Castrol Magnatec Add Package ?

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Based on the price point of Castrol Magnatec , is it akin to say a Mobil Super (i.e. lower end synthetic) ?
Any information on the add pack ? Curious about the add pack differences as compared to the more "premium" Castrol Edge series in the same grade ?
 
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Castrol Magnetic has some good UOAs posted on here...doubtful you can extended OCI as far with Edge...would be interested if the Intelligent Molecules is just marketing or something to that. I think Shannow posted something positive based on a conversation with someone at Castrol.
 
I assume the full synthetic Magnatec is Group III based, while the semi-synthetic is Group II & III.

In Castrol Edge I believe the 0W40 and 10W60 is Group IV (PAO) based, while I assume some of the Edge products like 5W30 are probably Group III based. Most of this is based on telephone conversations with Castrol Australia people a few years ago, but things can change at any time.

The Edge is the only Castrol product that contains Titanium in it's add pack, the actual amount depends on the particular Edge grade.

The Polar Molecules ( stupid marketing name "Intelligent Molecules" ) in Magnatec is most likely an organic molecule and so therefore will not show up in any VOA. It was many decades ago an Ester, as Castrol clearly stated this in writing, however I have also clearly been told that this is no longer the case and Esters are no longer used. I still assume they are probably using a Group V organic, I guess maybe AN.

Does the Edge also contain this polar molecule used in the Magnatec ? That is the big question. I would like to think yes, since the Edge is ment to be their best product. But I don't know and this assumes not add clash with the Ti the is in the Edge.

The UOA section here is full of Edge and Magnatec oil analysis. Most of the Magantec ones are the older semi-synthetics, but it's only a matter of time before a FS Magnatec UOA turns up.

In the VOA section here, there are a two GTX analysis from member Researdher, and they look great and are consistent with recent PQIA analysis.

It would be great to see a recent Magnatec and Edge VOA here, both of the same viscosity grade like a 5W20 or 5W30. Even better would be for PQIA to do this. PQIA do have an Edge 5W30 analysis but it was many years ago and I believe there has been a formula change since then.
 
PQIA recently posted the analysis for Edge Black 0w-20. Very impressive, especially with a nice slug of boron.
 
Great insights SR5. I got a good deal on Pennzoil Ultra 5w-20...otherwise Magnatec would be my top choice.
 
I've been looking at VOAs and UOAs of 5W20 and 5W30 for GTX, Magnatec and Edge, both from BITOG and PQIA.

It seems the modern GTX, both regular and UltraClean has an add pack that looks something like this:
Moly 80 ppm
Boron 200 ppm
Zinc 800 ppm
Calcium 2300 ppm

The Edge has a bit more variation, but it's much the same as above, except with 7ppm Titanium, and a greater variation in Boron 100 to 400 ppm. But all up has a similar inorganic add pack from looking at the simple UOA & VOA analysis.

Now Magnatec semi-synthetic and the few full synthetics I've seen look something like this :
Moly 15 ppm
Boron 20 ppm
Zinc 700 ppm
Calcium 2200 ppm
The Mo and B is definitely lower, but I would not be surprised if the Zn and Ca match the Edge / GTX levels, but I have no VOA to estimate depletion, only UOA numbers.

(Also, the lone Australian Magnatec 5W30 SS better matches the GTX / Edge add pack. )

As for oil bases, traditionally GTX is a mineral Group II, Magnatec is a semi-synthetic and Edge is a full synthetic. But things are moving forward, with GTX UltraClean now being semi-synthetics, most Magnatecs being full synthetic now, and the Edges are still full synthetic plus the only ones known to contain PAO.

So in terms of organic base oil: Edge >= Magnatec >= GTX

In terms of inorganic add pack: Edge > GTX > Magnatec

So to me it looks like GTX has a great add pack which has been improved a touch more (extra Ti & B) for the Edge, while the Magnatec has a fairly standard add pack (low on Mo and B).

This sort of makes sense to me from a development / economic point of view, as it implies a matrix of development. Give GTX the good add pack, give Magnatec the good base stock, give Edge everything and a booster shot of Ti and Boron.

Caution: this is all me guessing, I have no real insider knowledge.
 
I'd love to see a UOA of the edge 5w30 a3/b4. Wonder if it's any different add pack wise to the weaksuace (resource conserving) version edge many use. Or is it the exact same but just thicker?
 
Love the Magnatec, price tier is entry level synthetic it's UOA's suggests performance well above it's price point. That's where I get excited, great performance at a bargain price.

SR5 excellent post, I will add that boron is an addy that definitely detectably depletes during a run. With both Edge and GTX being relatively boron heavy, I would be very surprised if Magnatec did not show at least 200 ppm boron in a VOA, particularly since it is fairly low in moly which detectable levels remain relatively stable VOA versus UOA.

I am running Magnatec full syn 5w30 for the first time right now in the Lincoln, have run many OCI's of the syn blend in a couple vehicles. This one will go 8k, I am not sure if I want to push Magnatec much further than that. For 10k OCI's I usually jump to Edge 0w40 which will do 10k with ease under all but the most extreme use. It is far more economical to pay a few more dollars to jump to Edge 0w40 than to spend money on a UOA to figure out exactly how far I can push Magnatec.
 
Thanks for your input KCJeep,

I agree that Magnatec gives you the most bang for your buck, both here in Oz and in the States from the sound of it. I feel confident suggesting to people they try Magnatec when they ask me about which oil to use. It's both a good product and gentle on the wallet.

We definitely need a Magnatec VOA, given how popular it has become, I'm surprised we haven't seen one yet.

The American UOAs of the SS Magnatec 5W30 in the EcoBoost engine clearly show that 9,000 miles is the max distance for that oil and application. So changing at 8k is a nice safe bet. To go further I would use Edge in a Euro A3/B4 grade.

Like KL31 above, I would also like to see a VOA of Edge 5W30 A3/B4, not common there I know, but very common here is Oz. It's SL rated due to high zinc levels, but carries MB229.5 and BMW LL-01. I suspect a lot of the differences will be in the VIIs etc used and so not show up in a simple VOA.
 
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