Oil shelf Life -how to know the best before date!

[Sberry]

If we follow all the logic the air compressor i saw the other day wouldnt exist, has had the same oil in it for north of 60 years. I got several engines with 10 yr oil in them. There are a few engines known to foul the oil, lots of them can go long time without issue providing pcv and crank case venting working and no internal engine leaks.

 

[ruffdog]

It may get too old and not rated for new engines.

I agree with this. You may damage emissions equipment if you use a oil graded SD, SF, SG, etc in a new car or truck (tractor?) because of the additive package and heavy metals.

http://www.pqiamerica.com/apiserviceclass.htm

 

[Sberry]

I dont know much about additives and zdps and all that stuff but as I recall reading a little Bob that every time they move to a new class,,,, SM to SN etc the friction improvement needs to be 2x. I could be mistaken and that could have been one time but I think it was still current. I cant help but think the new oil in old engines is a really good thing.
New engines can be demanding in certain parameters, they are tight, they are hot, turbos etc. They really fly with lotso moving valve train parts. Not that that wasnt always a weak area anyway but I think they solve a lot of it with rollers. There is some speculationabout new oil and old tappets but there always were problems, nothing new and so far as I can see maybe less.

 

[RalphVa]

Hardly any additive in a full synthetic to worry about whether it's compatible with modern engines.

Ralph

 

[mini14]

when my father died 10 years ago he had a huge stockpile of cases of oil. i am still using it up, i just shake the jug up before i open them.

 

[daugen]

once upon a time with a barn full of machinery, I used to take the ancient straight 40wt oil left over from my Detroit Diesels in my boat, and that's
what I used in my old oil can, with the trigger and the long spout. Over the years most of us have accumulated quite a collection of oddball oil viscositys.
And now I see if you have a new Japanese car they want you to put 0W-16 in it. Not sure you could accomplish that with conventional oil.
And should we be buying only oil made from natural gas now? It looked mighty expensive...

If you store the oil inside in a protected area, and don't let it get super hot or cold there, I think spoiling oil is way down on the list of things to worry about.
Gasoline? Oh yes. Diesel? you bet
Oil? not hardly Propane? nope

I really wonder if the 5 year notice is just to get us to buy new product...

 

[daugen]

New engines can be demanding in certain parameters, they are tight, they are hot, turbos etc. They really fly with lotso moving valve train parts. Not that that wasnt always a weak area anyway but I think they solve a lot of it with rollers. There is some speculation about new oil and old tappets but there always were problems, nothing new and so far as I can see maybe less.

My 2015 Ram 1500 hemi developed the widespread "hemi tick" and finally the dealer had to replace two roller tappets under warranty. I think it's due to variable valve timing and inadequate oil pressure at start up. Dealer was not forthcoming...but no squawks from them because they were the ones who changed my oil with expensive synthetic each time.

I get the impression oil performance is improving all the time. Since the better your oil works the less fuel you burn and the longer
your engine lasts, normally..., perhaps getting the benefits of the most modern version of your SAE rating would be worthwhile.

And being old enough to know when a good quart of oil costs you 40 cents, I do know I wouldn't run any of that 40 cent oil in my new Honda engine...
But I sure would put it in my oil can.

 

[sixdogs]

My Toyota dealer sent me an email recently that said any new Toyota bought in the next month will come with a 200,000 mile drive train warranty as long as you follow maintenance. Not sure if that's a dealer thing or Toyota program but surely means confidence in the engine, trans. and related oils.

With oil changes going from 1,000 to 3,000 to 5,000 and then 10,000 or 20,000 for some vehicles, can a "lifetime" or maybe 50,000 mile oil change be the future?

 

[Username Taken]

I dont know much about additives and zdps and all that stuff but as I recall reading a little Bob that every time they move to a new class,,,, SM to SN etc the friction improvement needs to be 2x. I could be mistaken and that could have been one time but I think it was still current. I cant help but think the new oil in old engines is a really good thing.
New engines can be demanding in certain parameters, they are tight, they are hot, turbos etc. They really fly with lotso moving valve train parts. Not that that wasnt always a weak area anyway but I think they solve a lot of it with rollers. There is some speculationabout new oil and old tappets but there always were problems, nothing new and so far as I can see maybe less.

That is quite mistaken. Lately, a lot of the changes in Class designations have been EPA related and have absolutely nothing to do with how well the oil works.

I remember when they took the Zinc out of dino oil and they changed the class designation. The oil was actually less efficient at lubrication.

Just a year or so ago, the EPA forced a change in Diesel Oils. I think it was from CJ to CK (?). Ford, the Company, freaked out and sent out notices to everybody to NOT use the new EPA oil. They even had a list of approved oils.

The EPA forced refiners to make the oil thinner to get the new classification. For fuel consumption purposes. ONLY. Same weight, same viscosity numbers on the bottle/jug but thinner, so...... The EPA has the power to change the laws of physics, it seems.

Immense pressure was place on Ford to Comply and they finally did. I didn't. I use a good synthetic in everything except my small gas engines.

As to expire date? If you're concerned about it, just shake it up some in case additives settled to the bottom. Over a period of years it can happen but not all the time. Just a placebo effect sometimes. Sometimes necessary

 

[fishheadbob]

My uncle was a refinery manager for Mobil, Aramco, and other biggies; started in a refinery when he was 14. He said "that stuff is millions of years old, we just cook it some. It doesn't get old." As long as the classification meets the engine requirement your oil should be good.