6,000 Miles Aluminum Chips In Oil

Snow White · February 21, 2010

I've never really spent time looking at oil in my other vehicles and that maybe why, but I'm still getting aluminum flakes in my oil as you can see the little specs and pin head sized pieces in the drain pan.

is that normal at this point?

The tach rarely sees over 2500rpms and it's been over 3grand mabye 3 times since i bought it fyi... i baby this thing

second oil change

6,000 miles on truck

first oil change was at 1,000 miles

mobil 1 oil

mobil 1 filter

this time i put a fram high performance or whatever they call it.

C. Charles Hahn · February 21, 2010

Well your first mistake was putting a Fram filter on it... they're widely renowned as junk -- because they are junk.

Secondly, put your foot on the go pedal and make contact with the floor. You aren't treating the engine right by granny-throttling it for 6K miles. I promise you aren't going to break it by doing a WOT run or using heavier throttle, which really you need to do in order to get everything broken in properly and blow out the carbon deposits that will build up from being underutilized.

I understand how expensive these trucks are, but you're doing it just as much of a disservice by "babying it" as you'd be doing if you were flat-out abusing it all the time. They're built to take a lot more than you're likely to do to it during the course of daily driving, you're NOT going to break it. I would try actually driving it properly for a while and change the oil out again. Then if you still see chunks of metal and/or are worried about it, take it in to the dealer and let them evaluate the situation and see if there's really something wrong and fix it if there is. That's what your warranty is there for.

jwieps · February 21, 2010

Well your first mistake was putting a Fram filter on it... they're widely renowned as junk -- because they are junk.

Secondly, put your foot on the go pedal and make contact with the floor. You aren't treating the engine right by granny-throttling it for 6K miles. I promise you aren't going to break it by doing a WOT run or using heavier throttle, which really you need to do in order to get everything broken in properly and blow out the carbon deposits that will build up from being underutilized.

I understand how expensive these trucks are, but you're doing it just as much of a disservice by "babying it" as you'd be doing if you were flat-out abusing it all the time. They're built to take a lot more than you're likely to do to it during the course of daily driving, you're NOT going to break it. I would try actually driving it properly for a while and change the oil out again. Then if you still see chunks of metal and/or are worried about it, take it in to the dealer and let them evaluate the situation and see if there's really something wrong and fix it if there is. That's what your warranty is there for.

Well said. I cut open a Fram "high performance" oil filter and also a factory filter. If you think that the Fram is better for your new truck, try this and you will think again. My examples that I am speaking of are at my work, but on monday I can post pics. You will be suprised. -Jay

BTW: I am not trying to make this a bash Fram topic either.

Silverado4x4 · February 21, 2010

Stick with the AC Delco oil filter.

Z'06 · February 21, 2010

Stick one of these on your oil filter.

nfisherman · February 21, 2010

How would putting a magnet on the filter help with aluminum flakes?

Stick one of these on your oil filter.

Z'06 · February 21, 2010

How would putting a magnet on the filter help with aluminum flakes?

Stick one of these on your oil filter.

Maybe a good point, but with all due respect to the OP, how are we to know the metallic shavings are aluminum without an oil analysis?

brims · February 21, 2010

How would putting a magnet on the filter help with aluminum flakes?

Stick one of these on your oil filter.

+1, aluminum isn't ferrous.

SLESierra · February 21, 2010

How would putting a magnet on the filter help with aluminum flakes?

Stick one of these on your oil filter.

Maybe a good point, but with all due respect to the OP, how are we to know the metallic shavings are aluminum without an oil analysis?

Speaker magnet will do the same - looks like someone just took an old timers idea and put a cover over it ;) BTW a lot of the things in new engines are not affected by a magnet with all the alloys in the engine.

But I would just have an oil analysis and quit babying the truck. It is a truck and they are meant to work.

Xtremski74 · February 21, 2010

I have to say that I don't think the Fram filters are all that bad. I had two older trucks, one with 185k on it and one with 252k. I always used Fram oil filters and Mobil 1 Synthetic oil. So, for me I think my experiences blow the theory of Fram being "junk" filters. They have been proven to me by personal experience. Also, my wife and I have used AC Delco filters in her car (2005 Pontiac Grand Am GT V6) with Mobil 1 Synthetic oil. We got 260k miles out of hers before we sold it. We take care of our vehicles with regular intervals of oil changes. Which with Synthetic was 5k to 6k depending on how much I towed with my truck or how much city driving she did with her car. So, I wouldn't knock either of the filters. Alot has to do with proper maintenance. Also, to respond to the original question, the Pontiac always saw small "shavings" in each oil change. I would say normal for an aluminum block which hers was. However, the iron block's seem to get less and less as they get older. In response to the magnet thingies, never used one! We always got high mileage without one. Enough rambling from me! When in doubt bring it to the dealer!

Bish · February 21, 2010

There is PLENTY of evidence showing that Fram filters are junk compared to many other brands. Just because you don't have one fail does not mean it is a quality filter. I too have cut some open as well as read many oil filter analysis. Fact is, Fram uses a cardboard endcap that is glued on where most others use a metal endcap. Now think about is, hot wet oil and cardboard. WHen the cardboard fails, it stops filtering your oil. I'll stick with a quality filter.

Obviously, put whatever filter you want in your vehicle. Just don't ignore the mountains of data suggesting they are a much lower quality filter. I'll stick with the cheap insurance of paying a couple bucks more for a quality filter. AC/Delco is a decent filter.

c4cruiser · February 21, 2010

If you still see any sort of metallic particles in the old oil, you need to go back to the dealer and show them. They may want to drain the oil currently in the engine and swap the oil filter, but if there is some sort of abnormal wear, another oil change isn't going to hurt in terms of cost.

A good service department manager will have an oil analysis done for you. If there is a wear problem, it's a warranty issue.

brims · February 21, 2010

How would putting a magnet on the filter help with aluminum flakes?

Stick one of these on your oil filter.

Maybe a good point, but with all due respect to the OP, how are we to know the metallic shavings are aluminum without an oil analysis?

A cheap magnet is all the analysis needed to check if some metal is aluminum.

Xtremski74 · February 21, 2010

I've done alot of research today on this. Found what this guy had to say the most interesting. "I don't know how the test of filters compair to real world use but this is my experience with the fram filters.

I used frams for 10 years before this with no problems.I was told by someone in the industry that they cheeped the filters down so much that they are now junk just to keep the cost down.

In my high performance motors i plug the bypass so all the oil has to go thru the filter. Years ago i would notice that after running the motor to break in the cam the oil pressure would drop. So i would change the oil and filter and things would be ok again ... no big deal right..... Then the oil pressure drop started to happen right in the middle of driving the car up the road.. This got to scary for me so i switched to a K&N and all this grief went away...... Same for the napa filters no problems.

So all those street rods running fram filters that do-not have the by pass plugged are running the oil with-out it being filtered. You will never know it's happening!!!!!!! It will not show up on the gage...

So the choice is yours,, use a filter that becomes clogged and then bypasses all the oil around it,or a filter that will stay open and allow the oil to be filtered..

just my .02 cents worth

Keith"

Never knew about the bypass valve. I think I have been very lucky all these years with my vehicles using Frams! Looks like they most likely stopped filtering after a while and the bypass valve let the oil go unfiltered! Looks like PureOne or Mobil 1 or K&N from now on!

Snow White · February 22, 2010

well i just put the damn filter on it and i'm not about to take the stupid thing back off again because apparently neither the ac delco nor the mobil 1 filter did a good job of filter the aluminum bits out anyways.

1 oil change on a fram surely isn't going to be the worst thing in the world, i couldn't get the acdelco off from the factory with out punching a screwdriver through it, so this time i wanted one with that grip stuff on it... or buy a wrench (fearing i'd need the old leather belt trick or screwdriver again). I used fram forever on older vehicles with 150,000+ no issues. next time i'll use mobil 1, i'd wrather have k&n but who sells them, autozone didn't one for the truck.

I do not understand how driving it hard is going to make anything better except the gas station... then again i'm only getting 16.7mpg average anyways....

I'd like to have a nice trailer or something to pull and that would be fine, but just driving it hard i don't get.

How does driving it hard make the aluminum shavings and specs go away?

i just wonder where the shavings are coming from? cylinder walls, lifters, piston skirts, crank/cam journals, etc?