Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
Originally Posted By: harrydog
Well does that mean that oil can not exceed the minimum requirements needed to meet the approvals?
Of course not. An oil could do significantly better than the limits of the test and get approved. The purpose is that it at least meets those requirements. Overachievement isn't an issue.
Originally Posted By: harrydog
By no means am I implying that the approvals are worthless. Far from it. But just because an oil has gotten the approval from a manufacturer doesn't mean that it is the best oil you can get for that application.
No, but it DOES mean that the oil has been tested and approved for being suitable for that application, which is a heck of a lot better of a start than somebody's marketing claim that it "should" be better
Originally Posted By: harrydog
There are differences among oils that meet the same specs. For example some oils are already good enough to meet the next generation of manufacturers specs while others will need to be reformulated in order to meet them.
This is true, and that's why it is nice to look at an oil that has a myriad of approvals, all of which you know are demanding, as a way of perhaps divining some insight into this.
However, one also must consider that if oil "A" exceeds the performance requirements for your engine, what advantages are you going to see from running oil "B", which exceeds them by a bit more?
That is, if oil "A" is approved and will allow your engine to run happily well past the life of the chassis it is fitted in, the transmission it is mated to and on into the wrecking yard, is concerning yourself over how much better "B" might be over "A" relevant?
This is Bob is the Oil Guy, remember? If approvals were all that the forum members cared about then there wouldn't be much left to discuss. What's not relevant to some may be very relevant to others. Some of us want to extend OCI's as long as possible. Others want to minimize wear to the highest degree, even if it is a minuscule amount. And some may have other priorities.
If there is an oil out there that might be better than Mobil 1, which is my default oil, then I' want to know about it.
There are a number of oils out there that meet VW, BMW, Porsche and MB approvals. I'm fairly certain that some are better than others. There are also oils out there that do not have these approvals which very well might be even better. It costs money to get an oil approved by a manufacturer. Some of the smaller companies like Amsoil, Red Line, RLI and others can't or won't justify the expense but that doesn't automatically mean they are inferior.
Let's face it - in most cases big corporations are not going to do any more than they really have to do in order to meet approvals because the VAST majority of consumers don't look into it any deeper than that. In fact my guess is, the majority of consumers don't even care what oil is put in their engines.
Smaller boutique companies have carved out a niche by trying to formulate the highest quality oil they can because that's the only way they can stay in business. Whether these oils are really any better is definitely up for debate. The only way to prove anything one way or the other is by looking at the results of numerous UOA's.
At this point I will use Mobil 1 but I'm always looking for something better.
Originally Posted By: harrydog
Well does that mean that oil can not exceed the minimum requirements needed to meet the approvals?
Of course not. An oil could do significantly better than the limits of the test and get approved. The purpose is that it at least meets those requirements. Overachievement isn't an issue.
Originally Posted By: harrydog
By no means am I implying that the approvals are worthless. Far from it. But just because an oil has gotten the approval from a manufacturer doesn't mean that it is the best oil you can get for that application.
No, but it DOES mean that the oil has been tested and approved for being suitable for that application, which is a heck of a lot better of a start than somebody's marketing claim that it "should" be better
Originally Posted By: harrydog
There are differences among oils that meet the same specs. For example some oils are already good enough to meet the next generation of manufacturers specs while others will need to be reformulated in order to meet them.
This is true, and that's why it is nice to look at an oil that has a myriad of approvals, all of which you know are demanding, as a way of perhaps divining some insight into this.
However, one also must consider that if oil "A" exceeds the performance requirements for your engine, what advantages are you going to see from running oil "B", which exceeds them by a bit more?
That is, if oil "A" is approved and will allow your engine to run happily well past the life of the chassis it is fitted in, the transmission it is mated to and on into the wrecking yard, is concerning yourself over how much better "B" might be over "A" relevant?
This is Bob is the Oil Guy, remember? If approvals were all that the forum members cared about then there wouldn't be much left to discuss. What's not relevant to some may be very relevant to others. Some of us want to extend OCI's as long as possible. Others want to minimize wear to the highest degree, even if it is a minuscule amount. And some may have other priorities.
If there is an oil out there that might be better than Mobil 1, which is my default oil, then I' want to know about it.
There are a number of oils out there that meet VW, BMW, Porsche and MB approvals. I'm fairly certain that some are better than others. There are also oils out there that do not have these approvals which very well might be even better. It costs money to get an oil approved by a manufacturer. Some of the smaller companies like Amsoil, Red Line, RLI and others can't or won't justify the expense but that doesn't automatically mean they are inferior.
Let's face it - in most cases big corporations are not going to do any more than they really have to do in order to meet approvals because the VAST majority of consumers don't look into it any deeper than that. In fact my guess is, the majority of consumers don't even care what oil is put in their engines.
Smaller boutique companies have carved out a niche by trying to formulate the highest quality oil they can because that's the only way they can stay in business. Whether these oils are really any better is definitely up for debate. The only way to prove anything one way or the other is by looking at the results of numerous UOA's.
At this point I will use Mobil 1 but I'm always looking for something better.