He said "it's C30 rated, you don't get better." C30 is a Porsche spec. Reread post #77.
A40 is better.
Mobil 1 ESP 0w30 observations
- Thread starter Kennedy01
- Start date
A40 is better.
O.K. My bad.
What 30 grade oil covers Porsche A40?
you are right ,i thought they always did called out.then i read motul's 300 v and they didnt mention it too ,unlike 8100 oils.who knows ,maybe testers like 0-30 or 300v ones, come from natural sources so they arent hazard.
mb.2295,51,52 are better.
by a better base oil combinations and a more hefty additive system, often with higher than required specifications and licenses with approvals where needed by the engine manufacture.
It all depends on the application. The new crown of best oil going gets doled out pretty often around here, Mobil 1 ESP 0w30 and Valvoline Restore and Protect being the recent notables.
Neither one would be even close to the best oils for any of my cars. Know your engine's requirements and base your fill around that, not around MB 229.5 or Porsche C30 or VW 508 or 509 or whatever. They're tough specs to meet but are only optimized in vehicles that need the properties and characteristics they provide.
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edyvw
$50 site donor 2026
It is not!
You are confusing approvals.
C30 is same as VW504.00/507.00 that only comes in 0W30 and 5W30 grades. A40 covers 40 and 50 grades. Only 30 oil that every had Porsche A40 approval was first versio of Castrol 0W30 SLX or what was known here as Castrol 0W30 Syntec or "German Castrol" (the green stuff).
A40 has specific track requirements (8X1hrs of Nordschelife test, which was done some 20 years ago using the actual track; now it is done on the oil sump test bed). That does not mean A40 is more stringent than C30. For all purposes, C30 with similar base stocks will be more shear stable and have lower Noack. In the end, rule in tirbology is: "as thin as possible as thick as necessary." A40 is not the benchmark that people think. If you want the best approval comprehensively, turn to MB229.5X.
edyvw
$50 site donor 2026
ESP 0W30 is all the talk because for $27 or $22.97 when on sale, you get remarkable oil.
But, for example, Castrol Edge 0W30 (although Full SAPS,s o in some way comparing two different categories) has lower volatility.
As for approvals, Euro approvals offer the most stringent limits. Can you make API SQ that has better performance than MB229.71 (20 grade)? Yes. But, the limits of API SQ are nowhere as stringent as MB 229.71. In the race to the bottom by all blenders, EU approvals are the best protection against the consequences of that race.
edyvw
$50 site donor 2026
^This.
It has to be repeated occasionally that SDS is made for first responders. Only hazardous compounds are listed. Don't take it as gospel. There is other stuff inside.
I just meant from an engine protection standpoint. Isn't C30 designed with some degree of economy built into the equation whereas A40 is blunt force trauma against the worst you can throw at it in hard use scenarios?
edyvw
$50 site donor 2026
There are seriously unremarkable oils that meet A40 approval.
HTHS is the name of the game from a wear and protection standpoint. But let me give you an example.
Current Castrol Edge 5W40 has HTHS of 3.64cP. It has A40 approval. Absolutely unremarkable, bottom-of-the-barrel oil with Euro approvals.
Pennzoil Platinum 5W30 Euro L, and MB229.51, BMW LL04 oil, has HTHS of 3.68cP.
The previous version of Mobil 1 Full Synthetic 0w40 had HTHS of 3.6cP. Castrol Edge 0W30 in the previous version had HTHS of 3.58cP.
Truth is, Mobil 1 Full Synthetic 0w40 in API SN version, regardless of HTHS of 3.6cP, was excellent stuff. I ran it on track, possibly more than any other oil. But, Porsche limits A40 to 40 and 50 grade, period! And you have many 30 oils that have high HTHS shear stability better than many A40 oils, etc.
As for ESP 0W30, that is not energy conserving oil. Minimum HTHS is 3.5cP. Higher HTHS, more resistance, lower mpg. Like I said, you have 30 oils with higher HTHS than some 40 oils.
I would certainly believe and have confidence that those oils would perform exceptionally well. Certainly as well as anything on the market anywhere. But I see no evidence that one would provide any more wear protection than Mobil 1 Extended Performance or Mobil 1 ESP from Walmart. Or even ¨vanilla¨ Mobil 1, for that matter. What I have seen is when people care enough to maintain their vehicles by the book or better and put a top shelf oil (meaning from Walmart, Autozone, etc), they tend to go hundreds of thousands of miles including examples going beyond the coveted 500,000 mile mark. I think ultimate engine life, given excellent maintenance, is heavily dependent on the engine design itself.
I´ve run store bought synthetics for over 40 years and have never had a wear related issue in any engine. The longest I have kept one is 250,000 miles and it was running perfectly when sold, as all of them were.
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OVERKILL
$100 Site Donor 2021
The idea of the slate of approvals the oil has passed is to ensure consistent performance, so I'd expect all oils in that class, with the same approvals, to perform similarly on wear protection.
I don’t understand what you’re saying here. It doesn’t make any sense.
It's rated now for 12,000 miles or 1 year OCI.
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/mobil-1-esp-12-000-miles-1-year.404674/
Basically that all the hoops the blender jumps through to make a low saps oil with an hths of 3.5, doesn't make it the best oil for my '93 Ford 5.0 Windsor engine for instance, when mid/full saps protects better.
If a person has a brand new car that requires the spec Mobil 1 ESP 0w30 provides, that's a good oil choice for them. It just seems like whatever new oil that gets leghumped around here gets thrown around into a universal use scenario that seems asinine to me.
Euro specs are the toughest to meet, I get that but they're engine specific. Any engine will be fine on them I suppose but they're not the best choice for all of them.
Mobil 1 ESP 0W-30 is mid-SAPS oil, not low-SAPS. Both ACEA C2 and C3 are mid-SAPS oils, C1 is low-SAPS and is now obsolete.
https://www.valvolineglobal.com/en-ksa/understanding-oil-standards-acea-specifications/
Yes, if the engine requires high ZDDP additive (flat tappet cam) ESP 0W-30 might won't help much, but in any other case is outstanding oil.
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I’m not sure how you know all this? And it’s not engine specific, approvals are manufacturer specific. But most within a particular “class” are quite similar. They dictate performance requirements not something specific to any particular engine design. Most of the differences in the ones being mentioned here other than the SAPS level, are directed towards fuel economy or CO2 reduction. Not performance.
You’re being a bit silly here. Calling the enthusiasm for ESP “leghumping” is instructive. Any oil that carries VW 504 00 approval (for example) is a highly capable oil that by those properties is appropriate for and very usable in nearly any vehicle in existence. Sufficient HT/HS, high oxidation and sludge resistance with superior deposit control. $27 at Walmart and it’s a steal for what you get. If it’s not universal, what application do you have where it’s inappropriate?
Superlative
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