Thinking about extending my service intervals.

+1

I second this. An oil sample analysis is the best way to tell you how much coolant, insoluables, bearing materials, how much additives are left, etc.

Black Labs usually give their recommendation on your particular application whether to extend or shorten your oil change intervals. They'll also give you trends too, like if they notice more coolant in the oil from a possible head gasket leak. There's no guesswork with oil analysis--it's the lifeblood of the engine.

http://www.blackstone-labs.com/gas-engine-sample-report-1.php

 

"If we had to pick the most frequent cause of diesel engine failure, we would choose antifreeze, the killer extraordinaire. There are several ways coolant can get into the oil — head seals, pin holes in wet liners, injector cups on some types of engines, and the oil cooler. By the time you see discolored oil, the problem has very likely progressed beyond a point of economical repair."

I think I remember a statistic of all breakdowns 60% are related to the cooling system. e.g. coolant in the oil, overtemp, bad radiator, external coolant leaks. And the only way to truly catch this would be through analysis. When there's a small leak into the oil, all the water will be evaporated off with the hot oil temps, but what is left of the coolant additives will remain in the oil and ruin the effectiveness of the oil lubricating properties.

 

Never trust Black Labs!





They're idiots...

 

Do you have a davco? I wouldn't change fuel filter right until it needs it. Your already stretching your grease out, I wouldn't go any longer than that. Make sure you jack that front axle up to hit those king pins. As far as oil, are you running a bypass? Doing any lab tests on the oil?

 

I second this, you gotta test the oil.

 

Nice pooch! lol

 

ALL LABS MATTER! ALL LABS MATTER!

 

Adding a fuel restriction gauge is cheap and easy.