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Why a Synthetic Oil?
By Michael Richartz
Printed in First Coast AMC News
July-August 2000
This is an article I wrote for the First Coast AMC News
Synthetics have come a long way since being a word only understood by the aviation industry or those few who were pioneering the market. For years petroleum products have dominated the market, so why use a new product that put forth great claims and had a higher price tag attached? What made a $5+ quart of synthetic oil better than the 89 cents container at the local parts store?
Well, for years now people have learned that, at least when it comes to oil, you get what you pay for. Ask someone involved in the industry and they will say the same. Many of the factors governing price of oils are the cost of the basestocks, the amount of R&D involved, the additive package, and so on.
So what is synthetic oil? The common definition held by most people, is that synthetic oil is a man made fluid that has been developed in a lab to meet certain specifications, such as the PAO basestock that Amsoil, and Mobil 1 use. A petroleum product is pumped from the ground. It contains impurities, needs to be refined, with no two molecules that make it up the same.
Imagine if you will a box of round fruit and you dump them on a table. Here you will find apples, oranges, grapefruit, cherries, and so on rolling around. None of these are the same size or shape. Now place a board on top and roll it around. Which of the fruit are making the rolling surface? The larger grapefruit are handling the friction. Now add heat underneath, and which of the fruit will absorb the most heat until they actually will deteriorate and "boil" off the table? The smaller cherries, some oranges and so forth. This is your petroleum oil and a simple example of what happens within your engine as the forces come in contact and breakdown your oil.
Now let's imagine a synthetic oil as a bucket of golf balls. All are the same size, and spread evenly over out table. Our board is now being supported by all the balls, not just a few, providing a "slicker" surface. Also as heat is added, all the balls are absorbing the heat evenly, thus dissipating the heat better. This is why people tend to see a drop in operating temperature when switching from petroleum to synthetic.
Other characteristics that synthetics excel in would be the vast temperature ranges they are able to handle. This is why every jet plane in the world today uses synthetic oil. Air gets drawn in at high altitudes at extreme cold temperatures and then is processed out the back hot. An oil that can handle this abuse is imperative to keep these engines operating. Petroleum can't handle this.
For those of you that are familiar with the colder temperatures of up north will know how hard it can be to start your car when the temperatures start dipping below freezing. Petroleum oils contain paraffins and as the temperature drops, they get thicker, in some extreme cases to the point that the oil has solidified. Is it your battery laboring to turn the engine? Maybe, but more likely the starter trying to overpower the resistance this thick oil giving it.
Good synthetics can still flow way into the negative degrees; they are designed to do this. Have some fun and place your favorite petroleum and a synthetic into a freezer overnight, and then try and pour some out the next morning.
But here in Florida, we don't often need to worry about those cold extremes, and have heat as a factor. Florida is even considered a severe service state due to the temperatures and conditions we experience. A petroleum oil can do it's job up until around 260-270 degrees when it's own chemical make up starts to deteriorate and break down.
A good synthetic won't even notice these temperatures, and doesn't start to reach its extremes until well over 400 degrees. I've talked to several people who have had a mishap with their cooling system going bad (including myself), having had a broken radiator pipe, or cooling fan going bad and their temperature skyrocketing. Yet their engine survived the ordeal only because the oil was able to handle it and continued to do it's job of lubricating and transferring heat from the engine, rather than breaking down under the conditions and allowing the engine to be damaged. Hopefully this will never happen to you, but it is good to know that you have that extra security should something bad occur.
Not all Synthetic are Equal
You've probably noticed me mention "a good synthetic" several times. There are good ones and not so good ones just as there are in the petroleum realm, and again, in most cases you get what you pay for. The first company to have an API rated synthetic oil was Amsoil in 1972, with Mobil 1 coming along a few years later. Since then, other oil companies have hopped on the bandwagon trying to play catch up. Amsoil continues to be the pioneer with many other firsts to their name, like the first synthetic ATF, Gear Lube and Diesel Oils, thus taking the name "First in Synthetics."
There is a new contender out there trying to be passed off as synthetic oil by some companies. This is a petroleum oil that has been highly refined and altered with a process called hydrocracking. While it is far superior to it's petroleum past, the question is, can it withstand what most people expect a lab made synthetic to do. This was brought to the public eye last year when Hart's Lubricant World printed an article in regards to a court case between Mobil and Castrol, explaining the opinions of both sides, and brought up the question of what this might do to the synthetic market.
Amsoil vs. Everyone Else
As I mentioned, Amsoil was the first, and today still continues to outperform other brands, such as Mobil 1, Redline, Royal Purple, etc., in wear protection, performance, durability, and so on. The Series 2000 line cannot be touched by anyone in quality and performance with Amsoil proudly showing test results on their bottles comparing the wear protection advantage over other popular brands. Another thing that Amsoil has promoted since day one is extended drain intervals on all their products, with most of their oil line rated for 25,000 miles or one year. In the case of the Series 2000 0W-30 this interval is up to 35,000 miles or one year. None of the other companies will offer such a warranty, and combined with their Super Duty Filter with it's 12,500 mile or 6 month change interval, most vehicles can get by with one oil change and two filters over the year rather than the 40 quarts and 8 filters needed to reach that same mileage using other brands.
And while some might question the cost of using a synthetic, when Amsoil is considered with it's extended drains, the cost savings can be tremendous, even when compared to the lower priced petroleum.
Amsoil is able to handle temperatures way over the 400-degree mark, and still can flow at -60 degrees. It isn't uncommon to notice a drop in temperatures and an increase in performance and MPG. In the case of the Series 2000 line, it uses an additive and the hydraulic pressure of the oil to help polish the insides of your engine so you might even notice your MPG increase over time.
I do have to comment on the "get what you pay for" statement when it comes to synthetics. In most cases this is true, but then there are a few synthetics on the market more expensive than Amsoil yet don't provide the same protection or come close to the Amsoil numbers. These tend to be more in the racing oil scene with brands like Redline and Royal Purple. While Redline is a good oil, it is designed more for harsh racing conditions, and for ordinary driving doesn't offer the same benefits. Redline is also a diester based oil which tends to hold water, something Amsoil and Mobil 1 steered away from in the 70s moving into the PAO basestock they use today.
Royal Purple has been making a name for itself in recent months and while it is better than a petroleum, their numbers still cannot compare to Amsoil. To top this off, the Royal Purple you tend to see in shops (when you can find it), is a blend rather than 100% synthetic. Their only full synthetic is their racing oil. So why pay $9-10 or more for a quart of semi-synthetic when Amsoil's top line Series 2000 is a full synthetic and under $8. Plus the regular Amsoil line numbers still outperform Royal Purple, with an average price of $5.50 per quart. Then let's not forget the savings with the extended drains.
So perhaps the Hart's Lubricant World article is correct in that soon we need to have different tiers of synthetics, so that the consumer is able to tell exactly what they are buying, a blend, hydrocracked oil, full synthetic, etc. But for now, it is good to know that Amsoil doesn't skimp on quality and puts their numbers and warranties up front for the public to see and lets the consumer do their own number comparing and see which brand they would prefer to have performing in their investment: their car!
If you want to talk synthetic, or purchase an Amsoil Product, please contact me.
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