Oil analysis - uhoh?

My little mule appears to be acting up. It went from running like a top to the dreaded misfire on #4 cylinder so bad that it would barely idle. Thought my primary issue was a cracked head, but it turned out to be a bad plug. (See coil rail/ Champion truck plug burn up problem.) I even thought I saw a crack, which I could not find later.

Replaced the 7,000 mile old truck plugs with factory NGK and it ran like a top again. All old plugs were properly gaped, uniform wear, no abnormal signs of soot, none abnormally clean. Coolant loss is barely an index fingers width in the last 6,500 miles / 30 months use which I was ready to attribute to evap of part of the 50/50 mix.

I get some humidity out of the tailpipe at start up, but I wouldn't call it excessive and it goes away as the engine heats up.

After replacing the plugs I took the oil filler cap off while it was running and saw no coolant pulse. There's never been any brown junk in there and the oil hasn't ever looked diluted.

Paranoid person that I am, I did an oil analysis (Napa) and just got the results back.

01 xj with 84,500 miles
1,300 miles and 10 months on the oil.
Mobil1 clean 7,500

Iron = 12
Chromium = 1
Lead = 0
Copper = 3
Tin = 0
Aluminum = 4
Nickel = 0
Silver = 0
Silicon = 20
Boron = 81
Sodium = 384 (Abnormal)
Magnesium = 18
Calcium = 2080
Barium = 0
Phosphorous = 1064
Zinc = 971
Molybedenum = 129
Titanium = 0
Vandadium = 0
Potassium = 0
Fuel = <1%
Visc @ 100C = 9.73
Water% = 0
Coolant = Yes
TAN = 1.1

The recommendation was: No abnormal wear detected. Sodium high. check for source of contamination/monitor unit. Recommend resample at normal interval.


While I'd love to slap a stroker in the Jeep, I'm not that flush at the moment nor do I have time to take the head off until about February.

I'm thinking I should have the cooling system pressure tested and do another oil analysis with 1,000-1,500 miles on the new oil in late January.

That's a really high sodium number. Any suggestions or anybody think I'm going to trash my motor in the next 1,500 miles?

i'd drain the coolant, and fill with plain distilled water 3x to get the antifreeze concentration low enough for the next step.

add a sodium silicate type engine block sealer to the radiator. and let it do its work before doing a final drain\fill with regular antifreeze coolant.

Sodium silicate block sealer works really good on tiny head gasket leaks.
i doubt your jeep's cyl head is cracked, it likely spitting coolant into a combustion chamber.

I have a 00 , and this is my plan if it starts eating coolant without visible oil contamination (emulsified milkshake)

You say you are not losing coolant. (1 finger @ 6,500 miles) Drive on and enjoy. Don't be so paranoid. If you're so worried about it, change oil and retest later. But I wouldn't worry about it.

The high sodium is likely your Mobil Clean 7500 oil. I recall reading in a few different forums that one of the additives in it has a high sodium content.
http://www.preludeonline.com/f28/post-your-blackstone-oil-analysis-56k-beware-137435/index2.html

If you truly had a head gasket leak, your Potassium would also be high.

It is refreshing to know I am not the only paranoid person in this forum!!! LOL

Drive on!!!

I would use a different oil for a while just to see if it is in fact the oil.

Talyn said:

I would use a different oil for a while just to see if it is in fact the oil.

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Or just test a virgin sample of the Mobil Clean 7500.

lawsoncl said:

Or just test a virgin sample of the Mobil Clean 7500.

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X2,

and have the lab retest the sodium. Labs are bad about producing bad data. I deal with it almost daily.

I would expect to see a lot of silicone and LOTS of water if it was coolant leaking. I'd bet the coolant-yes comment is a lab error. Call the lab and ask them!!

You wouldn't see a lot of water on a small leak. It would evaporate.

Thanks for the feeback.

I've driven it about 500 miles and I haven't detected any decrease in the overflow bottle.

I'm going to have to either go with a lab error or a leak that's so minor as to not be worth worry.

I went to a fully synthetic oil on this pass because I couldn't find the semi-synthetic that I had been using.

Sorry, I'm just really particular about my vehicles. I'd rather catch things early than walk. I didn't use to be this way, but then one day I got to walk a long way. You might say it scared me for life.

Understand. That is the way I found the crack in my 0331 head prior to it getting really bad. I didn't notice a drop in the coolant level, but there were traces of anti freeze that showed up in oil analysis.

Windrider said:

I'm going to have to either go with a lab error or a leak that's so minor as to not be worth worry.

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Or like I mentioned, the Mobil Clean oils have sodium to begin with? http://www.eplube.com/EP_Presentations/MobilNeatSample.pdf

If you're really worried about it, test a virgin sample. Your test result numbers are meaningless without knowing the oil properties before it went into the engine. Its kinda like saying "I went on this diet and I weighted 250 lbs after two weeks".

:rof:

lawsoncl said:

Or like I mentioned, the Mobil Clean oils have sodium to begin with? http://www.eplube.com/EP_Presentations/MobilNeatSample.pdf

If you're really worried about it, test a virgin sample. Your test result numbers are meaningless without knowing the oil properties before it went into the engine. Its kinda like saying "I went on this diet and I weighted 250 lbs after two weeks".

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:rof:

To help you sleep better at night, add some of the Bars All Leak stop brown (dry) pellets (crush them first) into the radiator coolant system. It will seal small coolant leaks as they form. The OEMs all use them on new vehicles at the factory as insurance.

Raised Silicon and Sodium can be caused by driving on salted and sanded winter roads. Could pull a sample a few 100 miles after last sample to check for changes. Good Luck.

I very recently worked for a Chrysler supplier doing warranty work including radiators. I never saw any signs of stop leak being added. It could clog up too much other crap that they would be liable for (including heater cores).

If you're not using coolant and your oil isn't foamy, you don't have a problem. Paranoia--ital desroya! Aren't you worried about dirt hanging up a valve in your transmission or your timing chain breaking or your fuel pump stopping up.

One guy on the Crowm Vic forum is worried about cold air going in the oil fill when he drains his hot oil in the winter. So I guess you're not nearly as bad as that. Sorry for picking on you, but really -- if it ain't broke,:cheers: don't fix it.

winterbeater said:

I very recently worked for a Chrysler supplier doing warranty work including radiators. I never saw any signs of stop leak being added. It could clog up too much other crap that they would be liable for (including heater cores).

If you're not using coolant and your oil isn't foamy, you don't have a problem. Paranoia--ital desroya! Aren't you worried about dirt hanging up a valve in your transmission or your timing chain breaking or your fuel pump stopping up.

One guy on the Crowm Vic forum is worried about cold air going in the oil fill when he drains his hot oil in the winter. So I guess you're not nearly as bad as that. Sorry for picking on you, but really -- if it ain't broke,:cheers: don't fix it.

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Maybe that is why they were doing warranty work?

The rest I agree with, like the IIABDFI rule!

I was told 18 years ago by the head chemist, chemical engineer at Prestone, that all the auto OEMs have been adding it at the factory since the 1920s. He did not sell the stuff, we were talking pure science tech, I was doing a DOE research grant ( I am a Chem Eng too). I have used the stuff on every vehicle I have ever had, or serviced and never had any problems using it. In fact I fixed major radiator leaks with it that held for years. The pellets dissolve into very fine fibbers that get lodge right were the leak is. They are only active where there is leak. Takes air to activate them.

Wow, I can't believe what i'm reading here! You should have your oil analyzed at least once a month guys! These exotic engines in our vehicles need CLOSE attention paid to whats inside them. Just kidding! The OP is seriously OCD!

veedubshafer said:

The OP is seriously OCD!

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Actually never mind. Your not worth it.

I don't know why, after 4 months from being posted, people are now chiming in and giving you ish. What I gained from the analysis was seeing the ~1Kppm of Zinc and Phosphorus in the Mobil 1 Clean(what is the 7500 anyways?). Some people think that all of mobil is down to 800 or below, so it's good that someone had a recent analysis to show otherwise. I can see how people w/ the 0331 head w/ some miles on it might be a lil paranoid.

Actually, the link I posted showed 622 Ph, 639 Zn for a virgin Mobil 7500 oil sample. Makes me wonder if he's using a supplement of some sort which might also explain the high Na number. Its just Mobil Clean 7500, btw. Not "Mobil1" which implies their synthetic line of oils.