Does Magnatec do what all oils do?

[JT20]

Specifically, in terms of how it says it "clings" to the moving or metal parts for quieter starts. My question is.. don't ALL oils leave some kind of film on internal engine parts, even if thin, which is fine.. of themselves, not just Magnatec?

I also thought I read somewhere that Group V was particularly good at this; also, that Group IV doesn't particularly like cold starts. Magnatec is some kind of Group III+ isn't it?

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Specifically, in terms of how it says it "clings" to the moving or metal parts for quieter starts. My question is.. don't ALL oils leave some kind of film on internal engine parts, even if thin, which is fine.. of themselves, not just Magnatec?

I also thought I read somewhere that Group V was particularly good at this; also, that Group IV doesn't particularly like cold starts. Magnatec is some kind of Group III+ isn't it?

There are tons of magnatec discussions on here.
Conclusion? Its Magic.

I have a bottle of 5W20 that I use for top off. Even a pint does seem to quiet things a bit, at least for a short while - maybe a couple weeks.

I recall with the advent of hydrocracked Group III and group IV blends, The oil would not even coat the dipstick properly.

 

[PimTac]

It has been discussed on here a million times. It’s a good oil.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Specifically, in terms of how it says it "clings" to the moving or metal parts for quieter starts. My question is.. don't ALL oils leave some kind of film on internal engine parts, even if thin, which is fine.. of themselves, not just Magnatec?

I also thought I read somewhere that Group V was particularly good at this; also, that Group IV doesn't particularly like cold starts. Magnatec is some kind of Group III+ isn't it?

All finished motor oils leave some amount of film but some may leave more than others or for a longer period of time. Typically esters (G5) with the polar properties will cling to metal but a balance must be struck so it doesn't interfere with certain AW additives. "Magnatec" is marketing of course and its meaning is whatever the consumer thinks it means. The product probably does have more esters but how much is unknown. I wouldn't be surprised if Magnatec and Castrol High Mileage oil were the same formula.

 

[Blinker]

I don’t really have an answer to your question, but I know a lot of people here have used it and noticed quieter engine startups.

 

[JT20]

All finished motor oils leave some amount of film but some may leave more than others or for a longer period of time. Typically esters (G5) with the polar properties will cling to metal but a balance must be struck so it doesn't interfere with certain AW additives. "Magnatec" is marketing of course and its meaning is whatever the consumer thinks it means. The product probably does have more esters but how much is unknown. I wouldn't be surprised if Magnatec and Castrol High Mileage oil were the same formula.

I've been suspecting that for awhile.. Being as I work somewhere where we manufacture automotive fluids (not oil, ironically, but other things...)
And how we have ohhhh about 10, maybe 20 now bottles and labels for essentially the same thing, just if its either pure product (less money for us) or with other "fillers" (more money for us, less expensive proprietary product and chemicals per unit, reflected in price..)
.. that it looks like "GTX with an additive" to me
And is probably still "Worse than Edge.'

And you are correct, that's how marketing works. 6 oils, from $13 to $25. Well, if you can spend $13.. why can't you spend $17?
And.. okay, $17. Well, why not $19?

And, now, just above that. . $21 now $24, oh there's Mobil 1 and Edge next to a 20,000 mile oil. Do I still want to spend just $14?

I was getting "ZMax soaks into metal!" vibes from it..

Maybe $1 more of additive over GTX. Sold for $5 more..

Meanwhile, Supertech is $14, meets API SN spec, and Mobil 1 is sitting there $24 as the best oil there is, next to two oils like it...

 

[JT20]

I don’t really have an answer to your question, but I know a lot of people here have used it and noticed quieter engine startups.

And that muddies the waters even further. Maybe they are on to something and found a formulation that works.

Because if it can do what ohhh say Redline (I understand some people here hate that oil, same as people dislike Royal Purple. Which unfortunately now doesn't seem to be a single thing special about it except PURPLE! And it costs more than Mobil 1 but.. anyways) can do for the price of a quart of it then. Hey...

 

[JT20]

It has been discussed on here a million times. It’s a good oil.

That wasn't my question.

 

[JT20]

It has been discussed on here a million times. It’s a good oil.

A million? Or a few/half-dozen... and has this question ever been asked of it?

 

[JT20]

There are tons of magnatec discussions on here.
Conclusion? Its Magic.

I have a bottle of 5W20 that I use for top off. Even a pint does seem to quiet things a bit, at least for a short while - maybe a couple weeks.

I recall with the advent of hydrocracked Group III and group IV blends, The oil would not even coat the dipstick properly.

One thing I like about your experience is that we are both dealing with Subarus lol

 

[KCJeep]

I used it several times in our KIA, they are notorious for "rackety" start ups Magnatec did quiet it some when started cold. Surprised me I didn't think it would.

 

[The Critic]

Aside from the special additive, isn't Magnatec just an "entry-level" synthetic oil? In Castrol's portfolio it slots below Edge and Castrol EDGE Extended Performance.

 

[JT20]

Aside from the special additive, isn't Magnatec just an "entry-level" synthetic oil? In Castrol's portfolio, it slots below Edge and Castrol EDGE Extended Performance.

That was an observation that made me finally just ask the question.

What I am hearing is that it may serve as a BETTER oil than those that slot above it.. and I just so happen to like Redline oil's performance, but at its cost and special step of ordering it from Amazon.. Maybe that can be a thing of Year 2020 and prior, as we move forward.

Maybe they really got it right.

 

[The Critic]

That was an observation that made me finally just ask the question.

What I am hearing is that it may serve as a BETTER oil than those that slot above it..

I guess it depends what "better" means to you. I assume there is something lacking from Magnatec that is allowing Castrol to sell it at a lower cost than Edge or Castrol EDGE Extended Performance. And I doubt the answer is marketing...

 

[PimTac]

What will be your parameters to determine if Magnatec is better?

 

[FatCat2]

I guess it depends what "better" means to you. I assume there is something lacking from Magnatec that is allowing Castrol to sell it at a lower cost than Edge or Castrol EDGE Extended Performance. And I doubt the answer is marketing...

Edge does qualify as a full synthetic in places where words have meaning, whereas Magnetc by those standards is really a blend

 

[Malo83]

It's the SMART molecues

 

[82 Groth M.]

In Norway the 5W-20 E. Magnatec for Ford EcoBoost 1.0 engine is this. I like it

 

[ZeeOSix]

Here's one of their marketing videos. Kind of cheesy, but it's trying to get the concept across about the molecular "polar cling" action.

 

[SR5]

Hi OP, most of your questions have been discussed before over the years, but they would be hard to track down as often the conversation went that way, and it may not be obvious in the thread title. Plus auto spell correct turns the word to “magnetic“, hiding it from Magnatec searches.

Anyway the general consensus is that yes all oil clings to the engine metal surface to some degree, just pull the cover on a junkyard engine that has been sitting for years, and it will be oily.

But where as most other oils do this by the way, it’s often not their primary design job, even in high ester oils like redline, where the oil base may have been selected for cold flow properties and oxidation stability etc.

Magnatec is a Group III synthetic (nothing special there) with a good but fairly standard inorganic add pack (various used oil analysis & VOAs here), however it does have a small amount of a Group V highly polar organic molecule added to the oil with the primary design purpose of attaching to the metal surface to resist drain down when the engine is off and protect on a cold start, while not interfering with the other oil additives in the execution of their primary duty.

This is probably the difference between Magnatec and other oils, the primary design purpose of the organic add, as opposed to a secondary effect in many (but probably not all) other oils.

Some guesses here, I would suspect that the polar (“intelligent”) molecules in Magnatec may be significantly more viscous than a regular Group V used as a general base in other full synthetic oils. As I suspect that Valvoline has something similar going on, as their used oil analysis often show a light inorganic add pack, but excellent wear protection results.

A few people here have contacted Castrol directly and asked if they still get the “intelligent” Magnatec molecules if they buy the higher tier Edge product. Castrol always comes back with a solid yes, Edge in a similar grade has all the good Magnatec stuff plus some extra Edge only stuff (their fluid strength technology - whatever that is, it doesn’t generate nearly as many threads).

Bottom line, Magnatec isn’t the “best” oil in the world for every application, but it is probably one of the best bang-for-your-buck oils that most of us can easily find and afford.