PowerSynthetics

Oxygen Sensors

2008-07-27T07:12:00.000-07:00

Your vehicle has an oxygen sensor in its exhaust system. The oxygen sensor’s job is to calculate how much gasoline your fuel injectors are spraying into your engine. The oxygen sensor tells the computer and then the computer decides if it’s enough. If it’s not enough, the computer will increase the fuel flow from your injectors.

That all sounds like a great plan, but here’s the kicker: Your engine has many fuel injectors (one per cylinder) but only one oxygen sensor.

So let’s say you have a six cylinder vehicle, (six fuel injectors) and you haven’t been using AMSOIL P.i. to clean your engine, so three of the injectors have gotten dirty and partially clogged. Your oxygen sensor is going to notice that there’s not enough fuel getting into your engine. It’s going to tell the computer and because the computer cannot compensate for individual cylinders, it’s going to increase the fuel flow from all six fuel injectors. So now the three clogged injectors are trying to push more fuel through, but they are still clogged so they still aren’t providing enough fuel. (We say they are running lean.) And the three injectors that were working okay are now providing too much fuel. (They are running rich.)

So what’s happening?

Well, your engine is not running properly for starters. It’s probably running a little rough, and if it gets really dirty it will probably start to hesitate and stall. If your engine is allowed to run this way it could even cause some pretty expensive damage. But that’s not all. You’re also using way too much gasoline, and at today’s prices that’s not something you want to have happen. The extra fuel is also turning into excess exhaust that is being sent out into the environment. Another bad, bad thing.

But there’s an easy fix. It’s AMSOIL P.i. One bottle will clean your dirty fuel injectors, eliminating these problems for the next 4,000 miles. One bottle will increase your gas mileage (tests show increases up to 5.7%), reduce your vehicle’s emissions, and increase your engine power and drivability. One bottle of AMSOIL P.i. will have your car running like new. Get some. You’ll be amazed.

Fuel Injection

2008-07-26T06:44:00.000-07:00

Last week we attended AMSOIL University. We sat through 20 hours of intense training in Automotive Technology, Engine Oils, Filtration and Lubrication Fundamentals. I learned more in three days than I had in my entire lifetime. (I won’t mention how many days that that has been.) So guess what? I’m passing it on.

Today, I want to tell you about fuel injection.

Your engine has a fuel injector for every cylinder, so a V6 engine would have six. There are different types of injectors, but they all work the same way, spraying fuel in a fine vapor mist into the combustion chamber. There the mist is mixed with oxygen and a spark from your spark plug that causes the pistons to move, rotating the crankshaft which eventually turns the wheels, making your car go.

It’s a long, complicated process, but for now just know that the entire system depends on the spray from the injectors. If the spray isn’t right, the entire process is wrong.

A fuel injector has a tip that has tiny holes about the size of a human hair. The fuel is pushed through these holes and that’s what causes the mist. If some of the holes get clogged with tar and soot and stuff, they just can’t work right, so they either send the fuel through in bigger drops that won’t combust properly, or they don’t send any fuel through at all, causing a misfire.

Gasoline may cost more than gold, but it’s still some dirty, nasty, filthy stuff. The combustion process turns the gasoline gunk into the goo that clogs your injectors (and lots of other parts as well, but that’s a topic for another day). It happens quickly, and it happens constantly. Injectors can start to clog after just a few hundred miles of drive time.

That’s where AMSOIL P.i. Performance Improver comes into play. AMSOIL P.i. is the most potent fuel additive on the market today. One bottle treats a 20 gallon tank of fuel and lasts for 4,000 miles. One bottle cleans fuel injectors to “like new” condition, restoring power, acceleration and drivability to your vehicle. It can also increase your fuel economy up to 5.7%, but I’ll explain that in the next post.

So to summarize: Fuel injectors get dirty. Dirty fuel injectors cause poor engine performance. AMSOIL P.i. cleans dirty fuel injectors to “like new” condition. Try AMSOIL P.i. It’s good stuff!

I'm Back!

2008-07-24T09:20:00.000-07:00

I haven’t posted for a while. It’s not because I didn’t want to. Life just got in the way.

But now I’m back.

Actually, I’m back in more ways than one. We just returned from the AMSOIL 35th Anniversary Convention in Duluth, Minnesota. WOW! is all I can say. We learned so much and did so much that I can’t fit it all into one blog, so I’ll be posting on the Convention for a while. Stay tuned. We’ll meet again tomorrow.

A Word About Filters

2008-01-18T06:35:00.000-08:00

The other day we were talking with a man who told us he tried a competitor’s 15,000 mile synthetic oil in his car and didn’t like it. “I ran it for 15,000 miles and then I had it analyzed,” he said. “It came back 5,000 miles over its useful life.”

Charles and I were happy to hear this because we know the competition can’t do what AMSOIL can do. But then he admitted that he ran the entire 15,000 miles on a cheap 3,000 mile filter. Well geez Louise, if you aren’t going to filter your oil, how do you expect it to perform?

Without proper filtration, even the best oil in the world will quickly turn into junk. You can take a cup of pure liquid gold, throw in a handful of mud, stir it around, and all you’ve got left is pure liquid gold junk!

I almost felt sorry for our competition on this one, because they really weren’t given a fair chance. (But then again if you make mediocre oil, you probably only deserve a mediocre chance.)

My point is this: Your oil is only as good as your filtration. That’s why AMSOIL makes the best filters in the world, so you can use them to filter the best oil in the world.

Try them. You’ll see.

Some Stuff to Know About Brake Fluid

2008-01-15T06:44:00.000-08:00

Lately, all the talk among AMSOIL dealers has been about brake fluid. I couldn’t do any of the talking because I didn’t know anything about brake fluid. So I did some research and here’s what I found.

Most passenger vehicles have hydraulic brakes. The brakes are connected to the brake pedal by hydraulic lines filled with brake fluid (It’s actually more complicated than that with something called a vacuum assist module and a master cylinder and a slave cylinder and a brake rotor, but that’s more information than I needed.)

Have you ever hit your brake pedal with your foot and it went too far? Or felt kind of spongy? Apparently that’s because your brake fluid is not acting right. It has either melted, or vaporized, or leaked out or something and you’re in big trouble.

According to AMSOIL, there are two things that make brake fluids fail. They may have gotten so hot that they began to boil and vaporize, or moisture may have gotten into them, causing loss of lubrication and corrosion protection.

AMSOIL has just introduced two new products, DOT 3 and DOT 4 brake fluid, and like everything AMSOIL, they are pretty much the best you can buy. They have an unbelievably high boiling point so you don’t have to worry about that, and they also absorb moisture and hold it in suspension so you don’t have to worry about that.

One other thing. It seems that you are supposed to change your brake fluid every 24 months. I did not know that. I guess I’ll be ordering some AMSOIL brake fluid!

I Made up a Rhyme About AMSOIL

2008-01-11T07:23:00.000-08:00

My engine is really a mess.
My fuel mileage couldn’t be less.
It’s AMSOIL I need.
To get up to speed.
And give me relief from this stress.

Myth #3 – If You Could Call It That

2008-01-10T07:01:00.000-08:00

AMSOIL 100% synthetic motor oils are recommended for 25,000 miles or one year under normal driving conditions.

Some people just can’t handle that information.

The craziest excuse we hear is the one I’m calling Myth #3. It goes something like this: “My granddaddy changed his oil every 3,000 miles and my daddy changed his oil every 3,000 miles, and if that’s good enough for them, it’s good enough for me.”

If that’s your excuse, I’ve got two things to say to you.

1. Your granddaddy must have been a really smart man. He followed the best advice he had at the time and he took good care of his vehicles.

2. He sounds like the kind of man who would have wanted to learn about new ways to save money and better ways to take care of his stuff.

If your granddaddy were alive today I think he would say to you: “Son, get your head out of your butt and listen to this lady, she makes good sense.”

And he would be right.

Myth #2 – Changing to AMSOIL Will Void My Warranty

2008-01-08T07:28:00.000-08:00

My sister was thinking about changing her truck over to AMSOIL. Some guy she knows told her not to do it. “It will void your warranty,” he said.

We hear this a lot and it’s nonsense, so I’m naming it Myth #2.

Manufacturers’ warranties require the use of oils that meet certain API Service Classifications. AMSOIL meets those requirements. AMSOIL probably exceeds those requirements.

My sister changed to AMSOIL anyway. Her truck runs better. She gets better gas mileage. She’s saving tons of money by avoiding constant oil changes. She was so happy with her new AMSOIL that she put it in her motorcycle too.

“What did you tell the “warranty” guy?” I asked her.
“I haven’t seen him for a while,” she said, “his car’s been in the shop.”

Myth #1 – Synthetics Cause Oil Leaks

2008-01-07T07:24:00.000-08:00

We’ve recently moved back home to Arkansas after several years away, so there are lots of new people to meet. Invariably, someone will ask us what we do, and Charles and I will just look at each other and smile. “We have a small business and we sell synthetic lubricants,” I will say. That’s all it takes. Someone will say “Really!” and then we spend the next twenty-or-so minutes talking about synthetics.

It’s amazing what people don’t know about synthetics. The other day someone said to me, “Oh, that’s that fake oil.”

I don’t even know how to reply to that.

It was all I could do to keep from rolling my eyes.

The comment we hear most often seems to be “If you change to synthetic oil, you will get an oil leak.” People actually believe this! I did some research and I found out that this absolutely will not happen, at least not if you use AMSOIL synthetics. Here’s what AMSOIL has to say about it:

“In modern vehicles, there is no risk of AMSOIL motor oil leaking. In fact, AMSOIL motor oil is fully compatible with modern seal materials. It is properly formulated to condition seals, keeping them pliable to prevent leakage.”

So that shoots down common myth #1. AMSOIL doesn’t cause oil leaks, it prevents them. Got an oil leak? Don’t you wish you were using AMSOIL?

A Few Words About A. J. Amatuzio

2008-01-06T06:21:00.000-08:00

AMSOIL was founded by a fiery gentleman named A. J. Amatuzio. I met Mr. Amatuzio once at an AMSOIL dealer meeting in Florida, and as long as I live, I will never forget him. He’s not what I would call a big man. In fact, if you dropped him in a bathtub, he wouldn’t displace much water. But when you’re in his presence he’s absolutely larger than life.

AMSOIL dealers love Mr. Amatuzio. When we gather for a convention, he’s the star attraction. Why do we love him?

Because he had a vision and he stood up against insurmountable odds to turn his vision into reality…the American Dream.

Because he guides a company that refuses to cut corners or sacrifice quality to cost.

Because his efforts have created a livelihood, not only for himself and his family, but for each one of us. Hundreds of AMSOIL dealers across the U. S. and Canada work for themselves, doing what they love, in businesses that provide a good living, simply because Mr. Amatuzio had a vision.

As far as I know, it’s not his birthday. And no, he didn’t die. I just woke up this morning thinking about him and I wanted to tell him “Thanks, Al.”

DeAnn Almond

AMSOIL Antifreeze Saves the Day

2008-01-05T04:22:00.000-08:00

We found a new use for AMSOIL Propylene Glycol Antifreeze and Engine Coolant yesterday.

We have friends who run a small business and they had an icy spot just outside their back door where the ice machine was venting. One customer had already slipped on the ice, and they were concerned that it would happen again.

We had some left-over AMSOIL Antifreeze in our garage so we took it by and poured it over their icy spot. Ta Da! Ice gone!

Now, don’t send me hate mail about disturbing the environment and killing innocent animals, because AMSOIL Antifreeze is made of propylene glycol, so it’s environmentally safe. The animals can drink it and it won’t kill them. It’s biodegradable, and non-hazardous. It costs more than regular antifreeze, but we think the safety factor is well worth the price.

Like everything AMSOIL, it’s also rated to last longer than other brands you might buy, 250,000 miles for passenger cars and 750,000 miles for over-the-road diesels.

So once again, AMSOIL saves the day, but more importantly, we have a nice empty spot in our garage now. I wonder if we can find a new use for leftover paint!

It's COLD Today!

2008-01-03T09:54:00.000-08:00

It was 12 degrees at my house this morning. That’s nothing at all up in Superior, Wisconsin where AMSOIL is manufactured, but down here in Arkansas we don’t know what to do with 12 degrees. Up in Superior, they have snow and they can go snowmobiling. Down here all we can do is shiver.

My car started just fine this morning. It ought to. It’s filled to the gills with AMSOIL, the king of the cold-weather start. AMSOIL synthetic motor oil will still flow or pump at temperatures up to sixty or seventy below zero.

At 12 degrees, your two-dollar-a-quart petroleum oil from Wally World is just sitting there in a cold-induced stupor. The wax molecules are starting to thicken up and the rest of the molecules are huddling together in the bottom of your oil pan, waiting for your engine to build up some heat before they go to work.

But the molecules in my AMSOIL synthetic oil are just swimming around in my engine like it’s a fine summer day. When I turn the key to crank my engine, they’ve already punched the time clock and are ready to roll.

We don’t have too many days like this in the south, but when we do my AMSOIL gives me one less thing to shiver about.

The AMSOIL Chili Cook-Off

2008-01-02T10:15:00.000-08:00

An interesting thing about motor oil is that you can put it through all sorts of tests that determine the performance you can expect from it in different conditions. The other day I was reading some test results between AMSOIL and ten of its top competitors and I was thinking about what it would be like if the people that make these synthetic motor oils got together for a chili cook-off. I think it would go something like this:

The people from Penzoil would do a pretty good job until they started adding the spices. Somehow, their chili just wouldn’t be able to take the heat. Same goes for Quaker State. When it started to boil, their chili would get kind of runny. Trop Artic would try to compete, but apparently their chili would all evaporate right out of the pot. If you can’t take the heat, get out of the kitchen.

Just the opposite is true in the Formula Shell kitchen. Their chili would still taste like it just came out of the refrigerator. And you can forget about Motorcraft, because their chili would still be frozen.

Castrol GTX would get the recipe all wrong. The acid from the tomatoes would burn up your stomach. And I think there was a sand storm down on the Havoline and Shell end, because both of those chili’s would be too gritty to eat.

Everyone knows Royal Purple can’t make a decent chili, so they wouldn’t even bother to show up.

Mobil 1’s chili would taste okay, if you like slicked up chili straight out of the jar. People would be buying it right and left because they like the commercials.

Of course, AMSOIL would be the winner, hands down. The undefeated champion 35 years running. It would be the best tasting chili that most folks ever ate. And it would not only taste great; it would be nutritious, and easy on the stomach. It would be the obvious choice for people who really know chili.

It’s great to be the best.

Wiper Blades Come One-to-a-Box

2008-01-01T05:51:00.000-08:00

I needed new wiper blades for my Xterra.

I'm the sort that doesn't replace the wiper blades until they're flapping in the wind, so when I tell you I needed new blades I REALLY needed new blades. AMSOIL carries TRICO wiper blades, so I ordered a set.

Did you know that wiper blades don't come in sets? Apparently, you have to order a quantity of two if you want an actual set. I didn't know that.

So now I have one new blade and one old blade. It's a great joke to play on your passenger!

Happy New Year,
D.

Phil Takes the Plunge

2007-12-31T04:29:00.000-08:00

Our next door neighbor is an old biker named Phil. Phil doesn't own a car, he rides his bike. It can be 25 degrees and sleeting and you will hear Phil's bike start up. I'm not kidding.

I used to think Phil's bike was a Harley, but it's not. Apparently if it looks like a Harley and sounds like a Harley but isn't a Harley it's probably a Honda. Phil rides a Honda Shadow.

Charles decided early on that Phil needs to run AMSOIL in his bike. Over the last few months he's bombarded poor Phil with every scrap of information he could find about AMSOIL motorcycle oil and filters. It was almost embarassing. I kept telling Charles to leave the guy alone about AMSOIL. "He knows about AMSOIL and he's obviously not interested," I would say. Then I would deliver some form of the old adage "You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink." Charles would just take him another flyer.

Yesterday, Charles came in the house with a big smile on his face.
"He wants AMSOIL," Charles said.
"Who wants AMSOIL?" I asked.
"He does," said Charles as he pointed toward Phil's house. (Charles struggles with words and names since his illness)
"You're joking," I said.
"No, he really wants to get some," Charles said, with that smug look that says "I told you so."

Now, I don't like to sell, and I'm no advocate of hard selling. (In fact that's one of the things I love about being an AMSOIL dealer. AMSOIL sells itself. You don't have to.) And we won't make much money off Phil's 3 quarts and a filter, but it's not about that. Charles just seems to have made it his mission to tell the world about this wonderful stuff called AMSOIL, and somehow I got sucked in along the way.

I guess the story ends like this: Phil will love his AMSOIL and become a devoted user. Charles will find someone new to convert. And I can once again hold my head up as I wave to the neighbors.

DeAnn Almond

My First Encounter with AMSOIL

2007-12-30T06:18:00.000-08:00

Charles is a car guy. It's that simple. We've been happily married for eleven years now with only a few fights in the early years. Most, excuse me, all of those fights were over money. I thought money should be spent on groceries, electricity, the mortgage, etc. Charles thought money was for buying cars. I eventually learned to shake my head and smile, but it took a couple of years.

One day a package came in the mail. Charles was like a little kid at Christmas. He had been surfing and found this great synthetic oil that he wanted to put in his newest car. It was called AMSOIL and it was supposed to be the best oil you could buy.

"That's great," I said, "how much did it cost?"

He didn't answer right away so I knew he was probably in trouble. I looked at the invoice and couldn't believe my eyes.

"You paid $85 for this stuff?" I asked. "Can you not go down to the Jiffy Lube and get the same thing for $20?"

I had a lot to learn back then.

AMSOIL and I had to get acquainted and then I would understand. Now, I run nothing but AMSOIL in my Xterra. Oil, filter, transmission fluid, grease, even the antifreeze. Now I only change my oil once a year. Now I understand that I'm actually saving money, that my beloved Xterra runs better, that I get better gas mileage, that my engine is running cleanly and smoothly and will probably run for hundreds of thousands of miles, all because this one time my husband was smarter than I gave him credit.

But don't tell him I said that!

DeAnn Almond

What's this blog about?

2007-12-29T09:14:00.000-08:00

It's about our experiences with AMSOIL and our adventures as small business owners.

There are literally thousands of websites and blogs by AMSOIL dealers on the web. Some are really good; some are really bad; most fall somewhere in between. Most of these sites copy information from the AMSOIL corporate website in hopes of finding a few customers of their own. We don't mind that, we've even done it ourselves. This blog is different.

We sell AMSOIL for a living. It's a small business. It has its ups and downs. In this blog we want to share our experiences as AMSOIL dealers, as small business owners, as advocates of synthetic lubricants and as users of them. It's an interesting way to live.