AMSOil Vs. Mobil1 Vs. ?: A test. Update: Pennzoil Platinum samples taken, results pending.

[Eli]

I'm going to be doing a direct comparison between AMSOil and Mobil 1 in my car, an endurance test and a cost per mile analysis.

Should I do the test with Mobil 1 first? I'm kind've worried about the results being skewed on the first synthetic run, if my engine is dirty inside at all. Maybe I'll run 4 tests..

Don't know. Also, which viscosities should I run? I don't know how fair it would be to compare different viscosities... I figure a 20 weight will give me the best MPG, so I'll start with that I guess... Mobil 0W-20 vs. AMSOil 0W-20.. could also do Mobil 0W-30 vs. AMSOil 0W-30.

lol.. Looks like theres a new product, Mobil 1 Extended Performance. "Improvements that add up to exceptional protection for 15,000 miles. Guaranteed. "

I think I'll just try the regular M1...? Wonder how much of a price premium the Extended Performance product commands.

Obviously this thread will take a while to play out, but I will update it with the oil analysis and such as things happen.

Small Update:

Well, I put in Pennzoil Platinum 5W-20. Already put 900 miles on the new oil.

It's going to be time for the first analysis before I know it. :Q Going to check it at ~5,000 miles. It should still be good to go at that point. At least, it better be.

The engine used only a tiny, minuscule amount of oil in ~5500 miles. We will see if consumption goes up, or down, or stays the same with the synthetic.

Car Data

Update2: Changed my oil tonight. Put 9512 miles on the Pennzoil Platinum 5W-20. Really no idea what the results will say. The magnet I put on the drain plug was pretty clean.

Walmart was out of PP 5W-20, so I got Mobil 1 Extended Performance 5W-20.. guess we will see how that goes. I'm going to put it through its paces and see if it will last 15,000 miles as claimed.

These 9512 miles happened over the course of 40 days(7/14 to 8/24), an average of 237.8 miles every day, 7 days a week. How do you think the oil fared? Will have the results in a week or two. I took two samples, I'm sending one to Blackstone Labs and the other to Dyson Analysis.. just for fun, and I have money to throw around. 😉

Latest car data

 

[Kelvrick]

I always read about how even though you change the oil, the engine is still coated with all the chemcials of the previous oil, so I would figure you'd go an entire year with one oil and the next with the other as to provide a good average with both oils going through different temperatures and conditions.

EDIT: I really tink amsoil is going to kick m1 butt. What about royal purple?

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: Kelvrick
I always read about how even though you change the oil, the engine is still coated with all the chemcials of the previous oil, so I would figure you'd go an entire year with one oil and the next with the other as to provide a good average with both oils going through different temperatures and conditions.

EDIT: I really tink amsoil is going to kick m1 butt. What about royal purple?

I could get Royal Purple.. It's also available locally. It's cheaper than AMSOil, too.

I'm driving about 1,000 miles a week, so I don't think the oils will last a year. 😉

I'd hope that AMSOil kicks M1's butt, as it's roughly double the price.. But only time will tell. I'm interested to see the results myself.

The only thing that will change is the seasons, since I'm doing the same route every day, which accounts for about 800 miles a week.

 

[fs5]

are you going to send the oil out for testing? otherwise how are you going to test 'endurance'?

ps. season is not the 'only' thing that will change, whichever oil you test second will get the engine in a worse condition than the first.

 

[desy]

I'm giving up on changing oil.
I'll change it once a year with filter heading into winter and put in synthetic and call it a day.
Been reading lots of articles lately where modern engines are so much tighter that you don't get the blow by etc that old engines used to and if you get it up to temperature you don't get the buildup of water either and I drive highway everyday.

So consider my experiment the opposite of yours 🙂

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: fs5
are you going to send the oil out for testing? otherwise how are you going to test 'endurance'?

ps. season is not the 'only' thing that will change, whichever oil you test second will get the engine in a worse condition than the first.

Of course I'm going to send it in for analysis, that's the only way to tell.. lol

Not sure on the analysis schedule. I'll probably check it after 7500 miles the first time around.


As for your point.. Irrelevant. Engines wear so little once they reach "maturity" that there will be no differences caused by that in the time frame we're dealing with.

 

[Pepsi90919]

i thought you were hard up for cash? where's the money coming from to buy all this synthetic oil?

 

[Eli]

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Pepsi90919
i thought you were hard up for cash? where's the money coming from to buy all this synthetic oil?</end quote></div>I deal drugs, am a male prostitute and sell pirated music at flea markets. :roll:

Think about it. I bought a new car. Could it be that.. I found a job?! Amazing.

Why do you have to be such a dick all the time?

Edit: I apologize if it was a legitimate question, but your posts tend to rub me the wrong way. The whole premise of your question is offensive, though. Because clearly, spending 50$ on an oil change instead of 25$ is outrageous.

 

[Pepsi90919]

Originally posted by: Eli
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Pepsi90919
i thought you were hard up for cash? where's the money coming from to buy all this synthetic oil?</end quote></div>I deal drugs, am a male prostitute and sell pirated music at flea markets. :roll:

Think about it. I bought a new car. Could it be that.. I found a job?! Amazing.

Why do you have to be such a dick all the time?

Edit: I apologize if it was a legitimate question, but your posts tend to rub me the wrong way. The whole premise of your question is offensive, though. Because clearly, spending 50$ on an oil change instead of 25$ is outrageous.

jesus christ man, pull the stick out of your ass. it was a simple question.

 

[Kelvrick]

Originally posted by: Eli

I'm driving about 1,000 miles a week, so I don't think the oils will last a year. 😉

I'd hope that AMSOil kicks M1's butt, as it's roughly double the price.. But only time will tell. I'm interested to see the results myself.

The only thing that will change is the seasons, since I'm doing the same route every day, which accounts for about 800 miles a week.

Yea, so you'd have to do the oil change several times with Mobile 1 so that by the end of the year after however many changes, the engine has actually been running only that oil when you send it out for analysis.

For example, starting now, you'd change say 8 times through the next year, then send that to analysis. Then you'd put in Amsoil and run that for the next year.

Thats what I meant by a years worth.

 

[TekDemon]

M1 is better than Amsoil. That's that.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: Kelvrick
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Eli

I'm driving about 1,000 miles a week, so I don't think the oils will last a year. 😉

I'd hope that AMSOil kicks M1's butt, as it's roughly double the price.. But only time will tell. I'm interested to see the results myself.

The only thing that will change is the seasons, since I'm doing the same route every day, which accounts for about 800 miles a week.</end quote></div>

Yea, so you'd have to do the oil change several times with Mobile 1 so that by the end of the year after however many changes, the engine has actually been running only that oil when you send it out for analysis.

For example, starting now, you'd change say 8 times through the next year, then send that to analysis. Then you'd put in Amsoil and run that for the next year.

Thats what I meant by a years worth.

Wait, do you mean save the 8 oil changes worth of oil, and send a sample of that in for analysis? LOL... That isn't how it works.

I don't really understand what you mean, but.. an oil change is an oil change.. The only thing thats possible is that the new synthetic oil, presumably with more detergents.. will loosen some deposits up, degrading the oil more quickly than it would otherwise.

Maybe to make the test more scientific, I will run M1 through say, 3 oil changes... and then AMSOil also through 3. That could end up taking a year or longer though. Oh well.

 

[amdskip]

Why don't you run Pennzoil through it first as it is a high detergent oil so that way some of the existing crap will be removed. I did this before I changed my car over to Amsoil.

I've never used mobil 1 but in real world tests with drag racing, Amsoil simply rocks! We run it wherever possible (rear end, transmission, etc.) and it makes a huge difference on the wear and tear of parts and temperatures.

 

[Kelvrick]

Originally posted by: Eli
Maybe to make the test more scientific, I will run M1 through say, 3 oil changes... and then AMSOil also through 3. That could end up taking a year or longer though. Oh well.

Thats what I meant. Just a sample of that last oil change before you put in the next brand. I just said a year to take out the whole temperature thing. It wuldn't really be fair if one sees nothing but rain and the other sees summer shine (dunno the weather in portland).

 

[SilthDraeth]

Originally posted by: Kelvrick
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Eli
Maybe to make the test more scientific, I will run M1 through say, 3 oil changes... and then AMSOil also through 3. That could end up taking a year or longer though. Oh well.</end quote></div>

Thats what I meant. Just a sample of that last oil change before you put in the next brand. I just said a year to take out the whole temperature thing. It wuldn't really be fair if one sees nothing but rain and the other sees summer shine (dunno the weather in portland).

I am pretty sure Portland sees nothing but rain year around.

 

[HVAC]

Is there a difference between Mobil 1 and Amsoil (beside additive package)? I seem to recall some talk about short-chain polyolester vs. long-chain, but I dont' remember what the conclusion was.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: SilthDraeth
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Kelvrick
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Eli
Maybe to make the test more scientific, I will run M1 through say, 3 oil changes... and then AMSOil also through 3. That could end up taking a year or longer though. Oh well.</end quote></div>

Thats what I meant. Just a sample of that last oil change before you put in the next brand. I just said a year to take out the whole temperature thing. It wuldn't really be fair if one sees nothing but rain and the other sees summer shine (dunno the weather in portland).</end quote></div>

I am pretty sure Portland sees nothing but rain year around.

lol 😉 We get about 3 months of summer. 😛

Weather conditions do play a big role, but will just have to be ignored for this test.

I could get a year out of 3 M1 changes if it lasts 15k miles, and over a year with AMSOil if it lasts longer. I guess we'll see.

I do like the idea of running something for a while just to help flush the engine out, but that'd be kinda a waste of money, lol..

I could Seafoam the engine first...

 

[antillean]

Originally posted by: Eli
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Kelvrick
I always read about how even though you change the oil, the engine is still coated with all the chemcials of the previous oil, so I would figure you'd go an entire year with one oil and the next with the other as to provide a good average with both oils going through different temperatures and conditions.

EDIT: I really tink amsoil is going to kick m1 butt. What about royal purple?</end quote></div>I could get Royal Purple.. It's also available locally. It's cheaper than AMSOil, too.

I'm driving about 1,000 miles a week, so I don't think the oils will last a year. 😉

I'd hope that AMSOil kicks M1's butt, as it's roughly double the price.. But only time will tell. I'm interested to see the results myself.

The only thing that will change is the seasons, since I'm doing the same route every day, which accounts for about 800 miles a week.

Why do you drive 1000 miles a week???

 

[Gillbot]

Originally posted by: Eli
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Kelvrick
I always read about how even though you change the oil, the engine is still coated with all the chemcials of the previous oil, so I would figure you'd go an entire year with one oil and the next with the other as to provide a good average with both oils going through different temperatures and conditions.

EDIT: I really tink amsoil is going to kick m1 butt. What about royal purple?</end quote></div>I could get Royal Purple.. It's also available locally. It's cheaper than AMSOil, too.

I'm driving about 1,000 miles a week, so I don't think the oils will last a year. 😉

I'd hope that AMSOil kicks M1's butt, as it's roughly double the price.. But only time will tell. I'm interested to see the results myself.

The only thing that will change is the seasons, since I'm doing the same route every day, which accounts for about 800 miles a week.

I think what he is saying is it might be better to run the oil through it's normal changes and etc. for a year to get an average data set vs. a single data snapshot.

 

[melchoir]

I'm pretty sure you can find some comparisons on the "bob is the oil guy" forums.
There's tons of technical information regarding motor oils (dino/synthetic) on that forum.

It'll likely save you the year or two on this project that you'll probably lose motivation on and forget about halfway through anyway.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: melchoir
I'm pretty sure you can find some comparisons on the "bob is the oil guy" forums.
There's tons of technical information regarding motor oils (dino/synthetic) on that forum.

It'll likely save you the year or two on this project that you'll probably lose motivation on and forget about halfway through anyway.

Well... I am sure there is lots of data available, but it would really only be comparable if the samples were from the same geologic location and from the same model of cars.

It would be interesting data to look at though.

This is more for personal enjoyment and knowledge. It will also tell me how AMSOil and Mobil 1 treat my specific engine with my specific driving habits in my specific environment...

But yeah, I'll have to head over there and look at all the numbers. Oh glorious numbers, I <3 thee.

 

[Gillbot]

Originally posted by: Eli
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: melchoir
I'm pretty sure you can find some comparisons on the "bob is the oil guy" forums.
There's tons of technical information regarding motor oils (dino/synthetic) on that forum.

It'll likely save you the year or two on this project that you'll probably lose motivation on and forget about halfway through anyway.</end quote></div>Well... I am sure there is lots of data available, but it would really only be comparable if the samples were from the same geologic location and from the same model of cars.

It would be interesting data to look at though.

This is more for personal enjoyment and knowledge. It will also tell me how AMSOil and Mobil 1 treat my specific engine with my specific driving habits in my specific environment...

But yeah, I'll have to head over there and look at all the numbers. Oh glorious numbers, I <3 thee.

I know that the recommended fill of Mobil 1 in my car doesn't provide the protection my motor needs and oil analysis has backed this up. I don't know if it's my location or my driving style but wear numbers are staggeringly high and climbing. Changing viscosities does little to curb the wear and the oil is thinning way faster than it should. I just need to get off my butt and decide on a replacement and start the testing cycle all over.

 

[Apex]

Originally posted by: Gillbot
I know that the recommended fill of Mobil 1 in my car doesn't provide the protection my motor needs and oil analysis has backed this up. I don't know if it's my location or my driving style but wear numbers are staggeringly high and climbing. Changing viscosities does little to curb the wear and the oil is thinning way faster than it should. I just need to get off my butt and decide on a replacement and start the testing cycle all over.

Has the oil analysis shown what has been causing the thinning?

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: Gillbot
I know that the recommended fill of Mobil 1 in my car doesn't provide the protection my motor needs and oil analysis has backed this up. I don't know if it's my location or my driving style but wear numbers are staggeringly high and climbing. Changing viscosities does little to curb the wear and the oil is thinning way faster than it should. I just need to get off my butt and decide on a replacement and start the testing cycle all over.

Interesting....

Sounds like something is seriously wrong. More info about the car?

 

[Gillbot]

Originally posted by: Apex
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Gillbot
I know that the recommended fill of Mobil 1 in my car doesn't provide the protection my motor needs and oil analysis has backed this up. I don't know if it's my location or my driving style but wear numbers are staggeringly high and climbing. Changing viscosities does little to curb the wear and the oil is thinning way faster than it should. I just need to get off my butt and decide on a replacement and start the testing cycle all over.</end quote></div>

Has the oil analysis shown what has been causing the thinning?

No, we haven't pinpointed the cause but we believe it's just shearing quickly. The first step in curbing excessive wear was removing the K&N air filter. That dropped it off a TON and we thought as time wore on the oil would "clean up" but it hasn't. It has actually started rising again. I just don't think the Mobil 1 has the viscosity to keep up with the stress I put the oil through.

My next step is going to be an Auto Doctor treatment to get a good flush and try again.

Originally posted by: Eli
<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: Gillbot
I know that the recommended fill of Mobil 1 in my car doesn't provide the protection my motor needs and oil analysis has backed this up. I don't know if it's my location or my driving style but wear numbers are staggeringly high and climbing. Changing viscosities does little to curb the wear and the oil is thinning way faster than it should. I just need to get off my butt and decide on a replacement and start the testing cycle all over.</end quote></div>Interesting....

Sounds like something is seriously wrong. More info about the car?

The car is always driven hard and put away wet. Pic is in sig and it's HEAVILY modded. I've been accused of having a digital throttle pedal, it's either on or off. 😀

I went from the recommended fill of 5W-30 to a 15W50 and it helped a good bit. This leads me to believe the Mobil 1 30W oils are just too thin for what my motor, environment and driving style needs. I have read that most other 30W synthetics are on the heavier side of the 30W scale so that's my next goal as soon as this round of Mobil 1 wears out or I get uncomfortable with it's protection levels.