How Do they Make Mobil 1 0w40 FS So Cheap?

[buster]

Mobil 1 0w40 is a tried and true workhorse. Oil can pretty much do it all. How the current version is I don't know but it's always been a good oil. Shears by design. Mobil knows this. It's either intentional or just cost cut to use a lower performing VI is my guess.

I get tired of hearing about the limitations on certified oils. The EP oils greatly exceed the minimum specs for IVA/IIIH/GM Turbo. Then you also have Euro oils to choose from which are high performing. So this idea that you can't get a high performance oil that is certified is bs.

 

[redhat]

It’s just such a versatile product that can be obtained easily and for a fair price. I personally have it going into all Gen 3/4 LS and Gen V LT I know of. A modified 100k LS1, 255k L59, 70k LQ4, 150k L96, new L83 and 3 L84s. They always come out clean and are quiet.

I would’ve for sure figured the 0W-40 is a hot seller for Mobil but reading posts on here I am surprised it’s so little. Hope it never goes away.

I’ve been seeing differing stock quantities at my local Walmarts. Wonder if they are planning or gearing up for a labeling change now being DexosR approved.

I’d have to imagine the Corvette community would buy this stuff en masse if it had a DexosR flag on the front.

 

[Patman]

The Corvette community is a strange one, they’ll happily buy 10 quarts of Supercar 0w-40 at $15+ each as opposed to going with ESP 0w-30 at a way lower price point and it’s HTHS really isn’t that far off (and the way most guys drive their Vettes they are just fine with a 3.5 HTHS oil anyway)

 

[scrllock]

It’s just such a versatile product that can be obtained easily and for a fair price. I personally have it going into all Gen 3/4 LS and Gen V LT I know of. A modified 100k LS1, 255k L59, 70k LQ4, 150k L96, new L83 and 3 L84s. They always come out clean and are quiet.

I would’ve for sure figured the 0W-40 is a hot seller for Mobil but reading posts on here I am surprised it’s so little. Hope it never goes away.

I’ve been seeing differing stock quantities at my local Walmarts. Wonder if they are planning or gearing up for a labeling change now being DexosR approved.

I’d have to imagine the Corvette community would buy this stuff en masse if it had a DexosR flag on the front.

0w30 ESP is the FOTM here but I'm sure 0w40 FS is still the top-selling euro oil in the aftermarket. Perception among most euro owners I talk to who don't read oil forums is that it's always going to be the benchmark (or they buy liqui-moly).

 

[OVERKILL]

I am naive. What do the SRT vehicles call for?

Pennzoil's SRT 0W-40, which appears to be your generic API additive package in a 0W-40 format. Its Noack would prevent it from being compliant with the majority of Euro approvals its predecessor had.

 

[OVERKILL]

Second sentence on the back. Essentially just because they meet a specific requirement doesn't mean its going to run clean where the boutiques will. Its easy to get a car to specify a spec or weight especially if they are throwing money at them to do so not to mention these engines are way more robust and they maintain them to a point that even I cant phathom.

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Dave has said, on this forum, that Mobil 1 Full Synthetic 0W-40 was the best performing OTS oil they've ever tested. He's also said that if his own 0W-40 wasn't available, he'd use Mobil 1 Full Synthetic 0W-40 because of how well it performs.

You've provided zero evidence that any of those products you listed will in fact run "cleaner" than Mobil 1 Full Synthetic 0W-40, it's an empty assertion, devoid of supporting documentation. As is the claim that they are more advanced. Furthermore, they are all wildly different formulations with very different base oil and additive chemistries, lumping them all together because they are "boutique" is silly. The AMSOIL and HPL 0W-40's don't even target the same applications!
AMSOIL:

HPL SC:

Up until P66 took over Redline, they'd been using what was effectively the same formula, which was a heavily top-treated SL additive package in a PAO/POE base oil blend, for decades. While effective, are you really going to argue that this is/was the benchmark for "more advanced"?

Do I personally think HPL can ensure a higher level of cleanliness? Yes, due to Dr. Rudnick's base oil blend approach, coupled with the significant body of oil filter C&P evidence posted on this forum, that I've also seen from my own vehicles. I've not seen similar shared for the other products you've listed. But, we've seen no back-to-back tear-down testing of these products that would allow us to evaluate and contrast their performance in the areas of concern.

Lucas is also "boutique" and makes a 0W-40. For those unaware of their decades of pushing gold plated dog turds as the world's best mouse milk, I'm sure that many who associate that name with racing would make similar claims to yours for their product.

Like Dave, if HPL 0W-40 wasn't available, I would use Mobil 1 Full Synthetic 0W-40.

 

[tired]

Like Dave, if HPL 0W-40 wasn't available, I would use Mobil 1 Full Synthetic 0W-40.

Even with the formula change (away from esters)? Interesting choice over Mobil 1 ESP. I also thought you ran 0W-20 with a Euro ad pack?

 

[scrllock]

All I have are grainy boroscope pictures, but the carbon-prone EA888s I've seen on a long-term Mobil 1 0w40 FS diet look spotless inside.
I'm experimenting on a friend's EA888.2 (the longitudinal version with the horrible rings), which is the absolute filthiest euro motor to see how religious 0w40 FS use cleans it up.

 

[OVERKILL]

Even with the formula change (away from esters)? Interesting choice over Mobil 1 ESP. I also thought you ran 0W-20 with a Euro ad pack?

Yes, I asked him about that recently (and posted his reply) and he has no reason to believe that the performance of the product has changed.

And yes, I run a 0W-20 with the same additive package as the 0W-40 in my RAM 1500, that's the "overkill" 0W-20 that Dave cooked up for me.

 

[nascarnation]

Lucas is also "boutique" and makes a 0W-40. For those unaware of their decades of pushing gold plated dog turds as the world's best mouse milk, I'm sure that many who associate that name with racing would make similar claims to yours for their product.

If nothing else, Lucas has proved that there are stunning amounts of money to be made in the business.

 

[Foxtrot08]

If nothing else, Lucas has proved that there are stunning amounts of money to be made in the business.

You can sell anything as long as you market it well.

You know who else is a marketing company? They’re really popular here… like really… really popular…

 

[buster]

Lucas has a bad reputation.

 

[scrllock]

You can sell anything as long as you market it well.

You know who else is a marketing company? They’re really popular here… like really… really popular…

The oil company that sponsors every youtuber in the automotive scene?

 

[tired]

You can sell anything as long as you market it well.

You know who else is a marketing company? They’re really popular here… like really… really popular…

ExxonMobil? HPL doesn't really market much at all that I can see. Amsoil markets a lot but doesn't seem too popular these days. Why so cryptic?

 

[4wd]

ExxonMobil? HPL doesn't really market much at all that I can see. Amsoil markets a lot but doesn't seem too popular these days. Why so cryptic?

He’s done past rants on Valvoline …

 

[Thebigm]

How does Mobil make such a high performing oil so cheap? In my car club, with lots of cars making over 700hp, its the most popular oil by far.....I tried turning some members to try botiques, like HPL but they get great results with the Mobil product.....mass production brings cost down?

They are lying

 

[GW.]

Some of my favorite oils are ones that live up to their marketing. They got to get the word out somehow.

I can’t stand ones that fall short.

 

[scrllock]

What I still get a kick out of to this day is the actual hatred one can pick up on from the anti-boutique crowd. I just do not get it. I do not see anyone bashing someone for using Quaker State or Exxon, Valvoline etc... I do stumble across some Mobil1 hatred it seems.

The funny one for me is that most of the Amsoil haters have no idea what they are even complaining about. It is too funny. The first thing many have to comment on is "the pushy , Amsoil middle men!?" Huh? What? I don't even know where one goes about finding those pushy middle men? Unless they are doing it undercover? I do not think so. The point is , and I wonder if any Amsoil fan boys other than me can tell us if and where these middle men are pushing Amsoil? When I started my Amsoil journey in around 1989, my buddy at work who introduced me to it was ordering it and would make the purchases for me. I have no idea how he was getting his. Later on after I retired and wanted to get it to stock up my garage, I simply looked up an Amsoil website. I signed up for what is preferred customer on a 12 month basis. It was clearly shown the discounts one gets when you have the membership (not at all required) and I place my orders. I never see or hear from or get bothered by some Amsoil sales people. Order comes to the house quick as can be in no time.

Apparently at some point , it sounds like someone ? a private sales rep ? really grinded some gears about pushing it on folks? I gotta say, I never and still do not see that. As far as I can tell, I do not even know where one would even see any type of Amsoil advertising? In all my years getting and reading every page more than once of a host of auto magazines for over 30 years, I have not seen one single Amsoil ad. If so, would someone please tell me where you see that?

I am actually to the point in time, where with the little miles we put on our vehicles I am sure it probably does not even matter.
With the vast improvements that some of our BITOG experts or retirees from the oil, or chemical engineering or even chemists careers can attest to that have been made in the manufacture of today's modern engine oils, they can probably state with some confidence that the majority of motor oils found on store shelves or boutique oils are all mostly very capable of doing a similar protective job in our engines.

So. To each his own? Why not use what one wants and let others do the same? What is this oil brand grudge coming from? I suppose it is like when many of us were young and early drivers and hot cars where the in thing for many young men..... there was always those brand wars going on between Chevy / Ford and Mopars. LoL - those decals in back windows with the little guy tinkling on the auto makers name that he was NOT driving. I guess it will be the same with oils until the end of time or we all get forced into non oil using machines?

Branding is irrelevant. One good or bad product doesn't have much relevance on the other stuff a company is selling. Most of the boutiques sell a mixture of excellent and mediocre products.
There's a certain type of person who will reflexively avoid brands that seem heavy on marketing. Motul, Liquimoly, Valvoline all come to mind, just from seeing them all over youtube and social media. I think some people also respond similarly to the referral/affiliate marketing model that AMSoil uses. I think the part that bothers people is _shops_ that push it, but the same could be said for Motul, LM, etc.

 

[svenson]

in europe all known brands are expensive, well at most countries at least.exception is the excellent shell helix 5-40 and the mediocre motul x-cess gen1 5-40(still in production in europe).

i was talking with a guy from germany and he has a bmw EX sieries 2lt,.his engine burns a lot of oil N52. he tried 5-30 oils from the majors,mobil,castrol,motul,all same consumption.
when he tried a small german brand EUROLUB an approved bmw oil with good approvals,in the approved bmw list, he earned more miles ,about 1000km more. this is the oil:

https://eurolub.com/en/wiv-eco-5w-30-p3685/
specs :

good specs but nothing special about it. on safety data lists only 1 additive ,weird. i dont know how it succed that reduced consumption but it happened on this engine.
since this company is german ,from Munich , maybe edyvw knows more about it, he lived and worked in oil business there so..

 

[qvalff8]

It's only a 40wt for a very short time, if I am making 700hp I am going with something more advanced like Torco, Redline, High Performance Lubricants or Amsoil.

Is the shearing out of grade still true for the new SP formulation? If so, does that matter? IMO, HTHS is the important metric, not 40wt vs 30wt. And even so, Mobil 1 0w-40 FS passes all the stringent Euro standards, like stay in grade, chain wear, oil level drop over long intervals etc.