Idemitsu ZEPRO w/Advanced Moly 0W-20 for 2011 Prius

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Aug 30, 2004
Messages
31,869
Location
CA
I am considering the Idemitsu ZEPRO w/Advanced Moly 0W-20 for my 2011 Prius. My cost on this oil is the same as Mobil 1 EP so the price is competitive with major brands. My daily commute is 3 miles each way and on the evenings I usually make one 34 mi round-trip in city traffic. The car does also get used for longer trips during weekends. For me, the main appeal of this oil is the unusually high Molybdenum content and the low KV@40C (36.3 cSt); together I am hoping that these two characteristics will maximize the vehicle's fuel economy.

The only concern I have is the high Viscosity Index (VI). According to SonofJoe's post, the high VI is due to heavy usage of a PMA-based Viscosity Index Improver (VII). Between the PMA-based VII and the high NOACK (14%), this can cause elevated piston ring deposits which may increase the likelihood of developing oil consumption. Luckily, my Prius one of the few 1.8L 2ZR-FXER engines that does not consume any oil between 5K oil changes and I want it to remain this way if possible.

Realistically, it is unlikely that I will keep this car beyond the 300K mark. I do not have a true need for HM oil at this time because I just performed a head gasket job where every seal, o-ring and gasket (including the valve stem seals) was replaced with the exception of the rear main seal. Prior to the head gasket repair I was mainly using Mobil 1 EP 0W-20 at 5K intervals; the car is currently on its 2nd fill of SuperTech 0W-20 to "rinse" out any contaminants that may have been leftover from the engine being opened up.

Thoughts?
 
Last edited:
I can't speak for Zepro - but when I capitalized on a Amazon pricing error for regular Idemitsu 0W-20 a problem child Subaru engine(FB25) didn't drink it as much of it compared to M1 or Super(the car was in his family so I did the oil changes or it saw bulk dealer oil). The Idemitsu has a higher NOACK and slightly lower VI than the M1, but I was astonished the car went 5K before a top off, I check the oil in it whenever we hang out or go on a trip.
 
D1G2 Zepro has a lower Noack volatility than the Advanced Moly variant, while still having pretty high levels of moly (ca. 350 ppm vs ca 675 ppm, compared to ~80 ppm for most M1 variants if I'm not mistaken). It's also much cheaper at the present time ($27/jug rather than $45), although in the past they were both much cheaper (I bought some last year at $19.65/jug for D1G2 and $21.00/jug for AM) and some judicious use of camelcamelcamel might let you buy either one at a lower price in the future.
 
Originally Posted by kaesees
D1G2 Zepro has a lower Noack volatility than the Advanced Moly variant, while still having pretty high levels of moly (ca. 350 ppm vs ca 675 ppm, compared to ~80 ppm for most M1 variants if I'm not mistaken). It's also much cheaper at the present time ($27/jug rather than $45), although in the past they were both much cheaper (I bought some last year at $19.65/jug for D1G2 and $21.00/jug for AM) and some judicious use of camelcamelcamel might let you buy either one at a lower price in the future.

Thanks. I was not aware that the ZEPRO Dexos version contained that much Moly. It looks like the Dexos version also has the low KV@40C.

https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/4768630/VOA_Idemitsu_Zepro_Eco_Medalis

The cost of both oils is within $1 of each other from my wholesale supplier and is priced very competitively with M1.
 
Originally Posted by The Critic
Originally Posted by kaesees
D1G2 Zepro has a lower Noack volatility than the Advanced Moly variant, while still having pretty high levels of moly (ca. 350 ppm vs ca 675 ppm, compared to ~80 ppm for most M1 variants if I'm not mistaken). It's also much cheaper at the present time ($27/jug rather than $45), although in the past they were both much cheaper (I bought some last year at $19.65/jug for D1G2 and $21.00/jug for AM) and some judicious use of camelcamelcamel might let you buy either one at a lower price in the future.

Thanks. I was not aware that the ZEPRO Dexos version contained that much Moly. It looks like the Dexos version also has the low KV@40C.

https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/4768630/VOA_Idemitsu_Zepro_Eco_Medalis

The cost of both oils is within $1 of each other from my wholesale supplier and is priced very competitively with M1.


What's the minimum quantity to buy from a wholesale supplier? I haven't been able to source any of the Idemitsu oils from any vendor other than Amazon, and I'd love to have a second source since Amazon's algorithms lead to very volatile prices on some items.
 
Originally Posted by kaesees

What's the minimum quantity to buy from a wholesale supplier? I haven't been able to source any of the Idemitsu oils from any vendor other than Amazon, and I'd love to have a second source since Amazon's algorithms lead to very volatile prices on some items.

The wholesaler I use, WorldPac, is only for automotive repair shops.
 
Last edited:
If you want high moly (900 ppm), low kv40 (28.6), kinda low NOACK (12) in a Hybrid, Eneos Racing Street 0w20 ordered from Amazon beats the Mazda Zepro.
Eneos Racing Street is all-Group3+ too.

eneos.JPG
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top