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Those of us who are health-conscious make it a point to see our family doctor at least once a year for a routine check-up. Such visits are part of preventive health care—a way to nip potentially big problems before they get a foothold. In a similar vein, the only way to keep an eye on an engine is to have the oil analyzed. Amazing as it sounds, the price for such oil analysis is usually less than $20. There are several companies around the country that specialize in this. According to Herguth Laboratories, Inc. (www.herguth.com; 888.437.4884), an oil-analysis lab in Vallejo, California, spectrochemical testing is a rapid, convenient, and relatively inexpensive way to keep a scientific eye on engine wear. Herguth lab technicians, as do other oil-testing labs, use an Atomic Emission Spectrometer to “identify common wear metals, contaminates, and inorganic additives found in lubricants.” To do this the oil sample you send them is burned in a control chamber and a beam of light passed through the vapor to identify the elements the oil contained. Bill Herguth, Chairman and CEO says those numbers are then compared to a “base sample” the customer has on file and the results given to the vehicle owner in a detailed printout within 48 hours of receipt of the sample. "When the lab knows the engine make/model, and number of miles," says Herguty, "the report will tell you the significance of the data in relation to what parts of the engine are becoming wear concerns." For instance,
the sudden appearance of copper in a sample is a sure
sign a rod bearing has lost some outer chrome and is in
the early stages of failure. Knowing this allows the
vehicle owner to have rod bearings replaced in the near
future instead of a very expensive crankshaft and
overhaul if the problem went undetected. “A vehicle owner should have the first oil sample done within the engine warranty period in case there are problems down the road that could be traced back to that time frame. Then have oil sampled periodically from that point forward,” advises Herguth. “It’s like a person having an annual check-up at the doctor’s office.” The systematic sampling routine continues at 50,000 miles with another analysis at 100,000 miles. After that, those running gasoline engines should have the engine oil analyzed once every third oil change, or between 9,000-10,000 miles. Diesel owners should begin a 10,000-mile analysis after about 150,000 miles. Such frequency
can pinpoint wear patterns that can then be checked out
and the problem repaired before it leads to a far more
serious domino effect. Such is the value of a $20 mail-in
analysis. —Bruce W. Smith |
