"Premium synthetics"
- Thread starter Matty in NJ
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Bill, it's a wonderful land we live in
Premium oils? Or just good oil for the money and performance?
I see products that work well and make sense financially or are better suited to my needs.
We have lots of vehicles with lots of drivers, and they are operated in a fairly demanding environment.
Oils that provide top levels of protection over the widest range of conditions with the lowest rate of oil consumption/ evaporation are perhaps my safest strategy and will likely produce the lowest cost of operation /ownership.
Even at 30 MPG we probably spend more than $9000 / year in fuel and over $8000 / year to insure all the cars.
Yet, with 7K OCI that is only 13 oil changes per year total. My cost for oil is probably $400+ per year.
Even if I used only free oil...I still have to buy filters, take the time to change oil, perhaps up to 30 times per year, and I run the risk that a driver will run low on oil and cost me many thousands of dollars.
Personally, I like Redline, GC, Mobil 1 /EP, Pennzoil Platinum, Delvac 1, Amsoil, Valvoline Maxlife, etc. etc.
Mobil 1 now costs $5.68/ qt and EP costs $6.22/qt at Wally World that's $6.20/qt and $6.78 /qt after tax.
Pennzoil Platinum costs $3.97 /qt or $4.33 /qt after tax.
GC cost me $5.00 /qt
Redline costs me $7.79/qt including shipping.
Delvac 1 5W-40 costs me $96.00 per case of 4 gallons or $6.00/qt
I can get some Pennzoil Platinum for $2.50/qt to $2.60/qt with rebates.
I can get Valvoline Maxlife for free with rebates.
I can't see where I decide an oil is 'Premium' based on price, only on performance.
I can see where an oil is a good oil based on my maintenance standards, the quality of the basestocks, additives, reputation... and likely performance.
So if I had to hazard a guess as to why people are switching to 'Premium' synthetics it is that they may cost a little bit more, but they can be worth it!
I see products that work well and make sense financially or are better suited to my needs.
We have lots of vehicles with lots of drivers, and they are operated in a fairly demanding environment.
Oils that provide top levels of protection over the widest range of conditions with the lowest rate of oil consumption/ evaporation are perhaps my safest strategy and will likely produce the lowest cost of operation /ownership.
Even at 30 MPG we probably spend more than $9000 / year in fuel and over $8000 / year to insure all the cars.
Yet, with 7K OCI that is only 13 oil changes per year total. My cost for oil is probably $400+ per year.
Even if I used only free oil...I still have to buy filters, take the time to change oil, perhaps up to 30 times per year, and I run the risk that a driver will run low on oil and cost me many thousands of dollars.
Personally, I like Redline, GC, Mobil 1 /EP, Pennzoil Platinum, Delvac 1, Amsoil, Valvoline Maxlife, etc. etc.
Mobil 1 now costs $5.68/ qt and EP costs $6.22/qt at Wally World that's $6.20/qt and $6.78 /qt after tax.
Pennzoil Platinum costs $3.97 /qt or $4.33 /qt after tax.
GC cost me $5.00 /qt
Redline costs me $7.79/qt including shipping.
Delvac 1 5W-40 costs me $96.00 per case of 4 gallons or $6.00/qt
I can get some Pennzoil Platinum for $2.50/qt to $2.60/qt with rebates.
I can get Valvoline Maxlife for free with rebates.
I can't see where I decide an oil is 'Premium' based on price, only on performance.
I can see where an oil is a good oil based on my maintenance standards, the quality of the basestocks, additives, reputation... and likely performance.
So if I had to hazard a guess as to why people are switching to 'Premium' synthetics it is that they may cost a little bit more, but they can be worth it!
Premium synthetics are worth the money if:
You extend your OCI. I double mine with "true" synthetics.
You drive alot and your idea of fun is not crawling under the car in 90 degree heat on a Sunday afternoon. I know, I know I'm not talking about the people on these forums (we're slightly off anyway) I talking about the rest of the country.
You own a sluge monster like the last generation Toyota V6 or VWs 1.8T.
Severe duty such as towing, idling etc.
This stuff does not apply to most people and that's probably why most vehicles last many years and miles on just regular old oil changes.
You extend your OCI. I double mine with "true" synthetics.
You drive alot and your idea of fun is not crawling under the car in 90 degree heat on a Sunday afternoon. I know, I know I'm not talking about the people on these forums (we're slightly off anyway) I talking about the rest of the country.
You own a sluge monster like the last generation Toyota V6 or VWs 1.8T.
Severe duty such as towing, idling etc.
This stuff does not apply to most people and that's probably why most vehicles last many years and miles on just regular old oil changes.
Yes, unless we are talking a about plant or animal based gp V (which I don't even know who uses those sorces), it all comes from fossil fuels.
Very few people have a need for synth. It's perception. And in marketing, perception is everything.
I agree 100%. If personally think if more people did testing, they would know what they need.
I think performance is what makes these oils 'premium' at least in the case of certain Mobil 1, GC, and Redline.
Performance like high film strength, low rates of evaporation, better protection over long oil change intervals and at sustained wide open throttle.
Most likely this is the result of the choice of basestocks, additive packages, and overall design.
Most high performance cars spec oils like Mobil 1 0W-40, Shell Helix Ultra, Castrol Syntec 0W-30, custom blended 5W-30 group III oils.
Many people who run their vehicles hard, or take them to the track upgrade to oils like Redline.
'Conventional' or non-premium oils are approaching these levels of performance, but, even conventional dino oils, are no longer conventional and contain less and less of what most people thought of as 'dino'. In the last 10 years or so, oil companies have released many price competive basestocks that approach
I wonder if the performance provided by premium synthetics on street car helped to inspire the work that produced this rapid progress in motor oil standards and performance
Every time I drive my 21 year old car with ~500K on a great running original motor I think that 'premium synthetic' Redline oil helped to get it there.
Performance like high film strength, low rates of evaporation, better protection over long oil change intervals and at sustained wide open throttle.
Most likely this is the result of the choice of basestocks, additive packages, and overall design.
Most high performance cars spec oils like Mobil 1 0W-40, Shell Helix Ultra, Castrol Syntec 0W-30, custom blended 5W-30 group III oils.
Many people who run their vehicles hard, or take them to the track upgrade to oils like Redline.
'Conventional' or non-premium oils are approaching these levels of performance, but, even conventional dino oils, are no longer conventional and contain less and less of what most people thought of as 'dino'. In the last 10 years or so, oil companies have released many price competive basestocks that approach
I wonder if the performance provided by premium synthetics on street car helped to inspire the work that produced this rapid progress in motor oil standards and performance
Every time I drive my 21 year old car with ~500K on a great running original motor I think that 'premium synthetic' Redline oil helped to get it there.
people talk about the price difference between PP and M1 because PP is protecting as good/better than M1 for a cheaper price. Why pay more for the "same or worse" protection? Paying a little extra makes sense if you just want the best, but why pay more when you get less?
I don't think anybody is saying that hands down PP is better than M1. Rather, via UOA's and other testimonies, PP seems to provide nearly as good, or as good of protection as M1 for a lower cost.
If you want educated, look in the UOA section and use the search feature on the forum.
The concensus I see on this site is that although PP is good, its a bit of a step down from Mobil 1. In addition, PP is made from conventional oil and Mobil 1 is a pure synthetic. I've only seen one UOA on here where someone ran PP out to 10,000 miles, whereas people do it a lot with Mobil 1. If PP's as good as Mobil 1, how come most people seem nervous about running it 10,000 miles? I'm not saying that PP's not a good syn oil. I think it is, just not quite as good as Mobil 1.
Probably because in the big picture, it's a relatively new syn oil. People are nervous to be one of the firsts to do something like running an oil 10K. Plus, for most people, it probably takes a while to rack up 10K on an oil so that's why there aren't a lot of long distance UOA's right now. I'm running it right now in my Mazda3. I am running it for 7500K (max for warranty). I can't run it 7500K miles overnight but as soon as I reach 7500K, you can be sure that I'll be posting a UOA.
I'm not saying Mobil1 isn't a good oil b/c I know it is and I like Mobil1. It has served me good in the past. But for the money, I have switched over to Platinum until somebody can show me that it's not a good synthetic for the money.
How is the synth molecule EOP that much different than PAO? This is why people are scared to run PP long OCIs. Everyone is still unsure what EOP is, lol!
People are testing the water and if PP keeps the same quality formula and good uoas keep turning up, people will run it just as long as M1. It takes time to build a reputation.
People are testing the water and if PP keeps the same quality formula and good uoas keep turning up, people will run it just as long as M1. It takes time to build a reputation.
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