FW: FW: [A/S] Oil Change Suggestions?

["Oliver Filippi" <ofilippi@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Many people have favorite oils which they are very partial to.

The following applies to conventional mineral oil based engine oil:

Viscosity aside, the basic oil is pretty much the same, no matter what brand
you choose.  The main difference is in the additive packages that each brand
uses.  This also applies to different product lines (not viscosities) within
a given brand. Here there can be significant differences  - friction
modifiers, viscosity improvers, detergents (and their ability to resist
break down under thermal (heat) stress), and the concentrations of these
additives.  In some cases, some oil marketers have proprietary chemistry
(Techron gasoline additive is a good, and one of the few, carbon solvent,
and is unique to Chevron Chemical Co. (they hold the patent). Thus, Chevron
can put it in their gasoline for a lot lower cost than their competitors
(assuming they sell it to competitors).

A friend who was an executive with Union Oil Co. (76) told me that on the
west coast, Castrol buys their oil stock from Union Oil, then puts in their
own additive package.

I do not know how standardized the base synthetic lubricants are. However
there are different ones, so there could be some variation from brand to
brand.  Once again, the ability of the product to meet the performance
standards of the auto manufacturers is key.

Synthetics, by their very nature, can withstand heat exceptionally well, and
are slipperier.  Once again, the additives (along with viscosity) will
determine their specific applicability.  That is why some synthetics are not
recommended for heavy duty diesel engines.

Mineral oil or synthetic, they are all going to become contaminated with use
and need to be changed. Since the synthetic requires fewer additves to
achieve a given level of performance, it is likely to safely outlast a
mineral oil based lubricant befor needing to be replaced.

Oliver Filippi