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Layman's Guide to Synthetic Oil
Synthetics: The Auto Industry's Best-Kept
Secret...Revealed
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 mineral-based oils.
Synthetic Oil is Superior to Mineral-Based Oil in Every
Way:
Without getting too technical, suffice it to say that
synthetics have a much
higher resistance to heat
than mineral-based oils. Because synthetic oil is
composed of molecules that are uniform in weight and
shape, its heat of vaporization is much higher (more
than 600 deg. F.) compared to 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.
Added slipperiness
is another attribute of synthetics. The uniform diameter
of synthetic oil polymers allows them to more easily
slide over one another. The resultant reduction in
friction shows up as more horsepower and torque and
reduced internal engine wear.
Higher film 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. Mineral based oil
has a film strength of about 400 psi, while synthetics
usually exceed 3000 psi. 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. It takes more than seven times as much
pressure to squeeze synthetic oil from between two
surfaces than mineral-based oil. Consequently,
synthetics are much better at keeping your engine like
new.
Not All Synthetics Are Created Equal:
Please be aware that not all synthetics are created
equal. There is wide differences in quality and
protection provided by the various synthetics.
Additionally, not all synthetics are 100% synthetic.
Many are partial synthetics marketed under the
perception of full synthetics to the unsuspecting
consumer or even hydrocracked oils such as Castrol
Syntec, for example, which is a hydroisomerized
petroleum oil marketed under the disguise of a synthetic
(there is a full article on this in our Informative
Articles section detailing the recent battle between
Castrol and Mobil). There are no PAO synthetic molecules
in Castrol Syntec, yet because of legal fanageling with
the definition of synthesized motor oils they can
legally be called synthetic. Basically, they changed the
definition of a synthetic to fit their process of highly
refining a petroleum base oil, called hydrocracking and
fought with Mobil and the National Advertising Council
to loosen the definition of a synthetic. Pretty sneaky
huh!?
Film strength is important in another way- cold start
protection. 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
parafins 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 crank 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.
With Mineral-Based Oil Your Engine is Not Protected
During One of The Most Critical Times: Engine Start-Up:
Engine start-up lubrication is one of the most critical
times for lubrication. Small amounts o wear occurs 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 increase clearances, reduced oil
pressure, increase oil consumption and reduced life of
your 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 is basically running with
no oil (which can be as much as 20-30 seconds, depending
on the severity of cold weather, after cranking the
motor). With synthetics after several hundred thousand
miles you still will have a strong running engine,
instead of a used-up engine that requires a re-build.
This has been proven by millions of miles of customer
usage and countless laboratory and field tests.
As an extra benefit , some synthetics are designed for
longer drain intervals. This offsets the added cost of
synthetic oil.
AMSOIL
has motor oils designed for 25,000 mile/1-year or 35,000
mile/1-year drain intevals (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 component failure during the warranty
period) for at least two reasons. They want to sell you
a new car every 3-5 years, or sooner, and synthetic
motor oil would significantly reduce their chances of
doing that. Additionally, the major oil companies want
to sell oil to keep their oil wells and refineries
running and they do that by recommending the 3000 mile
oil change. Sure, they all offer a synthetic or
semi-synthetic now, but it is only a very small
percentage of total oil sales volume. Basically, what
you are seeing here is politics and big oil and big auto
manufacturers looking out for each other so than can
continue to reap billions of dollars of profits from
unsuspecting consumers. Pretty disgusting huh!?
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 and have plans for increasing that to
nearly 30,000 mile oil changes in the future. The
technology is available yet
AMSOIL
is the only one 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 warranty.
AMSOIL
Offers Extended Drain Intervals and Superior Filtration:
AMSOIL
Synthetic Lubricants offers a 25,000 mile/1-year oil
change, a 35,000 mile/1-year oil change with Super Duty
Filtration (require changing every 12,500 miles or
6-months, whichever comes first). Should the consumer
choose
AMSOIL
By-Pass Filtration, this will allow for virtually no oil
changes and filter down to 1/10 micron particle size.
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 and transmission (
AMSOIL
also offers synthetic extended drain interval
transmission fluid that will virtually eliminate
transmission wear and reduce operating temperatures
approximately 20-50 deg. F.)
There Is One Good Use For Mineral Oil:
Please note that a new gasoline powered engine should be
run on mineral-based oil for the first 500-1500 miles
and diesel engines should be run about 5000 miles in
general before changing to synthetic oil. The added
friction and surface abrasion that mineral-based oils
provide actually helps to seat the valves and create
even mating surfaces between parts (such as piston rings
and cylinder walls). This is a time in the engine's life
that generates a high level of metal particles in the
oil (that cannot all be caught by the filter), so make
sure to change both the oil and filter frequently during
break-in.
Major racing teams don't appear to use synthetics, but
things aren't always what they seem. The racing team's
sponsor might want you to believe there's a certain kind
of motor oil in the car's crankcase, but almost every
successful race team in the world uses synthetic
lubricants throughout the car and about 70% of them use
AMSOIL.
Your probably wondering how we know these facts. It's
simple: we work in the automotive industry on a daily
basis behind the scenes.
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 the auto manufacturers brand or oil and the
3000 mile oil change myth and want to sell you a new car
every 3-5 years. You should seek out and acquire
information from a Certified Lubrication Specialist,
lubrication engineer or unbiased 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 lubrication engineers and chemists that know a
heck of a lot more about motor oils and synthetics than
them.
Some People Will Never Change:
Also, 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 ; guess some people will never change).
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. Also, 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 not discussed the specific
differences between all the individual brands and their
formulations. Keep in mind that there are significant
differences between brands of synthetics, which will
affect the performance and longevity of your engine,
transmission, axles, bearings and chassis components.
Please contact us with any questions or topics that are
not explained in this brief overview.
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