mobil 1 european car formula - 0w40 vs 5w40?

[ultraviolet]

hello all, i'm a longtime lurker here but i finally made an account because i noticed an interesting shift in oil availability when i was at walmart earlier.

for years i've been quite pleased with the mobil 1 0w40 "european car formula" they have in 5qt jugs as well as sometimes in the (excellent value!) 12qt bib packs. it's a great sae40 on the thinner side of the range, with that lovely 0w cold weather performance. truly an ideal balance of protection at operating temperature and good performance in freezing temperatures. my saturn 1.9L motors love it, a friend's bmw calls for it stock, and i even put it in stuff like the lawn tractor! it's my favourite oil by far, although for cleaning out a dirty motor during the summer i do love me some 15w40 diesel oil.

now, to my question... when i went to walmart today, i expected to purchase a jug of my favourite 0w40, quite reasonably priced at <$30 i might add, and instead i found a 5w40 wearing the exact same branding in its place! the jug has the same styling, calls itself "european car formula" just the same, and yet it's clearly indicated to be a 5w40! what gives? anyone have a clue why they stopped carrying the 0w40 and now offer the 5w40 instead? is it just the supply chain nightmares we see everywhere or is there another underlying reason? i looked on mobil's site and these are definitely 2 different oils, with different characteristics. i'd personally much prefer the 0w40 although i suppose if the 5w40 is all i can get now, i shall have to make do. here are the pages on mobil's site for the 2 oils:

mobil 1 "european car formula" 0w40
mobil 1 "european car formula" 5w40

thanks, and hello!

 

[CharBaby]

Lots of changes lately. I think that there are supply issues…everywhere.

 

[350Rocket]

I found the shelf empty a couple times and waited it out until it was back in stock during one of the usual $30/4.73L sales. Like you I run it in everything, truck, car, 3 lawn mowers, snowblower.

 

[SR5]

The 5W40 tends to be a bit thicker, while the 0W40 tends to use a bit more PAO (but this could change).

Both are SN/CF, A3/B4, MB 229.5 and Porsche A40. Either will do me, unless I need SP for LSPI issues, then I would go for PP-Euro which is A3/B4, all the OEMs and API SP.

 

[bonjo]

I have used 0w40 in my car since new. It is on the thinner side of a 40 grade and perhaps more POA as SR5 mentioned.

Thinner winter viscocity can cause oil consumption (personal experience).

staying with mobile, 5w can affect the mpg if you live in cold climat

 

[kschachn]

staying with mobile, 5w can affect the mpg if you live in cold climat

A really, really cold climate.

 

[wpod]

Run Redlines expensive oil for cleaning. We run HDEO oil in everything where I worked in all the engines in the companies company vehicles Some were bought used, some times we needed a van an there wasn't one available. After a few years of running the HDEO oil [Chevron DELO] the engines would still be sludged up when it was inspected after a few years.

 

[RooflessVW]

Mobil 1 FS 0W-40 is clearly the superior product.

I can only assume that FS 5W-40 exists because some people think 5W-40 is superior to 0W-40 and Mobil was losing market share. FS 5W-40 hasn't "replaced" FS 0W-40.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

hello all, i'm a longtime lurker here but i finally made an account because i noticed an interesting shift in oil availability when i was at walmart earlier.

for years i've been quite pleased with the mobil 1 0w40 "european car formula" they have in 5qt jugs as well as sometimes in the (excellent value!) 12qt bib packs. it's a great sae40 on the thinner side of the range, with that lovely 0w cold weather performance. truly an ideal balance of protection at operating temperature and good performance in freezing temperatures. my saturn 1.9L motors love it, a friend's bmw calls for it stock, and i even put it in stuff like the lawn tractor! it's my favourite oil by far, although for cleaning out a dirty motor during the summer i do love me some 15w40 diesel oil.

now, to my question... when i went to walmart today, i expected to purchase a jug of my favourite 0w40, quite reasonably priced at <$30 i might add, and instead i found a 5w40 wearing the exact same branding in its place! the jug has the same styling, calls itself "european car formula" just the same, and yet it's clearly indicated to be a 5w40! what gives? anyone have a clue why they stopped carrying the 0w40 and now offer the 5w40 instead? is it just the supply chain nightmares we see everywhere or is there another underlying reason? i looked on mobil's site and these are definitely 2 different oils, with different characteristics. i'd personally much prefer the 0w40 although i suppose if the 5w40 is all i can get now, i shall have to make do. here are the pages on mobil's site for the 2 oils:

mobil 1 "european car formula" 0w40
mobil 1 "european car formula" 5w40

thanks, and hello!

Could be anything. The only difference I can see is that 5w40 lacks ACEA B4. Perhaps a slightly cheaper base stock but with less VII's compared to 0w40.

 

[PimTac]

it's a great sae40 on the thinner side of the range, with that lovely 0w cold weather performance. truly an ideal balance of protection at operating temperature and good performance in freezing temperatures. my saturn 1.9L motors love it, a friend's bmw calls for it stock, and i even put it in stuff like the lawn tractor! it's my favourite oil by far, although for cleaning out a dirty motor during the summer i do love me some 15w40 diesel oil.

Very descriptive.

 

[Intelligent Molecule]

A really, really cold climate.

I bought two jugs of Mobil 1 5W40's for my 2000 Mercedes E320's next oil change in the summer at Walmart. There was no 0W40 on the shelf at the time. It might be worth noting that if one takes their Mercedes into the dealership (that one would sure not be me), they will use bulk 5W40 synthetic and charge you $200 for the effort. Would have bought the 0W40 if it was available, but I'm not going to lose any sleep over using the 5W40 in my 22 year old car.

 

[SR5]

Could be anything. The only difference I can see is that 5w40 lacks ACEA B4. Perhaps a slightly cheaper base stock but with less VII's compared to 0w40.

While I agree the link above only list A3/B3 for the M1 5W40 (not the better A3/B4), I believe this is a typo, as you can't get Porsche A40 approval or MB 229.5 approval without being A3/B4 first. It's part of their requirements.

 

[Imp4]

It's literally available right now on their web site.
I don't understand what the problem is.

 

[Krieg]

I went to several Walmarts in the ABQ metro area. I noted that the Walmart in the affluent area had 0W40 motor oil. As well as a nice selection of various motor oil.

 

[volk06]

hello all, i'm a longtime lurker here but i finally made an account because i noticed an interesting shift in oil availability when i was at walmart earlier.

for years i've been quite pleased with the mobil 1 0w40 "european car formula" they have in 5qt jugs as well as sometimes in the (excellent value!) 12qt bib packs. it's a great sae40 on the thinner side of the range, with that lovely 0w cold weather performance. truly an ideal balance of protection at operating temperature and good performance in freezing temperatures. my saturn 1.9L motors love it, a friend's bmw calls for it stock, and i even put it in stuff like the lawn tractor! it's my favourite oil by far, although for cleaning out a dirty motor during the summer i do love me some 15w40 diesel oil.

now, to my question... when i went to walmart today, i expected to purchase a jug of my favourite 0w40, quite reasonably priced at <$30 i might add, and instead i found a 5w40 wearing the exact same branding in its place! the jug has the same styling, calls itself "european car formula" just the same, and yet it's clearly indicated to be a 5w40! what gives? anyone have a clue why they stopped carrying the 0w40 and now offer the 5w40 instead? is it just the supply chain nightmares we see everywhere or is there another underlying reason? i looked on mobil's site and these are definitely 2 different oils, with different characteristics. i'd personally much prefer the 0w40 although i suppose if the 5w40 is all i can get now, i shall have to make do. here are the pages on mobil's site for the 2 oils:

mobil 1 "european car formula" 0w40
mobil 1 "european car formula" 5w40

thanks, and hello!

Walmart stocks both on the shelf. They could have just been out of 0w-40 at the time.

Its available online for $27.

 

[Intelligent Molecule]

I went to several Walmarts in the ABQ metro area. I noted that the Walmart in the affluent area had 0W40 motor oil. As well as a nice selection of various motor oil.

Is the Heisenberg blue still available in the affluent areas?

 

[SR5]

I went to several Walmarts in the ABQ metro area. I noted that the Walmart in the affluent area had 0W40 motor oil. As well as a nice selection of various motor oil.

Just out of interest, where is ABQ?

 

[volk06]

Just out of interest, where is ABQ?

I would assume albuquerque?

 

[SR5]

I would assume albuquerque?

That makes sense, thanks.
You know, I would like to visit the USA again some day, and visit all of these interesting places.

 

[ultraviolet]

Lots of changes lately. I think that there are supply issues…everywhere.

that's about the impression i got, and i suppose if they were unable to procure a shipment of 0w40 they may have simply opted for the 5w40 so as to not leave that spot on the shelf empty. the degree to which things i always took for granted being on shelves can no longer be counted on to be available is unsettling, though! D:

Run Redlines expensive oil for cleaning. We run HDEO oil in everything where I worked in all the engines in the companies company vehicles Some were bought used, some times we needed a van an there wasn't one available. After a few years of running the HDEO oil [Chevron DELO] the engines would still be sludged up when it was inspected after a few years.

while i don't doubt that oil is perfectly fine, your advice assumes an unlimited budget. a primary factor in why i like 15w40 for the purpose of cleaning a dirty motor is that it's so inexpensive. when i'm paying <$10/gal, i'm much more willing to change it out after a short interval like 1k miles, and i don't care in the slightest if the engine burns a lot of it off. if i was looking to do "expensive" things, i would pull the oil pan and valve cover and manually clean the interior surfaces of the motor. just getting the sludge out of the bottom of the oil pan, and cleaning the pickup tube, can help a lot, and a can of rtv + some time is a better deal than expensive oil to me.

Mobil 1 FS 0W-40 is clearly the superior product.

I can only assume that FS 5W-40 exists because some people think 5W-40 is superior to 0W-40 and Mobil was losing market share. FS 5W-40 hasn't "replaced" FS 0W-40.

i think there has to be more to it than that, the 5w40 is a different oil, and i can see it being a preferable choice if one wanted a slightly thicker oil than the 0w40, without going as thick as a 10w40 or 15w40. i have no doubt it's a perfectly fine choice, and i'll happily buy some if i can't find the 0w40, i simply prefer the 0w40 during the winter because it does get plenty cold around here.

It's literally available right now on their web site.
I don't understand what the problem is.

be that as it may, when i went down to the local walmart and looked at the shelf, all i found was 5w40. i did dig around behind the front rows on the shelf in hopes there was maybe a straggling jug of 0w40 back there, with no luck. "the problem" is that it wasn't available at the physical store when i went, and the fact that it's listed online doesn't even remotely imply that it's actually in stock. as you may have noticed, many online retailers love to claim that <xyz> is in stock, then take a month to ship it to you while never actually admitting they were waiting to receive it from their own supplier. beyond that, i don't have any desire to purchase things online if i can go into a physical store and buy them in person with cash, so what i can get online is quite irrelevant. one can buy almost anything online, after all.

Walmart stocks both on the shelf. They could have just been out of 0w-40 at the time.

Its available online for $27.

well, they've always had the 5w40 "turbo diesel truck" in gallon jugs in the diesel section, this is the first time i've seen the 5w40 "european car formula" in the pcmo section. also, it's stocked in exactly the same location where i would usually find 0w40. i think this is down to the supply chain issues, and they're probably just stocking what they can actually procure right now. a shame, to be sure, but that's the state of the world these days. as for it being available online, see my response to Imp4... some people seem to think buying stuff online is the best innovation ever, but i like to go into physical stores, talk to actual other people, and pay with cash money.