MG-Cars.net

Welcome to our resource for MG Car Information.

Recommendations

Parts

MG parts spares and accessories are available for MG T Series (TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, MG TF), Magnette, MGA, Twin cam, MGB, MGBGT, MGC, MGC GT, MG Midget, Sprite and other MG models from British car spares company LBCarCo.

MG MGF Technical - ZX1 - looking after your engine?


Hi Peoples,

I have just discovered what I think is a mini-breakthrough.. though opiions wanted.

A fellow biker mentioned ZX1 to me as an amazing product that changed his bike and last night I invested in some from Halfrauds (16.99!).

It is a additive... with no PTFE (whatever that is) and sounds pretty amazing.

Add it to you oil and you clean everything inside and your engine becomes close to friction free (and it lasts beyong an oil change 25,000-100,000 miles).

Add it to your petrol and your fuel pump and injectors etc get a good clean.

Add it to your water and your water pump gets looked after.

Add it to you gearbox and that's protected to.

There are further claims.. Add it to your water and oil, and if you get an HGF, it is impossible to seize your engine.., and even without oil, your engine is temporarily protected...

http://www.team-zx1.co.uk/

So..., I know they'll be some views.., but has anyone else tried it?

I have noticed on my motorbike that the bike revs slightly faster (maybe a sign of less friction?).. I am going to try it on the VVC.., but thought I'd offer it to views first!

What a long, long thread!!










Neil H

or a very short one:

http://www.chris-longhurst.com/carbibles/index.html?menu.html&additives.html
Will Munns

Hmm! That's what I knew of traditional additives.., but this is meant to be different, and isn't mentioned there.

To quote "The virtual downtime eliminator is a particle free fluid which remains in colloidal suspension within the lubricating medium until a relatively low temperature activates the unique thermo-chemical bonding process. Unlike conventional "additives" British Extralube ZX1 micro-oil is a radical departure in the hi-tech field of frictional wear technology providing: "

Break-through? or Breakdown?
Neil H

PTFE is a low- friction surface coating - so hypothetically, it would be a good idea in an engine. But in an oil additive, it is added as a particulate suspension. Where do these particles end up? Yes, that's right, in the oil filter. They have no benefit to engines whatsoever.

So if ZX1 doesn't have PTFE, at least that's one positive thing ;o)

However, this product "sounds too good to be true" - and usually, products that are too good to be true, are too good to be true.

Be very very very cautious. Personally, I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole - at least, not without knowing a good deal more about what this product porports to contain.
Rob Bell

Hmm.. I would like to get out of this as much as possible. (i.e. want to believe the marketing)

It seems to me that the difference in my bike is very noticable.
The initial knocking if the bike hasn't been started in ages (the oil has sunk to the bottom) has gone.
The idle is slightly faster (less friction?) and
it seems to be running better in general.

Its the HGF failure protection I'd like to attain... and if it looks after all the other bits.. great!
Seems like a good shot to nothing to me.

The other thing is that all these traditional crappy things we use (/ have heard about) need putting in all the time.
This poduct says use once, and its lasts 100,000 miles... - change every 25,000 miles to be sure.. - its hardly a high cost.

Neil H

disapointingly the standard test for this webpage gives a quite low (good) reading:

http://www.cynicalbastards.com/w*nkometer/
Will Munns

Bit of a tangent... - but that sites brilliant Will... !!
Neil H

>> http://www.team-zx1.co.uk/

W*nk factor of 3.33

This level is classified as considerable. <<

Excellent site Will, but you need to substitute the '*' for the letter 'a' in the URL (yep, i clicked it! D'OH!) :-)

SF
Scarlet Fever

I think I am going to put myself forward and add ZX1.. I am convinced by my bike results.., just wait and see if the VVC bit still works ;-)
Neil H

>with no PTFE (whatever that is)
Poly Tetra Fluoro Ethylene - a low friction polymer. The coefficient of friction is similar to that of wet ice. It is sold under the trade name of Teflon and is used as non-stick surfaces for kitchen products.

Just because an additive doesn't contain PTFE does not mean that it doesn't contain a polymer that can harm the engine in a similar way. For example, it might use PCTFE (Poly mono-Chloro Tri Fluoro Ethylene), which has very similar properties to PTFE. However, reading the technical information on the product, it appears that ZX1 'forms a complex long-chain molecular bond' with the metal in the engine!

I believe that the manual for the F specifically states that additives should not be used. The reasoning behind this is that modern engines are built to closer tolerances, therefore the additive could gunge up the engine.

Ralph
Ralph

Off thread, but if you query the address of the w*nkometer (http://www.cynicalbastards.com/w*nkometer/), it gives itself a "W*nk Factor" of 2.13, which it classifies as "considerable"!!!

lol...

:OD

Ian Matheson

...and if you put any old cr*p in the url it still returns a rating....
Kes

A certain cosmetics manufacture is curently
advertising a ladies cream product containing BOSWALOX I will leave you to make up your own mind !!!!!!
a marshall

>containing BOSWALOX

Yeah, great is'nt it, sounds a little like botox, or however you spell it, but doesn't involve _injecting_ poison into your face.

I have Digital TV, Dimonique anyone?
Will Munns

<I have Digital TV, Dimonique anyone? >
me too...just off to put the Cataclean in the car :-)
Blue Max


Yeah.., well save your money and buy a V-slicer.. they look great..

-- going back for a second.., no-one's used ZX1 then?
Neil H

What about though, if you do go ahead and add this automotive botox. You may get some benefits and the engine may feel more free and it may be quieter at start up. This final point is where my concern is. We all know that you should not thrash your F from initial start up as the engine is not yet warmed up. If you are lulled into giving the car a little more welly from cold then you will probably do a lot more harm than good. From what you say about your bike this is very possible. I personally find the noise of the colld VVC serves as a very nice reminder to take it easy for the 1st 10 mins or so.

Just my humble opinion. :-)
Phil Brindley (Work)

Well that is quite a good response.

I AM always careful when I have just started her each day as that's keen HGF territory.

But after hearing no sound reason ZX1 itself is bad (the only response is to class it with all other PTFE additives).., I am tempted.

ZX1 claims not to effect tolerances.., and can prevent an engine locking after as HGF (run totally without oil).., sounds like a wise investment to me.


Neil H

Neil,

I think you are desperate for someone to tell you it is Ok to put this snake oil in your car.

Consider; the oil companies spend millions on trying to make their oils as good as possible and they have improved dramatically over the years. They also know they people will pay a huge premium for an oil that is perceived to be better (compare the price of Mobile 1 to another high quality oil). If these huge organisations thought that they could improve their product by using simple mineral oil and adding a food colorant, don’t you think they would have done it already and improved their profit margins?

The Snake Oil Salesmen settled with the FTC – which means they are guilty of LIEING! That have had to repay customers’ money because the product does not do what it says on the tin. They have had to accept that their product does more DAMAGE to your engine than proper oil. How many different ways to you want to be told that the product is crap?

What they are allowed to say about their product is now so bland it could be used to advice putting Cod Liver Oil in your car!

If your are still determined to buy it, I have a genuine, original Rembrandt that measures 8 by 10 foot that you can have for £100 (once the paint has dried!)

Cheers

Patrick

PS if you are interested in the Rembrandt, please give me your email address and I will be in touch!
Patrick Beet

IMO I tend to steer clear of anything advertised on the shopping channel (QVC), as it always is so good , it cann't be true, and usualy isn't
my 2p worth.
Mike (@home)

Rembrandt is good money.., how many can you knock out?

Okay, well I am fairly happy with your moderate-to-high sarcasm ratio. I know what you're getting at, and I expected to get the abuse if I'm seen to be promoting fuel additives.

What I was hoping for was a "Everyone, don't bother, I had it in my car 5000 miles before an HGF and the engine seized"

Yes, I do want to try it.., sounds great.. probably isn't.

More worrying perhaps is that I haven't had a decent answer as to why this product is crap.., they have no settlements or law suits, they don't have the PTFE everyone worries about, and it seems to solve idling problems.

-- maybe it should just be sold as 'able to solve idling problems' on the tin.., but if it does that, who is to prove to me that it won't stop damage in an HGF situation??

No one so far.

So for 16 (if I go ahead), I 'may' have saved myself hundreds..
.. happy with the gamble.., just don't know what the odds are!

Lastly, turning your oil theory around for a second..
If ZX1 is so spank / doesn't work.. why do they use it so much in Formula 1. Is it just for advertising?


Neil H

Mike - this isn't on the shopping channel. I had it recommended through a friend at M&P (large motorbike specialists) near Oxford.

Neil H

Neil, I'm going on the letters they show on the website, you no the ones, "my car ran for 8 miles with no oil in the sump" etc. etc. etc.
have a look at the photos pages, they have photo's of the letters.
Mike
Mike (@home)

Mike, I can't find them.. what's the link?
Neil H

I really don't feel all that happy about the claims made about this product (http://www.neosoft.com/~zx1/default.html) - and quite a lot of it is misleading...

For instance, the website seems to indicate that a phrase lifted from LandRover Owner is attributable to the National Centre of Tribology. And the NCT's findings with ZX1 are for the compound used NEAT on load bearing surfaces - so whether the 'macro molecules' that this stuff is supposed to form will actually pass through the pores of the oil filter simply isn't assessed...

Oh, and I can't seem to be able to find on the NCT's website any testing of ZX1 (although that maybe because the report may be listed under the product's generic name - or not even listed at all because of commercial interests).
Rob Bell

I once ran over a large silencer which dropped off a Ford I was following on the Motorway. I would have missed it had the woman driver in front of me not over reacted, then hit it setting it up sideways in my lane so that I could not avoid it passing under my car with a loudish bang! I did eventually access the nearside motorway lane but, whilst briefly stopped on the hard shoulder (hate that ... never safe there with Monster trucks flying by) looking underneath showed all appeared well. I pressed on hoping all was well and arriving at my destination, a glance under the car now showed a long spilt in the sump and the last drop of oil hitting the floor. It was not all's well! Must have done 20 miles losing all that oil.

Later I replaced the sump and oil with good old GTX again. That car ran on for another 40,000 miles and was still going strong on the day of it's final journey when I took it to the breakers last year. The engine was still in fine running order. BTW, the car? A 1990 Montego 1.6LX which I had for 13 years.

No additives ever used in that car and regular oil changes using GTX.

I suspect that many engines will take a fair bit of abuse before finally letting go. Good thing really with so many careless owners about who rarely or never do even simple routine fluid levels checks.

JMcF.
John McFeely

Neil, Just get it in there!
Then you can let us all know if it is good or bad, who will start the book on how many miles before she blows the gasket?
Bob
R Mosedale

So if I put £100 on within 100 miles and the odds are decent.. I might be able to cover my risk... ;-)

Neil H

Niel, click on photo gallery, gallery 4, letter 2 chap in spain bought via QVC, gallery 4 is all letters.
Mike
http://www.team-zx1.co.uk/noflash.cfm
Mike (@home)

b*&^%r!! Mike, you're right.. it must have been on QVC and all credit is lost..
Still interested to know pit-falls.., but somehow that does nail a lot of credit from the product.








Neil H

Neil,

I will begin by saying that i know nothing about this product at all, only the advertising as linked to from this thread.

The advertising seem to me to be eratic, over zealous and unsubstantiated scientifically. Therefore i am very sceptical. Dodgy marketing, although is not a crime, does not lend the product any credibility at all.

Factor in the excellent website above that details court actions against similar products with similar claims and the case as far as i am concerned, although circumstantial is damming.

The only plus point i can find for using this product on the entire thread is your experiences with your bike.

For me, as a bystander to this thread, this is no where near enough of a reason to use it in my car (no offence, but one person's experiences with a machine and engine that are completely different in all bar thier goal of transportation do not instill me with a lot of confidence).

So, from my point of view, umpteen negatives and one positive is a fairly cut and dried case.

If you want to be a guinea pig, then by all means do so, but based on the evidence so far and no personal experience with the product, i could not approve of it.

If you do decide to use it, then please report back - your experiences with the product in a K series engine will be a lot more relevant than those with your bike and therefore will hold more water with other users of this forum.

SF
Scarlet Fever

Patrick,

Did Martin not buy up all the remaining Rembrandts then?
Derek

Neil,
You should have saved your money,
R J Hemphill

Neil,
Before thinking about putting this in my F I though I'd try it in my 92k Diesel Passat which has lots of nasty noises coming from the engine. Went to Halfords Wokingham and they had run out so went to Bracknell branch and they had 2 packs left - said it was very popular. Put it in the engine and the fuel tank as per instructions. Initial impressions are that it has made a differnce, smoother, less top end rattle. Keep you posted on how it goes in the morning as the car always sounds crap first thing and through the week on my commute to cambridge ( yeh supid to drive 87 miles each way to work!) so by the end of the next couple of weeks I should know if it lasts.
I Wills

Neil,I have been using ZX1 for about 7 years! I use it in my motorbike, my diesel pug, and the MGF. I am convinced that this stuff works. Every veh I have put it in has run, or appeared to run, more smoothly. So far I have covered 25000 miles in the F without a hitch, and I added the ZX1 after the first 1500 miles. I would recommend this stuff to anybody! I think it even has a NATO stock number. My dear 'ol dad has recently added it to his A class Merc because it was noisy on initial start up..The noise is still there, but much more subdued. He is chuffed to bits and a definite convert....He's also been in the oily end of the motor industry for 40 years! Whatever veh I have, I will not run it without ZX1.
Paul Goodwin

Update.

I have a 15 years old Mercedes with a worn big-end. Whenever you start the car (and haven't for a while), you get a few knocks as she gets going.

Not anymore!
On Friday she got a dose, and so far, so good.

I know no-one wants this to be anything other than a gimmick.., but I still think it does some good.. a lack of knocking must be a good thing - no more metal-on-metal.



Neil H

I use ZX1 but to tell you the truth I have noticed no differnce,but I carry on using it for its anti wear prperties.
ddk

Hey I've got a degree in Marketing (Colouring in)

So what do you give the chances of me selling

SMEG F1
The specially formulated compound to extend engine life. Made in Trinidad!

AND IT REALLY WORK MAAN! GARRRRANTEE!!!!:

Here's the logic!

It involves a bottle of Royal Oak White Rum, specialy mixed and chilled in the secret well known Darkside Labs with Coca Cola and served on the beach.

Only available in Trinidad. So you have to go to Trinidad which is such a long way that yo might as well chill on D beach and drink the bottle of Rum, or tree.

Staying out there for some serrius Limin'
You wont be in UK so you wont be able to drive your car and thus you extend it's engine life by at least the length of time you is on D beach!

YammAAnn!

Anudder Cooool ting fraam Trini

D Sun IZZZ shaanin' and I is stuck in Raasclaart MOD Beeaass in Feeeezin Hingland!

Neil

This thread was discussed between 24/02/2004 and 01/03/2004

MG MGF Technical index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG MGF Technical BBS is active now.