Mobil One Gold cap versus Silver cap

[Fred H.]

I have been reading the labels on the Mobil One bottles trying to determine the difference between the new Silver cap and the Gold cap (extended life) that Mobil One now offers.

Does anyone know if the Mobil One Silver cap (which costs significantly less) is still made from a group IV base oil or not?

It almost appears to me to be a sly marketing ploy on the part of Mobil to raise the price on their existing oil and call it "Extended Life" and then offer a lesser oil that really is not a true synthetic.

Can anyone shed some light on this and tell me what the differences are between the Gold cap and Silver cap other than the additive package? Is the base oil in both the same?

 

[Greggy_D]

Honestly, no one really knows anymore at this point. There's hundreds of old posts you can search through that do not give a definitive answer.

 

[Lonnie]

How 'bout some blue cap SL/CF, GF-3 when it was a synthetic oil? I have a few orphan quarts.

 

[Cujet]

I do not know the actual answer to this question. But I do remember reading (from what seemed to be a credible source) that the silver cap had the same levels of ZDDP as the old red cap.

No mention of the base oil was made. But, the silver cap oil DID NOT loose oil pressure like the gold cap did in my turbo miata. My turbo engine would run quite hot here in S. Florida and the wrong oil choice was obvious on the oil pressure gauge. As far as I am concerned, the sliver cap performs as well as the old red cap, which is to say, excellent.

Chris

 

[Dr_No]

An email answering this question said that it had more "super syn" which is their additive package formulation.

 

[CharlieJ]

I always assumed that the Mobil 1 EP was a PAO based oil because Mobil 1 recommends it for 15,000 miles drain intervals. I wouldn't think they would recommend a Grp III oil to go 15,000, or would they?
I use the 5w-30 in my lawnmower.

 

[TR3-2001SE]

I use both these oils and their is a major difference. The regular M1 is good for 7500-10,000 miles. Its TBN is close to depleated at this point. The Gold Cap can go the 15,000 miles from my UOA's but that is about all. I use it in my Wifes Honda Accord and have good UOA's with it. My Mazda uses the regular M1 because it is newer,more expensive and I want it to last forever so I change it more often. If you change your oil frequently regular M1 is as good as the more expensive stuff in my opinion.