Here is my Engine Oil Analysis

There was a thread where we posted how often we change our oil and I've seen most people change it at 5k. I generally would do 5k too but this time I waited until 8k to do it.

I did get both cam towers sealed so I think the silicon is from that. I did an oil change after I got the car back and this is 8k in that oil that was changed right after the sealing. I did have to top off about a quart to bring the oil back to full after about 5k into the oil.

About the coolant in the oil, is that a sign the water pump might be on its way out? Coolant looks full by the radiator cap but the reservoir did go from full to halfway to low mark.

I do mostly highway but there are many times where there is stop and go traffic. My mpg is about 14 mpg.

I will wait another 8k to do another analysis and see what happens.

 

Usually a head gasket when coolant is in oil...

 

I suspect the coolant is also from the cam tower reseal. I believe the front timing cover extends to the crankcase on the 3UR-FE. A careless splash during disassembly ends up in the engine oil. Report indicates it's only a trace. Do another oil analysis at your next change.

 

Nice report! I agree the coolant is probably trace from the work done. I would say do what Blackstone says run till 8000 then check it again.

 

When you change your oil, even with a new filter and prolonged drain time, there is always some old oil in the engine in places that hold puddles and such. It may take more than one change to get rid of the traces of coolant.

 

I'd recommend doing a baseline test after an oil change and then do it at 8k. Compare results.

 

Coolant is likely from the cam tower reseal. A tiny bit gets into the oil when the cover comes off sometimes.

I really need to do an oil analysis on my Corolla and the tundra.

 

Yup, this analysis is my baseline and first one I've done since buying the Sequoia. Will be doing another one at 8k interval.

Glad to hear the coolant may not be something major. Car is smooth and drives great. Was hoping if it was a head gasket, I could use my extended warranty.

 

Finally got my 2nd oil analysis after 6 months. Looks like the coolant and silicone was from the cam tower gasket job. Time to go for 10k miles oil change interval! Hopefully I can hit 10k miles before having 1 year on the oil.

 

Due to shutdowns last year and work from home, it took me a while to put 10,000 miles but I did it and it was mostly city miles. Oil analysis shows it's pretty good so I'm going to continue 10,000 oil change intervals.

 

How much do these cost?

 

$30 + $10 for TBN if you are interested in going to longer oil change intervals.

 

Excellent, thanks for the info. My former owner always used Mobil 1 0W20 Synthetic and changed it every 3000 mi (have all the receipts.) Your report reinforces my tendency to wait till 10k mi and keep running the synthetic. Thanks!!

2010, 60k miles

 

My initial thought when I bought this car was to do it every 5k miles but after getting a new job and commuting 80 miles a day, I decided it was foolish to waste my time and money unnecessarily if Toyota recommends 10k OCI. So after a few analysis, it confirms that 10k OCI is good for me.

 

https://www.blackstone-labs.com/


More info here.^^^

 

You can get similar results from a few different testers. O'Reilly's sells a Wix kit for oil testing, same deal. Is about $20 IIRC and you pay a few bucks to ship it in a big envelope. I have done one so far, and will post the results of the second change once I do it. (I will have towed about 1000 miles in that oil change interval of about 8000 miles, still a couple months away.)

 

3k intervals are a waste of good oil in my opinion. The OPs results all but prove that.

 

Nice to know there are options. I know there's another one but Blackstone seems to be the popular one from the forums I've visited. I don't have an O'Reilly's in my area and Blackstone has included prepaid labels in their kits. They send kits out to you for free and then you don't have to pay anything until you are ready to do an analysis or you can prepay 6 for $25 each. I'm sure all these costs are baked into the costs we all pay Blackstone.

Also interested in seeing your results. Do you have any analysis from previous oil changes?

 

Nice results. My OCD prevents me from running a full 10k miles on an oil, but I have lots of Blackstone reports from previous vehicles (and multiple brands) that prove modern synthetics can handle that duration.

Run it with no worries!

 

Over the years I have received similar Blackstone reports on my Tundra. Since new, the truck has run 5W-30 synthetic oil, changed every 5-7K miles. Since I don't drive it much anymore, I now only change the oil once a year, regardless of the mileage.

 

Yes I do; I've only done one so far. The attached image is an analysis after ~ 9700 miles with Full Synthetic 5W20 in SoCal (Inland Empire area, so it's 15-20 degrees hotter than the coast). In this 9700 miles driven, I did no towing, just city and highway driving. [1] I have not had any work done on the engine, so the silicone is something I'm watching. I bought it used in 2018 with about 65K miles from CarMax, so it's _possible_ they did some engine work to fix it up. I will also mention that going forward, I will only ever use Wix filters. [2]



[1] Only weight worth mentioning in this 9700 miles was when I stupidly allowed a pallet of floor tile to be put in the bed of the truck and carried for ~ 7 miles. Turns out that pallet weighed 2500 pounds. It damaged my springs when I bottomed out in one spot I didn't know had a bump. I only recently realized this damage after towing a 7K pound trailer and hearing a lot of creaking, then saw the springs had that slight mustache shape (down then up on each side) instead of the smooth upward curve. I found a used set someone was getting rid of after lifting their Tundra, and I'm putting them on this weekend (in mid 90's heat...joy).

[2] I know that Tundra filters are cartridges instead of the twist-on variant, but I expect that quality in manufacturing perseveres through a company's entire line of products. Take a look at the inside of various twist-on filters and you tell me which you would prefer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTNJLEV8CG8

 

The silicone could be from a cam tower reseal.

 

In my case, it was from the cam tower reseal. After the second oil change, silicone levels were closer to average.