Which OTC oils are GTL?

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Sep 8, 2023
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I've been running Pennzoil Ultra Platinum for 9k miles so far without any consumption. I'll be draining it soon for another run of Pennzoil Ultra Platinum, or perhaps Quaker UD. I've been reading conflicting information about Quaker UD being GTL base due to Shell owning Quaker.

It seems Pennzoil is the only brand that aggressively lables Natural Gas on its labels.

What other mass produced oils are GTL base?
 
With GTL currently cut off from Qatar - this information collected will not remain current …
This is correct. And with blenders being able to interchange other Group III base stocks without retesting, there's little assurance on anything.

It's a bit of a meaningless determinant given the fact that performance isn't necessarily dictated by manufacturing method. There are other high-performance Group III stocks out there.
 
I've been running Pennzoil Ultra Platinum for 9k miles so far without any consumption. I'll be draining it soon for another run of Pennzoil Ultra Platinum, or perhaps Quaker UD. I've been reading conflicting information about Quaker UD being GTL base due to Shell owning Quaker.

It seems Pennzoil is the only brand that aggressively lables Natural Gas on its labels.

What other mass produced oils are GTL base?
Quaker State Ultimate Protection had GTL base on its Safety Data Sheet. Look for "The Fischer-Tropsch process" on its SDS.
 
I'd be really curious if @High Performance Lubricants has any word to pass along on GTL base oil availability as someone in the middle between big guys and customers.

I did notice that prices are notably higher at www.advlubrication.com for the PCEOs. The 4x1 gallon order I paid $145 for in April is now $205, so roughly 50% price spike.

I don't blame HPL, they're dealing with supply shortages just like everyone else is. At least until a large USA-origin GTL facility is up and running. And I think the Cerilon project in ND is still years away from operational if it even sees the light of day-- it's not even under construction yet.

GTL shortage is the reality in the short term. Suddenly PAO might be the more cost-effective option?
 
I've been running Pennzoil Ultra Platinum for 9k miles so far without any consumption. I'll be draining it soon for another run of Pennzoil Ultra Platinum, or perhaps Quaker UD. I've been reading conflicting information about Quaker UD being GTL base due to Shell owning Quaker.

It seems Pennzoil is the only brand that aggressively lables Natural Gas on its labels.

What other mass produced oils are GTL base?
I don't think any oil is prominently GTL base. Pennzoil (aka Shell) historically uses the most GTL because of their plant in the ME and other companies are less likely to advertise GTL because they're buying it from Shell. You can look up the CAS for GTL and then peruse SDS's but those are only as good as the print date
 
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In this current environment there is no guarantee. Blenders can substitute equivalent performing base stocks without recertification as long as it falls within the guidelines of Annex E.

I also wouldn’t trust an SDS in this regard either. SDS certainly don’t drive base stocks and it’s likely they aren’t revised unless there’s a substantive change to the toxicity or flammability.
 
I've been running Pennzoil Ultra Platinum for 9k miles so far without any consumption. I'll be draining it soon for another run of Pennzoil Ultra Platinum, or perhaps Quaker UD. I've been reading conflicting information about Quaker UD being GTL base due to Shell owning Quaker.

It seems Pennzoil is the only brand that aggressively lables Natural Gas on its labels.

What other mass produced oils are GTL base?
With GTL currently cut off from Qatar - this information collected will not remain current …
There is still on the shelves oil packaged 1-2 years ago and that is not affected by the recent conflict in the ME.
There are still plenty of oils that are API SP. Last week in AutoZone I saw diesel oil from 2023. I have at home Valvoline Restore and Protect bought a month ago which is API SP and packaged in 2023 and all the Valvoline Restore and Protect currently dild is that old. On the Mobil 1 ESP which API SQ back label says 2025.

If you look at the back label you'll find out that most oils were packaged 2-3 years ago or at least last year. Maybe rare batches API SQ oils are packaged this year.
 
... If you look at the back label you'll find out that most oils were packaged 2-3 years ago or at least last year. Maybe rare batches API SQ oils are packaged this year.
Most Pennzoil and Quaker State containers I've bought or seen in local Walmarts have been less than six months beyond the date printed on the bottle.
 
I understand that the price increases are completely out of their control, but man that stuff is expensive now ☹️
well, not *completely* out of their control in terms of how much they chose to pass on. But a business is a business and not a charity. Ultimately, you have to do what you think is in your best judgement in terms of keeping the lights on.

I don't want to pay more for HPL but I also want HPL to be around as a going concern. Nobody benefits from them going under. So I'll pay what I need to.

As we've observed on BITOG many times, even some very expensive oil is still pretty cheap in the overall vehicle cost.

If I went bonkers and changed Supercar every 5k miles at today's prices of $75/gallon, I'd still be paying only 1.5c per mile for my oil. It just happens to be that that is 1/10th of the cost I'm paying to fuel my car, which is about 15c per mile.

The tires I'm looking at will be $1000 and last about 30k miles. That's 3c per mile. Or double what it costs to run SuperCar on 5k OCIs at todays' price of $75/gallon.


So yes, while engine oils are going up in price, they're still remarkably cheap compared to fuel and tires on a per mile basis. Heck, my *registration* per year costs more than double the cost of keeping HPL in the car.
 
well, not *completely* out of their control in terms of how much they chose to pass on. But a business is a business and not a charity. Ultimately, you have to do what you think is in your best judgement in terms of keeping the lights on.

I don't want to pay more for HPL but I also want HPL to be around as a going concern. Nobody benefits from them going under. So I'll pay what I need to.

As we've observed on BITOG many times, even some very expensive oil is still pretty cheap in the overall vehicle cost.

If I went bonkers and changed Supercar every 5k miles at today's prices of $75/gallon, I'd still be paying only 1.5c per mile for my oil. It just happens to be that that is 1/10th of the cost I'm paying to fuel my car, which is about 15c per mile.

The tires I'm looking at will be $1000 and last about 30k miles. That's 3c per mile. Or double what it costs to run SuperCar on 5k OCIs at todays' price of $75/gallon.


So yes, while engine oils are going up in price, they're still remarkably cheap compared to fuel and tires on a per mile basis. Heck, my *registration* per year costs more than double the cost of keeping HPL in the car.
I dont care if HPL prices go up 50% Ill pay to keep them in business
 
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