Which type of engine oil is best?
 

I've been using Castrol GTX 5w-30 pretty much the entire span of ownership.

I have been curious about Mobil-1 oil...especially a specific type titled "Advanced Fuel Economy".


Has anyone tried this and seen results? Is this a good line of engine oil? What type and/or brands do you recommend and why?


Thanks!

Happy Hypermiling!

As far as protection goes, oil is oil. As long as you keep it clean and change when it does get dirty you'll be just fine.

For f/e, synthetic has superior viscosity characteristics therefor less resistance from pumping it around the engine.

Synthetic oils also have superior resistance to heat breakdown compared with non-synthetic oils.

.

Not all Mobile One oils are the same.

They are allowed to call it synthetic if the base has a certain percentage

Mobil 1 is not a true synthetic.

Mobil 1™ Extended Performance is 100% synthetic.

I'm not sure about "Advanced Fuel Economy".


You can learn all you ever wanted to know about oil and lubricants here.

Bob Is The Oil Guy | The Internet's Number One Motor Oil Site


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The best oil to use is the one recommended by your owners manual and dictated by the temperature climate you are driving in. :thumbup:

Dyno tests have shown a 2.5% improvement to power output, so at a guess economy would improve a similar amount (at peak power). Any on the road gains will never be measurable.

I need to use special 'low ash' oil in my TDI. I'm thinking I don't want 'ash' in my other 'fully' synthetic oil cars either.

The FSM for my dad's car recommends a 20W50 for California summers. Nope. Not happening. I'm more likely to run a 5W30 in it so oil is flowing sooner.

In terms of this site, Mobil 1 AFE actually isn't a bad oil, but the science behind it all gets fairly complicated. The best oil for fuel economy is the thinnest oil you can run at operating temperature, with the thinnest profile at cold temperatures.

These are your 0W-20, 0W-30 oils for the most part since the first number just dictates how easily pumped the oil is when cold, the lower the better. Does your call call for 5W-30? Try 0W-30 if you can find it. 5W-20? Try 0W-20. If it says either 5W-30 or 5W-20, try 0W-20, since its thinner at operating temp.

And realistically, you can use 0W-20 or 5W-20 in a car made for 5W-30. My car only specifies 5W-30 but later models just "suddenly" started suggesting 5W-20. The difference in oil thickness isn't a lot between 20 and 30 weight - most worn out 30 weights are the same as a 20 anyhow. So if you're particularly anal about getting economy and want the (maybe) %0.5-%1 improvement and don't mind being a little on the darkside if your manual doesn't say you can, run a 20.

But beyond that the best oil is complicated and based on cost and a variety of factors. I run Mobil 1 Delvac Elite 222 - a diesel motor oil in my car. Why? Well its a 0W-30 first of all and designed for easy starting of big diesel trucks in cold Canada winters, and in a car its fantastic. Second its loaded with an older zinc-based antiwear additive that they phased out on gasoline cars, so I get free extra wear protection. It also helps make me feel good that its a "true" synthetic but don't let that scare you. A lot of people overstate the difference between "group III" and "group IV" (or PAO synthetics), the latter being the only ones truly "man made". It also helps that being a diesel oil, they expect you to buy something like 15 liters of it and its marketed way, way differently -- it was cheaper at a distributor for Mobil then I can get Mobil 1 AFE, even on sale!

But it didn't stop me from buying a jug of Quaker State 0W-20 to try next winter. Why? Well it was really cheap and I wanted a 0W-20 to run in the car, something you can't get in diesel oils.

About the only major argument you can make is some oils are "a little better" or tailored a little more to specific situations. For the layperson? Oil is oil. Just buy the right oil. The number of people running 10W-30 or 15W-40 for absolutely no reason is insanely high. Or even worse, having people say you need oil "stabilizer", thicker oil for driving to Church on a Sunday, or even people saying you need a 10W-30 for winter -- the confusing rederick you hear in the oil aisle is frustrating.

Check your manual, buy the thinnest weight you can run, and buy a decent oil that meets the SAE requirements your manual calls for, and be happy.

If you have the choice of running a synthetic, you can go to 0W-20 or 0W-30 and *maybe* get a free half an MPG, but it really won't be measurable. The car will definitely be happier starting when cold and might start easier if it gets properly cold (like -30 cold) where you live.

The only benefit for running a synthetic after that is extending your oil change interval, which may or may not void your warranty. If you're changing a synthetic out every 3000 miles you're wasting money, period, use a regular oil. In my case the car calls for a 3000 mile oil change, but I run it out to 7500 miles on the Delvac Elite 222 I run.




And for the record, I just love saying I only run "Delvac Elite 222". It sounds awesome and usually generates nothing but "car guys" telling me it doesn't exist or its going to ruin my car and how I should run Royal Purple or some overpriced garbage.

When I bought the Turtle, the guy had just changed the oil with Amsoil 0w20.

Supposedly it's good oil, but I haven't really looked into it. In a couple thousand miles I'll get around to seeing what the change out interval is.

Amsoil is the best quality oil hands down

I've done some research and I agree with that. Definitely avoid Royal Purple, I remember it doing very poorly on a couple particular tests. Here's a white paper that might be way TMI, but interesting:
AMSOIL Performance Testing Archives

Amsoil was the only one that did very well on every test.

Honda green oil is apparently 0W16 I'd anyone is interested in trying it out.

https://amzn.to/2Dqncnq

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...L._SL1500_.jpg

This is the stuff I get the cheapest I can find. 5 quarts. My car only needs 3.9Qt. I seriously buy this with my old cell phone and tablet.

1. Run an app called Perk.tv
2. wait and collect points
3. once you have gained 15000 points cash out for amazon money
4. Wait for a email
5. buy oil and filter for $17
6. only use 3.9QT
7. every 4th oil change get one free from left over oil.
8. ????
9. Profit

Like me.
Got it at the end of spring this year, honestly can't sense the difference to ordinary 0W20 (or was it 5W30 after all, like the garage receipt indicated?).

I'll throw in a nice statistic:
http://www.cleanmpg.com/photos/data/..._Green_Oil.jpg
so we all can hone our Japanese reading skills. :)

New oil is best oil.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7VxOlUVjoA

Thinner than manufacturer spec oils should really be accompanied by an oil pressure gauge.

From a cost standpoint, AMSOIL isn't that great.

And from a technical standpoint it isn't either. They're good, don't get me wrong, but you can get some properly awesome oil for a way better price point. AMSOIL sells you a lot of sizzle without a lot of the steak.

You want a cheap and enormously good quality 0W-20? Get Toyota Genuine Motor Oil, even from the dealer its usually not that badly priced. TGMO has to be made from particularly good base stock oil ("full synthetics") to get the viscosity index it has.

Which basically means it thinner when cold then almost every other 0W-20 out there.




And if you're really brave, Redline sells a 0W-10 oil, but yeah, get a pressure gauge, thats a whole 'nother universe of things.

Thank you for all of your feedback everyone. I truly appreciate it!

I'm going to do further research but I've really considering Mobil-1 and Toyota Genuine Oil.

Thanks for your reply! I keep it changed every 3,000-5,000 miles.

Thank you for the information about Mobil-1 and for the website. I really found it helpful! :)

Thank you so much! This is the exact type of response I was looking for on this subject. :)

I use & recommend Mobil 1. Great bang for the buck, especially in the 5 quart jug.

Anyone remember this commercial from the 80's?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beyNfMAQRlA

I can only hope the motor oil scores as high as the gear oil! I actually read through the entire 24 pages. I'm going to stick with Amsoil in mine.

The only thing that concerns me is if synthetic oil is too thin and would set off the oil pressure warning light. I don't know if synthetic oil would leak...?

0W-30, 5W-30, 10W-40, 15W-40, 20W-50, these are the weights of the oil.

In other words a synthetic 5W-30 and a conventional 5W-30 are the same weight of oil.

The only thing is, comparatively, a 0W-30 for instance is thinner when cold then a 5W-30, and both are thinner when cold then a 10W-30.

All three oils are perfectly thick enough at operating temperature and will not leak, burn, or anything more then one another.


You're falling into that trap that seems to be perpetuated by bad grandfatherly logic that somehow a synthetic causes leaks. Trust me with engine oil there's a lot of ignorance on the facts of things.

I've decided to make Castrol Magnatec my new oil of choice. Its main selling point is that it clings to metal after the engine shuts down, so it protects the car better on startup. And we all know that >50% of wear occurs on startup. Plus, it's cheap! for a full synthetic. $5/qt from Amazon plus free shipping.

I do wonder if the start-up protection is just a marketing line and if there's any truth to it. However, there are some reviews here that talk about it climbing the dipstick in a unique way. So maybe there's something to it.

Castrol Magnatec Reviews - ProductReview.com.au

I know it's decent, at least, because it's Dexos certified. That means it can be used in any GM engine, including turbo'd and supercharged Vette engines. And the FAQ:

Frequently asked questions about Castrol Magnatec | Castrol Magnatec

Eventually I'll get a used oil analysis done, and then I'll know for sure.

They magnetized oil?

They contracted that out to unicorns, right?

I read somewhere that this refers not only to frictional wear due to lack of lubrication, but to acidic blowby etc from cold starting. But every oil and oil additive maker quotes this as something their product cures.

Oh, and doesn't all oil cling to metal to some degree?

It's no corral candidate. I use it in my very seldom driven Jeep and even after sitting for a month there's no tappet noise on start up. Previously it was really noisy on start up even if it only stood for a week.

I don't think they claim their oil is magnetic, they claim 'molecular bonds' or something. At any rate, it works for me :thumbup:

My grandfather was a state trooper during prohibition, after having an oil change done on his 39 Ford police car, they forgot to put in any oil and apparently he forgot to check the gauge. It took 40 miles for the engine to lock up.

On ancient tech oil

On the residue that was left

On a V8 engine that only had 3 main bearings (current ones have 5)

regards
mech

LOL! That's pretty funny. Wouldn't you be able to hear it if your engine didn't have oil though?

I think that's only possible with the more relaxed tolerances of old engines.

SAE does destructive testing meaning they put the oil in a standard "test" engine and run that engine until it disintegrates. How long that takes determines the grade given to the oil.

The grades and testing have become more and more stringent over the last 60 years.

I used to do the 3 in 10 changes until I retired from working on cars.

On the Sentra.

I use Mobil 1 advanced for high mileage engines, instead of following any specific change interval, I change it when it gets half a quart low, which seems to be working out to around 6-7500 miles based on current observations.

On my bikes.

They are all air cooled, I use Castrol synthetic. 2 quarts does the GZ250 and the 65 Honda 50. I have not had the GS500E on the road for over a year and the last change on that I used dino oil for the 1200 miles I rode that bike.

Synthetic is not better as far as efficiency, but in my opinion is better for longer change intervals in cars. I do run the Sentra through two changes on the same filter, which is supposed to be good for 15k miles anyway.

On air cooled bikes, synthetic gives you a better margin since they operate at higher temperatures that liquid cooled engines. I don't stretch out change intervals on bikes beyond manufacturers recommendations but do go two changes on filters, if equipped.

For $50 (always on sale) I get 10 quarts for the Sentra, which does 3 changes. I think the extra life filter is about 8 bucks, so that works out to $4 for the filter and $16.66 for the oil per change on the Sentra ($20.66 total).

reagrds
mech

Back in the Cash for Clunkers days we had to drain the oil, pour in some soduim silicate and let it run until it didn't. A Ford van won the rodeo at our store.

Ah, cash for clunkers, another "pay people to make bad choices" politicians dream for a better society :mad:.

regards
mech

It was highly amusing- a bit of bad public policy that benefited me a bit.

I also offered my boss the $4500 that Washington was offering for the old guzzlers- for his 03 Z06. He said no. :(

Buy any oil that has an API SJ, SL, SM, or SN rating (look for the "donut" on the back of the package), really any should be fine. Conventional oil if you want 3000 mile OCI (Oil Change intervals), full synthetic for 5000-8000 mile OCIs.

I typically use Walmart SuperTech full synthetic and ~6000 mile OCIs. But, if I can find a cheaper full synthetic, I'll use that instead. Never had any oil related problems.

Did he keep the Z06 or scrap it?

regards
mech

Sold it for 17 or 18, put that down on a new toy.

I was just reading this guy's oil blog. It's pretty interesting. He ranks AMSOIL SS 0w30 at #12, Mobil1 5W30 at #10. This is all based on film strength. 5W30 AC Delco is way down at #90 (this is the free stuff that GM puts in my Cruze). I will be upgrading to Mobil1 5W-30 for my next oil change, and now we know why so many manufacturers recommend and test most heavily with Mobil1.

https://540ratblog.wordpress.com/201...-test-ranking/

It was interesting to see some conventional oils place so highly. The other oil that I was considering, Castrol Magnatec, didn't do so hot (#100). Granted, this test doesn't really capture its claim to fame, but I still probably won't use it. Royal Purple generally did poorly.

I'm curious: does winning mean it lasted the longest? That probably means it had the most torque, I guess.

I'm here on Friday night reading this 5W30 comparison... because that's what engineers do on Friday nights, I guess. Who knows if the AMSOIL testing is even legit? It sounds reasonable but there's obviously a little slant towards AMSOIL in the verbage. At least they publish something.
https://www.amsoil.com/lit/g3115.pdf

Pennzoil Ultra did well on every test, and "Blue Angel" recommends it highly (he stops by ecomodder every once in awhile). It's a couple bucks more per jug, though.

Not that I care too much. Just bought some Castrol Edge full synthetic because it was convenient. $25 for 5 quarts, and I'm sure it will be fine.

I have seen a UOA from a guy who ran his turbocharged Cruze for 15k miles on AMSOIL. It was just barely still good. I would definitely never push it to 25k like they recommend.

Anyway, I am excited to get my hands dirty on a Cruze oil change soon. Hopefully that plus warm weather can bring my average mpg back up. It has been dropping with traffic and Uber.