[instalher]

hey guys can a certified BMW mechanic chime in on this topic... I have seen these products and always see them being tested on domestic junk, never bmw audi Mercedes, ect.... sooooo can we use this on our engines, or is it smoke and mirrors again... the product I was interested in is called car boss from a company called tribotex... sounds interesting and I can see it helping an iota and its cheap... Can anyone chime in on this.

[BunkerJ]

Originally Posted by instalher

hey guys can a certified BMW mechanic chime in on this topic... I have seen these products and always see them being tested on domestic junk, never bmw audi Mercedes, ect.... sooooo can we use this on our engines, or is it smoke and mirrors again... the product I was interested in is called car boss from a company called tribotex... sounds interesting and I can see it helping an iota and its cheap... Can anyone chime in on this.

I wouldn't trust it... All of those things are just snake oil and do nothing.

[Cammy5]

While I don't know about performance gains, I use Liqui Molly Ceratec every odd oilchange in my car. The idle *feels* a bit smoother and underhood is a tad quieter. Again, I wouldn't say it gains anything necessarily, just makes me feel better and is quantifiably quieter/smoother.

[e30]

I have been repairing and racing BMWs for over 10 years. My general opinion on additives is that they are good, most engine oil can easily be improved. I have personally seen huge improvements by using expensive oils and additives, like Red Line and Royal Purple. They make transmissions shift better, things run quieter and it gives me some piece of mind something won't blow up going 125 mph on a track day.

I have used tribotex in my 435i and it is still running strong for about 5000 miles. The 90s bimmers that I work on don't have rod bearing issues, but when you start getting into S54s and some of the newer engines there are issues. I have read about rod bearing issues in our engine too. So I used tribotex because it claimed it could protect the bearings by forming a ceramic coating on them.

In my experience building engines, you can get parts DLC coated before you assemble them, which is really expensive. So if the $99 tribotex injector does the same, then I think it is a good value.

I did some research on the company, because I was worried about it being fake too. I figure they seemed legit because they got huge funding from the government, when I emailed them too they sent me a published journal article on the material:
https://nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1456394

Here is a YouTube video of a guy using it in a BMW:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNc5BijfBXA&t=46s

I assume this is what you were talking about, I want to buy it again and see if it can make my old 325e faster:

[Billfitz]

Additives with nano particles do seem to work. I can't say if it's worth $99, I'd want to see some third party testing results before making that kind of investment. It's still a fairly recent product, so there don't appear to be any long term test results yet.

[instalher]

ill wait till more testing comes in.. I have two yrs left on my warranty so not to worried. yet...

[BunkerJ]

If you want a good oil additive, go with Ceratec from LiquiMoly.

[j1980mac]

Hi,

Could something like this help assist with the 1,200 mile break-in process?

I'd like to take a road trip right away, and don't want to worry about varying my throttle if I don't need to.

[Billfitz]

Nano particle treatments have the least effect with a new engine, the most effect with an old engine.

[j1980mac]

Originally Posted by Billfitz

Nano particle treatments have the least effect with a new engine, the most effect with an old engine.

Totally get that, I'm just wanting to get a great start.

[Billfitz]

Knowing how it's claimed that they work I wouldn't spend the $$ with a new engine. I'd put it into an oil and filter change at 1500 miles instead.

[digireg]

Originally Posted by BunkerJ

If you want a good oil additive, go with Ceratec from LiquiMoly.

Only if you are on their payroll.

Ceracrap is a dispersion of boric acid in oil and as many acids it promotes wear and corrosion as well as it gets neutralized by your detergent in oil so what you did by using boric acid in your engine is you killed all the detergent in your oil and anticorrosion additives.

But how do I know? We had older astrovan with a still block to haul things around and put Ceracrap in it with new mineral oil Chevron - what happened at he end in a month sitting outside oil turned into rusty goo... Started reading about it and even their MSDS says it is corrosion hazard !
Might reduce friction but not if you drive in the rain or have your car parked for a while ...

[Billfitz]

You used mineral oil? I haven't used that since 1974.

[jimbobiggens]

I wouldn't get too hung up on any oil additive. Modern engines are designed to run on a film of pressurized oil. If you get metal-to-metal contact in these spots you have bigger problems than any additive could have solved - so what's the point?

[IraHayes]

Originally Posted by digireg

Only if you are on their payroll.

Ceracrap is a dispersion of boric acid in oil and as many acids it promotes wear and corrosion as well as it gets neutralized by your detergent in oil so what you did by using boric acid in your engine is you killed all the detergent in your oil and anticorrosion additives.

But how do I know? We had older astrovan with a still block to haul things around and put Ceracrap in it with new mineral oil Chevron - what happened at he end in a month sitting outside oil turned into rusty goo... Started reading about it and even their MSDS says it is corrosion hazard !
Might reduce friction but not if you drive in the rain or have your car parked for a while ...

Kind of reminds me of the 90’s when Slick 50, Duralube, Prolong, and a slew of other engine additives came out. I can’t remember which one it was exactly, but one of those products contained chlorine. Chlorine provides for a slick surface, but it is also knlown to be a metal corrosive. I would really do my homework before putting any of that stuff in my car.

[Billfitz]

After this thread was initially closed last April I researched Ceratec. Based on that research, and a price far more reasonable than $99, I added it to my crankcase. After driving the car for a thousand miles I did extensive acceleration and fuel mileage tests, which showed a 3% decrease in 0-60 MPH time and an 8% increase in fuel economy compared to the results I had recorded prior to adding Ceratec.

[instalher]

good feedback Bill,