The base additives in the oil neutralize acids until they are depleted.
Looks like Bodhi's owner didn't pay extra for TBN (Total Base Number).
It would have been pointless anyway, if he changed CI-4 diesel oil at 3k the TBN would have been pretty high.

__________________
'79 300SD W116
'86 190E 2.3-16V W201
'92 300D 2.5 W124
'99 E320 4MATIC S210

I have used Blackstone for a while now and have been very satisfied with their service. I sample every other oil change on all my vehicles. They easily confirmed the bad headgasket in the 300D and also a clean bill of health after the repair.

Comments have been made that oil analysis is too expensive. The question is, relative to what? Most of us have no problem plunking down a couple of bucks for a cup of coffee every day at Dunkin Dognuts without thinking that it adds up to $20+ per month.

Blackstone sells (6) tests for $17 each. If you test every other oil change then the cost is very minimal and hardly worth worrying about in the grand scheme of vehicle ownership. I test simply because I am curious and also would like to know what is happening inside my high-mileage engine that I depend on for income.

Interestingly, back to back oil analyses have shown NO increase in any particulates or wear metals when I switched to a dreaded K&N air filter on the work truck. If the analysis is clean then the K&N is doing its job. Case closed. K&N's aren't as bad as they have been accused of, at least in my application.

RT

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When all else fails, vote from the rooftops!
84' Mercedes Benz 300D Anthracite/black, 171K
03' Volkswagen Jetta TDI blue/black, 93K
93' Chevrolet C2500HD ExCab 6.5TD, Two-tone blue, 252K

That doesn't sound like the type of place I'd wanna go to.

__________________
'81 MB 300SD, '82 MB 300D Turbo (sold/RIP), '04 Lincoln Town Car Ultimate

Sooner or later every car falls apart, ours does it later!
-German Narrator in a MB Promotion Film about the then brand new W123.

... Bodhi's owner is a "she" ... But yeah, I figured it wasn't really a useful piece of info to pay for, since I'm not necessarily looking to change my oil change interval (3k is pretty livable for me).

__________________
1987 300D, arctic white/palomino--314,000 miles
1978 240D 4-speed, Euro Delivery, light ivory/bamboo--370,000 miles
2005 Jeep Liberty CRD Limited, light khaki/slate--140,000 miles
2018 Chevy Cruze diesel, 6-speed manual, satin steel metallic/kalahari--19,000 miles
1982 Peugeot 505 diesel, 4-speed manual, blue/blue, 130,000 miles
1995 S320, black/parchment--34,000 miles (Dad's car)

Mea Culpa.
Did you give them an email addy so they'd send you an instant report? I think mine was .pdf format.

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'79 300SD W116
'86 190E 2.3-16V W201
'92 300D 2.5 W124
'99 E320 4MATIC S210

Maybe you need to make it a better known fact!

Just kidding, if people would read other people's profiles, they'd know, duh.... That's how I knew..............

__________________
-Matt

EPA Section 609 Certified MVAC Technician
-----------------
Oil Burner Kartel Member #10

Ahh the smell of Diesel Fuel, it's like coffee in the morning!

My Car:

1982 300SD Turbo Diesel (231,500 miles!) RIP

1984 300SD Turbo Diesel Custom (235,500 mi on driveline.) - On Road!!

www.icsrepair.com

Then I shall here-for-too use this emoticon whenever posting ...

Or is there a female emoticon with diesel oil on her face? That might be more appropriate

__________________
1987 300D, arctic white/palomino--314,000 miles
1978 240D 4-speed, Euro Delivery, light ivory/bamboo--370,000 miles
2005 Jeep Liberty CRD Limited, light khaki/slate--140,000 miles
2018 Chevy Cruze diesel, 6-speed manual, satin steel metallic/kalahari--19,000 miles
1982 Peugeot 505 diesel, 4-speed manual, blue/blue, 130,000 miles
1995 S320, black/parchment--34,000 miles (Dad's car)

..........nah.....you look way better than that hag..............

This is getting a bit deep.......

__________________
-Matt

EPA Section 609 Certified MVAC Technician
-----------------
Oil Burner Kartel Member #10

Ahh the smell of Diesel Fuel, it's like coffee in the morning!

My Car:

1982 300SD Turbo Diesel (231,500 miles!) RIP

1984 300SD Turbo Diesel Custom (235,500 mi on driveline.) - On Road!!

www.icsrepair.com

The sad thing is...they are probably using a HPLC and just running the oil through their system.

The machines cost BIG MONEY and the buisness yeilds some serious payback (a lot of analysis done for drug companies). HPLC= High Pressure Liquid Choromotography. Basically they drop a bit of the sample into a special tube, run it, and they get a printout of what was in the stuff they tested.

We used to do this in high school chem (used the college's machine) to analyze the amount of caffeine in different beverages/foods.

My eventual career will probably end up working on such machines...love maintenence but car stuff is a hobby and is hard on the body/hands after too many years heh.

Anyone know someone hiring?