Synthetic Oil: The Auto Industry’s
Best-Kept Secret*

What's the big deal about synthetic oil? Have you ever heard the story about the light bulb that doesn’t burn out or the razor that never dulls? Sure, these stories get exaggerated, but sometimes there’s an element of truth to the rumors leaking out of a manufacturers skunkworks.

One particular rumor that sounds too good to be true is “an experimental motor oil that increases horsepower, practically stops internal engine wear in its tracks and improves fuel efficiency.”

Well, synthetic motor oil is not a rumor. It’s been in use ever since World War II (the Germans used it on the cold eastern front because conventional oil wouldn’t flow in the arctic-like weather).

Even though it sounds too good to be true, synthetics do reduce engine wear, improve gas mileage and increase horsepower. This is because synthetic oil molecules are superior in a number of ways to the molecular structure of mineral-based oil.

Synthetic Oil is Superior to Mineral-Based Oil in Every Way:

• Synthetic oil has a much higher resistance to heat than mineral-based oil. Because synthetic oil is composed of molecules that are uniform in weight and shape it begins to evaporate at a much higher temperature(more than 600 deg. F.) than conventional oil, which begins evaporating at temps as low as 350 deg.F.

• This added stability at high temperature means that your hard-working engine wont burn up as much oil, and that means less sludge and fewer varnish deposits in the engine.

• Increased lubricity is another attribute of synthetics. The uniform diameter of synthetic oil molecules allows them to slide over one another more easily. The resultant reduction in friction shows up as more horsepower and torque and reduced internal engine wear.
• Higher film/shear strength, however is one of the major benefits of synthetics. Film strength is what keeps oil molecules from being pushed away from each other under pressure.

• In an area where two metal surfaces meet, the film of oil between them prevents them from rubbing and wearing away at each other. Synthetics do a better job of this than conventional mineral oils.
• Synthetic oil does not shear as easily as petroleum oil and maintains a higher film strength. This results in less wear between moving parts, especially under extreme operating conditions.

Not All Synthetics Are Created Equal:

• There are wide differences in quality and protection provided by the various brands of synthetics.

• Additionally, not all synthetics are 100% synthetic. Many are partial synthetics marketed under the perception of full synthetics to the unsuspecting consumer.
• Film strength is important in another way...cold start protection. Engine start-up is one of the most critical times for lubrication.

• Small amounts of wear occur every time you start your engine with mineral-based oils. Over time, these small amounts of wear add up to larger amounts and result in increased clearances, reduced oil pressure, increased oil consumption and reduced life of your engine.
• With Mineral-Based Oil Your Engine is Not Optimally Protected During One of The Most Critical Times: Engine Start-Up. Regular mineral-based oil will not remain as a boundary layer (a uniform thin coating) on metal surfaces when an engine is turned off.
• Mineral-based oil drains off parts and out of passageways into the oil pan. Additionally, mineral-based oils contain waxes and paraffins that come out of the earth and solidify when it gets colder outside, therefore making it even harder to pump the oil when cold.
• When you first start your vehicle the metal surfaces (crankshaft, camshaft, lifters, connecting rod bearings, piston pin bushings & bearings, piston, rings and cylinder walls) that require lubrication are not fully lubricated in the time it takes for the oil pump to pressurize the lubrication system and supply oil to the engine.
• Synthetic motor oil, on the other hand, will stay on engine parts and coat them uniformly because of its high film strength and greater heat affinity (it adheres better to hot metal parts). Additionally, synthetics prevent start-up engine wear and are pumped to critical passageways, surfaces and bearings much faster than mineral-based oils.
• With mineral-based oils your engine can possibly be running with no/low oil pressure for a short period of time, depending on the severity of cold weather, after cranking and starting the motor.
• With synthetics, after several hundred thousand miles you still will have a strong running engine, instead of an engine with significantly increased internal wear. This has been proven by hundreds of millions of miles of customer usage and countless laboratory and field tests.

• Some synthetics are designed for longer drain intervals.

  • This offsets the added cost of synthetic oil. AMSOIL, Inc. maker of AMSOIL Synthetic Lubricants has motor oils designed for 25,000 mile/1-year or 35,000 mile/1-year drain intervals (or longer with by-pass filtration). There is no other oil company in the world that can match AMSOIL’s extended drain interval capability or quality.

Why Don’t Automakers Use Synthetics in Production Vehicles?

Okay. Synthetics are great. The real question is: Why doesn’t everybody use them? Automakers don’t use synthetics in production vehicles (except as where needed to prevent concerns during the warranty period) for at least two reasons.

1. Synthetic motor oil significantly reduces internal engine, transmission and axle wear when compared to petroleum oil. Independent ASTM testing proves this fact.

   Reduced wear translates into increased longevity of your vehicle which results in your being able to keep your vehicle longer with less chance of wear related concerns.

2. Additionally, if factory oil changes were specified as 25,000 mile/1-year, as AMSOIL offers, the petroleum oil companies would sell approximately 8 times less oil than with the 3000 mile oil change.

   Sure, they all offer a synthetic or semi-synthetic now, but it is only a small percentage of total oil sales volume.

   By using AMSOIL Synthetic Motor oil people can reduce the amount of oil they use by as much as 80%, not to mention saving time and money in the process.

Extended Oil Change Intervals With AMSOIL Synthetic Oil

Many of the same oil companies that recommend 3000 mile oil changes in the U.S. also offer and recommend 12,000-18,000 mile oil changes in Europe, and have been for many years with plans for increasing that to nearly 30,000 mile oil changes in the future.

The technology is already available yet AMSOIL is the only lubricant maker to offer a superior extended drain synthetic oil that far exceeds the performance specifications of any other type and brand of oil and back it with their own written warranty.

AMSOIL Offers Extended Drain Intervals and Superior Filtration:

AMSOIL Synthetic Motor oils come in several different extended drain levels depending on the base stock and additive levels. There is s 35,000 mile/1-year oil, a 25,000 mile/1-year oil and a Group 111 synthetic designed for 7500 miles or six months, whichever comes first. They also maufacture an "Absolute Efficiency" Oil Filter designed to last for 25,000 miles or 1 year whichever comes first.

With AMSOIL By-Pass Filtration it is possible to extend oil change intervals indefinately due to the ability of the AMSOIL By-Pass filter to remove particles down to 1 micron at 85% efficiency.

The average consumer spending excessive amounts of time and money changing their oil every 3000 miles does not get the same level of performance and protection as the AMSOIL customer that is saving both time and money and getting maximum performance, protection and extending the life of their engine.

Mineral Oil is Good for Initial Break-In:

Converting a vehicle to AMSOIL is fairly simple, but there are a few things you need to be aware of. First, if you have a brand new vehicle we recommend that you run a short cycle of petroleum oil on a gas engine passenger car or light truck (typically up to your first scheduled oil change).

On a diesel engines such as a Ford Powerstroke, Dodge Cummins Turbo Diesels or Chevy Duramax Diesels we recommend approximately 5000 miles before installing AMSOIL.

This doesn't mean that you can't install AMSOIL sooner (there are even a few OEM's that install synthetics as a factory fill) it simply means these are our recommendations based on our extensive engineering studies and knowledge of this topic.

Today's modern engine manufacturing and materials technology is much more sophisticated than in years past. Regular gas engine passenger car and light truck engines do not require the extensive break in process many people think they do.

In addition, by the time you get your new vehicle the engine has already been through a series of hot tests also run on in-plant chassis rolls testers to check functionality of all systems and then driven around the plant and railhead in order to get the vehicle to the dealer, which also helps accelerate breaking in of the engine.

Why aren't synthetic lubricants more popular?

Interestingly enough, the biggest reason that synthetic lubricants are not in widespread use is because the would-be consumer does not know of the benefits provided by synthetics.

Also, they are not sure where to go to ask or who to ask. Asking your local parts counterman at the auto parts or the high school kid at the quick-lube shop is not the answer, or even asking your local auto dealer that sold you the car- remember, they are usually tied in with a specific manufacturers brand or oil and the 3000 mile oil change.

You should seek out and acquire information from a Certified Lubrication Specialist, lubrication engineer, automotive engineer or competent mechanic that fully understands and can explain the benefits of synthetics and the drawbacks of mineral-based oil to the consumer.

But beware, there are many mechanics out there that are so engrained in the old way of thinking that they refuse to change their way of thinking or even open up their minds to the fact that there are automotive engineers, lubrication engineers and chemists that know a lot more about motor oils, filtration, vehicles and synthetics than them. I call them "old-school" type of mechanics and it is best to steer clear of those type.

Some People Will Never Change:

Even though people have known about synthetics for years, consumers continue to be brand and price driven. The rationale continues to be, “My grandpappy used brand V in his model T, so I won’t use nothing else.” Or, “I been using brand Q in my IROC for years. If I change brands now I’ll blow the motor.” Or, “ I ain’t payin’ no five dollars a quart, no siree, Bob, I ain’t that stupid.” Or, “I ain’t using none of that synthetic oil...that’s stuff’s made out of beans...I want some real crude oil.”

This last statement was an actual statement from a customer in a snowmobile store. He was having 2-cycle spark plug fouling problems due to the mineral- based oil mixture he was using.

The store suggested he use a synthetic oil and 2 new spark plugs to eliminate the fouling issue. He declined and purchased 2 boxes of spark plugs and his usual crude oil mix. The following year he finally decided to try AMSOIL 100:1 pre-mix two-stroke synthetic oil and his spark plug fouling problem was eliminated.

He used 4 spark plugs for the entire snowmobile season, vs. 2 boxes ( that's 24 spark plugs) he went through per season with petroleum oil.

Synthetics Are Compatible With Mineral Based Oils, But Be Careful:

When switching to a synthetic motor oil, it is important to keep several things in mind regarding oil consumption. Keep extra quarts of synthetic handy.

Although many synthetic oil manufacturers tout the compatibility of their oils with mineral-based oils, adding mineral oil to synthetic oil will drastically reduce the level of engine protection that was initially designed into the synthetic oil as well as the mileage to your next oil change.

As the mineral oil breaks down it will contaminate the rest of the oil, leaving sludge and varnish deposits in the engine (this is because mineral oil is made up of many chemically dissimilar hydrocarbons, including waxes, all of which react differently under different operating conditions).

By adding a mineral oil to synthetic oil you will also see a reduction in engine efficiency. depending on how much, and when, the mineral-based oil was introduced.

There are many different companies that offer synthetics. Because this overview is intended to give readers a general idea of the benefits of synthetic lubricants, we have'nt discussed the specific differences between all the individual brands and their formulations.

Keep in mind there are significant differences between brands of synthetics, which will affect the performance and longevity of your engine, transmission, axles, bearings and chassis components.

*The above page edited from information presented to me by Dave Mann, AMSOIL Direct Jobber and retired Ford Motor Company Engineer.

Click Here to see my explanation as to why I believe AMSOIL, Inc. makes the best performing synthetic lubricants and why I use them in all of my vehicles and equipment.

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