Used Oil Analysis (UOA)

[bluey]

Is anyone into UOA here?

Wanting to know which companies might be best to send oil to.

TDI Club UOA database results are interesting for those thinking about oils...

[Transporter]

Try Castrol. I used them before. They will e-mail you results. You have to purchese oil sampling kit. It will cost you as much as you would change the engine oil. I have results from my T5 somewhere on my computer, can post them here if you're interested.

[bluey]

Is it something you have been doing regularly. Probably more useful to see the results posted to the TDI Club UOA database thread. Yes, interested to see the results.

[Transporter]

Sample of oil after 2,600km and at 14,000km.

It is useful if you want to know that engine is run in or not. Also useful for extended oil changes for example if you do many short trips and you want to know that the engine oil is good for these 15,000km oil change interval or even more (2 years or 50,000km).

[brad]

Attachment 2919

Sample of oil after 2,600km and at 14,000km.

The attachment is unreadable - can you make it bigger for the occularly challenged?

edit: Thanks

[brad]

We use OilSpec at work for our hydraulic systems (70L-140L tanks - about $3000-$6000 to change the oil). It's about $50 plus you need their tool ($100). For our usage, it's reasonably priced & has enough detail. I was going to take a sample of my 1.8T petrol motor in a few weeks, just to see what results I get.

Another interweb mate uses e-monitor which is cheaper & includes a disposable syringe but doesn't test quite as much.

[bluey]

The ones which pop up on Google are:
Oilcheck with pricelist - lowest $36
OilTest

e-Monitor comes up third.

So what sorts of test results do we need that aren't in the cheaper tests???

[Preen59]

At work (Electrolux Refrigeration Plant) we send our hydraulic oil samples away to Fuchs.. If anyone is interested i can get some details.

I'm unsure of the price, knowing what our place is like, we probably pay top dollar because the maintenance planner just pays whatever..

[bluey]

Sample of oil after 2,600km and at 14,000km.[...]

Thanks. The report seemed a bit skeletal - the interpretation GOOD/BAD surely should be taken in the light of the first sample being run-in oil and a more useful commentary might be "high amounts of wear metals typical for a new engine" or whatever, since they have the data to know if the results are typical or not.

Reading around PD engine weakness in camshaft design and stress on injector lobes...
pump nozzle beware
deep grooves in cam lobes

I was thinking perhaps regular UOA could be a good early detection method - just figuring out the cost/benefit. At the very least a couple towards the end of the warranty period (perhaps last 6 months) could be good insurance. Beyond that is probably still worthwhile. If a head rebuild including any cams is required, I presume the cost will be well over $2000.

[Transporter]

Thanks. The report seemed a bit skeletal - the interpretation GOOD/BAD surely should be taken in the light of the first sample being run-in oil and a more useful commentary might be "high amounts of wear metals typical for a new engine" or whatever, since they have the data to know if the results are typical or not.

Reading around PD engine weakness in camshaft design and stress on injector lobes...
pump nozzle beware
deep grooves in cam lobes

I was thinking perhaps regular UOA could be a good early detection method - just figuring out the cost/benefit. At the very least a couple towards the end of the warranty period (perhaps last 6 months) could be good insurance. Beyond that is probably still worthwhile. If a head rebuild including any cams is required, I presume the cost will be well over $2000.

The company who sample/tests your engine oil has no data specific for every engine ever made.