997 Oil Recommendations
#16
03-22-2012, 07:55 PM
Probably the best thing you can do for your engine longevity is to stick to a shorter refill schedule, let the engine get to operating temperature before you get into full throttle, don't lug the engine and avoid short trips where the engine doesn't get to operating temperature.
All of the above can be done at no additional cost.
All of the above can be done at no additional cost.
#17
03-27-2012, 10:07 AM
Joe Gibbs DT40
I also agree that LN engineering and Flat 6 Enovations know their stuff. However, it doesn't give me a lot of confidence when the manufacturer does not publish a TDS (Tech Data Sheet) on the oil. If you look at the published data, the Redline Oil meest most of the manufacturers specifications and has the highest HT/HS as mentioned in the LN engineering article. The Joe Gibbs formulation is produced by Lubrizoil and I can't find a lot of information on their products.
#18
08-08-2012, 01:20 PM
#19
08-08-2012, 03:02 PM
If I am reading this correctly, Royal Purple and Penryte are the best? I have used Mobile 1 for years, but was surprised by the results of this test. Question is,... are these results directly applicable to our cars/engines? Should we switch oils because of this article?
#20
08-08-2012, 03:57 PM
The article by streetcommodores.com was published 5 or 6 years ago. They got a lot of flack and removed it from the web site after a few weeks and then later published the following statement.
"If there's one thing we try and do here at Street Commodores, it's give you, our readers un-biased info on which products are good, and which ones suck. There's so much BS marketing guff out there, that it can be tough to nut out which products can walk the walk – so that's where we come in, doing our best to sort the Holdens from the Lada Nivas.
A few months back (issue 108), you might remember we did an oil comparison. At the time, we thought it was a bloody good thing, and we don't mind telling you we were pretty proud to publish an article that basically bagged a heap of big name brands. You see, at Street Commodores, we can't, and won't be bought. We like to play things straight. And in the name of playing things straight, we'd like to tell you what has happened since that story went to print.
Basically, we made a few oil companies very cross, and some others quite happy; but we've also been educated some more on engine oils, and being the type of publication that we are, we wanted to fill you in on it. The information we've learned since then suggests the test we performed may be irrelevant. Some sources have advised us that the test we used would have been better served testing some of our favourite greases rather than the engine oils we commonly use on our street cars. Sure, we did the test with the best intentions, with a level playing field for each oil and no preconceptions as to who would perform better than another, but when, and if, we mess up, we like to think that we're man enough to set the record straight."
.
A few months back (issue 108), you might remember we did an oil comparison. At the time, we thought it was a bloody good thing, and we don't mind telling you we were pretty proud to publish an article that basically bagged a heap of big name brands. You see, at Street Commodores, we can't, and won't be bought. We like to play things straight. And in the name of playing things straight, we'd like to tell you what has happened since that story went to print.
Basically, we made a few oil companies very cross, and some others quite happy; but we've also been educated some more on engine oils, and being the type of publication that we are, we wanted to fill you in on it. The information we've learned since then suggests the test we performed may be irrelevant. Some sources have advised us that the test we used would have been better served testing some of our favourite greases rather than the engine oils we commonly use on our street cars. Sure, we did the test with the best intentions, with a level playing field for each oil and no preconceptions as to who would perform better than another, but when, and if, we mess up, we like to think that we're man enough to set the record straight."
#21
08-09-2012, 09:22 AM
That is correct although there are a number of oils that are Porsche approved that outperform Mobil 1 in testing. There's a list of several of them in the article. Motul 300V, which used to be LN's preferred choice before the release of DT40, is Porsche approved. Best,
I prefer Pentosin High Performance II 5w-40, it specs out well against Mobil and Motul. It is on Porsche's approved list as well, I wouldn't use anything other than an oil on that list.
BTW, if you do not experience temperatures below -25C, Porsche recommends 5w-40.
#23
08-09-2012, 04:53 PM
As alpine-al pointed out, the test performed may not have been an appropriate way to compare oils for automobile engine applications. (The magazine hinted at this in their retraction).
Nevertheless, this does give us a ~hint~ that there may be better oils out there than the ones we typically use. I guess if we stick to Porsche's approved list, we should be OK.
Does anyone have a link to the "Offical" Porsche approved list?
(I'd like to go with a 0W-40 per my owner's manual, instead of 5W-40, but I wouldn't mind moving away from my favorite Mobil 1 brand).
Nevertheless, this does give us a ~hint~ that there may be better oils out there than the ones we typically use. I guess if we stick to Porsche's approved list, we should be OK.
Does anyone have a link to the "Offical" Porsche approved list?
(I'd like to go with a 0W-40 per my owner's manual, instead of 5W-40, but I wouldn't mind moving away from my favorite Mobil 1 brand).
#24
08-09-2012, 05:34 PM
Of course all of the big oil companies have to downplay the results of scar testing, and it's because their products are sub-standard compared to the smaller companies that focus all of their efforts on high tech lubrication fluids. So someone tell me why scar testing doesn't apply to engines. What happens to your cylinder liners when your oil can't handle the high heat and high pressures that are being put on it? (997 Carrera S owners pay attention this) You get cylinder liner scaring...which is starting to show it's ugly head in 3.8 Porsche motors (usually cylinders 5 and /or 6).
So scar testing is putting the oil to the harshest test it can pressure wise. But it doesn't test for how well the oil holds up under high temperatures. It may do great when running at it's optimum temperature but what about when it's running at higher than optimal temperature? I do like the scar tests though, it still demonstates oils with lower coefficients of friction can tolerate high pressures better. Now to make the test better they need a way to heat up the oil.
All of you Mobil 1 fans out there here's something you probably didn't know. If you buy the Euro Mobil 1, you're buying the only true class IV synthetic Mobil 1 oil sold in the US, all of the other Mobil 1's are a blend of class III.
You see a few years back Mobil 1 sued Castrol over their claim that their Class III synthetic based oil was a "FULL" synthetic oil. Mobil 1 used a Class IV synthetic for their base which costs a lot more money to produce so they didn't like the fact that Castrol could make the same claim to "Full" synthetic that they could. So they sued... and lost. So at that juncture Mobil 1 decided why should they use the more expensive class IV synthetic base if their competitors could make the same claims for a whole lot less expense... so they jumped on board and starting using class III synthetic bases in their oils instead of class IV. The only oils they and Castrol make which are true Class IV based synthetic oils are the Euro branded ones... or in the case of Castrol if they say made in Germany. You see in the US we don't have any sort of oil regulation... in Europe they do. So if you claim full synthetic oil in Europe it really has to be a true class IV based synthetic oil.
That's were these small oil companies like Royal Purple, AMSOIL, Etc can beat the snot out of the big companies... they're not as concerned about cost. And as far as the OE's go... Mobil 1 likes to brag about how many OE's recommend their product... that's all a game too. That has nothing to do with the OE's testing oils and finding that one is better. They are partnerships not customer and client. In fact, if anything, Porsche screwed up a couple ways in their oil recommendations. First off, 15,000 mile oil change intervals? And the Mobil 1 recommendation... the 3.8 motors run too hot on bank 2; cylinders 4, 5 and 6, even though the temp gauges read normal. Another German car trick, not just Porsche either, their temp gauges always read too conservative. So Porsche made the motor bigger and the coolant passages smaller and they didn't put the oil squirters on the top of the cylinders like the old 911's and 993's and so on bank 2 the thrust face of the cylinder is on the top and the oil squirters are on the bottom and the coolant passages around the cylinders have been made smaller and the thermostats are located on the OUT side of the radiators which is the cooler side of flow and the thermostats don't react fast enough and this compiled with oil that is probably too old and can't stand the heat nor the pressures is leading to cylinder liner scars and in worst case scenarios cracked cylinder liners...
So moral of the story... buy the best damn oil you can regardless of cost, change it more often than Porsche recommends, and change to a low temp thermostat and add the X51 center mounted Radiator and you may be able to keep your 3.8 alive.
So scar testing is putting the oil to the harshest test it can pressure wise. But it doesn't test for how well the oil holds up under high temperatures. It may do great when running at it's optimum temperature but what about when it's running at higher than optimal temperature? I do like the scar tests though, it still demonstates oils with lower coefficients of friction can tolerate high pressures better. Now to make the test better they need a way to heat up the oil.
All of you Mobil 1 fans out there here's something you probably didn't know. If you buy the Euro Mobil 1, you're buying the only true class IV synthetic Mobil 1 oil sold in the US, all of the other Mobil 1's are a blend of class III.
You see a few years back Mobil 1 sued Castrol over their claim that their Class III synthetic based oil was a "FULL" synthetic oil. Mobil 1 used a Class IV synthetic for their base which costs a lot more money to produce so they didn't like the fact that Castrol could make the same claim to "Full" synthetic that they could. So they sued... and lost. So at that juncture Mobil 1 decided why should they use the more expensive class IV synthetic base if their competitors could make the same claims for a whole lot less expense... so they jumped on board and starting using class III synthetic bases in their oils instead of class IV. The only oils they and Castrol make which are true Class IV based synthetic oils are the Euro branded ones... or in the case of Castrol if they say made in Germany. You see in the US we don't have any sort of oil regulation... in Europe they do. So if you claim full synthetic oil in Europe it really has to be a true class IV based synthetic oil.
That's were these small oil companies like Royal Purple, AMSOIL, Etc can beat the snot out of the big companies... they're not as concerned about cost. And as far as the OE's go... Mobil 1 likes to brag about how many OE's recommend their product... that's all a game too. That has nothing to do with the OE's testing oils and finding that one is better. They are partnerships not customer and client. In fact, if anything, Porsche screwed up a couple ways in their oil recommendations. First off, 15,000 mile oil change intervals? And the Mobil 1 recommendation... the 3.8 motors run too hot on bank 2; cylinders 4, 5 and 6, even though the temp gauges read normal. Another German car trick, not just Porsche either, their temp gauges always read too conservative. So Porsche made the motor bigger and the coolant passages smaller and they didn't put the oil squirters on the top of the cylinders like the old 911's and 993's and so on bank 2 the thrust face of the cylinder is on the top and the oil squirters are on the bottom and the coolant passages around the cylinders have been made smaller and the thermostats are located on the OUT side of the radiators which is the cooler side of flow and the thermostats don't react fast enough and this compiled with oil that is probably too old and can't stand the heat nor the pressures is leading to cylinder liner scars and in worst case scenarios cracked cylinder liners...
So moral of the story... buy the best damn oil you can regardless of cost, change it more often than Porsche recommends, and change to a low temp thermostat and add the X51 center mounted Radiator and you may be able to keep your 3.8 alive.
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