Is Millers CFS 5W40 NT+ Magic?

[OllieVRS]

Hi all!

Not posted here in a while as everything is going swimmingly with the VRS, touch wood.


Speaking of things doing well, my last oil change I used Millers CFS 5W40 NT+ that I got from Halfords for €81 (expensive but I wanted to give it ago).

And lo and behold, my oil consumption has more than halved.

I put in 4.3L of the stuff exactly 1000 miles ago, so 0.3L below full, and now here's what the dipstick looks like now:



If we're to assume the dipstick is 1L between min and max I'd estimate it's at 4.0L/4.6L, which would make my oil consumption just under 0.2L/1000km. This is incredible considering the fact it used to burn through 0.4-0.5L/1000km on Shell Helix Ultra 5W-40 meaning I'd have to keep a spare bottle in the car at all times.

Granted my current calculation isn't the most accurate as there could have been left over oil in the sump etc, but even with a pessimistic calculation of 0.3L/1000km that's still really impressive.

So is the fancy anti-friction technology that they talk about in-fact not a load of mumbo jumbo? And does this low oil consumption justify paying so much for oil?

Also I read another post on here where @Pudding said it was designed for racing and to be changed more frequently, is that something to actually worry about?

Thanks 

[pudding]

I think the key is to stick to an oil the engine runs best on, and burns the least 

Another important thing, irrespective of brand, is to change it more frequently than the manufacturer's service interval.  Chains, bearings, cam followers, seals and valve guide steams/seals will thank you for it in the long run.

Racing oils are designed to handle more sustained heat than manufacturer approved oils, but due to their chemical make up, often don't meet said approvals because every OEM oil now has to be low ash/SAPS to prevent DPF/OPF clogging, which most racing oils don't care about. 

As for the anti-friction stuff, tungsten disulphide is the most common one and definitely works.  Whether or not an engine benefits from it varies from car to car.  Nearly all OEMs say not to use oil additives, but at the end of the day, you can do what you want with a car that's out of warranty 

I never tried the Millers but Castrol and Shell Helix are two oils that definitely burn off faster, and don't run as smooth.  Two oils that dropped consumption right down to almost nothing between 3-4k oil changes were Mobil 1 FS 0W40 and Quantum Platinum Plus 5W40.  The latter is especially cheap at £23ish from TPS, but they've recently dropped it, so get it whilst stocks last!

Anyway, the key message is to just change whatever oil you use more often.  I never felt good about paying 81 euros for Millers, so stuck to more frequent changes of cheaper stuff 

[shail]

I've had my car for about 7 years so have tried Shell Helix, Castol, Triple QX.  All of these needed regular top up - anywhere between 1 litre every 900 to 1500 miles.

Last oil change I used the Millers and my consumption more than halved.  So yes, Magic!

Coat me £39 for a bottle.

[bobby_fodge]

I've had my car for about 7 years so have tried Shell Helix, Castol, Triple QX.  All of these needed regular top up - anywhere between 1 litre every 900 to 1500 miles.

Last oil change I used the Millers and my consumption more than halved.  So yes, Magic!

Coat me £39 for a bottle.

Where are you finding it for £39?

[titchy]

try vwmotorparts ebay shop

[OllieVRS]

Thanks for all your input guys 

Another important thing, irrespective of brand, is to change it more frequently than the manufacturer's service interval.  Chains, bearings, cam followers, seals and valve guide steams/seals will thank you for it in the long run.

Ever since the low oil pressure paranoia I've been changing my oil every 5000km, is that often enough for you? 

But that was mostly to monitor for metal fragments in the filter, and with each oil change there were exponentially less. By the third oil change there were no longer any visible fragments in the filter, just <1mm ones that I only found by digging with a magnet, which I assume is normal wear.

[pudding]

Yeah that is acceptable    Well done you 

Glad the metal chunks are slowly reducing. They hang around in the corners of the sump and for ages.

[Lewo]

I've had my car for about 7 years so have tried Shell Helix, Castol, Triple QX.  All of these needed regular top up - anywhere between 1 litre every 900 to 1500 miles.

Last oil change I used the Millers and my consumption more than halved.  So yes, Magic!

Coat me £39 for a bottle.

Another one for where at that price...? 

[shail]

I've had my car for about 7 years so have tried Shell Helix, Castol, Triple QX.  All of these needed regular top up - anywhere between 1 litre every 900 to 1500 miles.

Last oil change I used the Millers and my consumption more than halved.  So yes, Magic!

Coat me £39 for a bottle.

Another one for where at that price...? 

Just re checked my invoice.  I bought the non NT+ variant from Opie Oils using a 15% first order discount.  If you want to get less oil consumption, might be a good shout to get the cheaper non NT+ stuff, as it's worked wonders for mine.

[Lewo]

Thought it was too cheap to be true!

[Numero9]

I've used Quantum for my first oil change car seem to drink quite a lot so might try the Millers next and see if that helps. Changing after every 10k.

[pudding]

What Quantum did you use?  The  regular Platinum 5W40 is different to the 5W40 Platinum Plus.  Platinum is also available in 5W30 and I think recently, they've added 0W20.

The Platinum Plus is the proper Fuchs oil that definitely helps with consumption.  If it's burning that off rapidly, I think there are underlying issues oil grades won't solve.  You could step up to Mobil 1 5W50 Motorsport, also called 'High mileage' in some countries will certainly slow down consumption.

[bobby_fodge]

I'm currently using that liqi moly green stuff. Just fancied trying it.

[Dan_FR]

After nearly a decade of owning my car and nearly 20 oil changes ( I change it every 6 months, which is around 3k miles), one of the biggest factors I've found is driving style. Lot's of gentle driving or motorway cruising and it'll burn very little. Kick it's head in and it drinks the stuff. That and it started using more after the cat was removed - started burning oil on downhill overrun etc. Its been like it without getting worse for many years so I've lived with it.

The last 5 years or so after I've run nothing but Quantum Platinum 5w40 (Now platinum plus) and the consumption is very similar to 5w40 oils I ran previously.