Did GC ever go API SN?

[fredf]

Catherham: thanks for that. Wunderkar in Toronto sells Lubri-Moly and also Motul. What do you think of either Motul X-cess 4W-40 or X-lite 0W-30.

I'm only changing my oil once yearly since I only do about 8,000 km annually so an extra few dollars for an oil change isn't a real problem if it's going to help keep my car in better shape.

I would have thought any 0 weight (eg: 0W-xx) would be better than a 5W oil, yet you've recommended a 5W.

 

[CATERHAM]

Well if price is no problem then for sure the ester based Motul X-lite 0W-30 with it's 177 VI would be a good choice and much preferred over the heavier non ester based 8100 X-cess 5W-40.
In fact I would prefer the Liqui-Moly 5W-30 I mentioned to the Motul X-cess 5W-40.

Just because an oil is a 0W doesn't mean it's automatically lighter than a 5W oil in our climate. We don't get temp's down to much below -15C so how an oil performs at -40 is immaterial to us. What's important is the oil's viscosity index and of course it's HTHS viscosity.
A good example is GC 0W-30. It only has a 167 VI and is heavy with a 3.5cP HTHSV. Consiquently all typically light 5W-30s syn's (VIs around 170, HTHSV 3.0-3.2cP) and even some dino 5W-30s will be lighter on start-up in our climate.

 

[fredf]

Why not the Liqui-Moly 0W-40 rather than the 5W-30?

So, in sum, what would be your first choice for a year-round oil in this car?

 

[CATERHAM]

Originally Posted By: fredf
Why not the Liqui-Moly 0W-40 rather than the 5W-30?

Because it has a higher HTHSV which overwhelms it's slightly higher VI. The 5W-30 with it's high 178 (for a 5W oil) will be lighter at all start-up temp's in our climate.

We haven't done an exhaustive search of VW 502 compliant oils but the only 30wt oil I know of with a VI in the 180 range is Lucas 0W-30 (186 VI) which I'd consider if I knew more about the oil which I don't.
Since price is no object I'd go with the Motul X-lite 0W-30. It's no lighter than the Liqui-Moly 5W-30 but I prefer it's chemistry and being a 0W oil in theory could hold an advantage if you had to start your car at temp's below -20C (it could happen).

 

[fredf]

Sorry.... one more question:
It's not just weight and VI I'm concerned about. I read on a forum where someone was saying that the Motul X-Lite had a poor additive package and quoted a UOA that supported that idea.

As far as add packs go, would you change your opinion on the oils you have suggested?

thanks

 

[zyxelenator]

not all additives are visible for lab analysis.

 

[CATERHAM]

Here's a UOA of the Motul X-Lite 0W-30-Lite:

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=2377438#Post2377438

The add' pac' looks pretty good to me.

 

[fredf]

So then what about Noack and DI engines? I understand the x-lite has a rather high Noack of about 11.
Is that an issue to be concerned about?

I'm not an expert on reading oil analyses but that guy added 1 1/2 l. Is that kind of consumption a Subaru thing or a Motul x-lite thing?

 

[bluesubie]

Originally Posted By: fredf
So then what about Noack and DI engines? I understand the x-lite has a rather high Noack of about 11.
Is that an issue to be concerned about?

I'm not an expert on reading oil analyses but that guy added 1 1/2 l. Is that kind of consumption a Subaru thing or a Motul x-lite thing?

Where did you get the NOACK figure?

My consumption is probably from a variety of factors, so I don't think it's because of the X-lite. Broke my car in by the book (too easy in hindsight), switch oil brands a lot, highway trips at 3,500 rpms in a turbo, and never replaced my PCV valve. Before X-lite, I consumed 2 quarts of Ultra 5W-40 in 6k miles

-Dennis

 

[fredf]

I came across that Noack figure in one of the threads here on BITOG. They were saying that lower Noack would be better to prevent deposits on a direct injection engine --- preferably below 10. The same thread (I think) was saying that x-lite was 11 or 11.something.

 

[CATERHAM]

We would all prefer as low a NOACK percentage as possible but I haven't seen any evidence that a 1-2% difference contributes in any measureable way to increased intake valve deposits.
IMO oil atomized as a result of blowby and high crankshaft speeds in the block that gets past the PCV is the main reason for intake valve deposits.

Having said that, by all means choosing an oil with the lowest NOACK % for a given HTHSV is fine as long as don't unduly sacrifice an oil's VI. Lighter oils do generally have a higher NOACK %. The other problem is getting the actual NOACK spec's and I don't know exactly what it is for any of the oils we've discussed.

 

[artificialist]

I just was in a Pep Boys a few days ago. I saw a bottle marked "Edge With Syntec Power Technology 0w30" and lower on the front label it said "European Formula."

The back of the bottle said API SL, and listed a few European car specifications.

In short, GC is not SN approved.