What makes VW504/507 special?

[FTTSHO]

Running Mobil 1 ESP 0w-30 in my 2001 Chevy Blazer with the 4.3 Vortec. Have been running this oil for about 400-500 miles now. Drove from Columbia SC to Charlotte NC and back yesterday, and its was great. Oil pressure was slightly higher compared to api 5w-30 I’ve been running before.

I read about all the hype for Mobil 1 ESP 0w-30, its ester/PAO content and the vw504/507 approvals. It’s a very highly regarded oil in this forum. And for $27/5 quart at Walmart seems like an awesome price for such a good oil.

But I have not seen a detailed explanation of how oils get the VW504/507 approval. What tests are done, and is it a suitable oil for a pushrod sbc 4.3 vortec?

If someone can explain what goes into the 504/507 approval, I would greatly appreciate it. Just want to learn about it. Thanks in advance.

 

[Plumb Bob]

504/507

 

[edyvw]

Running Mobil 1 ESP 0w-30 in my 2001 Chevy Blazer with the 4.3 Vortec. Have been running this oil for about 400-500 miles now. Drove from Columbia SC to Charlotte NC and back yesterday, and its was great. Oil pressure was slightly higher compared to api 5w-30 I’ve been running before.

I read about all the hype for Mobil 1 ESP 0w-30, its ester/PAO content and the vw504/507 approvals. It’s a very highly regarded oil in this forum. And for $27/5 quart at Walmart seems like an awesome price for such a good oil.

But I have not seen a detailed explanation of how oils get the VW504/507 approval. What tests are done, and is it a suitable oil for a pushrod sbc 4.3 vortec?

If someone can explain what goes into the 504/507 approval, I would greatly appreciate it. Just want to learn about it. Thanks in advance.

There are numerous explanations in Euro forum.
Basic is that in general Euro approvals have stricter deposit limits, evaporation loss (Noack, API is 15% max, VW504.00 is 11%, ESP 0W30 actual Noack is 9%) stay in grade requirement, and in this case higher HTHS than your regular ILSAC GF-6 oil (min 3.5Cp). HTHS is what matters when it comes to protection. Base stocks are better, more shear stable, and they come with higher ZDDP package.
It is an overkill for your engine, so running it 10k is probably easy peasy.
Downside is that due to higher HTHS, will theoretically consume more gas (up to 1%).

 

[Bailes1992]

Engines in Europe that run on these oils will have manufacturer specified OCI's in excess of 18,000miles. And they're usually very reliable too.

 

[FTTSHO]

There are numerous explanations in Euro forum.
Basic is that in general Euro approvals have stricter deposit limits, evaporation loss (Noack, API is 15% max, VW504.00 is 11%, ESP 0W30 actual Noack is 9%) stay in grade requirement, and in this case higher HTHS than your regular ILSAC GF-6 oil (min 3.5Cp). HTHS is what matters when it comes to protection. Base stocks are better, more shear stable, and they come with higher ZDDP package.
It is an overkill for your engine, so running it 10k is probably easy peasy.
Downside is that due to higher HTHS, will theoretically consume more gas (up to 1%).

Thanks! Seems like a really stout oil. And for the price, I think I’m sold.

I’m gonna try running this oil for 5-6k miles. Also, these 4.3 vortecs aren’t that great on fuel economy no matter what oil is used, so I’m not concerned about it. Didn’t notice a difference when I drove 250 miles the other day.

 

[Zee09]

The price.......

 

[FTTSHO]

The price.......

I get it for $27/5 quart. Not a bad deal when all the other off the shelf oils are about that price or even higher

 

[OVERKILL]

From the Afton specification handbook: