Disillusioned with Amsoil

[jaj]

Originally Posted By: BigBird57
...I am still trying to remember "Full Synthetic" is a marketing term.


"Full Synthetic" in North America is a marketing term and so is "True Synthetic", a term I heard recently in relation to Amsoil. I don't know if it's their new branding or someone made it up on their own.

In any case, they do make good products. Let's not lose that thought.

 

[troyh]

I also consider it $$ well spent as I seen a buddy pay nearly $60 for an oil change at WalMart for the Syn because "I didn't feel like changing it". Not sure what Syn WalMart uses though...

 

[BigBird57]

Oh,
Be sure it is a Group III. Amsoil has fine products but to get their PAO basestock you have to get the SSO.
I drive the gassers 12 to 15k per year. I would run the PAO basestock 5w30 for one year and drop the oil plug and EaO filter.

 

[Artem]

Originally Posted By: BigBird57
No,
I question the entire reformulation of their line-up. The old 0w30 SS oil was rated at 35K under ideal operating conditions.
Why was it reduced 10K ?


Yea the ratings are baloney, IMO.

Their money saving argument using the 25 or 35k miles OCIs vs conventional is also not fair because not many stretch it beyond 15-20k.

I'm also an Amsoil user and love the stuff but lets face it, the stuff IS expensive.

 

[Donald]

With stuff like PP, PU and Mobil 1 available at (not all) Walmart, it is hard to justify Amsoil motor oil. I think their ATF is excellent and I will continue to buy that along with their severe gear oil.

 

[Pablo]

The only thing I will add is that the XL line has been Group III for nearly 10 years. They added the OE line up which is very competitive with all the Group III oils on the shelf price wise and is better than most if not all, quality wise. Not sure why that upsets you, but there are many Group III vs. other group discussions on BITOG.

 

[LargeCarManX2]

OE and XL will go toe to toe with any of the synthetics in the same price range. If you want to use the better oils, such as SS, they compare toe to toe with the better synthetics on the market as well. If you want to take full advantage of the better more expensive oils....you must UOA and go to the end of useful oil life. I do like the quality of Amsoil and the no bars hold on the quality. You do pay for it, but it is preminum oil. Nuff said

 

[INDYMAC]

Originally Posted By: BigBird57
I have been a loyal Amsoil prefered customer for over 5 years. The new formulations namely the "OE" and "XL 10000" appear to be no more than Group III base stock oils. The Signature Series still a Group IV has added more weights but dropped to 25K on the extended OCI.
After all of the type wasted on Group III vs Group IV (see some of the old comparisons via a google search)how did we get to this point?
I will continue to use the 5w30 HDD Series 3000 oil for my Duramax Diesel however I have been put into a position to re- think how to proceed with the gas engine vehicles.


If you like the 5w30 HDD, why don't you use it in all your vehicles?

 

[NHHEMI]

Originally Posted By: Pablo
The only thing I will add is that the XL line has been Group III for nearly 10 years. They added the OE line up which is very competitive with all the Group III oils on the shelf price wise and is better than most if not all, quality wise. Not sure why that upsets you, but there are many Group III vs. other group discussions on BITOG.


Pablo;

Hasn't the XL line been Grp III since it 1st was introduced? It never had the long range recommendations of the other Amsoil lines( wasn't it 7500 until OE came out and they upped it - reformulated? - to 10K )so I can't see how it would have been Grp IV+.

I was under the impression it was their 1st "cheap" oil offering( entry/price point not a quality comment )and has been a Grp III all along? Pretty much what OE is now. I am not an Amsoil user as you know so I could be wrong here. That is why I am asking however. Thanks for your time.

 

[Pablo]

Originally Posted By: NHHEMI
Originally Posted By: Pablo
The only thing I will add is that the XL line has been Group III for nearly 10 years. They added the OE line up which is very competitive with all the Group III oils on the shelf price wise and is better than most if not all, quality wise. Not sure why that upsets you, but there are many Group III vs. other group discussions on BITOG.


Pablo;

Hasn't the XL line been Grp III since it 1st was introduced? It never had the long range recommendations of the other Amsoil lines( wasn't it 7500 until OE came out and they upped it - reformulated? - to 10K )so I can't see how it would have been Grp IV+.

I was under the impression it was their 1st "cheap" oil offering( entry/price point not a quality comment )and has been a Grp III all along? Pretty much what OE is now. I am not an Amsoil user as you know so I could be wrong here. That is why I am asking however. Thanks for your time.


Actually way back when 12+ years ago, XL did have some PAO........according to legend. It's just before I started. It was a blend oil, not a pure Group III oil - you have to remember this was in the real infancy of group III days.

 

[NHHEMI]

Ah, ok. I thought XL came out after Grp III was well established. Thanks.

 

[Tom NJ]

Originally Posted By: BigBird57
The Signature Series still a Group IV


Just curious, how do you know that?

Tom NJ

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: Pablo
The only thing I will add is that the XL line has been Group III for nearly 10 years. They added the OE line up which is very competitive with all the Group III oils on the shelf price wise


This. The XL line has been around FOREVER, and it was never portrayed as anything other than a GIII oil designed to compete in the oil changer market. I'm curious as to why this has suddenly become "news".

 

[BigBird57]

I do not know for sure because it is proprietary,however when you look at the price point, the low temp pour point and the high TBN it would support being a Group IV/V synthetic.
My old 5w30 rated at 25k was PAO basestock.
Remember the SSO used to come in 0w30 as the only weight. It was rated at 35k. The new SSO has many weights and was reduced to 25K.
You have to wonder what was modified with the additive package?

 

[OVERKILL]

Originally Posted By: BigBird57
I do not know for sure because it is proprietary,however when you look at the price point, the low temp pour point and the high TBN it would support being a Group IV/V synthetic.
My old 5w30 rated at 25k was PAO basestock.
Remember the SSO used to come in 0w30 as the only weight. It was rated at 35k. The new SSO has many weights and was reduced to 25K.
You have to wonder what was modified with the additive package?


I don't think anything was. I think they discovered that the 35K OCI was not realistic.

 

[BigBird57]

The news to me is that we lost a grade of the full synthetic in this brand. The old 5w30 (PAO) was rated at 25k or one year. If you wanted the absolute best you ordered the SSO in 0w30 rated at 35k or one year.
It appears to me in order to fit in the "OE" We had to loose the 35k oil.
So now we have 2/3 of the line up using Group III basestocks.
If you remember the XL was considered a semi-synthetic at 7500 mi. OCI. Now it is called fully synthetic and rated to 10k.
Look at my old posts. I was a staunch Amsoil advocate. I am surprised we have went down the same road that Castrol did with their Syntec after all of the hype.

 

[Norm Olt]

The two top AMSOIL products are, IMHO, as follows:


AME 15w40 in the gallon jugs & HDD 5w30.

It is obvious that we don't own anything that requires a 0W-anything or some arcane European formula, so I guess it makes sense.

If I could find a low cost stash of the HDD I would probably use it in everything, but it is hard to get off the Quart after rebate bandwagon with all the high quality oils that are often available

 

[84zmyfavorite]

I am a Amsoil Preferred Customer, and I Also wondered if the formulation of Signature Series 0w30 had changed. In the monthly Amsoil publication, a few months ago, they explained why they reduced the mileage from 35,000 mile OCI to 25,000 mile OCI, but I cant remember what it was. I will look back to when they changed, and find out what the reason was, and report back.

 

[D Hill]

I too am an Amsoil preferred customer. I don't really find it to be expensive, at least when in comparison to oils at Auto Zone, Advance and Napa. If oil were free at Walmart, I still wouldn't shop there, so their price difference is neither here nor someplace else for my wife and I. I've had very good results with all of the Amsoil products that I've used; Their ATF and gear oils are the best I've ever come across, and my bike loves the 10-40 moto oil. The only thing I'm not using Amsoil in exclusively is my wife's '91 Accord, which has been running Rotella T6 for the last 2 oci's. The Autozone I shop at had it priced (I think by accident, because I never saw that sale at any other AZ I went to during that period) on sale at $16.99, which is like $11 less than their regular price. I purchased 10 gallons, so I doubt I'll be using anything else in that for quite some time. When I log in to the Amsoil site, my price for SSO 5-20 is $7.85/Quart, and XL 5-20 is $5.85/Quart. When I'm in AZ and Advance I'm seeing quarts of M1 extended for 8 and 9 dollars a quart (my truck didn't like it at all) and bootleg store brand dino is often hovering around $4-$5 a quart. I was in Wawa last night and the woman in front of me spent $11 for two quarts of off brand dino! So since I typically purchase a lot of stuff perhaps twice a year from Amsoil the shipping is pretty agreeable, and I don't feel some kind of way about what I'm spending all in. I would be interested in knowing why they lowered the OCI, but for me and the type of driving I'm doing (Lots of very short, stop and go trips in an urban environment) I'll never get near that type of annual mileage again in the foreseeable future, so as long as my vehicles continue to experience excellent results with their fluids I'll keep getting them.

 

[buster]

It would not surprise me at all if their top tier oils contain some amount of group III. The high Tbn is from all that calcium. (3,600ppm).