Ive had a big bottle of Castrol Magntec, and I bought it when my 2.0 used to drink oil...it has been about a year and a half since I last opened it to use it...it didn't have no best before date on it haha!

Would you recon its safe to use or should I bin it... its nearly full too!! would be a shame to chuck it... but if its going to damage the engine I'd rather buy some new stuff!

thanks

Leon

Oil breaks down over time.. I don't know how long with bottled oil but perhaps give Opie Oils a call and discuss it with them?

it'll be just fine Leon

thats good to know!

just given Opie Oils a call, they said 2 years is about the time you should chuck it so its fine! thank you.

i'm just wondering ,what on earth happens to oil to make it "unusable" after 2 years

Shark90 , you say it breaks down , but into what ?

I'm no expert on oil but I've read a couple of oilman's posts (That's Opie Oils by the way, I think it's Guy but I might be wrong).

Oil is pretty complicated stuff and with all its chemicals and additives and hydrocarbons etc there's bound to be a chemical reaction in there somewhere. Perhaps if the bottle was brand new then it wouldn't matter so much, I don't know, but gut instinct tells me that it could possibly go "off" just like petrol does.

I would be fairly certain the oil isn't a problem, it's more the complex additives reacting with each other.

To be fair however if they fall apart in the bottle over 2 years, you do have to wonder how on earth they survive up to 2 years in an engine in what are much more hostile conditions.

Edited 12 June, 200916 yr by cheezemonkhai

They answer to that is.. they don't I wouldn't trust two year old oil, infact I hate variable servicing full stop and so do most mechanics (i.e. the ones that know what they're talking about).

I've asked a similar question of our oil suppliers & they give an unopened bottle a 3-4 year shelf life & an opened bottle a maximum of 12 months after opening providing the lid is replaced, clean, dry, etc.

I then mentioned that I might just use the out of date oil in my lawn mower & cheap workshop compressor (neither had had an oil change for 5 years) & they thought that was a good idea.

They answer to that is.. they don't I wouldn't trust two year old oil, infact I hate variable servicing full stop and so do most mechanics (i.e. the ones that know what they're talking about).

They do survive for 2 years in a car as long as the car is driven under the correct conditions.

I've seen plenty of Octy MK I that are on variable service and running over 250k, so it can't be that bad.

I used some 20/50 spec (I think) in my Favorit. God knows how long it was in my garage for though!!!