Help understanding A5 / B5 certification / spec

[JackP33333]

HI all!

Man oh man, it's been some time since I was on BITOG. So much so that I could not reset my password. Who has hotmail anymore?

So, I have a 2016 Volvo V60 Polestar. It's an amazing car and I am super excited to take care of it. I have some questions on understanding what oil it needs, though. First off, it is my intention to change the oil every 5000 miles. So, that will weigh in to whether or not A5/B5 is important.

So, let's start with Volvo's warning in the manual:

Full synthetic engine oil meeting the minimum
ACEA A5/B5 must be used. Lower quality oils
may not offer the same fuel economy, engine
performance, or engine protection.

At first, I perused amazon to find oils. I found Castrol Edge 5w30. It seemed to be good oil. The TBN seemed OK from what I read. But, there PDS system stinks. Hard to find what's what. Well, come to find out, amazon's info is outdated. Turns out this oil is no longer A5/B5 spec.

So, here is my question. What does A5 mean? Is it extended drain or more temperature or some kind of other concern with performance? With a 5000 miles interval, I won't need the extended drain.

I see that it seems ONLY Amsoil and Gold bottle Castrol may be A5, at least of stateside oils I can easily get.

I seem to remember a UOA on Castrol looking good. But, with the recent reformulation, maybe that info is no longer valid.

What is the consensus here?

 

[2009Edge]

Ask AMSOIL about your ACEA A5/B5 question

 

[BrocLuno]

PM Garak for a full explanation

The other thing I'd do is post a shorter version of the main post in the Euro Oils Forum ... They will walk you through A5/B5 and the relevant criteria.

But, If I had that car, it'd get an oil off the Porsche A40 list for sure

 

[slacktide_bitog]

PP is A5/B5, and so is PUP, if you can find it

Castrol said they were going to reformulate the Edge so meet A5/B5 again.

 

[Garak]

I don't think I could provide a full explanation, at least not without going insane.

I would say that M1 and M1 EP and Castrol Edge black and gold bottles are "close enough" for A5/B5 purposes in 5w30. From what I gather, it's the B5 biodiesel part of the specification that is problematic lately, and really not an issue for North American drivers, since no one here uses an A5/B5 5w30 for a diesel engine.

If you want something that certainly is A5/B5 in 5w30, get Pennzoil Platinum 5w30 or Pennzoil Ultra Platinum 5w30. That would cover your warranty requirements. The former is certainly readily available and at a good price.

If it were me and I were not concerned about the formal warranty requirements, I'd be just as confident in M1, M1 EP, Castrol black bottle, and Castrol gold bottle, Amsoil SS, and probably Valvoline Synpower, too. I think Volvo's real concern is they just don't want someone grabbing an ordinary 5w30 in SN/GF-5, and calling for A5/B5 is, at least in North America, likely to get you into a synthetic, name brand 5w30. Of course, like BrocLuno indicates, I'd probably be reaching for an A3/B4 type thing right away, too, because you have a European vehicle.

But, short answer is PP or PUP 5w30 for most literal warranty compliance. And don't get me started about Hotmail. My Hotmail account actually lapsed, and I was lucky enough to be able to start all over with the same email address for the occasional things I actually needed Hotmail for.

 

[FCD]

ACEA A5/B5 is a spec designed for better fuel economy, a bit like ILSAC GF-5, you don't have to use an A5/B5 oil in it, you could use A3/B4 aswell ( high performance spec )

 

[chrisri]

You should be under warranty, right? For that reason only I would use recommended specification. ACEA specifications are World wide specs ( not NA) , but Euro manufacturers specifi that in NA as well.

A5/B5 is a FE (fuel economy), high SAPS specification that is primarily Ford's. Volvo and Jaguar somewhat inherited that.

Motorcraft 5w30 is A5/B5, and it's cheap, but I'm unsure if available locally at yours.

 

[Garak]

Motorcraft's status may be country specific. Heck, Motorcraft oils are supplied by a different company in Canada than they are in the States, so even then, aside from the proprietary Motorcraft specifications, there are no guarantees. Finding something with the old Jaguar/Motorcraft spec, for instance, is exceedingly difficult in North America. The last off the shelf one I can recall that did was M1 when it was still SM.

 

[FlyPenFly]

It's just a midly blown 3.0L six producing average power. I wouldn't be too worried as long as you use something decent.

 

[1JZ_E46]

I'd use Pennzoil Ultra Platinum in it if you wanted to use an A5/B5. Or, you could use an A3/B4 oil, which is the same (theoretically better) in terms of protection/wear/cleanliness but with slightly worse fuel economy.

 

[RooflessVW]

My Volvo calls for A5/B5 as well.

It runs smoother and quieter on A3/B4 Castrol 0W-40...

 

[JackP33333]

I appreciate everyone's input. And, thanks for the compliment on the car BrocLuno.

So... I have never needed any kind of warranty issue that needed an oil change receipt/documentation. But, I will NOT assume that to be the case always. I would rather err on caution.

Originally, I intended to take it to Volvo for the on interval maintenance. Then, I would do the off interval (5k mi) at home. So, as far as volvo is concerned, it would be getting spec oil changes with spec oil. But, any benefit to running a "better" oil is negated when they fill with the normal stuff at the dealer.

So, here is my plan:

Select and find the best oil I can for the car. Ensure it meets the A5/B5 spec for warranty concerns. (See note below) Then, change both on and off interval maintenance myself. I don't know yet that I trust the dealer for the work on the car. There is only one in Vegas here. And, I don't think they're great.

So, notes on this decision...

1) Is amsoil SS truly meeting A5/B5 or is it a "designed to meet" like their old VW spec days?

2) Knowing I am in Vegas and it is [censored] HOT... Does that change any of the advice above?

 

[1JZ_E46]

Originally Posted By: JackP33333
I appreciate everyone's input. And, thanks for the compliment on the car BrocLuno.

So... I have never needed any kind of warranty issue that needed an oil change receipt/documentation. But, I will NOT assume that to be the case always. I would rather err on caution.

Originally, I intended to take it to Volvo for the on interval maintenance. Then, I would do the off interval (5k mi) at home. So, as far as volvo is concerned, it would be getting spec oil changes with spec oil. But, any benefit to running a "better" oil is negated when they fill with the normal stuff at the dealer.

So, here is my plan:

Select and find the best oil I can for the car. Ensure it meets the A5/B5 spec for warranty concerns. (See note below) Then, change both on and off interval maintenance myself. I don't know yet that I trust the dealer for the work on the car. There is only one in Vegas here. And, I don't think they're great.

So, notes on this decision...

1) Is amsoil SS truly meeting A5/B5 or is it a "designed to meet" like their old VW spec days?

2) Knowing I am in Vegas and it is [censored] HOT... Does that change any of the advice above?


#1: unsure.
#2: Nope. Any A5/B5 oil here in the states is solid and will be fine. I would save some money and go with PUP since you'll only be taking it to 5k miles. Amsoil SS isn't worth it for such a short drain interval IMO.

 

[FlyPenFly]

For running in the hot summer desert with a turbo, I would run at least a 40w.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: JackP33333
1) Is amsoil SS truly meeting A5/B5 or is it a "designed to meet" like their old VW spec days?

Claims against ACEA oil sequences are made on a self-certification basis, in any case.

So Amsoil's claim to meet a given ACEA spec is a good as Mobil's or Castrol's or Pennzoil's, in this case.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: FlyPenFly
For running in the hot summer desert with a turbo, I would run at least a 40w.

But that would mean it won't be ACEA A5/B5.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Originally Posted By: Garak
Motorcraft oils are supplied by a different company in Canada than they are in the States


who makes Canadian Motorcraft?

 

[JackP33333]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: FlyPenFly
For running in the hot summer desert with a turbo, I would run at least a 40w.

But that would mean it won't be ACEA A5/B5.


Is this universally true?

 

[1JZ_E46]

Originally Posted By: JackP33333
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: FlyPenFly
For running in the hot summer desert with a turbo, I would run at least a 40w.

But that would mean it won't be ACEA A5/B5.


Is this universally true?


The dealer is going to be putting in A5/B5, so I would fill with A5/B5 as well in between dealer changes. While a 40 weight will in theory protect better due to higher operating viscosity, the engine was designed for A5/B5, which has the same requirements for wear, protection, and cleanliness as A3/B4.

 

[FlyPenFly]

If it were me, I would find the cheapest A5/B5 I could find and have receipt for it. I would then just fill it with Castrol 0w40 or Redline 10w40 or 5w40 (unless it was a Direct Injection Turbo...).

I mean, what are they going to do, run such a detailed analysis that they can tell you ran a A3/B4 instead of an A5/B5? I think the chances of running into an engine warranty issue is almost none at 50k miles, then on top of that having an oil related failure is almost none, then on TOP of that having a dealer run a detailed oil analysis that can differentiate between A3/B4 vs A5/B5 on used oil is near zero. Probably a higher chance that your car will be destroyed by a small meteor or more likely a car accident.