Originally Posted By: Lasthope05
Originally Posted By: oil_film_movies
PAO does seem to be the current go-to ingredient for the higher performance oils on the market, yes. Mobil, Amsoil, Redline, Motul, Castrol, others.... turn to it, so yes, look for it in varying percentages, mixed with GroupIII and maybe GroupII in the best oils.
It oxidizes less, so its high-temperature stable over a longer period of time. Robust. Expensive premium ingredient. Worth it for severed duty (racing, towing, nice new engines, etc.).
I'm pretty sure Redline and Motul are both ester based oils and not PAO, unless I'm mistaken.
They are both PAO based with some ester content according to MSDS information.
PAO has exceptional cold temperature performance due to having no wax. Ergo, it does not require PPD dosing like a Group III oil to get the 0w-xx designation. This is why Castrol 0w-40 for example, still has a large chunk of its base oil being PAO and why many Mobil 1 0w-xx grades have varying amounts of PAO in them.
Of course PAO is also obscenely expensive as a base oil. It has poor additive solubility and polarity. So PAO bases need to be blended with others, like Esters, AN's or lower groups for help in those areas and balance out the formula.
An illustration of Group III vs PAO in low temp from Chevron/Philips: