Help Understanding Different OCIs For My Car

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Hello everyone. I am a huge Top Gear (UK) fan. I am currently going through the complete 21 season series on my computer. I have noticed shots of motor oil containers now and then. For example you can clearly see a shot of a Comma 10W-40 jug. I did a quick search online and found the oil company website. I then did a search for my car on their product finder. I have a 2012 Nissan Versa. In the rest of the world my same car is called a Tiida. My Versa and the Tiida have the same exact 1.8L engine in them. In the US, Nissan claims a 3750 OCI. Now the Tiida in Europe has a 30000KM (18641.136 mile)/24 month OCI. What gives, what is going on here? Why is Nissan USA telling me to change my oil every 3750 miles while in other parts of the world....the same engine in the same car is going about 5 times longer on an oil change?
 
Originally Posted By: s1mp13m4n
Hello everyone. I am a huge Top Gear (UK) fan. I am currently going through the complete 21 season series on my computer. I have noticed shots of motor oil containers now and then. For example you can clearly see a shot of a Comma 10W-40 jug. I did a quick search online and found the oil company website. I then did a search for my car on their product finder. I have a 2012 Nissan Versa. In the rest of the world my same car is called a Tiida. My Versa and the Tiida have the same exact 1.8L engine in them. In the US, Nissan claims a 3750 OCI. Now the Tiida in Europe has a 30000KM (18641.136 mile)/24 month OCI. What gives, what is going on here? Why is Nissan USA telling me to change my oil every 3750 miles while in other parts of the world....the same engine in the same car is going about 5 times longer on an oil change?


Different conditions, different oil formulations, different OCI costs, lighter oils... Ect.
 
I bet the European version is calling for oil with some ACEA specifications, versus the basic SM/GF-4 or better that North American Nissans and Infinitis of the time were specifying.
 
The Tiida engine oil specs are a 5W-30 with ACEA A5/A6.....whatever that is. LOL
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Yeah, it is the A5/B5 spec. Sorry about that. So, what does this mean in a nutshell? The Euro spec oils are better than our US oils.....I realize this is a general comparison.
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Summary explanation in link below...

http://www.oilspecifications.org/

Also:
There is no US oil versus EU oil, there are different certifications and approvals that any major brand can obtain through industry standardized testing. ACEA (European) spec'd oils must meet a certan, and some would say, tougher standard than API or ILSAC (US and Asia). You can easily find ACEA spec'd oils in any auto parts store or Walmart.
 
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also Different qualities of fuel. we allow a lot more sulfur in our gas then they do (for now, Ultra Low Sulfur Gas is on the way)
 
My Daughter owned a Versa. I know one thing the car seemed pretty hard on oil. After 3,000 miles it would start using some and it would look very dirty. Never did a UOA on it but I would change it at 4k to be safe. At the time it only had 70k miles.
 
Use Amsoil 5W-30 European Formula, a honkin' great filter and do Euro-OCI?
 
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Originally Posted By: tommygunn
Use Amsoil 5W-30 European Formula, a honkin' great filter and do Euro-OCI?


Not with the amount of sulphur in your fuel! Do a UOA at 10k ans go from there
 
Originally Posted By: s1mp13m4n
Hello everyone. I am a huge Top Gear (UK) fan. I am currently going through the complete 21 season series on my computer. I have noticed shots of motor oil containers now and then. For example you can clearly see a shot of a Comma 10W-40 jug. I did a quick search online and found the oil company website. I then did a search for my car on their product finder. I have a 2012 Nissan Versa. In the rest of the world my same car is called a Tiida. My Versa and the Tiida have the same exact 1.8L engine in them. In the US, Nissan claims a 3750 OCI. Now the Tiida in Europe has a 30000KM (18641.136 mile)/24 month OCI. What gives, what is going on here? Why is Nissan USA telling me to change my oil every 3750 miles while in other parts of the world....the same engine in the same car is going about 5 times longer on an oil change?


Have you are Nissan USA why the difference in OCIs ?

That would be my first starting point before we get too excited.
 
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It's not even Euro oil, it's anything rated ACEA A3/B4... There's a lot of stuff that meets spec on the shelves in your local stores but one of the problems is your nox limit - cooler CC temps and retarded timing, usually in conjunction with a richer mixture (as compared to the UK) all lead to more fuel in the oil. This, along with the extra sulphur limits your typical US OCI..

We don't measure nox or co2 over here, only co and hc for the annual inspection. 5 gas analysis is usually reserved for tuning, or sometimes to confirm a diagnosis or even a suspicion..
 
So, Euro cars use a low sulfur fuel. and do not measure NOx. They burn hotter and leaner, resulting in less fuel in the oil. So this regimen allows a 5 fold OCI over US OCIs?
 
I am using Amsoil 5W-30 and Amsoil oil filter in my car. I did some looking at the Amsoil spec sheet for my oil and I see that it exceeds both the US and Euro spec for my car according to the Nissan requirements. I noticed that the Amsoil I am using has nearly double the TBN compared to the Conna branded Euro oil for the Nissan Tiida. I noticed that the euro oil has 1200 ppm zinc in it ....if that matters in the real world.
 
Originally Posted By: andyd
So, Euro cars use a low sulfur fuel. and do not measure NOx. They burn hotter and leaner, resulting in less fuel in the oil. So this regimen allows a 5 fold OCI over US OCIs?


The reduction of fuel in the oil also means less sulphur in the oil - sulphur and water make sulphuric acid which is very corrosive, especially to bearings.
I believe it to be more of an acid-management exercise, but I'm happy to learn otherwise..
 
It's late, I'm tired, I forgot to mention that all petrol sold in the UK is "sulphur free" with a max. Allowable content of 10 PPM.

How many PPM sulphur is in your fuel?
 
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