Nissan technical review: Development of 0W-8 low-viscosity engine oil for fuel-efficiency improvement

[Gokhan]

Nissan showed that by using a GTL base oil and better AW/EP/FM additives in a SAE 0W-8 oil, they can match the chain wear of a SAE 0W-20 oil and get lower Noack volatility and lower oil consumption than with a SAE 0W-20 while improving the fuel economy by 0.57% over that of a SAE 0W-16.

Nissan technical review (2021): Development of 0W-8 low-viscosity engine oil for fuel-efficiency improvement

 

[vw7674]

I see Royal Purple will sell me Ow-8 for $17.54/quart. : l
it'll take awhile to capture the savings to justify chasing 0.57% fuel economy 'boost' over Ow-16.

 

[Sayjac]

Honestly I don't know validity of this Nissan technical paper. I do know it's brought to readers by the same Nissan that recommends 0w20 and 5w30 in many of their OMs (2.5L), skipping over (no mention of) 5w20. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

And then there's that Nissan (not) "Ester" Oil.

 

[FordMan59]

Wow, a whopping .285 MPG increase on a vehicle that would otherwise get 50 MPG. Or for a more realistic example .171 MPG increase on a vehicle that would otherwise get 30 MPG. I'm doing better than that using 10w40 in my '16 Nissan Versa. Combined EPA estimate is 34. I'm averaging 50.2 MPG since purchase in Feb. 2019 and not trying to use water as a lubricant.

 

[SR5]

"by using a GTL base oil and better AW/EP/FM additives in a SAE 0W-8 oil,"

I've seen a few statements like this over the years, they all go in the same direction: you don't need viscosity for wear protection if you use good base stock and these new wiz-bang additives.

Well how about you give me that good base stock and those new wiz-bang additives in a 5W30 and close the door quietly on your way out, thank you.

 

[WylieCoyote]

I wonder how much they spent on this little experiment, in hopes of discovering ways to improve MPG, which yielded a .57% increase.

Of course the costs of these failures will trickle down to the window sticker. Nicely done.

Hint: Spend on new technology, not ways to make engine oil a little thinner.

 

[Oily_Thing]

Nissan needs to spend their time fixing their crappy Jatco CVTs.

 

[WylieCoyote]

Nissan needs to spend their time fixing their crappy Jatco CVTs.

They moved the Pathfinder back to a conventional auto.....they may do the same with their entire lineup.

 

[Tom NJ]

Evaporativity???

 

[RDY4WAR]

Nissan showed that by using a GTL base oil and better AW/EP/FM additives in a SAE 0W-8 oil, they can match the chain wear of a SAE 0W-20 oil and get lower Noack volatility and lower oil consumption than with a SAE 0W-20 while improving the fuel economy by 0.57% over that of a SAE 0W-16.

Nissan technical review (2021): Development of 0W-8 low-viscosity engine oil for fuel-efficiency improvement

Gokhan, it's good to see you here. I haven't seen you post in a while. Thanks for the article.

 

[RDY4WAR]

Just spitting out numbers... using the average US mileage per year per vehicle of 14,300 miles, and assuming the average mpg of a vehicle that would use such an oil would be ~35 mpg (just throwing out a number), the 0.285 mpg improvement would save 3.3 gallons of gas a year. At the current average US gas price of $3.06/gal (10/15/2021), that would be a savings of $10.91/yr.

 

[paulri]

Times how many millions of drivers, to get us the savings of fuel (and pollutants into the air) for the country overall?

Let's see: no additional wear on engine, I consume less fuel, I save money, air is a tad cleaner. I'll take it.

Just spitting out numbers... using the average US mileage per year per vehicle of 14,300 miles, and assuming the average mpg of a vehicle that would use such an oil would be ~35 mpg (just throwing out a number), the 0.285 mpg improvement would save 3.3 gallons of gas a year. At the current average US gas price of $3.06/gal (10/15/2021), that would be a savings of $10.91/yr.

 

[JavierH19]

They moved the Pathfinder back to a conventional auto.....they may do the same with their entire lineup.

yeah but its a crappy 9spd zf auto which is in a lawsuit. i wish theyd go to aisin seiki.

 

[Gokhan]

Considering that the engine oil in hybrids, especially plug-in hybrids like my Prius Prime, takes a very long time to warm up if it warms up at all, the fuel-economy savings with SAE 0W-8 over SAE 0W-16 could be several percent in real life as opposed to the 0.57% reported in the article. It depends on how the vehicle is driven. It makes a big difference if it is being driven gently in short trips or being driven hard in long trips, the latter of which can even benefit in terms of wear from SAE 0W-20 over SAE 0W-16. Toyota always has a note under oil recommendations that says, "An oil with a higher viscosity (one with a higher value) may be better suited if the vehicle is operated at high speeds, or under extreme load conditions."

 

[DirectRejection]

Subscribed.

 

[vw7674]

Evaporativity???

Evaporativitinessless.? It's got some serious brawndo, which I'm told Nissan powerplants crave.

 

[yowps3]

Motors that run on low viscosity oils like 0w16 are well designed IMO.
Nissan VR30DETT V6 with 400HP runs on 0w20.

Instead of brands like Kia/Hyundai who require thick 5w30 as a cushion for lackluster engineering.

 

[Stumpy]

Like I have said before and backed it up with an article from Industrial Lubrication magazine: The 0W-Whatever and 5w-20 oils are ALL ABOUT INCREASING MPG'S IN TEST LABS and nothing to do with engine protection.

 

[kschachn]

Like I have said before and backed it up with an article from Industrial Lubrication magazine: The 0W-Whatever and 5w-20 oils are ALL ABOUT INCREASING MPG'S IN TEST LABS and nothing to do with engine protection.

What does the winter rating have to do with it? Are you saying that Mobil 1 or Castrol 0W-40 have nothing to do with engine protection?

 

[alarmguy]

Like I have said before and backed it up with an article from Industrial Lubrication magazine: The 0W-Whatever and 5w-20 oils are ALL ABOUT INCREASING MPG'S IN TEST LABS and nothing to do with engine protection.

Pretty amazing, the OP backs up your post.
This is where we have an automobile manufacturer, trying to get the same level of engine protection that a 20 weight oil offers in an 8 weight.
So, in essence proving heavyweight oils, offer more protection.

I guess much in the same way as my midsize 3 row SUV calls for 30 weight oil with so happens also has a factory tow package.
I am sure if a 20 weight oil offered the same protection, they would have gladly recommended that for additional mpg.