Current List of Oil preferences

[pscholte]

Originally Posted By: jrustles
At the moment
Conventionals:
PYB
Safety-Kleen re-refined

Non-conventional:
Redline
Ultra
Petro-Canada

Would prefer if they were available around here:
Chevron products
CP products


Do you have to pay the heavy mark ups on Euro oils in Canada or are they a bit more reasonable than in Europe? TNX

 

[pscholte]

Originally Posted By: supercity
I've always liked Mobil 1 but it's just too darn expensive here. Lower tier Mobil is however a good deal. I've never used Penrite engine oil before but it really makes sense. Penrite Racing for a performance application and Penrite GF-5 for a daily.





supercity,

Do you pay hefty petroleum taxes in OZ or are your oil and fuel more less costly than in Europe?

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: jrustles
Would prefer if they were available around here:
Chevron products
CP products

The C-P stuff is very hard to find. We have possibly one distributor in this province, in a small town to boot. As for Chevron products, Husky/Mohawk is the official distributor out west at least. It might be worth a try out your way, too.

 

[pscholte]

Garak,

G37...NICE ride. We were given one as a loaner while our FX-35 was getting its umpteen mile maintenance. Hot...really hot...I do have to say however, at our altitude (about 7000 ft at the house) NOTHING matches the twin turbo 2.7 Audi A6 we had. Put the shock on a lot of people on the Interstate who THOUGHT they were going to run up on me while I merged into traffic.

 

[supercity]

Originally Posted By: pscholte
Originally Posted By: supercity
I've always liked Mobil 1 but it's just too darn expensive here. Lower tier Mobil is however a good deal. I've never used Penrite engine oil before but it really makes sense. Penrite Racing for a performance application and Penrite GF-5 for a daily.





supercity,

Do you pay hefty petroleum taxes in OZ or are your oil and fuel more less costly than in Europe?


I think fuel is cheaper here than Europe. We have a 10% tax on sales and there is of course a lot of tax on fuel. I don't know about tax on other petroleum products like oil. Price of regular fuel today is $1.40 per litre ($5.3/gal) but the price can fluctuate up and down 20c on a weekly cycle.

As for Mobil 1, it's a lot more expensive than the other big name synthetic lubricants from Shell, Valvoline, Castrol etc so its nothing to do with tax.

 

[virginoil]

Originally Posted By: Shannow
Never thought I'd be saying it, Penrite at the moment (Racing). Techs advised that it's fine for normal OCIs, has PAO, Ester, moly and boron, and calcium.

M1 0W-40 is a fave, but $100 per 5L is asking too much.
....................


Yep, I agree and that's what I shifted to Penrite Racing 10w40 around 12 months ago. Its advertised to be free of shear.

 

[Falcon_LS]

Which Liqui Moly? I love their PAO based Synthoil line up, the 5W-40 and the 10W-60 in particular. Other than that, Pennzoil Ultra Euro 5W-40 and Mobil 1 0W-40.

 

[pscholte]

Originally Posted By: Falcon_LS
Which Liqui Moly? I love their PAO based Synthoil line up, the 5W-40 and the 10W-60 in particular. Other than that, Pennzoil Ultra Euro 5W-40 and Mobil 1 0W-40.


Longtime Plus 0W-30

 

[Noobie]

Mobil 1 0W-40 runs for almost $14 per quart here. (Including taxes)
I only use Mobil 1 0W-40 although i have used Shell Helix Ultra 5W-40 in the past.

 

[jrustles]

Originally Posted By: pscholte
Originally Posted By: jrustles
At the moment
Conventionals:
PYB
Safety-Kleen re-refined

Non-conventional:
Redline
Ultra
Petro-Canada

Would prefer if they were available around here:
Chevron products
CP products


Do you have to pay the heavy mark ups on Euro oils in Canada or are they a bit more reasonable than in Europe? TNX


Well, we don't get the selection of Euro oils that Europe gets, but as for what's available, there is certainly a pemium on it, relative to the rest of our market. But still cheaper than in Europe.

 

[jrustles]

Originally Posted By: Garak
Originally Posted By: jrustles
Would prefer if they were available around here:
Chevron products
CP products

The C-P stuff is very hard to find. We have possibly one distributor in this province, in a small town to boot. As for Chevron products, Husky/Mohawk is the official distributor out west at least. It might be worth a try out your way, too.


Interesting abut the CP stuff. I have never seen it around ON but I will check a Husky outlet to see what they've got. Thanks

 

[vinu_neuro]

I love SOPUS products more than anything else. They're the only ones that consistently hit all the points. Unless you have special needs anti-wear isn't much of a concern these days, they all get it done exceedingly well. The big factors in choosing a product for me are (not in this order):

-Detergency/ deposit resistance (M1 and SOPUS are very good at this, Castrol not as much)
-NVH (SOPUS and Castrol very good, M1 by far the worst)
-Efficiency (they're all pretty good except the Castrol Euro oils in my experience)
-Resistance to consumption. For some reason NOACK doesn't give the whole picture, eg. some conventional with higher volatility produce less consumption. This is irrelevant if your engine family by nature doesn't consume, but many high-performance engines do. (SOPUS and Castrol the best, M1 by far the worst).
-Cost and availability (for non-Euro oils they're all pretty cheap esp on sale, for Euro M1 and Castrol don't have any competitors, esp M1 which you can walk into any WM and buy cheaply anytime).
-Scale. R&D budget. Access to OEM's (not just approvals). The big companies can deliver better products at lower prices. I'll only use oils that are from big companies, in North America that means M1, SOPUS, Castrol.

If my engine didn't use oil I'd use Pennzoil 5W-40. M1 0W-40 is the king of the lubricant world in performance, but Pennzoil 5W-40 has the same important approvals and is better at consumption resistance and is quite a bit better at NVH.

 

[buster]

Originally Posted By: pscholte
Originally Posted By: buster
Quote:
(1). Total Quartz. (2). Pennzoil Ultra. (3) Liqui Moly. (4). Quaker State Ultimate Endurance. (5) Mobil 1. (6) Amsoil. (7). Kendall GT-1 Full Syn (8). BC. (9). GC (10). Millers


Nice choices.

My list would be something like this:

1. Valvoline 2. Ultra/PP 3. M1 4. Millers

I like the shelf brands. I think they are better than ever.

With boutiques, it has to be VERY unique and worth ordering via mail. Fuchs is up there too.

I think Shell/PZ has the best value/wear/cleanliness properties.


I am curious about your number 1 position for Valvoline. Which Valvoline do you prefer? I do agree with you that the shelf brands are better than ever.


I like Valvoline for a few reasons. Their oils are much better than they used to be. I like the idea behind NextGen and I like MaxLife ATF and HM oil for HM vehciles.

I also think Synpower is a top notch synthetic using a good Lubrizol additive package.

 

[buster]

Originally Posted By: vinu_neuro
I love SOPUS products more than anything else. They're the only ones that consistently hit all the points. Unless you have special needs anti-wear isn't much of a concern these days, they all get it done exceedingly well. The big factors in choosing a product for me are (not in this order):

-Detergency/ deposit resistance (M1 and SOPUS are very good at this, Castrol not as much)
-NVH (SOPUS and Castrol very good, M1 by far the worst)
-Efficiency (they're all pretty good except the Castrol Euro oils in my experience)
-Resistance to consumption. For some reason NOACK doesn't give the whole picture, eg. some conventional with higher volatility produce less consumption. This is irrelevant if your engine family by nature doesn't consume, but many high-performance engines do. (SOPUS and Castrol the best, M1 by far the worst).
-Cost and availability (for non-Euro oils they're all pretty cheap esp on sale, for Euro M1 and Castrol don't have any competitors, esp M1 which you can walk into any WM and buy cheaply anytime).
-Scale. R&D budget. Access to OEM's (not just approvals). The big companies can deliver better products at lower prices. I'll only use oils that are from big companies, in North America that means M1, SOPUS, Castrol.

If my engine didn't use oil I'd use Pennzoil 5W-40. M1 0W-40 is the king of the lubricant world in performance, but Pennzoil 5W-40 has the same important approvals and is better at consumption resistance and is quite a bit better at NVH.


Pretty valid points. +1

 

[pscholte]

Originally Posted By: Noobie
Mobil 1 0W-40 runs for almost $14 per quart here. (Including taxes)
I only use Mobil 1 0W-40 although i have used Shell Helix Ultra 5W-40 in the past.


Is the Helix cheaper or equivalent? Sounds like in some places M1 is MUCH higher.

 

[pscholte]

Originally Posted By: vinu_neuro
I love SOPUS products more than anything else. They're the only ones that consistently hit all the points. Unless you have special needs anti-wear isn't much of a concern these days, they all get it done exceedingly well. The big factors in choosing a product for me are (not in this order):

-Detergency/ deposit resistance (M1 and SOPUS are very good at this, Castrol not as much)
-NVH (SOPUS and Castrol very good, M1 by far the worst)
-Efficiency (they're all pretty good except the Castrol Euro oils in my experience)
-Resistance to consumption. For some reason NOACK doesn't give the whole picture, eg. some conventional with higher volatility produce less consumption. This is irrelevant if your engine family by nature doesn't consume, but many high-performance engines do. (SOPUS and Castrol the best, M1 by far the worst).
-Cost and availability (for non-Euro oils they're all pretty cheap esp on sale, for Euro M1 and Castrol don't have any competitors, esp M1 which you can walk into any WM and buy cheaply anytime).
-Scale. R&D budget. Access to OEM's (not just approvals). The big companies can deliver better products at lower prices. I'll only use oils that are from big companies, in North America that means M1, SOPUS, Castrol.

If my engine didn't use oil I'd use Pennzoil 5W-40. M1 0W-40 is the king of the lubricant world in performance, but Pennzoil 5W-40 has the same important approvals and is better at consumption resistance and is quite a bit better at NVH.


Very interesting comments; some perspectives match mine; and mine reflect a change from my thinking in the past. It IS interesting how, without collaboration, you see board members moving in the same direction on oil preferences. Some of it could be "follow a leader" but I think much is members coming to their own conclusions.

 

[pscholte]

Originally Posted By: buster
Originally Posted By: pscholte
Originally Posted By: buster
Quote:
(1). Total Quartz. (2). Pennzoil Ultra. (3) Liqui Moly. (4). Quaker State Ultimate Endurance. (5) Mobil 1. (6) Amsoil. (7). Kendall GT-1 Full Syn (8). BC. (9). GC (10). Millers


Nice choices.

My list would be something like this:

1. Valvoline 2. Ultra/PP 3. M1 4. Millers

I like the shelf brands. I think they are better than ever.

With boutiques, it has to be VERY unique and worth ordering via mail. Fuchs is up there too.

I think Shell/PZ has the best value/wear/cleanliness properties.


I am curious about your number 1 position for Valvoline. Which Valvoline do you prefer? I do agree with you that the shelf brands are better than ever.


I like Valvoline for a few reasons. Their oils are much better than they used to be. I like the idea behind NextGen and I like MaxLife ATF and HM oil for HM vehciles.

I also think Synpower is a top notch synthetic using a good Lubrizol additive package.

buster,

Any perspectives on the relative merits of Valvoline HM, which I believe, like you, is a fine oil, and Kendall GT-1 High Mileage Syn Blend?

 

[buster]

My perspective has changed on HM oils over the years. We had two fomer oil guys (one XOM sales guy and Valvman from Valvoline) who talked about the benefits.

As you know, all oils contain seal conditioners. Modern seal conditioners don't swell seals. They are advanced chemicals, often esters, that keep seals pliable. High Mileage oils simply contain more seal conditioners.

I think HM oils are great for high mileage cars. My brother developed a rear main seal leak in his Solar that had 180,000 miles on it. He switched to M1 HM and it stopped for another 100k miles.

These oils can be used in new cars too, as stated on the MaxLife PDS. The XOM guy said he switches all his cars over to HM oils after 50k miles or so. It can't hurt and only prevent what could be a future leak.

I don't recommend or think everyone needs a HM oil, but I think they can help keep seals in good shape. You also have the added benefit of higher anti wear additives and detergents.

MaxLife has a higher detergent level than Synpower.

Some engines may never need an HM oil and may never leak. It really depends on the car and how it was maintained. The added seal conditioners do serve a purpose though and they do work.

I would put MaxLife at the top of the HM oils, followed by Mobil 1. The XOM guy said Valvoline probably has the best seal conditioners on the market.

I put M1 HM in the Forester because the car is 10 years old. I'd like to prevent a rear main seal leak so I figured this would be a good cheap way to prevent it.

 

[pscholte]

Makes sense...a lot of sense.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: pscholte
I do have to say however, at our altitude (about 7000 ft at the house) NOTHING matches the twin turbo 2.7 Audi A6 we had.

Nothing beats a turbo at altitude, that's for sure! As for European oils, we do okay, if you know where to look. What hits us the hardest is that things like M1 0w-40 aren't in a big jug like they are in the U.S., at least not yet. Mobil's jugs are very affordable at the Imperial Oil distributor. The Delvac 1 there is priced only a hair more than conventional at Walmart's regular price.

My preference is always a quality product for the cost. I use synthetics on and off, but usually stick with conventional. The G37 has had many fills of PYB.