# UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40



## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

Here are my results from my 98 12V VR6.
Car had 123K miles at the change and had little more than 4000 miles on the oil.
This oil was driven durning the summer in 110+F daily and has seen oil temps as high as 255F on a daily basis.
I also noticed that my air filter was more than just worn out, I noticed a little hole while replacing it at my oil change.
Overall Im happy with the results, my next test is gonna be with Pentosin High Performance 5w40, followed by ELF Exellium NF that's currently on my Supercharged 24V.


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## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

Damn, nobody likes my UOA


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## SpclAgentD (Oct 16, 2001)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

Is this the only UOA you've done? That's pretty dope! I've heard about getting an oil analysis done, since it gives you a pretty good idea about what's going on inside your engine without having to break it apart.
I run Castrol Syntec 5W-40 now, but I'm about to switch it up to Pentosin. Hopefully, you yield some good results with that oil.


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## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (SpclAgentD)*

Yeah that was my first UOA, Castrol Syntec held pretty good, I didn't except it to be this good....It was driven during the hottest summer daily here in Vegas.
I had a small coolant leak and was hoping it's not the gasket, glad there was no coolant present.
I have pentosin in my 12V now, after 5K miles I'll do another UOA on it


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## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif


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## Tommy D (Oct 10, 2000)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

How much does the oil analysis cost?


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## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (Tommy D)*


_Quote, originally posted by *Tommy D* »_How much does the oil analysis cost?

23 and some change, I was gonna do TBS on it too which is about 10 more bucks I think


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## kbuzbee (Apr 2, 2008)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

Thanks for posting, Raj. Looks great.
I'm just about to put some Syntec in my Jetta so nice to see it came in well reviewed...
Haven't run a UOA on mine yet (120K) but that's on my list of TO-DOs as well.
Ken


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## boxylooks27 (Jun 21, 2008)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

i will go 5w40 since i cant wait for shipping of the pentosil !!! Nice results for you should be the same with me ! http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif


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## AZV6 (May 3, 2006)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

Looks good but most oil analysis would look good with only 4K on the oil.
VR6 has a 10K mile interval. You can take it to 10K or you can drop it by 2K if your worried.


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## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (AZV6)*


_Quote, originally posted by *AZV6* »_Looks good but most oil analysis would look good with only 4K on the oil.
VR6 has a 10K mile interval. You can take it to 10K or you can drop it by 2K if your worried. 









True, but living here in Vegas in desert and high temps I wouldn't go past 5K, plus I like to have fresh oil in the car anyway...sometimes I just wanna change it at 3K.
This oil relly went through hell, I was seing oil temps up to 260F and coolant temps up to 230F...so I couldn't wait for the results


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## GT17V (Aug 7, 2001)

looks like Castrol upped the Calcium (and Sodium) content on the additive package.
Should also spend the extra $10 on TBN analysis also-- gives you more information for a slightl bigger picture


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## AZV6 (May 3, 2006)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

Hey I live in Phoenix. I go 10K without an issue.
But I can understand, if you feel you want to lower it, go to 7K or 8K instead, stretch your Money a bit.


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## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (AZV6)*


_Quote, originally posted by *AZV6* »_Hey I live in Phoenix. I go 10K without an issue.
But I can understand, if you feel you want to lower it, go to 7K or 8K instead, stretch your Money a bit.

What oil are you using?


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## AZV6 (May 3, 2006)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

Pentosin High but I am going to run Motul in the future as I get a really good deal on the whole line.
But been using pentosin since we bought it with 30K miles on it.
Jason


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## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (AZV6)*


_Quote, originally posted by *AZV6* »_Pentosin High but I am going to run Motul in the future as I get a really good deal on the whole line.
But been using pentosin since we bought it with 30K miles on it.
Jason

Nice, I have pentosin curently in my Mk3, plan on doing UOA on it too...have you ever done it?


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## Eg2Driver (Jul 9, 2007)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

Please OP, do tell. What difference does it make to your oil whether you live in Vegas, or like me, in Montreal?
Convince me otherwise of doing my 10k oil change and I'll send you my stash of ELF Excellium DID. 
You engine only gets to a certain temperature and thats it, your cooling system takes care of the rest. I dont see the point of doing it so early, especially with synthetic you are running. I would love to see a UOA with the prescribed 10k, then it'll be worth looking at!
PS Im not bashing...i want to know you point of view on the subject


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## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (Eg2Driver)*

What difference does it make? Well, my oil temps would get up to 260F, my coolant would start getting to the red line at 110F, we got dust all over, especially with the wind....is your air filter gonna give you cleaner air in dust or without dust?
Now with the temperature in the 80's or low 50's my oil temp barely gets into 190F.
Now how hot does your engine oil gets? how hot does it get in Montreal?
Oil at 190F doesn't cook like at 260F....so do you think oil will protect the engine better at 260F or 190F?....I have to shut off my AC just so my car doesn't overheat.
If you convince me other wise than I'll keep my oil for 10K miles in the summer....I could keep it at that mileage in the winter, but not in the Summer.


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## Eg2Driver (Jul 9, 2007)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*


_Quote, originally posted by *rajvosa71000* »_What difference does it make? Well, my oil temps would get up to 260F, my coolant would start getting to the red line at 110F, we got dust all over, especially with the wind....is your air filter gonna give you cleaner air in dust or without dust?
Now with the temperature in the 80's or low 50's my oil temp barely gets into 190F.
Now how hot does your engine oil gets? how hot does it get in Montreal?
Oil at 190F doesn't cook like at 260F....so do you think oil will protect the engine better at 260F or 190F?....I have to shut off my AC just so my car doesn't overheat.
If you convince me other wise than I'll keep my oil for 10K miles in the summer....I could keep it at that mileage in the winter, but not in the Summer.

quality oil doesn't care between 260 and 190. If your car about to overheat in the desert, something is wrong with it because it should not, thats another issue you should look into!
BTW here in montreal, differences in yearly temperatures can reach 70 degrees Celsius, talk about temperature changes! (goes from +35 summer to -35 winter.


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## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (Eg2Driver)*

Alright, give me a prove that the oil will perform the same at 290F and 190F.
VR's are famous to run little hotter, my car overheated one in 75F due to a bad thermostat, everything is spot on with the cooling now...Im just preventing my car to overheat by shutting off my AC once the coolant temp is about to reach 240F....it does not overheat








This is Desert, it gets dusty, dust can get into your oil system easier...in the manual it says to change your oil every 10K miles but to adjust depending the climate you live in.
I might be able to change it every 10K, but Im happy with changing it every 5K


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## Eg2Driver (Jul 9, 2007)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*


_Quote, originally posted by *rajvosa71000* »_I might be able to change it every 10K, but Im happy with changing it every 5K









good for you, but im still changing mine at 10k! Im not feeding the oil companies some free lunch...
BUT! Are you using the dash gauge to tell me your oil gets to 260? Doesnt sound like you are, but if you are, you know its a dummy gauge, right?


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## AZV6 (May 3, 2006)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (Eg2Driver)*

Relax kids. Why not play nice.
I have my oil test back and All looks good except that I may have either gone too long 10K miles over the spring to summer as there is a high amount of copper/iron and silicone in the oil.
Now, this can be a result of the additive package in pentosin or some sort of intake issue.
It was an intake issue to my knowledge. I will not find out until next OA @5Kmiles. 
I am changing early due to the high numbers to make sure I get all the possible dirt/metals out and to see if the numbers drop(they should slightly anyway due to mileage but I am looking for a drastic drop).
The intake tube may have not been sealed properly or the airbox not sealed properly, there was a lot of dirt/oil (oil is normal) caked on the throttle body butterfly.
Car runs great. I am hoping no severe damage from the problem. If the numbers come back normal this time I will run 8500-10K mile changes again. Next change at 8500 and then to 10K if all is good.
Flash point also was a problem. Not sure if this is due to what my problem was or the oil.
I have never had this oil do this so I am not sure whats going on until next change. Like I said I may no longer be using this oil if it shows some of these numbers again. Zinc level was good though at 1007ppm.
Hopefully that protected something, Moly was super low. Not happy with that either.
Jason

_Modified by AZV6 at 7:34 AM 12-1-2008_


_Modified by AZV6 at 8:20 AM 12-2-2008_


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## GT17V (Aug 7, 2001)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (AZV6)*


_Quote, originally posted by *AZV6* »_
I have my oil test back and All looks good except that I may have either gone too long 10K miles over the spring to summer as there is a high amount of copper/iron and silicone in the oil.
Now, this can be a result of the additive package in pentosin or some sort of intake issue.


Do a Virgin Oil Analysis so you can know the starting point for the oil-- to reduce the "probably" content.


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## AZV6 (May 3, 2006)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (GT17V)*

I was thinking that as well to figure out the problem. I suspect a drastic change next round.
Thanks


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## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (AZV6)*


_Quote, originally posted by *AZV6* »_I was thinking that as well to figure out the problem. I suspect a drastic change next round.
Thanks









CAn you post your OA?


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## AZV6 (May 3, 2006)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

Sure.
















Pentosin High- 5W-40 
10K mile change
OE oil filter
OE air Filter
No mods.
As I mentioned I think the numbers are due to intake leak. but again this may not be as bad a problem as it looks. OA can be deceiving, I am not worried too much about the numbers. I follow the maintenance, use an approved oil and do not beat the crap out of it.
I think it was a slight intake leak to be honest.
My main concern really is the lowered Flash point which I am still looking into. 
I will probably do a virgin test. 
Jason


_Modified by AZV6 at 8:26 AM 12-2-2008_


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## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (AZV6)*

Yeah I don't think it's a good idea to have your oil for 10K in arizona, it's hotter than here in Vegas and probably as dusty, if you have a small air filter leak and suck all that dust, it's gonna show up on your OA


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## AZV6 (May 3, 2006)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

Yup, I agree for summer for sure to change early. I may throw in my oiless foam filter (RSD). I actually think it is better than the paper in filtering capabilities. 
I need to check the seal again on the box. The box may have a slight bow in it but not sure. I need to pull the box and fit it outside the car to check the seal on it.
Not 100% that the heat or dust here had anything to do with it yet. Now we are in fall it will be hard to know for sure unless it comes back the same.
Thanks
Jason


_Modified by AZV6 at 7:11 AM 12-3-2008_


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## saaber2 (Jul 15, 2008)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (rajvosa71000)*

re original post, silicon looks great so no apparent dirt ingestion despite air cleaner being worn out. Castrol sheared to almost a 30 weight in 4000 miles. Other UOAs of this oil show it to thin very quickly. Wear metals are excellent although only 4k miles as another poster said. Will be very interested to see the Pento results. 
I am currently running redline 5W40 and will post a virgin and UOA in a couple months (I know redline is not VW approved, thanks). Redline has a new 0W40 out so I may try that next. Also FYI I discovered in my last virgin oil analysis that redline 5W40 now has no moly (confirmed with redline). The reasoning is to meet emissions specs for diesel cars.


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## pturner67 (Dec 27, 2002)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (AZV6)*


_Quote, originally posted by *AZV6* »_
Pentosin High- 5W-40 
10K mile change
OE oil filter
OE air Filter
No mods.
As I mentioned I think the numbers are due to intake leak. but again this may not be as bad a problem as it looks. OA can be deceiving, I am not worried too much about the numbers. I follow the maintenance, use an approved oil and do not beat the crap out of it.
I think it was a slight intake leak to be honest.
My main concern really is the lowered Flash point which I am still looking into. 
I will probably do a virgin test. 
Jason
_Modified by AZV6 at 8:26 AM 12-2-2008_

I hear pentosin is an awesome oil...wonder what caused such mediocre numbers


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## AZV6 (May 3, 2006)

*Re: UOA from Blackstone Castrol Syntec 5w40 (pturner67)*

Thats what I am trying to figure out. I must have had an intake leak somewhere. I am not worried about it. Pentosin is an awesome oil. Not the best out there but dang good. I love the way it makes the car run in simple terms.
I have used it most of the cars life.
I actually think it was more a intake issue than the oil. I ran the oil all summer here as well. 105 average temp and dusty as hell.
I am running it to 5K this time and having another OA, and if all is well run to 8K. I will post my progress.
j


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