Pennzoil Q&A – BITOG Ask Mike Burroughs Anything
Questions for Sean
[1] Pennzoil Lubrication Limited Warranty
Questions for Sean
- Why do some oils quiet your engine down at idle compared to other brands?
- Mechanically, an engine will quiet down if the metal parts no longer touch or rub against each other. This is due to the ability of the motor oil to reach those critical areas and form an oil film quicker, separating the metal components from one another and helping to quiet down the engine. Also, additive technology plays a part in forming a protective film and aids in forming that oil film. Pennzoil’s GTL base oil contributes to this. It has better film strength than other base oils of similar viscosity due to its purity of impurities and high concentration of homogeneity.
- Realizing that this only works with your daily driver, you are in tune with, but why do some different brands of oil make your engine seem like it accelerates-pulls better with your butt dyno compared to the previous same exact viscosity oil from a different brand?
- We teach that motor oil is there to protect, lubricate, clean and get out of the way for the engine to do what it does: power the vehicle. When you balance those factors with high-quality additives and base oil, the engine may feel more responsive to the demands placed upon it.
- I mean, I have witnessed this through the years, and I wonder how certain oil companies' lubricant engineers do this. More moly, higher quality base stocks? A better ring seal, giving a little more compression. I know this happens, but it has perplexed me through the years. Can you give me a little insight as to how this is accomplished?
- We have always taught that engineering a motor oil formulation is very much like making your favorite soup. You start with quality base stock, which helps to give you the initial flavors, i.e., better oxidation resistance, better low temperature performance, additive responsiveness, volatility resistance and others. Then, as chemists, we can focus on the performance additives to improve or enhance the performance we want to achieve, so that your “chicken noodle soup” is the best flavor that fits your taste.
- Are you guys reverse-engineering what Valvoline R&P is doing?
- No. Pennzoil Ultra Platinum™ is our best full synthetic motor oil and our most advanced formulation for high performance engines. At Pennzoil, we tirelessly strive to produce the most technologically advanced, highest performing motor oils on the market.
- Why is Pennzoil Platinum dexos approved, and Pennzoil Ultra Platinum isn’t?
- Despite not having the certification on Pennzoil Ultra Platinum™, we are confident that our Pennzoil Ultra Platinum™ formulations are capable of meeting and exceeding the performance requirements for Dexos1Gen3. Having the Dexos certification comes at an additional cost but does not improve the product's efficacy.
- What is the difference between Platinum and Platinum High Mileage? Why is it getting hard to find 10w-30 in either Platinum Plus or Platinum? Platinum Plus is SP & GF6A, while Platinum is SQ & GF7A. Why would the "premium" product have an older rating?
- Pennzoil® High Mileage Full Synthetic is created specifically for engines with 75,000 miles or more. It offers the same protection as Pennzoil® Full Synthetic but has the added benefits of a high-mileage oil, such as reduced oil consumption, wear protection, and seal swell technology.
- As of April 21, 2025, all Pennzoil Platinum® and Pennzoil Platinum® High Mileage products meet the API SQ specification.
- Platinum and Platinum Plus are made with natural gas. How is this superior to crude?
- Crude oil can be refined and synthesized to a level that is called synthetic, meaning that it has a sulfur concentration below 0.03%, saturates level above 90% and a viscosity index above 120. However, synthesized crude may contain impurities that can lead to oxidative degradation under extreme heat. Pennzoil’s GTL technology is derived from natural gas ( Shell's GTL technology ), which removes more than 99.5% of impurities. This synthetic base oil can give better heat and extreme cold resistance, better film strength, superior aeration properties, less volatility and improved heat conductivity than standard refined crude synthetics.
- I've read that the only difference in SQ is the aged oil LSPI test, but what octane fuel is being used? Are people actually putting lower octane fuel in because they feel safe that the computer will adjust for it? Does Pennzoil account for possible improper fuel use in formulating SP & SQ?
- The API SQ specification provides performance requirements for engine oils to be backward compatible with previous API categories. Three major areas of improvement in API SQ are the aged oil LSPI, tighter limits on chain wear protection, better cleanliness in piston deposits, improved filterability, lowered ASH content and seal compatibility. API SQ also introduced two low viscosity specifications, SAE 0W-8 and 0W-12. Added to that is the ILSAC GF-7 specification, which also required improved fuel economy performance.
- I'm asking for your thoughts: I have a 2024 GMC Canyon Elevation 2.7 turbo L3B Hi Output 4 cylinder. Oil temps are 225° to as high as 235°, driving on the interstate, NOT pulling/hauling anything. I was going to use PUP, but it's not Dexos-approved. Which product should I consider?
- First, is your vehicle still under warranty? If it is, we recommend using Pennzoil Platinum® Full Synthetic, which has a 15-year, 500,000-mile warranty.[1] As for our Pennzoil Ultra Platinum™, it is also made with our GTL base oil technology and boosted additive technology over the Platinum line. We decided not to apply for the Dexos approval mainly as a business decision.
- Pennzoil Platinum went from having no miles on the jug to being guaranteed 15,000 miles. What changed in the oil formula?
- This was a decision to include warranty information on the product and not driven by a formulation change.
- 86 Porsche 944 Turbo. 260K miles on all original bottom end. Tough on oils 1986 OEM spec for my CA climate 90-100 Summer temps was 20w50 15w40. I've been using Delo 15w40 and other Diesel non-syn. Changes at 3K. Since the purchase in 2010. I just accidentally bought 8 jugs of the latest Delo synth blend-ISOSYN15W40. I haven’t decided whether I should use it or not. I need better modern oil. What Pennzoil Platinum would you recommend?
- Unfortunately, Pennzoil does not currently make an oil for your classic Porsche. We recommend using our Shell Rotella T4 or T5 15W-40, which is formulated to protect the engine of your Porsche and other classic vehicles.
- Why is PUP 5w-30 so thin that it barely meets the viscosity spec when the oil is new? Should I be concerned about the viscosity falling out of range during operation due to shear or other operational aspects? Specifically, Ford 3.5L EcoBoost.
- All Pennzoil full synthetic oils are designed to maintain their viscosity grade throughout the entire oil drain interval. Lower viscosity oils like Pennzoil Ultra Platinum™ offer the benefits of faster flow at start-up, quicker engine warm-up and better fuel economy. As mentioned in the previous question, all motor oil must be tested for viscosity retention. Thus, we are not concerned about viscosity loss during use.
- If not too late, why does PP 5W40 have a Porsche A40 approval but not 0W40? Is it simply a case of "not submitting samples for testing?"
- Yes.
- The following does not require an answer. It is an observation from a PUP user and fan:
- It would be nice, and very appreciated, if Pennzoil posted several YouTube videos showing how clean pistons are (without any touch-up cleaning at all), that were taken from vehicles that ran PUP for many miles. I have seen the one about a 300,000-mile engine. But I think there should be several more.
Please work on actually showing how clean PUP keeps piston rings. Thanks for making a great oil.
- It would be nice, and very appreciated, if Pennzoil posted several YouTube videos showing how clean pistons are (without any touch-up cleaning at all), that were taken from vehicles that ran PUP for many miles. I have seen the one about a 300,000-mile engine. But I think there should be several more.
- Thank you for using Pennzoil Ultra Platinum™. We appreciate your feedback on Pennzoil videos. Your input helps us consider the types of videos to be developed in the future.
[1] Pennzoil Lubrication Limited Warranty
