toddk911

http://www.synthetic-solutions.com/comparison.asp

They Say Nothing Outperforms Mobil 1? Wrong!
VERSUS

AMSOIL INC. set out to examine the specifics of the overly broad “Nothing Outperforms...” Mobil claim. AMSOIL 5W-30 Synthetic Motor Oil (ASL) and Mobil 1 SuperSyn 5W-30 Motor Oil were analyzed in five key bench tests measuring motor oil performance: NOACK volatility, flash/fire point, pour point, four ball wear and total base number (TBN). As shown in the charts below, AMSOIL outperformed Mobil 1 in ALL FIVE areas.


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NOACK Volatility

The NOACK Volatility Test determines the evaporation loss of lubricants in high-temperature service. The more motor oils vaporize, the thicker and heavier they become, contributing to poor circulation, reduced fuel economy, increased oil consumption and excessive wear and emissions. A maximum of 15 percent evaporation loss is allowable to meet the API SL and ILSAC GF-3 specifications. As shown in the graph, AMSOIL 5W-30 Synthetic Motor Oil lost an extremely low 4.9 percent of its original weight during high-temperature service, maintaining its superior protective and performance qualities,while Mobil 1 SuperSyn 5W-30 Motor Oil lost 9.17 percent of its original weight.


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Four Ball Wear

The Four Ball Wear Test determines the wear protection properties of a lubricant by measuring the wear scars produced by four metal ***** in sliding contact under the test parameters. The smaller the average wear scar, the better the wear protection provided by the lubricant. As shown in the graph, AMSOIL 5W-30 Synthetic Motor Oil completed the Four Ball Wear Test producing a smaller wear scar than the Mobil 1 SuperSyn 5W-30 Motor Oil.


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Flash/Fire Point

The Flash/Fire Point Test determines the lowest temperatures at which application of a flame will cause lubricant vapors to ignite (flash point) and sustain burning for five seconds (fire point). Lubricants with higher flash and fire points exhibit more stable volatility characteristics and are safer to use and transport. As shown in the graph, AMSOIL 5W-30 Synthetic Motor Oil has higher flash and fire points than does Mobil 1 SuperSyn 5W-30 Motor Oil.


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Pour Point

The Pour Point Test determines the lowest temperature at which a lubricant flows.The lower a lubricant’s pour point,the better protection it provides in low-temperature service.As shown in the graph, AMSOIL 5W-30 Synthetic Motor Oil has a lower pour point than Mobil 1 SuperSyn 5W-30 Motor Oil.


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Total Base Number

Total Base Number (TBN) is the measurement of a lubricant’s reserve alkalinity. The higher a motor oil’s TBN, the more effective it is in handling contaminants and reducing the corrosive effects of acids for an extended period of time. As shown in the graph, AMSOIL 5W-30 Synthetic Motor Oil has a higher TBN than Mobil 1 SuperSyn 5W-30 Motor Oil.

PorscheDoc

Amsoil is great stuff, problem is you cant just go pick it up at the corner parts store. Ran the stuff for years when i lived in the colder climates.

mroberts

Here's a question, jsut playing devil's advocate. The "five key bench tests" - are those the ONLY typical measures, or did they select the five where Amsoil won ?

Mike S

Interesting thing is that Amsoil used to state on their site that they used Mobil 1 stock. I guess it doesn't really matter, but I'd love to know what they do to improve the oil so much.

I'm an amsoil user though. Top notch stuff.

Zero10

IIRC there was a big publication about this a year or two ago, I recall reading it.
Amsoil did select 5 where they beat Mobil 1, but there are only something like 9 tests that are used for this, and Amsoil won in 7 or 8 of the 9, so it's not really all that skewed.

That said, Amsoil definately beats Mobil 1. I run Amsoil whenever possible.

LFA951

Amsoil was the inventor of 100% synthetic oil. Their first oil came out in March 1972, the year I was born. I have been using their oils for the last 10 years and they are worth every penny. Years ago, I had an '89 Honda Civic DX and the engine (original) had 240,000 miles on it, the only reason why I got rid of it is was because the transmission gave out, but the engine ran strong and was in great condition. I know have it in a Ford Escape with 135,000 miles and it runs just like it did the day I first drove it. I have tried all the synthetics out there, the only other one I found to be good aside from Mobil 1 was Redline which is hard to find now that Discount Auto Parts stopped selling it. Amsoil while being expensive (almost $10 a quart for Series 200 Racing oil 20W50) is worth every cent, plus they requires it to be changed every 25,000 miles, so it extends your drain intervals, but on the 951 I would recommend changing it every 5,000 miles.

azmi951

LFA951 Welcome, I see it is your first post.

Sounds like you have good information to contribute.

FSAEracer03

Amsoil is the best out there... period. But, I agree that Redline also has a great oil, as does Royal Purple.

They prove empirically to be the best once in a while by never changing the oil in one of their suppliers cars and seeing how long it last, why it failed in the end and whether the cylinder walls and bearings were marred from poor lubrication... I saw one that had just under 500k miles on it and the bearings were still pristine! NO OIL CHANGE!

Also, like the suppliers explain to you, it costs less in the long run because of higher mileage changes. Even their lower echelon oil now says to change it after 12k-15k miles. Think of that benefit alone and then the benefit of better oiling... it's really dumb to pick up the lower synthetics!

I'm ordering some for my '51 soon... a sponsor for our formula team is a suppleir and he's enticing me to become one as well. We'll see though

pole position

Funny , to the best of my knowledge " the best oil period" does not submit to various tests to put those fancy labels on the bottle like all the other major oil players do, have never seen their oil recommended in recent Porsche,Ferrari, Audi , BMW etc owners manuals and never noticed any Amsoil stickers on any F1 car , what gives ?

ZV

Amsoil most certainly did NOT invent the synthetic oil. Mobil was making synthetic lubricants for the US military in the 60's, and Mobil was the pioneer in synthetic lubricants.

Amsoil released the first _consumer_ synthetic oil (only a few months before Mobil IIRC), but they did NOT "invent" synthetic oil.

My old Accord had 218,000 miles on it when I sold it, all original engine, burned less than one _pint_ of oil every 3,000 miles, and spent its whole life on either Castrol or Halvoline dino oil.

My father's Explorer (302 V8) has almost 180,000 miles on it and burns no significant amount of oil (less than a quart between changes). It's had a life of 6,000 to 8,000 mile change intervals (changed when the computer says to) and Castrol dino oil.

Hate to break it to you, but it's not Amsoil that's giving your engines those lifespans.

In terms of price to performance, Amsoil is awful. Its arguable-at-best real-world performance increase over Mobil 1 does not come close to justifying the price differential.

Gator_86_951

Niche market. Not enough money involved. They really only sell to enthusiasts like us. Under normal driving conditions the Mobil 1 etc... is fine.

ZV

Plus, when they blatantly lie about inventing synthetic oil, they probably don't want us to find out what else they are lying about.

I'm sure that Amsoil is perfectly good oil, but I for one will never use it.

Gator_86_951

Amsoil is exceptional, but somewhat you get what you pay for. You are correct. The dollar/benefit ratio is not linear. But when has the upper end of this stuff ever been linear. Deal accordingly. Don't buy race gas

Mike Murcia

For those who have used it, does Amsoil leak out of seals and gaskets quickly like Mobil 1, or is it more like dino juice?

EJ

Amsoil makes a 60W racing oil now that is less likely to leak through seals. I use it in the summer.
Just because F1 or NASCAR or any race car has a sticker or advertisement on their car does not mean they run that oil in their car.
Eric