Anybody used 'auto-rx' to clean engine?

[ra_pro]

I am wondering if anybody used Auto-rx to clean their engine. It seems this might the first oil additive that actually does anything positive to the engine. A lot of people with cars that have well-documented sludge problems (Audi, VW, Toyota, Saab) use it and many report good things about its cleaning power.

auto-rx (http://www.auto-rx.com)

[dacoyote]

I am wondering if anybody used Auto-rx to clean their engine. It seems this might the first oil additive that actually does anything positive to the engine. A lot of people with cars that have well-documented sludge problems (Audi, VW, Toyota, Saab) use it and many report good things about its cleaning power.

auto-rx (http://www.auto-rx.com)

I just ordered 4 bottles of the stuff....

Don't know how well it works at all.... I will post back what I find

-Charles

[632 Regal]

Eeeek...I dont do additives cept injector cleaner before an oil change.

[Russell]

I had a high lead level (23ppm) with a fuel dilution issue in the last three used oil analysis using mobil 0w40 or 5w40. I just want to make sure the engine is clean and there is no residual lead left in the engine from the PO owner's propensity to rely on the service light for timing of oil changes. They went up to 8,000 miles between filter changes.

Auto-Rx has very high positive reputation as a high quality metal cleaner. It takes two steps (clean/rinse) over at least 3,500 miles to complete the process.

BTW, I also plan on changing a least 2 of the coils as they appear to have a bit on "candy" on them. They are suspect on the dilution issue.



I am wondering if anybody used Auto-rx to clean their engine. It seems this might the first oil additive that actually does anything positive to the engine. A lot of people with cars that have well-documented sludge problems (Audi, VW, Toyota, Saab) use it and many report good things about its cleaning power.

auto-rx (http://www.auto-rx.com/)

[Bill R.]

well at cleaning out peoples wallets. I'm just curious why people think that their engines need or would even benefit from cleaning? If you don't have a specific sludge problem and 99% of the cars today don't have, then why would you put a solvent into your crankcase to dilute your oil?






I am wondering if anybody used Auto-rx to clean their engine. It seems this might the first oil additive that actually does anything positive to the engine. A lot of people with cars that have well-documented sludge problems (Audi, VW, Toyota, Saab) use it and many report good things about its cleaning power.

auto-rx (http://www.auto-rx.com)

[Interceptor]

well at cleaning out peoples wallets. I'm just curious why people think that their engines need or would even benefit from cleaning? If you don't have a specific sludge problem and 99% of the cars today don't have, then why would you put a solvent into your crankcase to dilute your oil?
You're just like my mechanic - typical old school attitude. :) "If there's something wrong with your engine, we'll open it up and do an overhaul if needed." :) That works amazingly well at cleaning wallets, too. :)

[632 Regal]

.
You're just like my mechanic - typical old school attitude. :) "If there's something wrong with your engine, we'll open it up and do an overhaul if needed." :) That works amazingly well at cleaning wallets, too. :)

[Russell]

Check out Bob is the oil guy forum http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=forum;f=5

and the Auto-Rx site
http://www.auto-rx.com/

[Gayle]

I used it on the 525 that was my husbands. Car had 200k on it but the upper engine had been replace 30k ago. I was complaining about the valve clatter and he put stp in. Groan. Car was quiet after that but idled and ran like expletive of your choice. Then on top of that it failed the smog test. Had twice the amount of nitrous oxide allowed.

I don't know if engines routinely get sludge but this car had been artifically fouled by a stupid act. This was a time that everyone on the board was raving about seafoam. I am much to chicken hearted for that. I read up on all the products suggested in the posts on seafoam and decided to try auto rx.

Started with clean oil as directed and put the auto rx in. Valve clatter came back after driving just 20 miles. That says to me it was doing something. Did a weekend road trip to put a quick 1000 miles on it. By the end of the weekend the car was running fabulously. Didn't even bother to go the 1500 recommended. Changed the oil and plugs and got it re-smogged. Nitroous oxide levels dropped from 1100 to 500. I largely credit the improved emission to the auto rx. Can't say for sure cause we did lots of things at once.

What I can say it that the auto rx undid the crappy engine performance because after the 1000 on the auto rx the car was running so much better and we had not even done the rinse phase.

Just one woman's experience.

[Bill R.]

wikipedia and then tell me its not a solvent Definition (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solvent)
And i have read every page on the auto-rx site and i stick by my first assessment that unless you have a sludging problem, its a waste of money to bother attempting to clean your engine with one of these products

How many engines have you guys actually torn down? The varnish deposits that you're talking about, have you seen where they buildup?






Check out Bob is the oil guy forum http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=forum;f=5

and the Auto-Rx site
http://www.auto-rx.com/

[Russell]

Glad you wrote this. I went to Mobil 1 0w40 oil because I was getting a bit of valve clatter on the first start of the day. 0w40 and 5w40 seems to have taken care of that. However as th PO went long oil changes I was thinking that perhaps the engine may have been a bit sludged up and 25-30,000 miles of Mobil 1 had not really cleaned the engine, just kept it at the partially cleaned level. Therefore the reason to try Auto-RX.

We shall see.


I used it on the 525 that was my husbands. Car had 200k on it but the upper engine had been replace 30k ago. I was complaining about the valve clatter and he put stp in. Groan. Car was quiet after that but idled and ran like expletive of your choice. Then on top of that it failed the smog test. Had twice the amount of nitrous oxide allowed.

I don't know if engines routinely get sludge but this car had been artifically fouled by a stupid act. This was a time that everyone on the board was raving about seafoam. I am much to chicken hearted for that. I read up on all the products suggested in the posts on seafoam and decided to try auto rx.

Started with clean oil as directed and put the auto rx in. Valve clatter came back after driving just 20 miles. That says to me it was doing something. Did a weekend road trip to put a quick 1000 miles on it. By the end of the weekend the car was running fabulously. Didn't even bother to go the 1500 recommended. Changed the oil and plugs and got it re-smogged. Nitroous oxide levels dropped from 1100 to 500. I largely credit the improved emission to the auto rx. Can't say for sure cause we did lots of things at once.

What I can say it that the auto rx undid the crappy engine performance because after the 1000 on the auto rx the car was running so much better and we had not even done the rinse phase.

Just one woman's experience.

[Russell]

Perhaps I was quick to make that remark. However, I have heard that it gently removes sludge and some varnish from the engine and cannot be compared to the so called harsh "flush" solvents. Even so there sure seems like a lot of people seem to have good results.

That said, there are some commments on the BOBISTHEOILGUY forum that it did nothing to their engine. The primary reason stated is their engine was newer and clean. IMO, these people wasted their money.

BTW, when I had my valve cover off to change the gasket, the engine looked fairly clean with goldish colored film on the metal which I assumed is the so called varnish.

As I have previously stated I think I have a bit of sludge from the PO. However, I am not really expecting much of a change. I will see after I do the process and have a used oil analysis completed to see if there are positive changes in my fuel dilution and lead levels. I remain a bit skeptical though.



wikipedia and then tell me its not a solvent Definition (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solvent)
And i have read every page on the auto-rx site and i stick by my first assessment that unless you have a sludging problem, its a waste of money to bother attempting to clean your engine with one of these products

How many engines have you guys actually torn down? The varnish deposits that you're talking about, have you seen where they buildup?

[Gayle]

Glad you wrote this. I went to Mobil 1 0w40 oil because I was getting a bit of valve clatter on the first start of the day. 0w40 and 5w40 seems to have taken care of that. However as th PO went long oil changes I was thinking that perhaps the engine may have been a bit sludged up and 25-30,000 miles of Mobil 1 had not really cleaned the engine, just kept it at the partially cleaned level. Therefore the reason to try Auto-RX.

We shall see.


And I am glad you wrote what you did. I am a sound snob. I want my car to sing to me. My 535 that I have only owned a couple of months has much less valve clatter than the 525 did but more clatter than I would like. I understand that it is a characteristic of e34s and I was thinking I might just have to live with it. I am too clueless to know that a different weight oil would affect valve clatter. I plan to get a service 2 and a valve adjustment in the next month and was hoping that would improve the 535's sound. Good to have another arrow in the quiver for dealing with that issue. Thanks.

[ryan roopnarine]

the gold colored film, if it can't be removed, isn't varnish. it is just a consequence of using dino oil. i was hoping my engine wouldn't end up gold, as i use 50/50 syn and dino, depending on what time of year it is, but i opened up my valve cover, and saw the honeycomb hideout. the camshaft and lack of sludge indicate that i haven't been neglectful, so i don't believe the stuff to be "varnish."


Perhaps I was quick to make that remark. However, I have heard that it gently removes sludge and some varnish from the engine and cannot be compared to the so called harsh "flush" solvents. Even so there sure seems like a lot of people seem to have good results.

That said, there are some commments on the BOBISTHEOILGUY forum that it did nothing to their engine. The primary reason stated is their engine was newer and clean. IMO, these people wasted their money.

BTW, when I had my valve cover off to change the gasket, the engine looked fairly clean with goldish colored film on the metal which I assumed is the so called varnish.

As I have previously stated I think I have a bit of sludge from the PO. However, I am not really expecting much of a change. I will see after I do the process and have a used oil analysis completed to see if there are positive changes in my fuel dilution and lead levels. I remain a bit skeptical though.

[Russell]

My 95 525i has hydralyic lifters which the oil drains from overnight and can clatter on the first cold start of the day until oil pumps up. The 0w40 oil simply pumps up quicker. However, there may have some crud somewhere that slows the pump up.

I believe your 535i has mechanical lifters that need to be adjusted periodically to prevent clatter, perhaps at all speeds and operation.

So the source of your clatter may be different than mine and weight of oil may have little impact on noise. I just do not know.





And I am glad you wrote what you did. I am a sound snob. I want my car to sing to me. My 535 that I have only owned a couple of months has much less valve clatter than the 525 did but more clatter than I would like. I understand that it is a characteristic of e34s and I was thinking I might just have to live with it. I am too clueless to know that a different weight oil would affect valve clatter. I plan to get a service 2 and a valve adjustment in the next month and was hoping that would improve the 535's sound. Good to have another arrow in the quiver for dealing with that issue. Thanks.

[Gayle]

My 95 525i hase hydraylic lifters which the oil drians from overnight and can clatter on the first cold start of the day until oil pumps up. The 0w40 oil simply pumps up quicker. However, there may have some crud somewhere that slows the pump up.

I believe your 535i has mechanical lifters that need to be adjusted periodically to prevent clatter perhaps at all speeds and operations.

So the source of your clatter may be different than mine and weight of oil may have little impact on noise. I just do not know.


Thanks for the education/clarification.

[Bill R.]

surfaces that matter such as the cam lobes, the cam journals,crank journals, cylinder bore where the pistons actually slide, it tends to build up where nothing contacts it such as the surfaces of the head rockers etc.. Its such a thin layer that its not harming anything and can be considered perfectly normal. Now sludge is a different thing entirely and is thick like clayey mud. Varnish buildup in oil galleys won't amount to .001 even so its absolutely nothing to get excited about. Since synthetics don't varnish as easily motors that have run most of the time on synthetic don't usually show this coating but its inconsequential anyway.




QUOTE=ryan roopnarine]the gold colored film, if it can't be removed, isn't varnish. it is just a consequence of using dino oil. i was hoping my engine wouldn't end up gold, as i use 50/50 syn and dino, depending on what time of year it is, but i opened up my valve cover, and saw the honeycomb hideout. the camshaft and lack of sludge indicate that i haven't been neglectful, so i don't believe the stuff to be "varnish."[/QUOTE]

[winfred]

another noise maker on the old motors was how they injected fuel, instead of one cylinder at a time like the newer motors they fire 3 injectors at a time which makes a pretty healthy tick, and the real old motors like a E or 87 and older m30 did a "gang fire" which popped all 6 at a time. i run castroil gtx 20w50 in my two, at the shop we run 10w40 in twin cam motors and 20w50 in single cam motors


And I am glad you wrote what you did. I am a sound snob. I want my car to sing to me. My 535 that I have only owned a couple of months has much less valve clatter than the 525 did but more clatter than I would like. I understand that it is a characteristic of e34s and I was thinking I might just have to live with it. I am too clueless to know that a different weight oil would affect valve clatter. I plan to get a service 2 and a valve adjustment in the next month and was hoping that would improve the 535's sound. Good to have another arrow in the quiver for dealing with that issue. Thanks.

[ryan roopnarine]

thanks for clearing that up, bill. i wasn't entirely sure if it was "varnish", as that kinda connotates negative things...

for anyone that doesn't know what i'm/russell is referring to, here's the post with pics of my valvetrain, WRT the mellow yellow gold colored animal...


http://www.bimmer.info/forum/showthread.php?t=13371



surfaces that matter such as the cam lobes, the cam journals,crank journals, cylinder bore where the pistons actually slide, it tends to build up where nothing contacts it such as the surfaces of the head rockers etc.. Its such a thin layer that its not harming anything and can be considered perfectly normal. Now sludge is a different thing entirely and is thick like clayey mud. Varnish buildup in oil galleys won't amount to .001 even so its absolutely nothing to get excited about. Since synthetics don't varnish as easily motors that have run most of the time on synthetic don't usually show this coating but its inconsequential anyway.




QUOTE=ryan roopnarine]the gold colored film, if it can't be removed, isn't varnish. it is just a consequence of using dino oil. i was hoping my engine wouldn't end up gold, as i use 50/50 syn and dino, depending on what time of year it is, but i opened up my valve cover, and saw the honeycomb hideout. the camshaft and lack of sludge indicate that i haven't been neglectful, so i don't believe the stuff to be "varnish."[/QUOTE]

[632 Regal]

the whole discussion of dino oil sludge buildup and crap is irrelivent. If you have a very poorly maintained engine and you dont change your dino oil it is relivent...otherwise this has no purpose on here except newly acquired cars that have NOT been maintained in the least and in that spectrum the sludgy engine will probably be the last concern for resurrecting it.

[Russell]

There are several engines from VW, Toyota and Chrysler that have well known experience of sludged engines even when following factory recommendations. To some, this is a serious issue.

Also, my indy has said he has had seen BMW engines so poorly maintaned that oil would not run out of the drain plug. They had to resort to an engine flush to even get enough crud out to put fresh oil in.

I think that even when following the service indicator lights (for 8-9,000 mile oil changes) on our cars and using dino oil we run the possibility of some sludge or crud in the engines. In many cases the PO did just that.

However, you are correct, in the scheme of things, I suspect there are many more things worng than sludge buildup


the whole discussion of dino oil sludge buildup and crap is irrelivent. If you have a very poorly maintained engine and you dont change your dino oil it is relivent...otherwise this has no purpose on here except newly acquired cars that have NOT been maintained in the least and in that spectrum the sludgy engine will probably be the last concern for resurrecting it.

[SRR2]

If you're hearing the valves, and nothing unusual is wrong with the engine, then you are overdue for valve adjustment. It's not difficult. All you need to do is make up your mind to tackle the job. You'll need a get new gasket before you start, and that's about it. The "tool" that BMW talks about for adjusting the eccentrics isn't the least bit necessary. I've used an allen wrench of the appropriate size just as easily.

Read all the various resources on how to do it, work in a clean area, work methodically, and it will be done, and nice and quiet, before you know it.

One more thing, you should read up on the oil spray bar bolt situation. That alone is worth opening up the valve cover and checking out.

[Gayle]

If you're hearing the valves, and nothing unusual is wrong with the engine, then you are overdue for valve adjustment. It's not difficult. All you need to do is make up your mind to tackle the job. You'll need a get new gasket before you start, and that's about it. The "tool" that BMW talks about for adjusting the eccentrics isn't the least bit necessary. I've used an allen wrench of the appropriate size just as easily.

Read all the various resources on how to do it, work in a clean area, work methodically, and it will be done, and nice and quiet, before you know it.

One more thing, you should read up on the oil spray bar bolt situation. That alone is worth opening up the valve cover and checking out.


Thanks for the encouragement. I am a girl and an armchair mechanic at this point. I have not even worked my way up to changing my oil yet so I think this would not be a good first job for me. At some point, I will be there but not yet. For now I am just trying to fully understand what is going on with my car so the mechanics can't lie to me. I appreciate all help in my quest to understand and appreciate all encouagement to get out of the armchair so thanks for your post.

[632 Regal]

point is change your oil. If there looks to be sludgy buildup under the filler cap than the engine hasn't been maintained and might need this treatment. I also have seen where on an abused sludgy engine the oil pickup gets clogged and causes severe damage...which is worse than a sludgy engine.

[SRR2]

Last time I checked, girls can do valve adjustment jobs too. 8-) Seriously. I'm not kidding, valve adjustment on these motors is a pretty easy job. The most annoying part is removing and replacing all the dreck from the top of the cover. But I'll grant you that it's in a different category than an oil change.