Hello Everyone
Michael here from SOS Oil in Cape Town. Thanks for inviting me Don.
Alright guys. Firstly (and without making assumptions) I just want to give everyone some background information on lubricants and oils in specific. There may be mistakes here as I have only been working with oils for a year now. I have however had quite a bit of training. If you disagree with something please let me know and we can correct it.
When looking at oils there are two things to consider:
1. Specification
2. Approvals
Specification:
This is extremely important. Different vehicles call for different oils based on their specifications. Lets see:
Liqui Moly Longtime High Tech 5W30.
This means the following:
The oil is manufactured by:
Liqui Moly
Its described as:
Longtime High Tech
Thus far this really isnt important.... This however is:
5W30
This above is the viscosity rating of a oil. The 5 refers to the viscosity (Or thickness) of the oil when cold (0 Degrees Celsius). Being a 5 it means it is rather thin when cold.
The 30 refers to the viscosity of the oil when hot (At running temperature).
Now: A 5w oil takes 6 seconds to circulate throughout the engine on start up. This means that in the first 6 seconds after startup your engine is running with virtually no oil (Only a very small amount). Metal against metal as such. :bawling:
SAE 5W-30?? But that's like REALLY thin oil? Isn't thicker considered better??
I use Shell Helix W20-50. Works out a bout R160 @ Masterparts.
If we look at the above post we realise why thicker isnt better. A 20W50 will take 1 minute to circulate in the engine. Once again. This means that for the first 1 minute of driving your vehicles engine is running with Limited Protection.
Then to make it worse the oil thickens to a viscosity of 50 at running temperature. This means that you are putting extra stress on the engine.
Do you guys realise why it is so important to follow the manufacturers recommendations? If they call for a 5W30. You use a 5W30. So no... Thicker isnt always better. The reason you pay so little for the 20W50 is because its probably old spec and is mineral based.
Mineral based Oils are not the greatest when compared to that of a Synthetic. Synthetic Oils gives far superior protection and allow you a huge range of different operating temperatures and loads. Whereas the mineral oil doesnt. You pay for what you get...
The next important thing is the "performance" rating of a oil. The latest and top rating is the "SM Spec". If your oil has this API spec then it means you have the best quality oil available.
The Liqui Moly 5W30 Oil that Freerider is using is a SM spec oil with BMW approval. All newish cars should call for a SM spec. An SL spec for example would be an inferior oil.
Approvals:
Very, very important especially if your vehicle is still under warranty. The major manufacturers will test lubricants and approve them for usage in their vehicles.
No approval = Warranty Void if used.
The issue at hand:
I would like to know what type of oil they did the study on. I have researched oil quite a bit and have come to the conclusion that mineral oil is far inferior to the latest synthetic technology lubricants out there. Speaking of varnish deposits, as I have mentioned before on the "other" forum; I have been told by several people to stay away from Castrol and have actually seen a BMW motor with only about 180000K's on the clock, only ever serviced at the dealer (who uses Catrol exclusively) The deposits and stuff that looks like thick grease, covered the insides of the crank case and caused several oil galleries to clog up, resulting in massive terminal engine seizure! Sad
This is a big issue for us at the moment and Liqui Moly is actually in the progress of discussing and changing the lubrication with BMW because of this issue. We want them to use our oil rather/
**Disclaimer. I in no way am claiming the lubricants mentioned in this post are inferior to that of Liqui Moly. I am not degrading any brands. Simply explaining what went wrong**
The oil used in the above BMW is called: Castrol SLX 5w30.
It meets the recommendations as far as its grade ratings go (Being a 5w30) but its API/Performance rating is the issue.
Castrol SLX is a SL spec oil. Being used in a vehicle that requires a SM spec.
Thats where things go wrong as the technology in the oil (Even though it is a Fully synthetic) is a few years old and it is unable to cope with the performance requirements. Throw in the extended service life and high JHB temperatures and the chemical qualities of the oil will break down as is the case above. A SM spec however would have been fine.
This results in sludge formation and damage to the engine. Now at this point we need to understand that oils are designed for very specific uses. Castrol SLX is a fantastic oil but under Longlife servicing it seems unable to handle the demand of the engine.
The oil Freerider is using is my Liqui Moly Longtime High Tech 5W30. This is a SM spec oil with LONGLIFE approval of up to 40 000km by BMW in Germany. Higher Spec with approvals. You cant go wrong. There is a huge difference between a normal oil and a Longlife Oil.
The Liqui Moly oil is Hydrocracked meaning its Sythetic (Not fully but more or less 90%). If you want a good oil this is a great option at a good price.
:clap:
In closing I feel that almost all oils are good. You just need to use the correct oil to obtain the ideal results.
If you want to see the specs of the two oils here we go:
Liqui Moly:
http://www.liqui-moly.de/liquimoly/...file/1136 Longtime High Tech SAE 5W-30_EN.pdf
Castrol:
http://www.tds.castrol.com.au/pdf/5237_SLX_Professional_OE_5W-30_119562_2007_10.pdf
The approvals are at the bottom of both data sheets. The API ratings are also on the first page of both. Although the SLX Data Sheet is an Australian Sheet it doesnt matter. I am trying to highlight that the SLX Oil has a Longlife Approval from 1998 whereas the Liqui Moly Oil is a 2004 approval. Its a no brainer as to which is better as a longlife oil.
Now at this post I want to point out the info that I have posted is based on the Data Sheet I found above. I have yet to find a Data Sheet that is more up to date or more local to South Africa.
For those wondering. Our oil costs: R338.06 Incl. VAT
I hope this has shed some light on oils and if anyone has any queries please feel free to ask.
Mike
*I like the new forum Don!*
