Cleanliness Is Next To Godliness or Why Clean Engines Run Better

Ed Newman |Mar 25, 2016 9:22:00 AM

Clean is good.  It’s good to eat with clean hands, and wise to wash (clean) your vegetables before you stew them.  We brush our teeth after meals, and floss routinely in order to keep teeth free of deposits and the build-up of plaque. Clean clothes smell fresh and make us more presentable. Clean air is fresher, and healthier, to breathe. When we get a cut or abrasion, we clean it to keep the wound from becoming infected. Clean is very good.
When it comes to the cars we drive, we also value cleanliness. Dirty windshields can be dangerous, and in the winter good wipers are important for keeping visibility clear. Washing your car not only keeps it looking nice, removing the road salt will help it last longer and prevent an early retirement due to rust. 
Air filters should be changed when they’re dirty because the internal combustion engine is designed to work best when the air/fuel mixture is optimal. Fuel injectors need to be kept clean for the same reason. Deposits on fuel injectors can inhibit fuel flow, causing erratic idle, poor acceleration and hard starting. (AMSOIL has an excellent product called P.i. for cleaning injectors as well as piston deposits.) Throttle plates and valve stems also need to be clean to operate properly.
And the inside of your engine needs to be kept clean as well.
While it is true that over the decades oil companies have made improvements in their processes and products, conventional petroleum-based oils have still not kept pace with the demands placed on them by advances in engine technology. Systems today are more interrelated, engines more sophisticated and prone to have problems because each individual component has a tendency to affect the overall operation. This is why more makes and models are factory-fill synthetic.
Engines are having greater demands put on them, especially to minimize emissions and meet CAFE requirements. As a result higher operating temperatures and tighter clearances make for some challenging lubrication specs. Turbo charging also produces more heat.  If the oil does not keep up with the sophistication of engines the result will be an increase in undesirable emissions, increased wear, and a host of engine performance problems including loss of power, poor fuel economy, and trouble starting.
Almost every car manufacturer now sells engines with variable valve timing.  The average motorist has probably never even heard of variable valve timing, but it is a critical component in the operation of a vehicle today. Almost every manufacturer has published a bulletin stating that the number one cause of that intricate variable valve timing system not working right is from small amounts of residue and sludge. In other words, cleanliness in the system is absolutely essential.
One car dealer I know of became so exasperated with the gumming up of this component due to petroleum residue that he has changed his thinking about synthetics.  The slightly higher cost of synthetic oil far outweighs all the hassle and expense of fixing the problems caused by slushy or gummy oil remains.
A premium synthetic like AMSOIL synthetic motor oil reduces varnish, sludge, wear, ring sticking and emissions due to its ability to resist oxidation, breakdown and volatility. In fact, AMSOIL Signature Series Synthetic Motor Oil provides 75% more engine protection against horsepower loss and wear than required by a leading industry standard.* Signature Series also prevents piston deposits 93% better than required to meet the latest API standard.*
It’s not magic, it’s science.
Keeping engines clean using AMSOIL synthetic motor oil helps them last longer.  Synthetic motor oils unquestionably reduce vehicle maintenance costs over the long haul. Find out more about purpose-built AMSOIL lubricants, designed for whatever you drive, ride or operate.
*Based on independent testing of AMSOIL Signature Series 5W-30, in ASTM D7320 as required by API SN specification.