Oinion of Subaru brand oil

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q12

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Is Subaru 0w20 brand oil inferior to, equal to or superior to Mobil 1 0W20 oil?
 
since you are asking for an opinion.

I like the subaru oil it has a high VI and provides good results.

the M1 has lower vi but maybe a better additive pack? who knows

I would use whichever I could get cheaper.
 
A lot of things factor into the oil besides VI. It depends on how much is natural, what types of VII's are used. Mobil 1 0w20 is a very capable oil I don't think anyone can say with any amount of certainty whether one is inferior to the other. I would purchase off of price-point. Subaru, Toyota and Mazda 0w20's all appear to have good qualities and would be more than adequate for the temps we see in N/A.
 
Rand,

I’m not an expert or even well versed in engine oil, but my understanding is that viscosity is resistance to flow. Wouldn’t the lower number mean that M1 would flow more quickly?
 
its not viscosity its viscosity index.

read the link i posted.

Quote:
Viscosity index (VI) is an arbitrary measure for the change of viscosity with temperature. It is used to characterize lubricating oil in the automotive industry.

The viscosity of liquids decreases as temperature increases. The viscosity of a lubricant is closely related to its ability to reduce friction. Generally, the least viscous lubricant which still forces the two moving surfaces apart is desired. If the lubricant is too viscous, it will require a large amount of energy to move (as in honey); if it is too thin, the surfaces will rub and friction will increase.

As stated above, the Viscosity Index highlights how a lubricant's viscosity changes with variations in temperature. Many lubricant applications require the lubricant to perform across a wide range of conditions: for example, in an engine. Automotive lubricants must reduce friction between engine components when it is started from cold (relative to engine operating temperatures) as well as when it is running (up to 200 °C or 392 °F). The best oils (with the highest VI) will not vary much in viscosity over such a temperature range and therefore will perform well throughout.

The VI scale was set up by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). The temperatures chosen arbitrarily for reference are 100 and 210 °F (38 and 99 °C). The original scale only stretched between VI=0 (worst oil, naphthalene) and VI=100 (best oil, paraffin) but since the conception of the scale better oils have also been produced, leading to VIs greater than 100 (see below).
 
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The only way to know which oil might be better is to look at the VOA's and data sheets. Some X/20's sold under a manufacturers label contain an unusual amount of Moly or other anti wear additives and it is good to know if that is the case, because it does give a hint that the engine requires extra protection from the effects of thinner oil films. The oils that do have high anti wear contents tend to have reduced detergent levels, so it is good to know what the add pack contains when figuring out an OCI.
Subaru do have a fairly good reputation, so if it turns out the add pack of their oil is very different to the other 0/20's I would be inclined to use the Subaru oil.
 
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i could certainly postulate that onions fried in subaru branded oil would have a slight musky flavor.
 
One comment I will make specifically regarding the manufacturers oil choice is to do with my Volvo.

Now this car has been run on Castrol Magnatec 5w30 A5/B5 oil since I have owned it and had full Volvo history prior to that so I would expect they used Castrol aswell.

Now I have recently put in Comma X Tech 5w30 A5/B5 meets all the same specs.

When first started the engine seemed to be ever so slightly less noisey, not really quieter, just that the sounds seemed to be more damped if that makes sense.

Now on driving the car it performs fine but one characteristic of this particular engine is the sound it makes when you accelerate, probably diesel knock but who knows, all the ones I have driven sound the same.

But with the Comma oil this noise is louder than before.

Will need to check VI values for the two oils.

Fuel consumption is still good and the engine performs as normal.

But I suspect I will be going back to Castrol Magnatec on the next change, as there may be more to the manufcturers recommendation than I previously thought.

Though i might just give Mobil 3000 X1 Formula FE 5w30 a go, even though it is an A5/B5 full synth it has a relatively low saps as 0.8 so I think it will be fine to use in the Pathfinder.

Have got a workshop manual for that and it says low HTHS oils are ok for this engine, might even get more than 22mpg out of it!
 
Originally Posted By: cptbarkey
i could certainly postulate that onions fried in subaru branded oil would have a slight musky flavor.


Absolutely hilarious
crackmeup2.gif
 
q12, what is your dealer charging per quart for the Subaru 0w20 engine oil?

Out of curiosity, what model Soob do you have? I presume it's a 2012-13 model year with an FB series engine?

My 2012 Legacy 2.5i still recommends plain'ol 5w30 thankfully.

Joel
 
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JTK,

2013 Outback. Don't know about price of oil, haven't needed it yet.
 
Originally Posted By: Rand
viscosity index.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viscosity_index

the subaru oil is near 200

the M1 is around 172?

the lowest vi 0w20 is 161

the highest that I know of is around 210-220

Actually the Idemitsu made Subaru SN 0W-20 has a lowish VI of 169; the lowest of all the Japanese OEM 0W-20s.

The Mobil made Toyota 0W-20 (VI 216) is a much better choice than M1 0W-20 for the Subie or any vehicle that is spec'd for a 0W-20.
Other preferred high VI 0W-20 options are:
Mazda 0W-20 (221 VI)
Sustina " (229 VI)
SynGard " (220 VI)
 
I have found that not many oil filter brands have a filter for the 2013 Outback yet.
 
You will have zero problems with the Subaru oil compared to the Mobil 1 oil. By whatever one is cheaper. Stick to the OEM Subaru filter.
 
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