Comparison of engine oils

[mikomi]

I do not know how objective and bias free are the data on the linked page, but assuming that it is impartial, then the data at first seems pretty convincing that synthetics are better. Anyway, see for yourself, it is data for marketing fodder, so I would take the data with a grain of salt.

http://www.go-synthetic.com/amsoil_testing/amsoil_testing.html

[Rick's CX-7]

This is what I've learned over the past 6 years of looking at many oil analyses from many diffent vehicles and oil brands, including Amsoil.

Amsoil makes many fine products. No matter what line you go with (ATM, HD, XL), their oils are very good. They have excellent cold flow properties as well as hot temperature properties; they have a high detergency package and most are suitable for long drains (10k miles or more) with proper engine observations such as oil analysis. They protect engines by minimizing wear and since most of them are synthetic (group IV/V oils) they tend to resist breakdown and deposists very well.

The fact is, many other oils out there do the same. Pennzoil Platinum, Castrol Synthec 0W-30 (made in Germany), Mobil 1 5W-40, Quaker State Synthetic and Valvoline synthetic all perform almost as good, just as good and sometimes better than Amsoil, for a lot less money. It all depends on what you need the oil to do.

For example, if you needed an oil that was going to see extreme temperatures, either really cold or really hot, you'd most definitely want a good group IV or V synthetic oil.
If you lived in Florida and you were driving a Corolla, any name brand, non-synthetic would serve you well for 5-7k miles, all the while saving a bunch of $$$.

When choosing an oil, consider the following:

1- Temperature extremes
2- Driving conditions (racing, normal driving, city/highway driving)
3- Interval (do you change the oil at 5k miles or 15k miles)
4- Type and condition of the engine (carburated, EFI, DISI, Turbo, old, new, etc)
5- Budget

What you will find is, the vast majority of people don't see temperature extremes, don't race and don't want to take oil on a 10-15k mile ride. For most of those, a good conventional oil such as Pennzoil, Castrol, Motorcraft or Valvoline will fit the bill. In those case, the only difference Amsoil will make is in your wallet.

For the CX-7, I suggest people use a synthetic such as Pennzoil Platinum/Quaker State Syn, Valvoline Syn and many of the synthetic blends on the market. Although you may not drive your CX-7 hard, a Turbo combined with direct injection can literally break the oil. A conventional oil will do, but you could be taking a moderate risk.
A synthetic oil I do NOT like anymore is Mobil 1/Mobil 1 EP (except 5W-40)...they seem to produce or "allow" more wear to occur.

Hope this helps!

Rick

[mikomi]

That's right folks! Use synthetics like us! Haha. I kid. I use synthetic for the peace of mind. Plus to me, it's an investment in protecting my engine by using synthetic.

I already have bad experiences with dino oil in my Forturner. I literally turned my engine oil to sludge after 5,000km, and it was official toyota motor oil. Thankfully it's a diesel engine, so it can take abuse, had to get the engine flushed (I know this is bad, but I had no choice at this point), the oil/sludge didn't pour out, it kinda dripped out... :(

The turbo on the Fortuner spins at +220,000 rpm. Anyway, switched to a using industrial engine oil from Castrol and it did the trick. 5000km and the engine oil actually pours out. The diesel engine is purring now. :P

And the CX-7 is going to undergo 90% of the same conditions I put the Fortuner through, I decided to go full synthetic, and not look back.

[sixsix]

I've always used amsoil, in my cars, motorbikes even in my lawnmower lol. But if I can't get in touch with my contact that I get the amsoil from, I'll use mobile one.

[Alpha Wolf]

I have raced cars and have tried various oils in my engines and seen the results.

Racing with Pennsoil and other normal oils I would have to pull the motor 1/2 through a season and there would be ring and bearing wear when it was torn down. With full synthetics I could go an entire year without a tear down. Then when I did the bearings and rings still looked good.

I now use only Mobil 1 full synthetic in all my vehicles.

FYI synth oils have much higher resistance to shearing and so even under normal conditions the wear observed and engine life is boosted even when not racing. They also do not cook when exposed to high temperatures.

My last Truck was sold at 295,000 miles. Did not use any oil, ran like new.

But if you only keep your cars/trucks/bikes for 50,000 or less miles before selling them, you will not see much benefit from using full synthetic oils. If you are like me who hang on to cars/trucks/bikes a long time it does extend engine life.

Even under regular driving, hot days, long grades, heavy traffic and heavy loads can drive head temps up enough to cook regular oils.

[mikomi]

@Alpha Wolf
I agree, for the short term, synthetics do not offer all that much for the regular driver, but over time, the benefits are more obvious. That's why my diesel still works fine, that once accidental baking of my oil wasn't extreme enough to damage anything, i was able to clean everything out and switched to synthetics and running smooth now.

What I gleamed from the website was that synthetics do offer an advantage over the dino oils. If I had a lot of disposable income, I would go for AmSoil, but alas, Syntec works fine. That and I can't fine Mobil 1 here. The only other option was some synthetic made in China, and it didn't have any certification labels.... so why take the chance.. Haha.

Well, it's not something I didn't know, i just wanted to share the link so that people can see solid data and not have to solely rely on people's anecdotal evidence.

[Rick's CX-7]

Alfa wolf,

I agree with most of your post. Extreme conditions do necessitate synthetic oils. Racing would qualify as one of those conditions. Even in some common daily drivers, synthetics might be a need rather than a luxury. A good example is the Toyota 3.0L in the Camrys and some Lexus vehicles. Those engines were notorious for shearing conventional oil and turning it into sludge. Toyota denied the problem at first, but then admitted to the design flaw and extended warranty on affected vehicles.

I do disagree with you in your assumption that to go farther than 50k miles, synthetic oil is required. There are many more vehicles out there with 50k miles or more, running on conventional than on synthetic....I'm willing to bet 5:1, if not much more.
My brother has run nothing but dino 20W-50 and he's got over 250k miles on his Chevy P/U.

Again guys, you have to look at all the factors and decide what's best. Dino oil has come a long way from what it used to be. Dino oil is in many cases at the same level as synthetic. It is better than ever, by quite a bit. Most people can run dino for 5-7k miles without problems. Our CX-7s don't even call for synthetic oil....only 5W-30, API certified dino.

Rick

[SteveA]

Shell Rotella T - full synth - 5W-40 !!!

$16.29 a gallon @ the local Wally World.

Excellent oil, ask around at truck stops !!

[Rick's CX-7]

I agree! It can be used on gas engines as well. Watch out for the cold temperatures though.