What oil/oils have made your engine more quiet?

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I'm curious because I've really never had an oil make a difference and I'm skeptical of these claims in general. My personal opinion is that it's psychological 90% of the time.

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+1 on fresh oil change.
Never noticed a difference between M1, GC, Havoline on the same car. I am one of those sort of people who fixates on squeaks/rattles-- I think I would notice if there was a difference.
 
Any one notice any difference in mileage/noise going to a higher or lower grade?
 
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Pennzoil yellow bottle was quieter in a Saturn SL1 and Mazda3 vs. same weight Castrol GTX.

Fresh oil change also...subtle improvements in both.
 
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Generally higher viscosity oil. At oil change viscosity is often the highest it will ever see prior to oxidative thickening. M1 in some Audi engines has a bad habit of thinning with increasing chain noise.

You can certainly set this to rest by making a scientific measurement of noise using a sound pressure level meter. The car will need to be in a fixed environment (say a garage), idling at the same RPM at the same oil temperature, with the microphone placed in the same location.
 
Originally Posted By: ericthepig
A 20w50 gave my 4 banger a quieter (albeit dull, heavy, sluggish) sound & feel. Not planning on going to that grade again.
That's interesting because I once put Syntec 5W-40 in a Civic that spec's a 5W-20 viscosity and my sensory perceptions were similar to yours. It changed the sound from "marbles in a bucket" to a deep, dull sound when cruising on the highway.
 
YBPZ 10w-40, Delvac 1300S, GC come to mind. I'm not saying that because they are all thicker, because Havoline Semi-Syn is really smooth and quiet in a 30 weight.

imo, ARX maint dose is the ticket for adding some smoothness.
 
I changed the OEM Agip 5W-40 to 0W-30 Mobil 1 in the Murcielago and the engine was more quiet. Later I changed to 5W-20 Red Line and it was even more quiet.

Since my move to 0W-20 RLI the engine is now silent. Even my wife who did not want to me change the Red Line she loves, noticed the silence.

The Enzo went from the 60 grade Shell to 0W-30 Castrol GC and no major difference was noted. After going to the 0W-30 RLI it is now almost silent, a big difference.

In general the use of a thicker grade will muffle sounds. This does not tell you anything about the oil's function. But going thinner and being more quiet can only be from increased oil function.

aehaas
 
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Since my move to 0W-20 RLI the engine is now silent. Even my wife who did not want to me change the Red Line she loves, noticed the silence.


Interesting. Thx. I've heard a lot of people say that about Redline. Density might be why some oils appear to reduce noise better than others.
 
Almost a couple years ago, when I asked my dealer to drain the dealership's conventional, *bulk* Valvoline 5w-30 from my Camry and replace it with Walmart-bought PP 5w-30, my engine sounded much different: quieter I thought.

I know this wasn't a placebo effect, because a couple years ago as a complete novice who didn't know squat, I wasn't expecting to hear any difference. I just expected the change to synth would bring easier starts in winter. That was my *only* expectation. Nothing else even occurred to me.

All of a sudden while driving with the PP synth, I thought to myself, "Hey, this car sounds a whole lot different. What's up?" Musta been the PP synth the dealer put in.

I know it wasn't a result of new oil, because I had had one other bulk oil change before, and didn't notice anything at all with the new bulk.

By the way, I do my own oil changes now, as of 2 weeks ago
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Oops, in the example above, I should have said I had my dealer put in Mobil 1. I was using Mobil 1 before Penn Plat.

Even though the dealer's bulk oil and Walmart-bought Mobil 1 had the same 5w-30 viscosity, I can't say the change in sound was a result of switching from conventional to synthetic. It may have just been switching to a higher quality, better-made oil, I guess.

I didn't notice any change in sound volume when switching from Mobil 1 to Pennzoil Platinum, but I did notice a change in sound frequency.

I can't wait to try Amsoil and, then RLI after that!
 
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Just don't confuse noise with wear. A heavier oil will damp sound, probably right up to and past the point at which wear increases.
 
Originally Posted By: AEHaas
I changed the OEM Agip 5W-40 to 0W-30 Mobil 1 in the Murcielago and the engine was more quiet. Later I changed to 5W-20 Red Line and it was even more quiet.

Since my move to 0W-20 RLI the engine is now silent. Even my wife who did not want to me change the Red Line she loves, noticed the silence.

Since you have run both Red Line and RLI in similar grades, I am curious about your opinion on those two oils in comparison with one another.

By the way I'm impressed that your wife loves Red Line oil.
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First that she cares at all and, second, that she has pretty good taste!
 
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