Well I'm going to throw a spanner in the works here.

Actual testing of oil film strength when heated to 230F (the strength indicates resistance to wear) shows that beyond a basic level of zinc, adding more does not help!

Source: http://www.speedtalk.com/forum/viewt...hp?f=1&t=34926

This guy tested many oils and the new SN rated Mobil 1 5W/30 came in 5th out of 86 tests. It handled 105,875psi before allowing metal to metal contact. This oil has 801ppm of zinc; 842ppm of Phosphorus; and 112ppm of moly

Compare that to the best Joe Gibbs tested which was the 10W/30 XP3 NASCAR Racing oil unsuitable for street use - that came in at 95,543psi. His hot rod HR4 was 86,270psi.

Read the results, all tests were under the same conditions by an SAE certified engineer.

I'd not be scared to run the new SN rated Mobil 5W/30 on engines that run close to OEM tolerances. Wider tolerances may require a thicker oil but that has nothing to do with film strength.

NB: note not all Mobil 1 oils rated so highly, there was a big drop in film strength with the other ones tested - only the SN 5W/30 handled over 100,000psi.

A lot of oils recommended here tested very poorly - but then as long as they are working for you keep using it as it is obviously enough to do the job.

The best was 5W/30 Pennzoil Ultra API SM and it handled a massive 115,612psi.

The worst street oil tested was Comp Cams 10W30 Muscle Car and Street Rod oil which crapped out at 60,413

Plain old cheap Castrol GTX 20W50 API SN came in 13th at 96,514psi - not bad for dinosaur oil - and likely the best oil for a fully built street boosted motor running bigger tolerances for wear resistance.

Don't flame me - I did not run the tests and the guy who did does not sell oil and could care less which was better. The tests were under lab conditions and despite what many say - film strength is the most important quality of an oil to prevent metal to metal contact.

So if Mobil 1 went through a bad patch, tests prove the new SN version is stronger than what many people here are changing to. Irony, but no need to change if happy with what you have.

 

I thought I pass along that Comp Cam's doesn't recommend using synthetic oil on their LS roller cams. I don't know for sure about any others.

 

Does comp give a reason for that?

 

So looking through this I see that Shell Rotella T6 5W40 is #65 on the list. I thought that it was a "legit" oil. I've been using it for a couple years now.

I also see that Valvoline VR1 10W30 conventional faired better than the synthetic version.

I guess I should look for the following in this order then?
1. Pennzoil Ultra synthetic
2. Valvoline VR1 conventional
3. Valvoline VR1 synthetic

 

I only use brad penn oil

 

Think I might go back to Mobile 1 5w30 on the wifes cts-v. Might do the same after I get done with the oil in the new build. Still undecided. But yeah, I was always under the impression that rotella t6 was decent stuff.

 

I've used 5w-30 mobile one since start up and then changed to pennziol ultra after 35k from mobile because it was cheaper and i change my oil every 12 to 14k. my engine has over 50k now. I hit over 20psi boost a daily. Oil changes is way over rated. All you guuys that change your oil every 5k or less i'll take it and use it. Then i don't have to by oil anymore. 6.0l ls c5 1999 over 1k whp

 

First off, do your own due diligence in research and then decide. OK.....

I'm "Steiner" off Team Camaro and had that T6 analysis done. I'm running it in the three Camaros (Camaroes?) in my sig now although with the SFT 327 I'm using a half bottle of ZDDPlus as well. Zinc is sacrificial so the longer you use your oil the less there is in it. Also, the limitations on phosphorus (and thus zinc via ZDDP) only apply to oils 30 weight and below and IF they carry the most current API ratings which is why 40 and 50 weight oils meet the same API guidelines but often have more zinc. If the oil companies believed that it was not beneficial, don't you think they'd save some money by removing it? Delo LE 5W-40 synthetic is similar to T6 and usually runs a couple bucks less per gallon.

In reference to the oil article posted with the psi ratings I'd like everyone to keep something in mind. The person who posted that article will not answer any questions regarding what his title is or any images of his oil testing apparatus. He does not even own a performance engine as far as I know and the "540 Rat" handle comes from the fact that he was supposedly building a 540 BBC but no one has ever heard of it being finished. Furthermore, regarding the comment "Read the results, all tests were under the same conditions by an SAE certified engineer." and the fact that his signature line says "Member: SAE".....I'm sure you are all aware that the only two qualifications needed to become an SAE member are $81 and a mailing address. You can do it on your lunch break.

Now, I chose to do my own research and take my builder's advice with the 400 in my sig. I started my fresh engine on Summit Racing's 10W-40. It is no longer carried/branded by them but it is just Spectro Motor Guard with 1800ppm zinc. Stinks because it was only $4.95 through Summit.
http://www.performanceoilstore.com/products.asp?id=45

Below is my last analysis. The first two were done with conventional and the last one was the semi-synthetic.

As a note, Mobil-1 5W-30 ranks as #5 in the "oil study". The Summit/Spectro oil ranks as #77. Yet somehow, my still breaking in archaic design SBC is showing similar or less wear than some fully broken in LS engines running M1 per several posts I found on the bitog forums.






And lastly, here's a note from my builder. Although they do not have near the forum presence of some oil experts, they have their own oil testing done and have built about 50,000 OEM, performance, and full race engines and warrantied each one while maintaining an A+ BBB rating. They also have a couple NHRA world championships and fourteen national titles with their race team. Granted they don't have a specialized oil tester in their basement, but nobody's perfect.

 

This stuff looks pretty good. I've got a stock ls1 with a head/cam package, think this would be a good oil to run?

http://www.performanceoilstore.com/p...p?prod=R.GMG14

 

I understand where you are coming from but your oil analysis only shows oil that has been used for roughly 2200 miles. That test is harder on an oil than any motor will be. Its like running a motor for 150,000 miles. It has even been backed up that more ZDDP isn't going to vastly improve a motor oil with good amounts of ZDDP already in it.

Your oil analysis shows all of the metal and other contaminants in the oil. That can be relative because for all we know your motor could be a full roller motor and a person with a fully non-roller motor could use the same oil and see wear out of this world.

I have heard of Carolina Machine and they build some very nice motors but just as you said with the SAE all you need is 81 buck and mailing address, to get an A+ rating from the BBB is to join them and pay a fee. So the BBB thing is null and void too.

Why is it that a few of your metals are way above the univeral average like the the iron, molybdenum, and aluminum? That's what the rings and bearings are made of. Might want to look into that.

 

Do you know what the universal average numbers represent?

And do you know how to interpret the oil report?

If yes to both, please explain the first and then point out which of the wear metals on this report are higher than the universal average.

 

No matter what the universal average is, your molybdenum still increased so I hope those aren't what rings you have.

This is for another thread so let everbody else carry on

 

Moly is a standard additive in engine oils not intended for wet clutch operation. If the moly coating on the rings were being lost, there would be a steady increase of both iron and moly. This is not happening. Also having a virgin sample of the oil used lets you know what to look for. For instance, sodium can indicate coolant intrusion; however, some oils use it as an anticorrosive instead of calcium so knowing the oil's standard sodium reading is important. Silicon indicates dirt intrusion but installing a fresh gasket using RTV will cause a spike in silicon. Etc etc......

 

Wow I learned something new today !!!

 

Use Joe Gibbs/Driven. Good stuff, never any problems. Like how they did with a bunch of independent tests I read a few years back.

Then again, its oil. Someone will call me a moron for voicing an opinion!