Question: Oil Change Question for Engine Damage

[2fast2]

Hey All,
My wife took our 1999 C5 into a Midas to have the oil changed before we headed out on a road trip from British Columbia to Las Vegas and back up the West Coast. All went well for the first two days of our trip. The the car started running a little hotter than usual, but we figured it was just the 100F plus temps (saw 112F on the DIC). Problems surfaced when we hit the coast. Temp was much cooler and when I started the car in the morning I got lifter clatter which went on for a few minutes and then subsided. Needless to say I was very concerned. We limped the car home at normal highway speeds. I began to suspect that Midas had put in the wrong oil. Upon checking my bill when I returned home, it turned out that they had put in 15W/40 semi synthetic Quaker state. They apologized when I went in and changed the oil to the required full synthetic and the morning lifter clatter went away. Unfortunately the car still runs hotter than it did before, and the service manager swears up and down that running the wrong oil would in no way cause any engine problems. I feel that with a 4000 mile trip,temps well in excess of 100F and the wrong oil , the engine must have suffered some damage. If any of you could point me in the direction of any information I could use to counter his assertions I would greatly appreciate it. I've already written GM Canada to see if they will help. TIA

 

[hotshotzny]

well thats a fine way to turn a fun trip into a pretty rotten one....

 

[LT4man]

Sorry, but the Midas man is correct.

Your Vette running hot has absolutely NOTHING to do with a semi-synthetic (blend) oil being installed. In fact, he could have used a pure dino oil and the same would be true.

I have been using synthetics since 1975. I have nearly forty (40) years experience repairing cars & trucks. The most important factor is to have regular oil changes done.

You certainly experienced some very high ambient temperatures. I live in Chicago and we barely ever see even 100 degrees F.

SAVE THE

 

[shark454]

Was the oil level correct? Was the engine not filled all the way?

 

[2fast2]

Oil Level

I checked the oil level before we left just to make sure it was topped up.

 

[hotshotzny]

something i remember reading quite a few years ago wasnt saying anythng bad about the oil that places used but more so the quality of the oil filter that was causng problems in the long run..any thoughts on that

 

[LLC5]

Hey All,
My wife took our 1999 C5 into a Midas to have the oil changed before we headed out on a road trip from British Columbia to Las Vegas and back up the West Coast. All went well for the first two days of our trip. The the car started running a little hotter than usual, but we figured it was just the 100F plus temps (saw 112F on the DIC). Problems surfaced when we hit the coast. Temp was much cooler and when I started the car in the morning I got lifter clatter which went on for a few minutes and then subsided. Needless to say I was very concerned. We limped the car home at normal highway speeds. I began to suspect that Midas had put in the wrong oil. Upon checking my bill when I returned home, it turned out that they had put in 15W/40 semi synthetic Quaker state. They apologized when I went in and changed the oil to the required full synthetic and the morning lifter clatter went away. Unfortunately the car still runs hotter than it did before, and the service manager swears up and down that running the wrong oil would in no way cause any engine problems. I feel that with a 4000 mile trip,temps well in excess of 100F and the wrong oil , the engine must have suffered some damage. If any of you could point me in the direction of any information I could use to counter his assertions I would greatly appreciate it. I've already written GM Canada to see if they will help. TIA

What are the before and after cooant temps you are referring to? These engines will run 220-230F degrees all day long without any problems. Are you losing coolant, and is your coolant surge tank full?

 

[Tuna]

I hate to ask the obvious but did yor check the radiator for trash (plastic bags, etc.) after the trip?

 

[2fast2]

Thanks for the suggestions as to what might be causing the present overheating, but what I am trying to establish is whether any damage was done to the engine by running an inferior grade of oil. I would assume that there is some reason for GM to specify GM4718M Synthetic oil for this car.
I also think that running 15W/40 would be too thick at startup and not provide adequate lubrication until the motor warmed up. That would also explain the valve clatter at startup. I'm not talking about lifter ticking but more a diesel like clatter.

 

[LLC5]

Thanks for the suggestions as to what might be causing the present overheating, but what I am trying to establish is whether any damage was done to the engine by running an inferior grade of oil. I would assume that there is some reason for GM to specify GM4718M Synthetic oil for this car.
I also think that running 15W/40 would be too thick at startup and not provide adequate lubrication until the motor warmed up. That would also explain the valve clatter at startup. I'm not talking about lifter ticking but more a diesel like clatter.

What is the coolant temperature when the engine overheats, and is the surge tank full of coolant or low/empty?

 

[2fast2]

It just keeps getting better

Well the saga goes on. My wife took the car to a business meeting in Kelowna (about 200 miles from home). While there she had the car looked at by the Midas regional expert who happens to work out of Kelowna. He picked up the car in the morning and when my wife was done with her meeting she found a message on her cell phone saying that he thought he had found the cause of the overheating but that the car had gone into Security Lockdown and couldn't be driven over 2 miles and hour. This was about 7:30 pm. He said that he had left a message with the GM dealer to find out how to fix the problem and wanted to know if this was a regular problem with the car. Now I've owned the car for about three months and have put about 7000 miles on it and this has never happened.I assume that this is the "Service Steering Column Lock" issue. The car must have the CLB installed as the steering doesn't lock. I don't know of it is the GM or aftermarket kit.
Is this covered under the recall? Guess I'll have to wait and see how this plays out. Some days just seem much longer than others.

 

[Tuna]

Sounds like a real goat rope. Hope it gets better soon.

 

[Hib Halverson]

Running a 15W40 blended (ie: semisynthetic) oil for 4000 miles will not cause a problem that will damage the engine.

Valve noise for a short time on start up is also not going to damage the engine. Also, a 99 may have some cold piston knock, typical of pre-02 engines. It is sometimes misidentified as valve noise and lasts for a minute or so after a cold start. As long as it's not loud and goes away as the engine warms, cold piston knock is not a problem. It's only an annoyance.

BTW... recommended vis. is 5W30 but 10W30 is also approved. If you drive the car regularly when the ambient temp is 100+ deg. F, I'd be using the 10W30, however, the reference to GM of Canada has me thinking this car might be normally located in pretty cold country. If that's the case and it's driven regularly in conditions where cold starts are occuring at zero deg. or lower, you need the 5W30.

In any event, it needs to be a reputable brand of full-synthetic, such as Mobil 1 or Red Line. While it can be an oil that meets GM 4718, it really doesn't need to be.

It sounds like this engine is not actually overheating but may be running hotter than you've seen before...which I'd expect if the road temp is over 112 deg. If you're seeing 112 on the ext. temp display, you're in traffic, and the engine is not modified to alter its cooling performance, you'll see 240 coolant temp.

As for "running hot", I'd first be looking for problems (unrelated to the engine oil mistake) with the cooling system. Make sure the front air dam is in place and undamaged. Make sure there is no debris stuck on the front of or inside the cooling stack. If the coolant has not been changed in the last 3-4 years, I'd change it. Make sure both cooling fans are working properly.

 

[2fast2]

Well it turns out that the air dam was at fault. The Midas guy said that there were a metal bracket for the dam that was very bent so that it was not directing the airflow properly.It looked fine from the front of the car. When I get the car back I'll check the temperature.