>From the "For What Its Worth" Department.
Consumer Report did a test on motor oil and published the results in the
July 1996 issue.
Test was done on New York City taxi cabs.
Results:
"None of the tested oils proved better than the others in our tests."
"Even the expensive synthetics worked no better than conventional motor
oils in our taxi tests, but they're worth considering for extreme driving
conditions - high ambient temperatures and high engine load or very cold
temperatures."
"When Mobil 1 synthetic oil came out, Mobil presented it as an oil that,
while expensive, could go 25,000 miles between changes. That claim is no
longer being made."
"the commonly recommended 3000-mile oil-change interval is
conservative.....even for the severe service experienced by the taxis in
our tests, a 6000-mile interval was adequate."
"Buy the viscosity grade recommended in your owner's manual, and look for
the starburst emblem....you won't go wrong if you shop strictly by price or
availability."
Engine Treatments:
"We see little reason why anyone using one of today's high-quality motor
oils would need these engine/oil treatments."
"When we disassembled the engines and checked for wear and deposits, we
found no discernible benefits from any of these products."
"Our advice is simple: If you use an oil with the starburst symbol, you
don't need engine treatments."
Now that all of this scientific testing has been done, I'm sure I'll stay
with Castrol, change oil every 3,000 miles and continue to not use engine
treatments.
Hard to teach an old dog new tricks.
Ed
74 TR6 CF17687U
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