Motor Oil & Fuel Additives: Just a WASTE of MONEY?

Additives, some people swear by them. Others swear at them, so who's right? Are they just a waste of money? As a Certified Lubrication Specialist, I reveal the TRUTH about both Fuel and Motor Oil additives via laboratory testing and real world used oil analysis examples.

NOTICE: The Sea Foam portion of the video has been removed.

For a deeper dive into the science of lubrication, check out my good friend Rafe Britton's channel @LubricationExplained

For the full seminar on additives, check out this recording:

To learn more about how to prevent LPSI, check out this video:

Who is the @themotoroilgeek ? I'm a Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers Certified Lubrication Specialist and Oil Monitoring Analyst (I've maintained both of those for over a decade). I also worked for Joe Gibbs Racing for 12 years as their lubricant specialist. During that time, we worked with Wix Filters (one of our sponsors) to test and develop filters for our race engines. We also worked with Lubrizol and Chevron-Phillips Chemical to test and develop oils for our race cars. Following that, I was the head of R&D for Driven Racing Oil. During that time, I formulated and tested over 50 products. We also worked with Cummins, Comp Cams, Oak Ridge National Labs and General Motors on various R&D products. Those efforts are recorded in peer reviewed white papers published by SAE International and ACS Sustainable Chemistry journals. I also own and operate SPEEDiagnostix, which provides used oil analysis.

#motoroil #syntheticoil #oilchange #additives

[RobertFreerks]

Having formulated oils for Chevron (Delo 400, Supreme, etc) and formulated additive packages for Oronite, I concur that additives are not recommended for any application. The oil itself is already tested fully and API certified. And additive compromises the initial formulation. But I do not believe laboratory tests are anything but a guide to performance, not an absolute indicator of performance. Engine tests are really the only way to prove performance. But at extremely high cost in bout money and time.

[thfloorisnomoreq]

Where has my life gone. Here I'm sitting watching a over 20 minute video about oil additives and enjoying it

[ajduker]

I watched all 27 mins. The only thing you need to know; Oil additives = bad. Fuel additives = good.

[BMoris]

From my understanding, Seafoam is meant to be added 100-300 miles BEFORE an oil change. It is meant to help break down deposits so they are removed when changing your oil. It is not meant to be added with fresh new oil as an additive.

[psquared]

My 1st job out of school was a sales job at Pennzoil(36 years ago). We would periodically have internal chemists come in to present and instruct. It always stuck in my head was a statement by one of the chemists saying if you want to make a lot of money, make an oil additive that does absolutely nothing. The correct oil will do everything your engine needs.

[WrenchHead]

"As the oil life is shortened, the deposits will increase." That's specifically why I've never felt comfortable with 10K(+) mile oil changes, even with the best oil.

[shannononeil]

As a State government worker we were required to add a quart of Hyperlube, company was homebased here, at each oil change in our State issued vehicles. After a few years and a series of unexplained engine failures, Ford tested, found the additive and determined overtime it restricted oil passages, which caused bearing failure. No more additive or lose your warranty. Now we just use engine oil.

[FormulaXFD]

I was always under the impression that Seafoam wasn't an additive, but a solvent/cleaner that you were supposed run only for a very short time just prior to an oil-change...

[mhardy]

What a time to be alive... any cordless tool you can imagine, just 15 mins away at your local box store. Any custom part/tool you can think of, for your project is just a click away. And the best for last.. Top researchers/Developers in their field are all found on one platform, where you can learn in 12 mins, what took them 20- 40 years to learn.

Much appreciated Lake Speed!

[RJHerb]

I don't usually use motor oil additives. BUT, in defense of Marvel Mystery Oil, I must say I used it once to find out if it would free-up a stuck valve in my 91 Volvo 740 2.4 non-turbo with 360, 500 miles on it. I added one quart of MMO to a quarter tank of gas ( 4 gallons), and added one quart of MMO to the crankcase (total of 4.5 quarts). After driving the car for 32 miles the valve started to move, and when I reached 60 miles the valve started functioning properly. New subscriber.

[themotoroilgeek]

WOW! I'm blown away by the response to this video. Thanks to everyone who has watched and commented. Whether you agree or disagree with me, I appreciate you taking the time to watch the video and for caring enough to share your thoughts. There is no way I can respond to all these comments, so please take this as my thank you to you!

[greggc]

I love that-"I used brand X additive and picked up 5 mpg." Well I used brand X additive and I lost 5 main bearings." LOL. I wasn't expecting that. Hilarious.

[Flippersflops]

Met your dad and his whole team back in the Wynns days. They gave us some product for our equipment. Then, ran into Ya’ll again in the Spam days. Have to say, Lake Speed teams could be counted on for kindness, courtesy, and humbleness. A bright spot during speed weeks.

[Duramaxjon]

This is the video we needed. FR3 gained popularity in the diesel community because Hot Shot’s tested it in a Cummins on Firepunk Diesel’s dyno. They showed that FR3 slightly increased the power. After seeing your video, it would have done that because it lowered the viscosity but it’s actually INCREASING wear. Very good stuff here that a lot of people are going to hate to hear

[janetbrowder]

I worked 22 years at an oil packaging facility, in blending and testing. We heavily relied on Lubrizol, Chevron/Oronite and Ethyl additive companies for guidance. All preached that modern engine oils are finely tuned blends, that work well when changing oil regularly. Additives only unbalance the chemical composition of the engines oil and weren’t necessary and weren’t recommended. Shorter drain intervals were recommended over adding any store bought additives, as they are mostly marketing gimmicks....yielding 💰💰💰

[stone]

From Stockholm Sweden, i, m a old guy who really enjoy looking at this sort of videos when you actually learn something, i tip my hat to all of you vloggers out there who put you time and effort to teach and show us how it, s done, Great job👏✌

[Angryleprechaun]

Would love to see a Fuel Additive breakdown with this level of detail.

[crookedstick]

OMG TY for doing this. I'm a fleet Manager for a large company in the Northeast and I just took over a year ago. There is an entrenched belief among some of our mechanics that Lucas is helping with our aging fleet. I have tried to tell them that all we are doing is thickening the oil. I have tried to tell them If you truly believe that a higher viscosity is the right answer for engines that idle a lot and have high mileage, then just use a thicker grade. Now I have my proof. TY so much for giving me a reason to dump the expensive snake oil.

[kuchikirukia]

Seafoam cleaned out my engine. I was getting terrible gas mileage -- it actually got worse the lower the speed. There was a metallic scraping when I would shut off my engine. My instant fuel mileage coasting at 40MPH was barely above what it should've been driving at 40MPH. So pretty obvious increased friction from oil starvation. Running Seafoam through the crank cleared up the scraping and my highway MPG went from ~22 to 30, and I was back to ~38MPG at 40MPH rather than 18.
You're going to want to do an oil change after 50-100 miles to get the crud it dissolved out of your engine, but it works. As the top comment says, it's a cleaner, not an additive package.

[papawx]

My dad told me back in the 1960s to never put anything other than oil in the crankcase and I have always followed his advice.