Z Max

[aurorakid88]

Alright guys check this out. A friend of mines says he's been usin this stuff called Z Max for about a year and he says the shop told him that his motor looks brand new inside. I looked up on it today and at 40 bucks a box that stuff better work. it comes with a engine cleaner and a fuel cleaner. I wonder how some of that stuff will work in that Northstar???

[babufred]

MY opinion: That stuff is snake oil for sure. I wouldn't give 34 cents for it, Canadian or US. If someone was carrying it up my driveway I wouldn't let them within 25 feet of my '96 Aurora, or any other of my vehicles.

[froggyscike]

This should be in the PRODUCT/SERVICE REVIEW not in the mechinal maintenance

[scottydl]

I used to be into the same kind of stuff called Prolong, which probably equals Z Max, which probably equals Motor Up. All are these supposedly magical engine products that sell (or sold) mostly via late-night infomercials, and they would run all these crazy stress tests to show how amazing the product is. Sounds familiar? I wouldn't waste my money, however. Do a search for Auto-RX, a researched long-term engine cleaner that many of us here have used.

Edit: here's the thread (one of them, and the other one is linked there) on Auto-RX.

[Marc]

All you really have to do is change the oil frequently. That 1972 442 that I had before my Aurora lasted 29 years, and that was because of oil changes every 2 months.

[algonquin]

aurorakid88 said:

Alright guys check this out. A friend of mines says he's been usin this stuff called Z Max for about a year and he says the shop told him that his motor looks brand new inside. I looked up on it today and at 40 bucks a box that stuff better work. it comes with a engine cleaner and a fuel cleaner. I wonder how some of that stuff will work in that Northstar???

Regular oil changes using quality oil and filters will do the same thing. Your engine should look brand new inside for many years without adding miracle liquid to it. As far as an engine cleaner a cup of kerosene added to the oil and run a bit then drained and replaced with fresh oil will do the same thing but it is unlikely that even that is needed. Fuel Cleaner ?

[macadamiaman]

marc said:

All you really have to do is change the oil frequently. That 1972 442 that I had before my Aurora lasted 29 years, and that was because of oil changes every 2 months.

Well, that, and you drove it very little... The best way to make a car last long and look new inside is to keep the miles off it, driving regularly

[babufred]

RIGHT ON!!!! al...and marc. Good machinery requires good care all the time, on time. Regardless of who advertizes it, be it Andretti, Granatelli, or Shelby, the engine and trans adders are ALL snake oil, and not worth the package they come in. THEY DO MORE HARM THAN GOOD, by far. If one does not believe, take the stuff to a lab to find out what is in it. Most likely, it will be found to be rich with some or all of zinc, lead, aluminum, manganese. It will ruin good equipment, and briefly prolong the life of shabby equipment, which should be rebuilt anyway.

[Marc]

And as for what GM says about any oil additives or supplements:
page 6-19 of the 2001 owner's manual says plainly: "Don't add anything to your oil."

[edge350]

My papa uses that z max stuff on his delivery vehicle -- which is a 99 Ford mini-van (aerostar) with 480,000 miles on it. He religiously gets oil charges every 3000 miles too. He isn't sure if it is the oil changes or the z max stuff, so he keeps doing both.

[A-boy95]

the only thing i use is lucas, i use it i nthe engine trans, and my fuel tank.

[kdck4]

Some of those products work. Things like transmedic or transx will clear up sticky valve bodies very common in 4T65 and 4T60, Using Duralube can get almost half a million miles out of a 3.1 in a beretta stick with a crappy oiling design (priority cam oiling doesn't work well with a little extra clearance) Restore will get 2000 miles between oil changes in a sbc before a mild rod rap will return, change oil, go another 2k. Things like STP don't work, I agree. The only way to find out is to check opinions anywhere and everywhere, what is the consensus? Then try it if positive, don't try if negative. Being a mechanic for 12 years at a crappy used car dealership and growing up at a garage is my experience level.