SDFever

Have you ever noticed that it changes color significantly after it’s been opened? If you leave a quart unopened on a shelf next to a quart that has been opened you will see that the open quart is about 3 shades darker than the unopened bottle.

Further, small wax-like chunks and settlement form and sit on the bottom of the bottle. If you shake it up well and stand it upside down, this is what forms in the cap after draining.

It’s almost like some of the components are separating. Just curious.

SDFever

pics

Philm

I never noticed that when i ran it, and I always had a half empty bottle on hand. Interesting.

SDFever

I could actually watch it change color in the open quart bottle weekly... it keeps getting a little darker. Not that it's necessarily a problem.

But the stuff in my cap or left at bottom of open quart of oil is totally like a grease type consistency.

I'm not using the proper terminology but it's clear to me that every bottle i've left stored after opening does separate or settle to some degree.

I wondered if it was the additive package which could "weigh more" than the oil it was mixed in....?????

I dunno.

minxguy

I would keep using it.

Ken

minxguy

NOT!!!

Ken

Knot 4 Me

I had two unopened bottles sitting on my shelf this fall that were about 5 - 6 years old. Even unopened they turned a darker color than the new oil we purchased in October in a 5 gallon pail. This same darkening occured in some older 75W90 Severe Gear I have on the shelf. Again, unopened. I've not seen the waxy material in your pics above in any open bottles of Amsoil gear lube that I have.

minxguy

In 5-6 years, the formula of the product could of changed and the new additive is a different color than what was used.

This could account for color change in new unopened product.

In opened product, the darker color could come from oil oxidation with the air.

This is one reason you should change your oil even if you don't have any time on it.

Ken

BenPerfected

Ken,
We are low hour users but we do use quality oil/lubes. How often would you recommend that a synthetic 20-50w oil (or gear lube) be changed based on time only? For a 2+ case oil change @ $10+ qt you hate to waste...but not compared to premature wear.
Ben

Knot 4 Me

I attributed the color difference to what you state here or the fact that even the small amount of air in the bottles from the bottling process (I assume they do not purge all the air out) lead to oxidation.