Thoughts on redline?

I just don't get the logic of the Redline naysayers....
too expensive(?)
An automobile is typically your second largest expense/investment, next to your home. why wouldn't you put in the best if you really care about your cars. I own BMWs and Hondas, and their precision-made engines love it.
not everyone is an enthusiast... I get that.
but you'd think the oil-nuts here would be more open...
 
Originally Posted by Olas
I dont need Redline in my basic and low-powered engine, and I dont have money burning holes in my pockets, but I always go to Redline for engine oil because they are the 'best'.
I like the high amounts of zinc and moly, I like the stability of ester at high temperature and I like how clean the engine is when i last changed the VCG. Its not expensive because they advertise everywhere, it's expensive because it's really really good.

Casio and Audemar Piquet both make watches that tell the time - one costs less than a single quart of M1, and the other costs more than some houses. Guess which one is better?

if you want to try it then I definitely support your choice - your engine will thank you and your wear metals will be lower than ever!



I like nice stuff too. Have been thinking about using it in my 2018 Mustang GT but the dang thing takes 10 quarts. Right now I'm using Motorcraft blend because the car is probably still breaking in. I have a Hamilton watch btw because I like the Swiss made mechanical stuff but am too cheap to buy a Rolex that I would beat up working on cars, etc.
 
Originally Posted by 330indy
I just don't get the logic of the Redline naysayers....
too expensive(?)
An automobile is typically your second largest expense/investment, next to your home. why wouldn't you put in the best if you really care about your cars. I own BMWs and Hondas, and their precision-made engines love it.
not everyone is an enthusiast... I get that.
but you'd think the oil-nuts here would be more open...

But my precision-made BMW M60 engine also loves Castrol 0W-40 from Walmart, and my precision-made Honda F22B2 engine loves Supertech synthetic 5W-30 from the same store. Would either one of them love Redline more?

Would my old Toyota 1MZ-FE with 430,000 miles love Redline more than M1 0W-40 from Walmart?
 
Originally Posted by 330indy
I just don't get the logic of the Redline naysayers....
too expensive(?)
An automobile is typically your second largest expense/investment, next to your home. why wouldn't you put in the best if you really care about your cars. I own BMWs and Hondas, and their precision-made engines love it.
not everyone is an enthusiast... I get that.
but you'd think the oil-nuts here would be more open...

Why spend double when a $20 bottle of Mobile 1 will treat my car just as well?
 
Originally Posted by jayjr1105
Originally Posted by 330indy
I just don't get the logic of the Redline naysayers....
too expensive(?)
An automobile is typically your second largest expense/investment, next to your home. why wouldn't you put in the best if you really care about your cars. I own BMWs and Hondas, and their precision-made engines love it.
not everyone is an enthusiast... I get that.
but you'd think the oil-nuts here would be more open...

Why spend double when a $20 bottle of Mobile 1 will treat my car just as well?


Why buy a filet mignon when flank steak will fill you up just the same?

Why buy Patron when some Mad Dog will get you drunk just the same?

Why buy an Escalade when a Tahoe will seat 6 + luggage just the same?
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted by jayjr1105
Originally Posted by 330indy
I just don't get the logic of the Redline naysayers....
too expensive(?)
An automobile is typically your second largest expense/investment, next to your home. why wouldn't you put in the best if you really care about your cars. I own BMWs and Hondas, and their precision-made engines love it.
not everyone is an enthusiast... I get that.
but you'd think the oil-nuts here would be more open...

Why spend double when a $20 bottle of Mobile 1 will treat my car just as well?


That's just too much logic for some people on BITOG. Let them do it leaves more oil for us at half the price or less. My bet says our cars are going to last just as long.
 
Originally Posted by RDY4WAR
Why buy a filet mignon when flank steak will fill you up just the same?

Why buy Patron when some Mad Dog will get you drunk just the same?

Why buy an Escalade when a Tahoe will seat 6 + luggage just the same?

I wonder how much more life I could expect to get out of my vehicles if I used Redline instead of other synthetics from Walmart? For my old Sienna it takes 5 quarts so that's a price differential of about $40 ($65 vs. $25). For my old BMW it is a differential of about $64, and those numbers are for each oil change. I've changed a lot of oil on my four old vehicles over the past 1.2 million miles.
 
Originally Posted by kschachn
Originally Posted by RDY4WAR
Why buy a filet mignon when flank steak will fill you up just the same?

Why buy Patron when some Mad Dog will get you drunk just the same?

Why buy an Escalade when a Tahoe will seat 6 + luggage just the same?

I wonder how much more life I could expect to get out of my vehicles if I used Redline instead of other synthetics from Walmart? For my old Sienna it takes 5 quarts so that's a price differential of about $40 ($65 vs. $25). For my old BMW it is a differential of about $64, and those numbers are for each oil change. I've changed a lot of oil on my four old vehicles over the past 1.2 million miles.


You're probably right, but I like the formula for Red Line and other boutique oils. How much is an oil like that really costing me? An extra $100/yr? That's 0.0024% of my annual budget. I don't know how I'm gonna feed the kids...
 
Originally Posted by RDY4WAR
You're probably right, but I like the formula for Red Line and other boutique oils. How much is an oil like that really costing me? An extra $100/yr? That's 0.0024% of my annual budget. I don't know how I'm gonna feed the kids...

Ha yeah, I get it. In the interest of being honest I have used Redline in the BMW a few times, and I was using their MTL in my ECHO for a while but I just didn't see the benefit. I've also posted pictures of under the valve covers on my Sienna where I'm certain that if I had used Redline for the vehicle's life it would have looked better. The 1MZ-FE engine is hard on oil since none of my other engines look like that one does. Oxidation resistance is key on that engine.

I still have three quarts of Redline 5W-40 on my garage shelf but to use them means I have to stop by Pegasus Racing and pick up at least two more. Maybe when I get a new car.
 
Originally Posted by RDY4WAR
Originally Posted by kschachn
Originally Posted by RDY4WAR
Why buy a filet mignon when flank steak will fill you up just the same?

Why buy Patron when some Mad Dog will get you drunk just the same?

Why buy an Escalade when a Tahoe will seat 6 + luggage just the same?

I wonder how much more life I could expect to get out of my vehicles if I used Redline instead of other synthetics from Walmart? For my old Sienna it takes 5 quarts so that's a price differential of about $40 ($65 vs. $25). For my old BMW it is a differential of about $64, and those numbers are for each oil change. I've changed a lot of oil on my four old vehicles over the past 1.2 million miles.


You're probably right, but I like the formula for Red Line and other boutique oils. How much is an oil like that really costing me? An extra $100/yr? That's 0.0024% of my annual budget. I don't know how I'm gonna feed the kids...


I'm somewhat hung up on the idea of using an approved lubricant; something that has passed Porsche A40 for example and the like and is a known quantity where performance has been qualified against engine test standards. That's what appeals to me about the Ravenol products, they use PAO and other premium base oils resulting in some exceptionally low Noack figures and the like, while at the same time, they are eager to approve their products against the numerous testing regiments offering by the OEM's.
 
Originally Posted by RDY4WAR

Why buy a filet mignon when flank steak will fill you up just the same?

Because it's not about getting full - it's about taste, texture, flavour, tenderness. If it were about getting full, I'd be eating grass. Plenty of it and it gets the job done.

Originally Posted by RDY4WAR
Why buy Patron when some Mad Dog will get you drunk just the same?

Because it's not about getting drunk - It's about flavour, body, aromas. If it were about getting drunk, moonshine does it.

Originally Posted by RDY4WAR
Why buy an Escalade when a Tahoe will seat 6 + luggage just the same?

Luxury?

When I - and most drivers for that matter - buy mottor oil, it's about protecting my engine. And Redline does not provide anything that makes a substantial difference in the long run. Just a lighter wallet.
 
Exactly. While any cheap cookie cutter API oil may keep the engine alive to 500k+ miles, oils that exceed it can still provide greater benefits elsewhere. The high ester content adds solvency for better cleaning. The high detergency gives greater acid neutralizing ability. The higher ZDDP content provides further wear protection, and higher friction modifier content gives greater wear protection and friction reduction. I like those qualities in an oil. Just like I prefer a filet mignon. At 500k miles, that better oil could be the difference between an engine with 10% leakdown, uses a quart or so through an OCI, and down a little on power and response compared to knew VS an engine that still has
I think its great that people can get excellent UOAs with cheaper oil. This is noting of course that UOAs don't tell the whole story. I don't see why it makes it a bad choice to go overkill.

Also, I'm a racer and engine builder. I like to support the companies that support us and keep tracks open.
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted by RDY4WAR
Exactly. While any cheap cookie cutter API oil may keep the engine alive to 500k+ miles, oils that exceed it can still provide greater benefits elsewhere. The high ester content adds solvency for better cleaning. The high detergency gives greater acid neutralizing ability. The higher ZDDP content provides further wear protection, and higher friction modifier content gives greater wear protection and friction reduction. I like those qualities in an oil. Just like I prefer a filet mignon. At 500k miles, that better oil could be the difference between an engine with 10% leakdown, uses a quart or so through an OCI, and down a little on power and response compared to knew VS an engine that still has
I think its great that people can get excellent UOAs with cheaper oil. This is noting of course that UOAs don't tell the whole story. I don't see why it makes it a bad choice to go overkill.

Also, I'm a racer and engine builder. I like to support the companies that support us and keep tracks open.


thumbsup2.gif


Disclaimer: I have a few gallons of Redline in my stash
cheers3.gif
 
I truly love the best in life and redline is one of the very best if not the best but let's be honest its overkill for most applications and yes a cheaper oil like m1,motul,castrol and even less famous brands will do the job just fine.most people buy redline because they want to not because they really need and it's ok I prefer that then people who are only looking to buy the cheapest to there car.
 
Last edited:
It's your money and honestly not money wasted compared to some other maintenance needs on a vehicle. IMO. Also if you change your own oil, you can save $$. I use Redline on my vehicles that are really hard on oil. My 370Z Nismo and my Harley. I like the HTHS number on these oils and that it is Ester based. For my vehicles, it seems to quiet things down. Is it overkill. Maybe but so what. It works for me. Now prepare for some weird UOA reports but if you stick to it it will level off. From what I researched, it's not that the oil is bad at protecting the engine but due to leaching. There are a lot of people on this forum hate boutique oils or seem to take it personal when people spend extra money on a certain product. If you are brand specific or the product works for you, then do you. You earn your pay and the only person you need to answer to is you. Unless your married. Lol
 
Originally Posted by kschachn
Originally Posted by RDY4WAR
Originally Posted by kschachn
So what are those quantifiable benefits of esters?
Better miscibility and solubility at lower temperatures ensures better distribution of additives throughout the engine. The greater solubility promotes the cleaning of varnish and sludge. It also has better high temperature protection which is what gives RL their high HTHS ratings. Esters are also excellent seal conditioners.

All of which is fine, and thanks for the response. But how are they quantifiable? What quantities would I look at to show that an oil with esters is better than another one without esters? The only one you really state would be HTHS, but non-ester oils also can have a high HTHS, correct?


"Quantifiable" means the parameters can be measured. It does not mean YOU can either observe or quantify them looking at the oil in your engine as a "black box" and seeing some external change, except maybe over many years and many tens of thousands of miles. Take the HTHS, for example... The only way you could possibly see that from your perspective as an owner/driver is better oil pressure retention at high temps... but oil pressure is so dependent on so many other variables (engine speed, filter condition, etc.) that you could never really make an A/B comparison in an installed engine under real-world operating conditions. But it doesn't mean that the higher HTHS is helping.
 
Pro's of Redline:

Small USA based company.
One of the few using a higher percentage of expensive POE base oils.
POE provides solvency and high temperature stability.
The most shear stable oils I've seen on here via UOA's (little to no VII's).
High levels of ZDP and AW additives for high performance engines.
Customer service is pretty good.

Cons of Redline:
For most engines, cost benefit is poor.
Still using an older chemistry not compliant with SA levels required for most GDI engines and D1G2 spec.

Redline offers an API certified oil line, but they didn't do what I had hoped for. Rather than take their Full Synthetic PAO/POE line and just reduce the metallic additive levels and make it with a more modern additive package, they essentially put out what looks to be an oil indistinguishable from their parent company, CP. It looks like Kendall.
 
Originally Posted by buster
Pro's of Redline:

Small USA based company.


Not really anymore, given that they are owned by CP.
 
^true. Now large American/multinational corp. I wonder if Roy Howell and Dave are still the formulators.
 
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