What will a used oil analysis tell us?
Our Ducati had lived on Mobil 1 20w-50 V-Twin oil for its entire life, but this winter we put Shell Rotella 5w-40 in it. We rode it in unbearably cold temperatures and figured it might be happier on some thinner oil. Now it’s time to find out.
Today, we changed the oil back to Mobil 1 20w-50. While the boiling oil was pouring out of the crankcase, we briefly held a little jar in the stream. That jar is going off to Blackstone Laboratories along with $25; we’ll get a full “used oil analysis” in return.
The point of a used analysis is to gauge the health of an engine without having to open it up. By seeing which deposits are in the oil, it’s possible to know if it might be time to change valve guides or piston rings, if rockers are flaking, or if it’s possible to extend oil change intervals.
Bobistheoilguy.com is the site that got us thinking about just what is in our used oil. This is the wormhole of posts where you can look at all different oils used in all different bikes.
Of course, no matter how many threads you read, all you really want to know is whether or not the oil in your bike is working well.
We’ll let you know what we find out. Off to the post office! (oh, and check out the fresh set of M5 Interacts on that beast!)
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