sycraft

This is a list compiled a couple years ago- the Joe Gibbs LS30 was not there in new formulation- it is an excellent oil. Please try to keep this from getting locked.

•The higher the psi result, the higher the “Load carrying capacity/Film strength”, and the better the oil is at preventing wear.

•All oils were tested at 230* F (representative of actual running temperature).

•Multiple tests were performed on each oil, and those results were averaged to arrive at each oil's final value shown below.

•Test Result differences between oils of less than 10%, are not significant, and oils within that range can be considered approximately equivalent.

•All oil bottles were thoroughly shaken before the samples were taken. This ensured that all the additive package components were distributed uniformly throughout all the oil in the bottle, and not settled to the bottom.

•All oils are full synthetic unless otherwise specified.

•All oils are suitable for street use unless otherwise specified.


Oil categories:

•Over 90,000 psi = OUTSTANDING protection

•75,000 to 90,000 psi = GOOD protection

•60,000 to 75,000 psi = MODEST protection

•Below 60,000 psi = UNACCEPTABLE protection



********** OUTSTANDING PROTECTION ************


1. 5W30 Pennzoil Ultra, API SM = 115,612 psi
I have not been able to find this oil with the latest API SN certification. The bottle says, “No leading synthetic oil provides better wear protection”. For once, a product’s hype turns out to be true.
zinc = 806 ppm
phos = 812 ppm
moly = 66 ppm

2. 10W30 Lucas Racing Only = 106,505 psi
zinc = 2642 ppm
phos = 3489 ppm
moly = 1764 ppm
NOTE: This oil is suitable for short term racing use only, and is not suitable for street use.

3. 5W30 Mobil 1, API SN = 105,875 psi
zinc = 801 ppm
phos = 842 ppm
moly = 112 ppm

4. 0W30 Amsoil Signature Series 25,000 miles, API SN = 105,008 psi
zinc = 824 ppm
phos = 960 ppm
moly = 161 ppm


******* 10% below number 1 = 104,051 psi ********


5. 10W30 Valvoline NSL (Not Street Legal) Conventional Racing Oil = 103,846 psi
zinc = 1669 ppm
phos = 1518 ppm
moly = 784 ppm
NOTE: This oil is suitable for short term racing use only, and is not suitable for street use.

6. 5W50 Motorcraft, API SN = 103,517 psi
zinc = 606 ppm
phos = 742 ppm
moly = 28 ppm

7. 10W30 Valvoline VR1 Conventional Racing Oil (silver bottle) = 103,505 psi
zinc = 1472 ppm
phos = 1544 ppm
moly = 3 ppm

8. 10W30 Valvoline VR1 Synthetic Racing Oil, API SL (black bottle) = 101,139 psi
zinc = 1180 ppm
phos = 1112 ppm
moly = 162 ppm

9. 5W30 Chevron Supreme conventional, API SN = 100,011 psi
This one only costs $4.29 per quart at the Auto Parts Store where I bought it.
zinc = 1018 ppm
phos = 728 ppm
moly = 161 ppm

10. 5W20 Castrol Edge with Titanium, API SN = 99,983 psi
zinc = 1042 ppm
phos = 857 ppm
moly = 100 ppm
titanium = 49 ppm


11. 20W50 Castrol GTX conventional, API SN = 96,514 psi
zinc = 610 ppm
phos = 754 ppm
moly = 94 ppm

12. 30 wt Red Line Race Oil = 96,470 psi
zinc = 2207 ppm
phos = 2052 ppm
moly = 1235 ppm
NOTE: This oil is suitable for short term racing use only, and is not suitable for street use.

13. 0W20 Mobil 1 Advanced Fuel Economy, API SN = 96,364 psi
zinc = 742 ppm
phos = 677 ppm
moly = 81 ppm

14. 5W30 Quaker State Ultimate Durability, API SN = 95,920 psi
zinc = 877 ppm
phos = 921 ppm
moly = 72 ppm

15. 5W30 Castrol Edge with Titanium, API SN = 95,717 psi
zinc = 818 ppm
phos = 883 ppm
moly = 90 ppm
titanium = 44 ppm

16. 10W30 Joe Gibbs XP3 NASCAR Racing Oil = 95,543 psi
zinc = 743 ppm
phos = 802 ppm
moly = 1125 ppm
NOTE: This oil is suitable for short term racing use only, and is not suitable for street use.

17. 5W20 Castrol GTX conventional, API SN = 95,543 psi
zinc = TBD
phos = TBD
moly = TBD
NOTE: Oil numbers 16 and 17 were tested weeks apart, but due to the similarities in their wear scar sizes, their averages ended up the same.

18. 5W30 Castrol GTX conventional, API SN = 95,392 psi
zinc = TBD
phos = TBD
moly = TBD

19. 10W30 Amsoil Z-Rod Oil = 95,360 psi
zinc = 1431 ppm
phos = 1441 ppm
moly = 52 ppm

20. 5W30 Valvoline SynPower, API SN = 94,942 psi
zinc = 969 ppm
phos = 761 ppm
moly = 0 ppm

21. 5W30 Valvoline Premium Conventional, API SN = 94,744 psi
zinc = TBD
phos = TBD
moly = TBD

22. 5W20 Mobil 1, API SN = 94,663 psi
zinc = 764 ppm
phos = 698 ppm
moly = 76 ppm

23. 5W20 Valvoline SynPower, API SN = 94,460 psi
zinc = 1045 ppm
phos = 742 ppm
moly = 0 ppm

******** 20% below number 1 = 92,490 psi ********

24. 5W30 Lucas conventional, API SN = 92,073 psi
zinc = 992 ppm
phos = 760 ppm
moly = 0 ppm

25. 5W30 O'Reilly (house brand) conventional, API SN = 91,433 psi
This one only costs $3.99 per quart at the Auto Parts Store where I bought it.
zinc = 863 ppm
phos = 816 ppm
moly = 0 ppm

26. 5W30 Red Line, API SN = 91,028 psi
zinc = TBD
phos = TBD
moly = TBD

27. 5W20 Royal Purple API SN = 90,434 psi
zinc = 964 ppm
phos = 892 ppm
moly = 0 ppm

28. 5W20 Valvoline Premium Conventional, API SN = 90,144 psi
zinc = TBD
phos = TBD
moly = TBD


************ GOOD PROTECTION **********


29. 30 wt Castrol Heavy Duty conventional, API SM = 88,089 psi
zinc = TBD
phos = TBD
moly = TBD

30. 10W30 Joe Gibbs HR4 Hotrod Oil = 86,270 psi
zinc = 1247 ppm
phos = 1137 ppm
moly = 24 ppm

31. 5W20 Pennzoil Ultra, API SM = 86,034 psi
I have not been able to find this oil with the latest API SN certification.
zinc = TBD
phos = TBD
moly = TBD

32. 5W30 Royal Purple API SN = 84,009 psi
zinc = 942 ppm
phos = 817 ppm
moly = 0 ppm

33. 20W50 Royal Purple API SN = 83,487 psi
zinc = 588 ppm
phos = 697 ppm
moly = 0 ppm

34. 20W50 Kendall GT-1 High Performance with liquid titanium, (conventional) API SN = 83,365 psi
zinc = 991 ppm
phos = 1253 ppm
moly = 57 ppm
titanium = 84 ppm

35. 5W30 Mobil 1 Extended Performance 15,000 mile, API SN = 83,263 psi
zinc = 890 ppm
phos = 819 ppm
moly = 104 ppm

36. 0W20 Castrol Edge with Titanium, API SN = 82,867 psi
zinc = TBD
phos = TBD
moly = TBD

******** 30% below number 1 = 80,928 psi ********

37. 5W30 GM's AC Delco dexos 1 (semi-synthetic) API SN = 76,501 psi
zinc = 878 ppm
phos = 758 ppm
moly = 72 ppm



**************** MODEST PROTECTION ************


38. 5W30 Royal Purple XPR (Extreme Performance Racing) = 74,860 psi
zinc = 1421 ppm
phos = 1338 ppm
moly = 204 ppm
NOTE: This particular bottle of oil was just opened, but was out of a 3 ½ year old case.

39. 15W40 Farm Rated Heavy Duty Performance Diesel, CI-4, CH-4, CG-4, CF/SL, SJ (conventional) = 73,176 psi
zinc = 1325ppm
phos = 1234 ppm
moly = 2 ppm

40. Brad Penn, Penn Grade 1 Nitro 70 Racing Oil (semi-synthetic) = 72,003 psi
zinc = TBD
phos = TBD
moly = TBD

41. 0W30 Brad Penn, Penn Grade 1 (semi-synthetic) = 71,377 psi
zinc = 1621 ppm
phos = 1437 ppm
moly = 0 ppm

42. 10W30 Brad Penn, Penn Grade 1 (semi-synthetic) = 71,206 psi
zinc = 1557 ppm
phos = 1651 ppm
moly = 3 ppm

43. 15W50 Mobil 1, API SN = 70,235 psi
zinc = 1,133 ppm
phos = 1,168 ppm
moly = 83 ppm

******** 40% below number 1 = 69,367 psi ********

44. 5W30 Motorcraft, API SN = 68,782 psi
zinc = 796 ppm
phos = 830 ppm
moly = 75 ppm

45. 10W30 Royal Purple HPS (High Performance Street) = 66,211 psi
zinc = 1774 ppm
phos = 1347 ppm
moly = 189 ppm

46. 10W40 Valvoline 4 Stroke Motorcycle Oil conventional, API SJ = 65,553 psi
zinc = 1154 ppm
phos = 1075 ppm
moly = 0 ppm

47. Royal Purple 10W30 Break-In Oil conventional = 62,931 psi
zinc = TBD
phos = TBD
moly = TBD

avalonandl

Mobil 1 is in the top 4, nuff said.....

Mr. Jones

I was doing a little research and Pennzoil Ultra Platinum™
Full Synthetic Motor Oil with PurePlus™ Technology 5-30w
Did look slightly better in that is did keep engine parts cleaner and stated that it was better suited for direct injection engines.
It was also listed as meeting the latest GM oil spec.
I have not used it-yet

bob guzzy

I use Pennzoil Platinum 5-30 in my cars, it is my first choice in oil.

I use it along with Purolator pure gold filters.

I use it in 3 cars and lawn tractor.

meyerweb

Where did these test results come from?

Also, this seems to evaluate only one aspect of oil performance. An important one to be sure, but not the only important one.

meyerweb

And of the top 4, only two are the recommended viscosity for the Stingray.

xp800

This information was published some time ago. It comes from here:

https://540ratblog.wordpress.com/

If one agrees with the notion that wear protection is the only thing that matters and that wear protection is completely a function of film strength, then these stats can be meaningful.

Like in a track racing setting with only a few hours of time on an oil change...

HOWEVER, these results do nothing to describe the many other things that are required for passenger car motor oil.

I begin to disagree quite quickly with the film strength metric as the only important one when looking at drain intervals of ~1 year and 7000-10000 miles that most modern oils (with proper additive packages) support. Many racing oils are completely unsuitable for extended use or normal use in passenger cars due to the lack of many necessary additives.

So in one context these results are maybe good for one use case, but I think it's myopic in that it neglects the other things that are necessary to be a truly "outstanding" oil.

xp800

The irony of this is that in a true oil forum (Bob Is The Oil Guy) where people post up their UOAs (used oil analysis) for thousands of samples, Mobil 1 5w-30 has tended to have slightly higher levels of wear metals compared to their peer group.

So if you really want to know where your favorite oil ranks in real use, it takes more than this one person's testing and more research to make an educated "nuff said" conclusion.

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/

FWIW, I use Penzoil Platinum and Penzoil Ultra based on my research. My personal UOAs in my cars have shown these to do better vs. Mobil 1 when comparing. However, the results were beyond outstanding for both.

xp800

I'd also recommend reading this thread and pay attention to posts by LDB. It was about the use of 15w-50, but touched on so many requirements of oil... I'd really like him to chime in here since he's one of the very few folks who seem truly qualified to provide such insights on motor oils. And I do not count myself in the qualified category relative to him. He has real first-hand knowledge. I have just read a fair bit on the subject.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...l-options.html

LDB

I don’t normally read the tech forums as they are mostly about mods, and that topic doesn't interest me much. But XP800 PM’d me and asked if I post a reply to this thread. There’s more to oil than film strength, zinc, phos, and moly. If it were that easy, nobody would need to do engine testing, you’d just max out those numbers. It would be kind of like a doctor judging the state of your health by how much weight you could lift, and your cholesterol number. Sure, those numbers are pieces of the oil health and people health situations, respectively, but health is pretty clearly more complicated than just those numbers. Key oil issues not addressed by film strength, zinc, phos, and moly include detergency, pH stability, friction characteristics, thermal stability, and a host of other characteristics. So rating an oil strictly on film strength, zinc, phos, and moly is simply absurd.

croaker

Bandit1

Think I'll stick with AMSOIL 5W30 Signature Series every 5K miles.

KemahGT

Pennzoil, Lucas, Royal Purple and on and on. I will never consider any of these until they can sell me a jug at Wal-Mart for the same price as Mobil1.

This kind of study bores me.

ageshelin

I see this topic come up on every car forum, including the stupid ball bearing article, above.

It looks like this forum has some intelligent people with proper scientific opinions. I enjoyed the link to the oil forum... It brought back old memories..... The oil test equipment has not changed in 35 years!

Let me try to convey some simple facts:

1. The most important function of the oil to to provide a lubricating oil film. This comes from the oil/hydrocarbon component on the oil, not the additives.

2. The 'weight' of the oil, is a measure of its viscosity. The W is the cold viscosity, it is less important. Th 30 or 40 is the measure of viscosity. If the engine is designed for 30, it should run 30, there is no advantage in 20 or 40. If the operating conditions change like track use, heavier oil maybe better. All we are trying to do is achieve the same viscosity at the main bearings at its predominant temperature as the engnie builder or engineer intended. No magic! It it runs hotter, it needs thicker oil. If the oil cooler is exceptionally good, it may not...

3. Viscosity index is an indicator of petroleum base-stock quality. It is much better with synthetics. I used to blend dinasour oil. It is not hard! There were 3 base-stocks coming from refinery, light, medium and heavy. (We had to do this because every batch of crude even from the same field was different). You bloend them up, test in one viscosity meter and try again. You can blend light and heavy, but that would result in very poor quality oil. Synthetics solve all these issues. After the oil is blended the additive package goes in.

4. There are certain additives like ZDDP that are very good (the ball test, above mostly measured that, impressive how a small quantity of ZDDP makes such a difference). ZDDP destroys catalytic converters...

5. An expensive oil is not necessarily the best. My M3 uses 10W60 at $20 per quart. The large spread (10W to 60) is achieved by a lot of viscosity modifier. it is basically a plastic that rolls-up and becomes more viscous with temperature. If BMW did not want to solve a very unique problem with that motor, neither they or I would use that oil at any price! A 30 number split is as far as I would go. So 20W50 is good and 10W40 is marginal.

6. There is no such thing as an extended change interval oil. Oil accumulates by-products of combustion and other crap from the engine which cannot be filtered out. They act as a catalyst to destroy the oil and reduce its lubricating qualities. Again, synthetic is a little better in holding up. There only way to flush all that accumulated crud is to change the oil. I would be careful with engine oil flushes. You never know how much of the light solvent is left to mix with the new oil. Unless the cleaning flush is followed by 20 gallon oil flush and they get to keep the diluted oil.

7. There are some differences in synthetic base stocks (starting chemicals to make the oil). I think Mobil switched to cheaper ones a few years, ago. These are all closely guarded secrets... I prefer oil from well known boutique shops.

Everybody has their preferences... I like Redline. however, for the daily driver I buy something cheaper, like Mobil1, etc.

This is even more important than gasoline octane booster snake oil. Those things are harmless at worst (not to mention that there is just too small an amount to blend with a whole tank). Bad oil or bad oil additive will do real damage.

Anton

KemahGT

Yawn