Motor flush

[tekfire07]

What are your feelings on motor flush additives? If you do use them what do you recommend for the 5.3?

 

[OR VietVet]

If you follow good maintenance and use good synthetic oil and a good filter, WIX, you should be ok, BUT, if you want to do it for s*h*i*t*s and giggles, I would use Sea Foam.

 

[Marky Dissod]

1. What are your feelings on motor flush additives?
2. If you do use them what do you recommend for the 5.3L?

1. There are precious few things I'd ever add to any motor oil.
Of those, they'd all get added at the beginning of the oil change, and stay for at least 500 miles before I change the oil and filter again.
Anything that MUST leave the crankcase in 30min or less, makes me nervous enough to think I shouldn't leave it in there for 10min.

This is the only thing I've ever added to ANY engine / motor oil:

Bio/Tech Engine Oil Protectant with LXE® Technology

Lubegard® Bio/Tech Engine Oil Protectant with LXE® Technology: Bio-based additive reduces wear 50%+, lowers temps, improves fuel economy & extends oil/engine life. Safe for all conventional/synthetic oils (gas/diesel).

www.lubegard.com

2. How would that recommendation change for the 5.3L?
If the additive is safe for use in a GM 5.3L, then it'd be safe in a 4.8L, 5.3L, 5.7L, 6.0L, 6.2L, 6.6L, 7.0L ...
If the additive is safe for use in a GM Gen3 or Gen4 V8, why would it not be safe in any other engine regardless of displacement or make?

3. I'd put that LubeGard BioTech Engine Protectant in ANY motor oil / engine.

 

[Trey Hardy]

I use marvel mystery oil personally with 10w40 oil
I run mine the full cycle until I change the oil again
I also put some in the gas tank when I run out of B12

 

[Marky Dissod]

I use marvel mystery oil personally with 10w40 oil
I run mine the full cycle until I change the oil again
I also put some in the gas tank when I run out of B12

Although I've never tried it myself - it's MYSTERY OIL, damnit! How am I supposed to trust it if you won't tell me what's in it?! - I cannot argue with the fact that it's been around longer than I've been alive and I've heard ZERO negative comments about it in that time.

 

[Doubeleive]

if I was going to put any snake oil in my engine I would use something reputable like Liqui Moly, Amsoil
then follow it up with a couple 15-20 minute oil changes back to back.
you couldn't pay to me to use sea foam unless that was a last ditch effort before replacing the engine.
the local dealer used to offer a engine flush service with a machine but they stopped doing it a number of years back because it's really not effective.

 

[B-train]

All the above are good suggestions. I've found that using ATF or MMO for the last 500-1000 miles of the oil change works well. The oil will come out dark, showing carbon and deposits being dissolved. But, if it's an engine that's been neglected forever in the oil change department, be cautious and do a few short interval changes. That crud breaks loose and can plug shit up if left in too long.

 

[OR VietVet]

I should have included that, like has been said, change the oil very soon after.

 

[iamdub]

What are your feelings on motor flush additives? If you do use them what do you recommend for the 5.3?

If you've been running good quality synthetic, you shouldn't need anything. They're too easy to use improperly and can do more harm than good. Diluting and thinning out the oil doesn't set right with me. Adding a harsh chemical to abruptly break away chunks of sludge can cause problems worse than the sludge might be causing.

Take an hour of a weekend day to pop off a valve cover. This will tell you just how clean your engine is on the inside and if you need to take any actions. It'll cost you nothing but time but can save you thousands.


Here's mine around 190K after my ownership since 146K and running Pennzoil Platinum with maybe one or two cycles of Mobil1:

No sludge. Just some oil staining on the rockers and springs. An engine flush additive would only dilute and water-down the oil. Not necessary and not worth the risk!

 

[Shackman7878]

I like to use Valvemedic the Gray bottle every 2nd oil change. Worked great for for lifter noise, fixed a couple DOD lifters on this product.

Motor Medic® ValveMedic™ Oil Detergent 12oz- M3712

Add to oil to help clean Dissolves gum, sludge & dirt deposits Quiets noisy valve lifters fast

motormedic.com

 

[JPVortex]

I like to use Valvemedic the Gray bottle every 2nd oil change. Worked great for for lifter noise, fixed a couple DOD lifters on this product.

Motor Medic® ValveMedic™ Oil Detergent 12oz- M3712

Add to oil to help clean Dissolves gum, sludge & dirt deposits Quiets noisy valve lifters fast

motormedic.com

Sorry to respond to this months and months later, but do you keep this stuff in the engine for the duration of the oil change? Can't seem to find any info online regarding if it's like their "motor flush" that you only idle for 5 minutes before changing the oil, or if it stays in the engine.

 

[OR VietVet]

"Cleans engine in 5 minutes".

"Recommended before each oil change".

Add it and run the engine 5-10 minutes and then drain completely while oil is hot. Let it drip, drip, drip out of the drain plug hole and then finish oil change. They should be telling you this on the damn bottle but it is not meant to be in with fresh oil and stay in there for the whole time before the oil change. It would even be better, IMO, to get the oil hot before you add it.

 

[Dustin Jackson]

It's my own belief that anything designed to "clean" the motor will shorten the lifespan of gaskets and seals so if I wanted to clean my motor I would do repeated oil changes. If you've ever opened motors up you know that it takes a considerable amount of neglect for the inside of a motor to warrant additional cleaning so unless you have confirmation that you have a sludged up motor I wouldn't think it necessary.

 

[petethepug]

I don’t normally use an engine flush. But when I do feel the need, I grab a beer and just think about it some more.

 

[rdezs]

As previously mentioned, a properly maintained engine will not need a flush. That means running full synthetic oil and keep it up on oil changes. Should have a gold hue on the inside when and if it's ever opened.

I understand some people out of necessity are on a budget and purchase used motors. I still wouldn't use the motor flush products. I cringe at the thought of dissolving carbon buildups and whatnot from a lack of maintenance, and running them not only through lifters but across the bearing surfaces. If I were to purchase a used engine to install, I would drop the oil pan and clean it till it was spotless. Most of the crud would be in the bottom. I would do a new oil pump and timing chain set. Pull the valve covers and clean as well. Then synthetic motor oil the rest of its life.

If one does use the motor flush, after draining.... I would dump in conventional oil, with a new filter, run it 15 minutes and dump it. Then refill one more time for another 15 minutes, then drain it and replace the filter, then put in a synthetic oil.

 

[Marky Dissod]

Those of you experiencing oil consumption: that could be a sign that you should change your oil sooner.
If you lose a quart every 6000 miles, try changing oil every 5000 miles.

 

[j91z28d1]

It's my own belief that anything designed to "clean" the motor will shorten the lifespan of gaskets and seals so if I wanted to clean my motor I would do repeated oil changes. If you've ever opened motors up you know that it takes a considerable amount of neglect for the inside of a motor to warrant additional cleaning so unless you have confirmation that you have a sludged up motor I wouldn't think it necessary.

this is not a bad take. gm gaskets are iffy with just standard oil long term anyways and really besides sludge being so bad it's clogging up return oil holes or oil pick up screen. it's probably not going to blow your engine up.

might be best to check around with a one of the newer 180deg adjustable head bore scopes in the valve cover and drain plug. if it doesn't look really bad. might be best to let it ride and maybe run something less aggressive like say the new restore oil.

my engine just has a light radish tint to the aluminum block lifter valley but heads and in the oil pan look nice clean color. I did try restore just for the heck of seeing what the filter looks like after but byond that. I don't see it worth adding anything to clean it.

 

[Charlie207]

All the above are good suggestions. I've found that using ATF or MMO for the last 500-1000 miles of the oil change works well. The oil will come out dark, showing carbon and deposits being dissolved. But, if it's an engine that's been neglected forever in the oil change department, be cautious and do a few short interval changes. That crud breaks loose and can plug shit up if left in too long.

Marvel Mystery oil is basically just ATF with a few herbs & spices baked in; nothing special or ground-breaking.

I've been hearing good things about Valvoline Restore & Protect. Lake Speed, Jr. did a video on it where they showed some of the certified testing, and how they basically had to "dumb down" the formula to prevent it from cleaning too fast. As already stated, it's a bad idea to loosen up all the gunk in your engine at once, and they were seeing oil filters clogged up before regular service intervals, which is bad.


I was starting to run the Restore & Protect in my 5.3 before the swap, because the old oil always came out really dark in the ~4-5k intervals. But with a fresh motor I'm just using whatever synthetic 5w-30 is cheapest that week.

 

[j91z28d1]

Marvel Mystery oil is basically just ATF with a few herbs & spices baked in; nothing special or ground-breaking.

I've been hearing good things about Valvoline Restore & Protect. Lake Speed, Jr. did a video on it where they showed some of the certified testing, and how they basically had to "dumb down" the formula to prevent it from cleaning too fast. As already stated, it's a bad idea to loosen up all the gunk in your engine at once, and they were seeing oil filters clogged up before regular service intervals, which is bad.


I was starting to run the Restore & Protect in my 5.3 before the swap, because the old oil always came out really dark in the ~4-5k intervals. But with a fresh motor I'm just using whatever synthetic 5w-30 is cheapest that week.

did you disassemble the old 5.3 to see what it looked like inside?

 

[Charlie207]

did you disassemble the old 5.3 to see what it looked like inside?

Nope. I pulled the valve covers and intake, and oil pan, but that was as far as I got into it. There was no sludge anywhere. I swapped the 2014 valve covers onto the 2008 engine to use the revised version.

My amateur guess is that because the engine was burning 1/2 to 1qt. of oil every oil change (4-5k) that there was some blow-by, and contamination. But I left it at that. I sold the 5.3 to a kid who was rebuilding it all, anyways, to jam in a 1996 Tacoma 2wd.