Why Oil Analysis Works

Oil Analysis IS science, Not speculation

Because motor oil travels throughout your engine, a 3 oz sample of used motor oil reveals a lot about the health of your engine as well as the condition of the oil itself. Are the bearings okay? Are the injectors leaking? Does the oil need to be changed sooner?

Put another way, just like a ruler measures length, used oil analysis measures engine wear, and similar to a doctor taking a blood sample, used oil analysis provides a “health report” on the engine without having to open up the engine.

Utilizing atomic emission spectroscopy, used oil analysis reveals the amount of wear occurring within an engine and reports it in parts per million of each element. For example, high levels of copper and lead indicate bearing wear. High levels of aluminum indicate piston scuffing, and each SPEEDiagnostix report provides these details in plain English – no chemistry degree required!

Fortunately, used oil analysis does not stop at indicating wear metals. Used oil analysis also reveals contaminants such as fuel dilution, water, anti-freeze and airborne dirt/sand. Contamination levels provide insight into the tune up of the engine. High levels of fuel dilution indicate possible problems with the fuel injectors, which are common with Ethanol blended fuels. Again, each SPEEDiagnostix report highlights and provide guidance related to contamination in plain English.

Finally, used oil analysis provides trend analysis which reveals the “health trend” of the engine. Is it good to go for another track day? Trend analysis answers this questions and others. Once a normal level of wear and contamination for certain engines has been established, it becomes easy to spot potential problems early on before they become much bigger problems. Catching problems early saves time and money. SPEEDiagnostix provides data that answers these questions and many more. How much would it cost to replace parts damaged by a catastrophic failure? Saving just one engine pays for a lifetime of oil analysis.