What does it mean - "semi" synthetic??

[NewGuy]

Would I be correct in assuming that the term "semi" synthetic refers to a blend of Grp II and Grp III? I have Motorcraft 5W-30 in mind. I was at Wal-Mart looking for deals and the MC semi-synthetic caught my eye.

At $2.77/quart in quart bottles it is a good deal. The 5 qt containers of 5W-20 at $10.50 were a great deal. Getting a qood semi-syn at this price seems like a great deal. It is essentially the same price as PYB and less than GTX.

All of the UOAs on Motorcraft oils look great. I was just wondering about what Grp base oils might be used.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Yes, group II and III, although mainly group II.

 

[widman]

semi-synthetic means anything the maker wants, from 1% to 99%. Sometimes it is marketing that says "put in a little so we can claim it" other times the original base oil is so bad it won't pass some of the tests, so it takes "X" amount to bring it up to snuff.

 

[wiswind]

The Motorcraft Semi-Synthetic is well respected on this forum.
I have read that Walmart is often selling Motorcraft oil cheaper than the FORD dealerships can get it to stock their parts department.

 

[sicko]

Motorcraft has shown itself to be a good choice for oil. Especially b/c you can get the semi-synthetic for less than most conventional oils.

Semi-synthetic means just that, part Group II and part Group III oils. How much of each is up to the manufacturer. Valvoline's website states their semi-synthetics are 30% synthetic, however I've heard that most manufacturer's are in the 10-20% range