Why switch to a high mileage oil ?

Joined
Aug 5, 2021
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on the road in NE Oklahoma
After reading over numerous high mileage topics I still don’t have any definitive answer to the question, “why switch to a high mileage oil”.

I don’t especially think of my daily driver 2002 Jaguar XKR as being a high mileage car as it has just 175,000 miles on it over a 20 year time period. I’ve always thought of high mileage cars having 250,000 to 500,000 miles on the drivetrain.

The 4.0 L V-8 supercharged engine does not leak, and has no measurable oil consumption between oil changes. Currently using Mobil 1 0w-40 and have been since I purchased the car 4 years ago with about 116,000 miles on it.

But Mobil references the 75,000 mile mark as being high mileage. And says this on their oil comparison table:


What would a high mileage oil give me that I’m not getting now with the M-1 0w-40 ?

Thanks !

Z
 

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A small amount of extra seal conditioners. For a vehicle that is well maintained, not burning oil and already using a high quality oil such as yours it is not something to worry about. Now adays 75000 is an arbitrary number that doesn't really mean much to play into marketing.
 
Seal conditioners probably help a car that needs them, and I'm unconvinced that the added seal conditioners would harm a car that doesn't need them. I don't see how it would harm?
 
The average person who sees the High Mileage labeling is going to think this oil will help with smoking, knocking, excessive oil consumption, hard starting, etc. that neglected high mileage vehicles may have. They have no idea the only thing it helps with is minor leaking. All marketing hype.
 
Pennzoil doesn't think you should. This guy's podcast series is on Pennzoil.com so it would seem to be corporate policy.


This commentary makes sense. If seal conditioners really do cause seals to swell, you want to do that when there has been some wear, not when the engine is tight and new. Presumably that little bit of swelling would eventually be worn away and the only options at that point would be to let it leak or to replace the seal. At least that's the theory.

In practice I'm not so sure. I've never used a high mileage motor oil. But if you have a high mileage engine that's leaking a little oil from here and there, using a bit of oil, or smoking a little on start up, trying a high mileage oil couldn't hurt.
 
Elastomer Compatibility is a requirement requires to the rating SP for example , an SP high mile oil has to meet the SP Elastomer Compatibility specifications . oil specs.
 
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