Cheap vs expensive oil

[SonicSW20]

Might as well just use soap and water

I cant see an engine surviving on that if driven remotely hard.

OEMs build engines to take all sorts of abuse that the average person will never put them through, if it couldn't survive being driven hard on that oil then it would not be in a production car.

 

[Meaker]

Thinner oils are required as you tighten the tolerances hence why modern engines are using thinner oils so they can still get in there and lubricate things between the very tight gaps and flow through.

 

[Orionaut]

On the more general subject of lubrication.

I am always amazed that two strokes work so well.

I know the principle, but the idea that a little bit of oil in the petrol as it is blown/sucked through the crankcase can actually do the job is really hard to believe.

And yet little two strokes, despite being typically worked very hard, run just fine.

 

[Joe T]

Might as well just use soap and water

I cant see an engine surviving on that if driven remotely hard. Whatever gets it through the warranty period I guess...

Stop making stuff up to fit your agenda.

If manufacturer's didnt care if their cars were worth nothing after the warranty period then they couldn't sell any leases, PCPs, or other finance products where the residual value is probably the most important factor in the monthly rates.

 

[Firestar_3x]

Well which moving bits, lifters, valves, bearings. Not that many bits.

Yea, not many moving bits in an engine at all, well except the bits which are, which funny enough is most of it.

Then you have all the contact surfaces which need lubrication.

So in summary, the vast majority of the internals of the engine need lubrication in some form.

 

[Howard]

Might as well just use soap and water

I cant see an engine surviving on that if driven remotely hard. Whatever gets it through the warranty period I guess...

I'd hazard a guess that the manufacturers know what they're doing.

Remember all those small-capacity turbocharged engines fitted to cars larger than a go-kart that threw their rods through the block because the Internet said they wouldn't be able to cope with the stresses of day-to-day life? No, me either.

Engines get subjected to an enormous amount of abuse during their development/testing, which would make anyone wince. Far more than they're likely to experience during their lifetime.

 

[Joe T]

Not a troll thread!!

I can see if you live in Antarctica then you'd want a thicker oil, or higher viscosity oil, other than that I can't see how a cheap thin oil as long as your changing it on recommend intervals isn't the best economic and performance option.

Well which moving bits, lifters, valves, bearings. Not that many bits.

I am starting to wonder...

 

[Simon]

I only just realised he was the OP. Wow!

 

[wesimmo]

I can see if you live in Antarctica then you'd want a thicker oil, or higher viscosity oil, other than that I can't see how a cheap thin oil as long as your changing it on recommend intervals isn't the best economic and performance option.

Because different uses require different solutions.

My engine is from an MX5, but it's supercharged and going into a kit car.

It will rarely be driven at 'normal operating' specs, and given the car is open cockpit, even the typical temperature it's used in will be a smaller range and hotter than when it was driven daily in sun and snow when it was in my MX5.

 

[Nasher]

I'd hazard a guess that the manufacturers know what they're doing.

Remember all those small-capacity turbocharged engines fitted to cars larger than a go-kart that threw their rods through the block because the Internet said they wouldn't be able to cope with the stresses of day-to-day life? No, me either.

Engines get subjected to an enormous amount of abuse during their development/testing, which would make anyone wince. Far more than they're likely to experience during their lifetime.

Some of small turbo engines did blow up. The 1.0 Fiesta had issues, especially in hot countries. The 1.4 Polo GTI...

 

[OldKitMan]

My corsa says it needs GM Spec Dexos 2. I can get this:

ASDA Fully Synthetic Oil 5L Vaux 5W30 £22
Shell Helix Ultra Professional AG 5W-30 - 5Ltr £33

Is it worth a 50% difference in price if both meet the required GM standard - probably not.

Although TBH I just get it changed once a year at Vauxhall when it goes in for it's annual service.

 

[SonicSW20]

Some of small turbo engines did blow up. The 1.0 Fiesta had issues, especially in hot countries. The 1.4 Polo GTI...

Assuming the ecoboost, that wasn't because of it being a small engine, nor because it uses thin oil. The 1.0L ecoboosts issue was due to a coolant pipe that was prone to bursting, resulting in loss of pressure / very quick coolant loss and and catastrophic overheating.

 

[Armageus]

Some of small turbo engines did blow up. The 1.0 Fiesta had issues, especially in hot countries. The 1.4 Polo GTI...

1.0 ecoboost was a coolant pipe as mentioned.
1.4 polo GTi was turbo and supercharged - more potential for unreliability regardless of engine size

 

[Simon]

My corsa says it needs GM Spec Dexos 2. I can get this:

ASDA Fully Synthetic Oil 5L Vaux 5W30 £22
Shell Helix Ultra Professional AG 5W-30 - 5Ltr £33

Is it worth a 50% difference in price if both meet the required GM standard - probably not.

Although TBH I just get it changed once a year at Vauxhall when it goes in for it's annual service.

Only the Shell oil has a GM dexos 2 approval. The ASDA oil is claiming meets requirements of several specs, it also doesn't carry the dexos logo on the front label nor a dexos license number, both requirements of properly approved oils.

 

[The Running Man]

Only the Shell oil has a GM dexos 2 approval. The ASDA oil is claiming meets requirements of several specs, it also doesn't carry the dexos logo on the front label nor a dexos license number, both requirements of properly approved oils.

Thats because they would have to pay to get certified.

Doesn't mean they dont meet or exceed the requirements though.

I look for anything that meets porsche or MB standards as they are usually high.

 

[SonicSW20]

Thats because they would have to pay to get certified.

Doesn't mean they dont meet or exceed the requirements though.

You're paying £11 for piece of mind that it definitely does meet that spec. Not a lot of money in the grand scheme of "how much money it costs to run a car".

 

[The Running Man]

Oh id pay the tenner im just pointing it out.

 

[Will Gill]

What did I just read ?

 

[Simon]

Thats because they would have to pay to get certified.

Doesn't mean they dont meet or exceed the requirements though.

I look for anything that meets porsche or MB standards as they are usually high.

Doesn’t mean it does either, why wouldn’t they pay the money to get the official approval?

Also I’d question why is Porsche or MB testing on Porsche / MB hardware relevant to a GM engine? I’d argue GM is actually one of the more challenging specifications to be honest

 

[Amos91]

Doesn’t mean it does either, why wouldn’t they pay the money to get the official approval?

Also I’d question why is Porsche or MB testing on Porsche / MB hardware relevant to a GM engine? I’d argue GM is actually one of the more challenging specifications to be honest

Is there a specific logo or test for an oil to be officially approved BMW LL04?