Engine oil flush advice

[DavieBow]

Hi Guys ,
i want to do an engine oil flush and filter change , can anyone advise me on the way to do this ....i.e..do i add some engine flush to existing oil , drain that , then add new cheap oil , run it , then drain that then replace with decent oil ??

also any other tips like do i need to remove the sump and clean that out too ?

Also what oil do i need to use ?

cheers
Dave

[lotusflasherman]

Very much a matter of personal opinion so you are likely to get a variety of answers. I consider the big problem with using any flushing oil in the M100 is the oil cooler and the difficulty in ensuring it's all out of that before it's refilled with proper oil. If I needed to flush it I think I'd just go for a cheap 0W-30 and run that for a few hundred miles and then do a hot flush with a filter change. Always found draining hot oil gets more crud out.

[DavieBow]

Very much a matter of personal opinion so you are likely to get a variety of answers. I consider the big problem with using any flushing oil in the M100 is the oil cooler and the difficulty in ensuring it's all out of that before it's refilled with proper oil. If I needed to flush it I think I'd just go for a cheap 0W-30 and run that for a few hundred miles and then do a hot flush with a filter change. Always found draining hot oil gets more crud out.

Thanks Phil ,
after you've flushed out the cheap 0w-30 would you then replace with the same but a better quality brand ?

[lotusflasherman]

Thanks Phil ,
after you've flushed out the cheap 0w-30 would you then replace with the same but a better quality brand ?

A better quality oil for sure, but I'm using Castrol Edge 10W-60, mainly because EuroCarParts had a 3 for price of 2 offer going so I bought 3 x 5l packs and they delivered to my door free of charge. I'm currently topping up out of the last one so will be looking around soon. Any decent brand will do ... and probably some of the cheap ones but with branded stuff you should get the right additives that stop sludge forming if you do short journeys and will also handle heat in the turbo bearings better.

[DavieBow]

Thats great thanks,
Euro car parts are doing a discount code thing at the moment if you type in "XMAS" at the checkout , with this the Petronas Syntium works out at £28 for 4 litres , do you know how much oil i need for each flush/change by any chance ?

[lotusflasherman]

3.5 litres with filter, 3.3 litres without .... or 4.75 litres dry - which shows how much stays in the oil cooler!

I always change filter even though it's a pain in the butt to get to. Changing oil without filter seems to me like having a shower and putting on dirty clothes...

[DavieBow]

Is it worth removing the oil cooler too then and draining that , otherwise you're only ever really clearing out 75% of the oil at any given time

[lotusflasherman]

Is it worth removing the oil cooler too then and draining that , otherwise you're only ever really clearing out 75% of the oil at any given time

True but that 25% remaining is factored in to the oil change schedule. Good idea in theory but quite a lot of work to get to it, and on a cooler that's probably over 20 years old, might cause more trouble than it's worth. Both pipes are top entry so cooler removal and inversion is only way to drain it. I'd certainly do that if oil was emulsified due to head gasket failure but not for a routine oil change.

[nsr250]

And if you go to the trouble to remove the sump and clean it out, please be sure to take the oil pickup off and clean any debris or coked oil stuck in the screen. It can lead to low oil pressure and engine failure.

[Artaban]

In the past I've used BG products for engine flush but can't say I've noticed much of a difference. To be honest with all my cars now I just change the oil much more frequently than the service schedule recommends and eventually you will see the difference in the colour when you come to change it. When Euro Car Parts has an offer on I buy a stack of oil and I still think this is the best way to flush out the crud. It is worth removing the sump to clean out the oil pick up but I wouldn't bother unless you are removing the pronghorn for other reasons as well.
Andy

[Rambo]

.....removing the pronghorn .....

Never heard it called that before Andy I take it your predictive text has never heard of a prongeron ?

PS Mine comes up with printer on or Princeton

[Artaban]

Rambo,
Are you telling me your car doesn't have one of these under the sumpr?



Mine neither. Yes spilling correction is completely ship.

Andy

[Elanlover]

Rambo,
Are you telling me your car doesn't have one of these under the sumpr?



Mine neither. Yes spilling correction is completely ship.

Andy

Holy crap! So THAT'S what's been making that noise coming from under the engine.

[Saltire]

Thanks Phil ,
after you've flushed out the cheap 0w-30 would you then replace with the same but a better quality brand ?

A better quality oil for sure, but I'm using Castrol Edge 10W-60, mainly because EuroCarParts had a 3 for price of 2 offer going so I bought 3 x 5l packs and they delivered to my door free of charge. I'm currently topping up out of the last one so will be looking around soon. Any decent brand will do ... and probably some of the cheap ones but with branded stuff you should get the right additives that stop sludge forming if you do short journeys and will also handle heat in the turbo bearings better.

And 30% discount at Euro Car Parts until. midnight tonight with promo code "Xmas" (original, huh?)

[lotusflasherman]

Thanks Phil ,
after you've flushed out the cheap 0w-30 would you then replace with the same but a better quality brand ?

A better quality oil for sure, but I'm using Castrol Edge 10W-60, mainly because EuroCarParts had a 3 for price of 2 offer going so I bought 3 x 5l packs and they delivered to my door free of charge. I'm currently topping up out of the last one so will be looking around soon. Any decent brand will do ... and probably some of the cheap ones but with branded stuff you should get the right additives that stop sludge forming if you do short journeys and will also handle heat in the turbo bearings better.

And 30% discount at Euro Car Parts until. midnight tonight with promo code "Xmas" (original, huh?)

Yes but always check the 'bottom line price'... their base price at £68.16 is much higher than I've ever seen and comes down to £46.01 with 'XMAS' code. Halfords on-line price is £44.99 without a promo but they charge for delivery...
Be interesting to watch that base price when the big XMAS promo ends ...

[alan e]

Just after Christmas they did a 50% off oil code I think it was oil50 I paid £34.04 so it pays to wait for the right deal.

[wayne]

Is it worth removing the oil cooler too then and draining that , otherwise you're only ever really clearing out 75% of the oil at any given time

I'm getting lazy in my old age. It's one of the few jobs that I take my car to the garage for. I now take it to the quick fit garage at the end of the road. For the equivalent of £8 labour charge, I supply the oils and filter, etc. they put the car up on the ramps, apply engine flush, drain the oil, remove filter and fit air line adaptor and blow out all of the oil cooler and pipework oil. fill with flushing oil, drain and repeat process and then fill with the new engine oil and dispose of the old oil while I stand by and supervise. Takes them an hour or 2 to do it. They do a much better job that I could do. (I don't own an air compressor).

Tend to do the rest of the work myself. For the price, I Just can't justify doing the oil changes any more

[Artaban]

Really good point Phil, I looked back on my receipts from Euro Car Parts and with their normal discount I paid £28 for 4l of Castrol Edge 10w60. Thats marketing for you. I thought it was odd when I was looking for a battery for my nephew and the base price had rocketed.
Andy

[DavieBow]

Thanks for the heads up guys , I shall bide my time and keep my eye on those prices