For 280,000 miles, Gray changed his oil at 40,000 to 60,000 mile intervals though his oil analysis reports showed, without exception, that the oil was good for continued use. At 325,000 miles, Gray increased his oil drain interval to 100,000 miles.

The engine was torn down at 600,000 miles when Gray decided to sell the truck. The cylinder liners, bearings, pistons, rings and oil pump, all treated to extended oil drain intervals, were found to be in excellent condition.

Gray continued using AMSOIL AME in the engine of his new truck, a 1990 Mack with a E7-400 engine. An AMSOIL Dual Gard by-pass system was also installed. With the new truck, instead of using 100,000 mile drain intervals, Gray began basing his oil drains on the findings of a used oil analysis program.

After 630,000 miles total and 409,000 miles without an oil change, the E7-400 engine was torn down by the local Mack dealership in December 1996 and its parts were examined by an engine rater from Lubrizol, a major oil additive manufacturer.

What the rater found:

• Except for normal top polishing on the push tubes there was, "no wear to speak of. These can go right back in the engine and be used again."
• The valve train components showed, "very light wear. Very good. No wear on the shaft, which can be a heavily loaded area."
• "I see no reason why the engine couldn't run on."

Take a look at the pictures of various engine parts the rater examined.

Gray is now driving a 1999 Mack with an ET 460 engine, an Eaton 13 speed transmission and 386 Eaton rears. His first task was to use AMSOIL 75w-90 Gear Lube in the drive train and AMSOIL 15w-40 Heavy Duty Diesel and Marine Oil in the engine. An AMSOIL Dual Gard by-pass system was also installed.

As of July 2003, Gray has over 330,000 miles on the engine and 290,000 of them without an oil change. He takes oil samples, changes filters and greases the truck (With AMSOIL greases) at 40,000 mile intervals.

Gray likes to point out that his fuel mileage is a constant 7 mpg, while other truckers traveling under similar circumstances and with similar equipment average only 5.5 to 6 mpg. This is just one of the many benefits AMSOIL has to offer.

Owner/Operator sees 11% mpg increase
Mike Geho-Metz of West Virginia has been using AMSOIL Synthetic Diesel Engine Oil and the AMSOIL Dual-Gard By-Pass Filtration System, along with used oil analysis, for nearly three years. My 1997 Mack CH613 had 176,000 miles on it when I began using AMSOIL motor oil and the Dual-Gard System. At the time I bought this truck, the company I am leased to bought a number of identical trucks for their fleet. All of these trucks operate in much the same way, including operating environment, type of haul, etc. These trucks also have a dash mounted digital display of the lifetime average fuel economy. At this time my truck's average is 6.78 MPG, and the company trucks range from 5.8 to 6.2 MPG. The difference between 6.78 and a fleet average of 6 MPG is over 11 percent. That is significant savings, and the major difference here is I use AMSOIL and the company trucks use conventional oil!

Both the full flow and by-pass filters are changed regularly, and at each 20,000 mile interval, an oil sample is taken to monitor the oil's condition. Currently, I have 412,000 miles on this truck, the last 236,000 without an oil change. The oil analysis from Oil Analyzers, Inc. reports the oil is suitable for continued use and the engine runs great.

One Million miles one four oil changes
Midland, MI -  Independent owner-operator Norman Stanick used AMSOIL Synthetic SAE 30 in his 1987 Caterpillar 3406 engine since the truck was new (after breaking in the engine with another oil) until he sold it seven years and one million miles later. He performed four oil changes during that period, basing his extended oil drain decisions on the findings of used oil analyses performed at 50,000 mile intervals.

 After 848,000 miles, Stanick pulled the pan to fix a water leak. He decided to take a look at the main and rod bearings. He was there when the mechanic pulled them out. "There was not a shiny spot on any of those bearings. They miked out at new part measurements," said Stanick.

"I saved between $15,000 and $18,000 on oil changes. That could be the difference between staying in business or not."

Stanick now owns a truck with a 1994 Detroit Diesel Series 60 425 engine. He uses AMSOIL Synthetic 15w-40 Heavy Duty Diesel and Marine oil in it. By using oil analysis he changes his oil at 250,000 mile intervals.

"Let me tell you a story. My son and I drive team. We were in California pulling a 43,000 pound load. It was three in the morning and my son was driving. Suddenly, all the dash lights came on."

"We pulled over, shut down the truck and looked under the hood. A filter had come loose and all the oil had been pumped out of the engine. Every drop."

"Now that's a $25,000 engine that we ran without oil! But once we got the filter fixed and put some oil back it, it started right up and has run perfectly ever since. I'm sure AMSOIL saved my engine."

"I have no question I can run this engine two million miles with eight oil changes. People don't believe me. They tell me I'm crazy. I just smile all the way to the bank."

Truck loses oil but doesn't need a rebuild
Hans Rishell, a self employed heavy equipment operator, has a great story to share.

Hans uses AMSOIL in his 1994 UD 1800 Nissan truck. During December of 1999, Hans was working at a job site 31 miles from his home. He would start each day by letting his truck run for a few minutes and then driving back to the job site. Upon returning to the site, Hans noticed a group of people standing around a pool of oil in the parking lot. The group was speculating as to who had lost their oil. Hans said his truck was running fine and went to work.

 Later that day Hans decided to check his oil because no one had identified the vehicle that was leaking. When he checked his dip stick it came out dry. He added 4 gallons of oil on the site, the exact amount needed for an average oil and filter change. Hans decided that the sump and filters must have been dry. Through a more thorough inspection, Hans found that his vehicle had a broken sending unit which failed to light his oil warning indicator. Hans retraced his drive and found that an oil trail could be seen for approximately 7 miles. When he returned to his home Hans found only several small spots of oil in his driveway. This lead him to conclude his vehicle had been out of oil for nearly 24 miles on the way home the previous night, and had warmed up and returned 31 miles to the job site that day without any oil in the sump! His expensive engine had been running normally all morning, so Hans had no reason to suspect he had lost all of his oil the night before.

It would have cost Hans $9,000 to $12,000 to rebuild his engine. AMSOIL saved his engine!

325,350 miles on one oil change
Virginia independent owner-operator John Blevins traveled 325,350 miles in his 1984 Volvo truck with a Dodge Cummins 350 engine.

John was using AMSOIL 15w-40 Heavy Duty Diesel and Marine Oil, By-Pass filtration and oil analysis. It took three years to accumulate this mileage, then John sold the truck.

The buyer, a mechanic, has continued Blevins' oil and filter regimen and did not even change the oil after he bought it.

Today, the same fill of oil in the engine has seen over 500,000 miles of service.

AMSOIL saves the day
Seal Beach, Cal - Mike Johnson was towing a 34-foot fifth wheel trailer on Sherman Grade about eight miles north of Bishop, Cal when things went wrong.

"I smelled something burning, and moment later smoke billowed from under my truck. I drove about a mile until I could safely pull over. Them I opened the hood and discovered transmission fluid splashed on the exhaust system and running out from under the transmission."

Johnson says he had hid rig towed to a dealership, and the service manager told him to expect the worst. "A few hours later I got the news that the upper coupling had let go, and I'd lost all my transmission fluid. But my transmission was fine. The service manager said the only thing that saved my transmission was the AMSOIL synthetic Automatic Transmission Fluid."