil filter. I have done it yet, but seems a reasonable way to help capture metals. I’m at about 1800 miles, did my first oil change at 500 and thinking of doing it again at 2000.

Thoughts?

 

[DanW]

Hey @DanW, curious on your thoughts about putting a ,agent on your oil filter. I have done it yet, but seems a reasonable way to help capture metals. I’m at about 1800 miles, did my first oil change at 500 and thinking of doing it again at 2000.

Thoughts?

I don't think it is necessary and I don't think it can be done with a cartridge filter. I'd be more inclined to put in a magnetic drain plug. It is well out of the way and would not interfere with anything. I prefer to just use a high quality filter. I think the Fram Ultra is the best, followed by the Fram Tough Guard then the Mobil 1 filter. I'll be using some Mobil 1 filters for awhile, as I picked up about 12 of them on clearance at Wal Mart for only 4 bucks each.

 

[Ezun]

I don't think it is necessary and I don't think it can be done with a cartridge filter. I'd be more inclined to put in a magnetic drain plug. It is well out of the way and would not interfere with anything. I prefer to just use a high quality filter. I think the Fram Ultra is the best, followed by the Fram Tough Guard then the Mobil 1 filter. I'll be using some Mobil 1 filters for awhile, as I picked up about 12 of them on clearance at Wal Mart for only 12 bucks each.

Thanks clearly you picked up that I was trying to type ‘magnet’.
I still have the 4 Jeep wave oil changes. I hate to waste them - so maybe I just go through them and then convert to the top end stuff.

 

[DanW]

Thanks clearly you picked up that I was trying to type ‘magnet’.
I still have the 4 Jeep wave oil changes. I hate to waste them - so maybe I just go through them and then convert to the top end stuff.

Yeah, those Jeep wave changes are fine. I'm pretty sure they use Pennzoil Platinum or Gold and a Mopar filter. Both Pennzoils are outstanding, and the Mopar filter is fine. I obsess over this stuff for that extra milimeter, but really you can't go wrong with those. Run them with confidence. I'm honestly not sure the Pennzoil Platinum isn't as good as any oil out there, at any price. The top oils are so good, the difference is probably minute. Again, I'm just a nerd about this stuff. I've paid for 4 oil analyses just to satisfy curiosity. I saw nothing in them I didn't expect.

 

[Walter-new jeeper]

Hey @DanW, curious on your thoughts about putting a ,agent on your oil filter. I have done it yet, but seems a reasonable way to help capture metals. I’m at about 1800 miles, did my first oil change at 500 and thinking of doing it again at 2000.

Thoughts?

Why, might I ask, did you do an oil change at 500 miles and then doing another at 2000?

 

[Arterius2]

Why, might I ask, did you do an oil change at 500 miles and then doing another at 2000?

Some people believe break in oil contaminants/metal shavings in new vehicles and religiously change their oil to “flush it out”. I do it just to be on the safe side, but about every 5000km.

 

[DanW]

Why, might I ask, did you do an oil change at 500 miles and then doing another at 2000?

I've done that with several vehicles and it didn't hurt them. I don't think it is necessary, but it causes no harm. I did my first at 2k, as you can see in the report, then at nearly 5k, gradually increasing to the 7k run. I think I'm going to settle in at 5k because I tend to run it hard. (The 6 speed and @Magnaflow make music together) but this engine with good oil can easily do well going the full distance on the OLM. I'd have total confidence even in a 10k run. So why 5k? 2 reasons: Everyone I know with 300k plus on an engine seems to have gone 5k, and I just simply feel better about it at that mark.

 

[Ezun]

Some people believe break in oil contaminants/metal shavings in new vehicles and religiously change their oil to “flush it out”. I do it just to be on the safe side, but about every 5000km.

Yeah, what he said.

But based on your oil @DanW, I may not do the 2000 mile oil change.

 

[Rubi]

My preference is to stay away from Fram oil filters. Have heard of many problems with Fram over the years. I go with a NAPA Gold which is made by Wix.

I also change my 3.6l with Mobil 1 every 5k miles, with an initial 1k oil/filter change.

 

[DanW]

My preference is to stay away from Fram oil filters. Have heard of many problems with Fram over the years. I go with a NAPA Gold which is made by Wix.

I also change my 3.6l with Mobil 1 every 5k miles, with an initial 1k oil/filter change.

Cut open a Fram Ultra. They are made as well as any (the cartridge for the Pentastar is made almost exactly like the Mobil 1 filter) and they have a superior proprietary filtering media. 99+ % single pass down to 20 microns, and Fram claims it also flows with low restriction, meaning bypass is triggered at higher pressures. Nobody even claims to be as good. Fram's competitors ran a bunch of ads years ago about the fiber endcaps (calling them cardboard, which they are not) and claimed they were bad. They did have some years with QC issues, but that was decades ago. It turns out, many manufacturers use those kinds of endcaps. If they are well made and well glued, they are as good or better than metal endcaps (which have been known to leak in some brands). Purolator, who makes the Chrysler OEM filters, have a reputation in recent years for pleats tearing, although I've not seen that on the Mopars. I've run Frams for years with no issue. I ran Purolators (both Purolator and Ford Motorcraft) for awhile, too, and saw fraying in the media after only a few thousand miles. I quit running them after seeing that.

Wix has an excellent reputation and they make most Napa filters, too. They just don't filter as well as a Fram Ultra Guard, although they surely filter well enough. I bought a mess of Mobil 1 filters that have the same filtering rating as Wix/Napa's top filter, so again, I think they filter well. (99% single pass down to 30 microns. Not Fram XG territory, but still very, very good.)

 

[Litfuse]

Cut open a Fram Ultra. They are made as well as any (the cartridge for the Pentastar is made almost exactly like the Mobil 1 filter) and they have a superior proprietary filtering media. 99+ % single pass down to 20 microns, and Fram claims it also flows with low restriction, meaning bypass is triggered at higher pressures. Nobody even claims to be as good. Fram's competitors ran a bunch of ads years ago about the fiber endcaps (calling them cardboard, which they are not) and claimed they were bad. They did have some years with QC issues, but that was decades ago. It turns out, many manufacturers use those kinds of endcaps. If they are well made and well glued, they are as good or better than metal endcaps (which have been known to leak in some brands). Purolator, who makes the Chrysler OEM filters, have a reputation in recent years for pleats tearing, although I've not seen that on the Mopars. I've run Frams for years with no issue. I ran Purolators (both Purolator and Ford Motorcraft) for awhile, too, and saw fraying in the media after only a few thousand miles. I quit running them after seeing that.

Wix has an excellent reputation and they make most Napa filters, too. They just don't filter as well as a Fram Ultra Guard, although they surely filter well enough. I bought a mess of Mobil 1 filters that have the same filtering rating as Wix/Napa's top filter, so again, I think they filter well. (99% single pass down to 30 microns. Not Fram XG territory, but still very, very good.)

My wife is in advertising and one of her clients was Fram. The biggest challenge Fram wanted my wife to fix/change was their reputation.

 

[anotherWS6]

FRAM are not good units. Not terrible, but certainly mediocre at best. There was a comprehensive thread on LS1tech about the different filters. Wix - as expected - came out on top.

Sponsored