Howdy fellow diesel-heads,

I heard a new one today- adding ATF (automatic transmission fluid) to diesel fuel for lube. It's supposed to extend the life of o-rings and injectors, quiet noisy rackety idles, and the usual things that are supposed to happen from dumping lube into fuel.

Recalling the "oil or no oil in the fuel tank" thread from a couple weeks ago, I said "what about dumping your old crankcase oil in the fuel tank" and the answer was if you can keep it clean, that is, store it so that leaves and cigarette butts and hay and dog doo and other things don't fall into it, it's fine. I said then why use ATF, and the answer was it blends better with diesel.

So for what it's worth, that's today's wild diesel rumor.

 

I think I would stay away from using both.There are lots of products that are made properly for cleaning and lubing the diesel fuel system,check at your local autoparts store.besides you do not want to mess up an expensive engine.

 

lady,

there was a thread a month or so ago started by farmerphilco about this topic ask him he can tell you all about it.

Fire Rooster

 

Yes, there was a thread a while back. In general, most are against it and some diesel shops warn that it can cause engine damage. With the cheap price of fuel additives it just doesn't really make sense to risk it. Something like Standyne Lubricity Formula, specifically formulated to clean (no cetane boost) is only $4.25 and treats 120 gallons.

 

I read the Farmer Philco thread, it had a lot of good information. I have no burning desire to dump all kinds of crap into my perty truck, I was just wondering. It seems like a lot of these old-timey remedies probably worked OK on big old diesel engines, but the Powerstrokes are different beasts.

The subject came up when I was talking to my mechanic. He's pretty sharp, and gives good service, but on some things I think he's stuck in the wrong decade. He says he uses the ATF in his truck, a '95 F350. It's got 205,000 miles on it, and it runs tight and smooth. But then, if he goobers it up, he's got the wherewithal to fix it, and how would I know.

He also keeps trying to sell me on chipping my rig, and I keep telling him no, first I want to upgrade the air intake and downpipe. I think he must get some good factory incentive on the chips, 'cause he talks about them like they are magical.

 

You're exactly right. A lot of "old-timey" remedies worked well on mechanical injection engines but don't work as well in modern diesel engines. As I said before, with the price of fuel additives it's not worth the money to use ATF anyway.

 

A few months ago, I ran across a post where the guy showed a picture of his fuel filter compared to a new one. His old one was pitch black, looked really crudded up, and he was asking why. At the time, I sure did not know, and a lot of answers he got was about algae, and every thing but what it probably really was. I believe at some point and time, someone dumped old dirty black oil into that diesel tank, and thats what made his filter look so bad. There is no way I'm dumping old dirty oil into my diesel tank. Period.

As far as the ATF, I doubt seriously a quart to a 38 gallon tank of diesel will harm it, and probably does have some benefits, but at $2.00 a quart for ATF and $3.25 a quart for DFA made SPECIFICALLY for diesel fuel, and diesel engine requirements, why would you want to?

 

this will be my only post to this thread and I do not want to start any kind of arguments. Everyone is intitled to their own opinion and some opinions come from first hand knowledge and experience.

Adding ATF to diesel fuel offers very little in the way of lubrication. Mer-DexIII added to diesel fuel is a cleaner only, it does nothing in the way of performance or lubrication (it does lubricate but not to the extent that it is quantifiable). I have used it since I can remember. I also have 350,000 miles on a 96 PSD with nothing being worked on besides my water pump and the glowplug relay. I use it in my dump trucks (which are electronic) and I use it on customers diesel engines. Some may say that it was not meant to be burned and the only thing that I have to say is that ATF is a petroleum and so is diesel fuel. I use and justify the use of ATF because it is cheap ($.75/qt) compared to others that use some of the same detergents but put a sticker saying that it is made especially for diesel fuel. As I have always said, I have a love for diesels that eclipses that of many others and would not offer advice that would harm one of your engines.

 

I worked for a guy for 5 years who always added a quart of ATF to his 95 PSD about once a month. We later did it on a Chevy "diesel" and it never harmed either one. The main reason for adding the ATF is for the cleaning benefits of all the detergents in it. Ever opened up an auto tranny and find it dirty? Ok, so I'm sure someone has but they're few and far between.

We also restored older John Deere and Farmall tractors and would run ATF in them to clean the injectors. It worked great. Never had any bad side effects, but I would probably use something like Diesel Kleen in my truck. I'd just sleep better at night.

 

My main point was that engine manufacturers and big diesel shops (in my area at least) don't recommend adding ATF. In addition, the $4.25 you spend on something like Standyne Lubricity Formula costs less per tank than ATF. This additive was designed to be a cleaner, not for performance.