How anyone can say what is the right oil without knowing details that I asked for such as
age of vehicle
What vehicle is it
Mileage
Useage
etc is amazing!
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I was once told by a wise old mechanic to buy the cheapest oil you can find that matches the recommended grades and specs, make sure it gets changed at half the manufacturer's recommended intervals, and only buy OEM oil filters.
Have had three cars with over 200,000 miles when sold and still running well following this advice.
Admittedly it's harder nowadays with many manufacturers being much more specific in their recommendations, but that doesn't really affect either of our current cars. A Mondeo TD which gets any old 10W/40 diesel oil (Halfords usually) and 5k changes, and a Fiesta Zetec which gets the cheapest 5W/30 I can find (Ford OEM or Comma X-Tech usually) and 5k changes. I only fit Motorcraft oil filters to both.
The Mondeo is now on 115k and runs fine. The Fiesta coming up on 90k and still nice and smooth. Neither use more than half a litre of oil in 5,000 miles (the Mondeo actually doesn't use any).
Just my fourpenneth
Cheers
DP
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Oil is a very complex subject and some bold (possibly ill informed) comments have been made on this thread.
I was hoping to advise on what I thought would be a good oil for you but have received only "digs" at my comments; which if followed would have made for a discussion on the reason for any oils choice.
Oil is a compromise in any engine; there is no such thing as the perfect oil for any engine.
However I would be curious to know what oil you chose and why?
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Nick,
This may be of interest to you re esters
www.oetg.at/website/wtc2001cd/html/M-21-P58-614-CE...f
Esters/Group V oils will be found in the majority if not all synthetic oils. Both Mobil and Castrol have their own types of ester and Redline oils are likely to have the greatest ester content.
Millers also use triple esters in their race oils.
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I consider myself lucky because I worked in both Car and Truck fleet management and I can tell you that truck dealers are far more professional about putting in the correct spec oils compared with car dealers.
I know of car dealers paid the equivalent of over £100 per hour who put petrol spec 15w/40 in Diesel cars, that require 5w/40 diesel oil.
It doesn't stop there the wrong ATF and coolants are common in car garages. Where as when I've been situations with a Truck where you agree which oil a truck the vehicle should used based on it usage etc.
In my Volvo it says use 10w/40 diesel - which is exactly what it gets, I just change the oils more often and use OEM filters.
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Truckers use oil analysis routinely: any dealer messing with the oil spec would be barbecued by the fleet manager if the viscosity is off-spec. Cost of a 10ltr engine? They tend to run the same oil for 60,000+ miles, they use by-pass filters rather than the less effective full-flow filters on cars, along with the checks on the oil. But then trucks are used 24/7 if possible, a far easier life on the oil than short school/shopping trips, followed by long idle spells.
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Amsoil is very good stuff if you can get hold of it.
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Am i right in assuming that A3/B3 grade oil is ok for both petrol and diesel engines ?
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Quality should be ok for all light diesels (car and small van etc), but check the spec needed by the vehicle asemblers.
Then check the viscosity is as required.
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This may be of interest to you re esters www.oetg.at/website/wtc2001cd/html/M-21-P58-614-CE...f Esters/Group V oils will be found in the majority if not all synthetic oils.
whilst the above is a very interesting source of information, do note that the table there for the composition of different brands of oil is now probably out of date (1999). note that the current api spec is already at the next level, i.e. "sl" and is soon to be followed by newer oils at the "sm" level.
quoting from the article from the excellent link provided by roger jones in another thread:
63.240.161.99/motoroil/index.html
63.240.161.99/motoroil/107.html
" The American Petroleum Institute, API, and Society of Automotive Engineers, SAE, have rated engine oil performance over the years. We have seen the ratings go from SA, SB, SC, SD, SE, SF, SG, SH, SJ, SL with SM to follow. SI and SK were eliminated as they are used by other businesses. There are over 3 dozen tests that oil now must pass in order to make the next higher rating. The tests are defined by the American Society for Testing and Materials, ASTM. Some tests have progressed to a zero tolerance level. For example there can be no sticking of any piston rings any more.
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The Author AEHAAS is currently using the following non approved oils and it will be interesting to compare the results from oil analysis in the future between PAO based M1 and ester based RL.
Ferrari Maranello 575 - (0W-20 Mobil 1)
Lamborghini Murcielago, Maybach 57 - (5W-20 Red Line)
To meet SM the base oils are usually Group II+ and Group III oils and its certainly possible that there is at least 1% ester, with the next step perhaps being GTL oils
This is a summary of a recent article found in TLT, June 2006, by Dr. Alan C. Eachus. The general tone of the article is that alternative synthetic base oils, and especially bio-based oils and complex esters, will probably replace mineral oils in the future. The reason is because synthetic oils have low volatility, good inherent viscosity indexes, good lubricity, good low temperature flow, and high stability at high operating temps.
A discussion of various synthetic oils, including seed or ?bio-based? oils is given with an explanation of each synthetic oil type.
2.0 First, An Interesting Quote.
When discussing polyol esters (POE), a number of esters were defined, such as TMP, or trimethylol propane and pentaerythritol, PE. An interesting paragraph follows:
?TMP esters of certain cuts from coconut oil and palm kernel oil acids (C-8 and C-10 saturated acids) are more suited to withstand the stresses placed on motor oils. Hatco ester engineers created the frst qualified synthetic motor oil in the United States in the early 1970?s, which was marketed by Amsoil.? Now, we don?t know if this is bad editing or was purposely meant to infer that Hatco had developed a coconut oil esters for the original Amsoil 10W40. But the article does say that Hatco chemists developed the first Amsoil formulation.
Now this is not unusual since outside firms often develop formulations for companies that market, rather than formulate, their own oils. Hatco is a leading developer and formulator of esters.
www.hatcocorporation.com/pages/about_esters.html
We know that for Mobil?s TriSyn, contained, as one of its three synthetic base oils, a coconut-oil-acid derived ester. Amsoil has stated in various Amsoil and trade publications that his original API qualified synthetic 10W40 was of a diester-based design, and hinted or inferred its was an Amsoil design. Many in the industry had suspected for some time that someone other than Amsoil had developed this oil, and that it contained diesters as well as vegetable oil derived esters. And it could the diester was a vegetable-based diester. Many now believe that modern Amsoil and Mobil synthetics contain mostly PAO?s with some type of ester, most likely TMP for Amsoil and TME for Mobil, with alkylated naphthalenes as solving agents. We know that reduced detergents and dispersants can be used in PCMO formulations if AN?s are used because of their solvency characteristics.
64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:_dZiQlMxvxgJ:www.nye...n
3.0 Renewable oils (Seed oils).
The article goes on to say that genetic modification will produce better seed oil with reduced glycerol, which contains hydrogen molecules that tend to cause ??decomposition attack and hydrolysis.? The triglycerides (or naturally occurring fatty-acid esters of gylcerol) offer excellent lubricity, but need improvement for thermal and oxidation instabilities.
It was also stated that the isostearic acid from plant oils can be used to make a polyol ester with improved oxidation stability and lower pour points.
Also, ??Oleochemical esters made using naturally-derived fatty acids and petroleum-derived polyols will demonstrate a greater degree of biodegradeability and renewability than will diesters.?
In addition, new anti-oxidants are being developed for plant oils that will allow these oils to have reduced oxidation potential.
4.0 Complex Esters.
?Complex esters are synthesized from various reactant mixtures of mono-hydric and poly-hydric alcohols and poly-functional acids.?
These complex esters have better low-temperature flow and oxidation resistance than even current polyol esters.
However, complex esters are among the most expensive of esters.
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I know that this is a diesel oil topic, but over in Americashire, there are petrol cars that have recommended oil change intervals of 3000 miles and it's a "follow it or invalidate your warranty " job.
MTC
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whoops, wrong thread, sorry.
MTC
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