Engine oil is the most important part of the engine after fuel. Without engine oil, your bike’s engine will seize really soon no matter what. It is the fluid which is equivalent to blood in our system. It lubricates the engine and keeps it going as well as keeps the engine clean from all the grime and carbon dirt that gets accumulated. But even after all this there are some engine oil “additives” in the market which claim to improve your engine’s output and efficiency and keep the engine cleaner. But the main question here is do they really work?Before we move further, I need to put this out there that we do not have anything against the companies producing engine oil additives and this article is only meant as information for the readers. So any views mentioned here are just practical and logical for everyone to know and it is in no ways a means for defamation of anyone or anything. So now that this is clear, we can move forward and check out engine oil additives.
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You go out to any good shop which sells bike accessories and stuff and there you can see a nice shelf or row of bottles of engine oil additives of various brands promising to improve your bike’s engine performance and efficiency. But it only takes a matter of few minutes to read the content of the engine oil additives and the content of the engine oil you are using, if you compare them to see that both of them are carrying the exact same contents. So if this is the case then what is the use of the engine oil additives and spending so much on the small bottles?
Here is something for every one of us to know. Back in the day when engines did not used to be so refined and well made, and also the engine oil was available in only one kind for all, these engine oil additives used to come for the rescue. The additives have a capability to alter the oil viscosity for a short period of time. So if you happen to be using oil in your bike and are having cold start issues, then using the additive used to solve this issue because it would make sure that the oil would perform even in cold conditions and same was the case with hot conditions.Similarly the additives would actually do help out in cleaning of the engine and in smoother operation by increasing the mileage of the oil. But then with advent in technology, the engine oil manufacturers themselves started improving their oils and over time there came oils which we use today which provide all the advantages of the additives in the same package. Hence if you are using one of the newer engines, then in that case the engine oils of today are pretty much capable of taking care of the engine really well without all the additives.
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In case you do happen to use the additives, the only difference you would feel is a placebo effect on the rider, but the actual effect on the engine is pretty much nothing because there is nothing different between the additive and the engine oil and it will only mix to be one and keep going as is. Some of the engine oil additives even claim to restore the worn out engine by repairs scuffs and scratched on the piston and the cylinder wall. But actually these things are also taken care by the engine oil and if the additives are going for that, it is not necessary that they will be suitable for all engines and it might even turn out to hurt your engine more than protect it.
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But then again if you do plan to use engine oil additives in the future, then you may; but if you ask us, then it is not really worth spending the extra money on it unless you are using a really old and restored engine. Then we might recommend it to you if the newer tech engine oils are not suitable and it needs the additive to perform better. But in case of all new bikes, the need for additive is pretty much NIL and hence it would be better option going for better engine oil for protecting the engine rather than using a mediocre one and spending extra on the additive.
By: Pratik Patole