Oil Crisis!

[Sprint'n'Go]

I have just been talking to a Stockport garage owner who, on the face of it, should know what he is talking about("some of the race engines we build cost upto £35k").

When I mentioned Mobil 1 there was a sharp intake of breath. He then went on to say that that synthetic oils could be quite harmful to engines as they are generally too thin and that Mobil 1 had wrecked more engines than anything else for that reason. He then explained the principle of the bottom end bearings requiring a film of oil to float and he would reccommend a 10w40 or 15w40 for most engines as only high revving 16V units could live with the thinner oils.

As I have just suffered an engine failure at 100k after 2 services with Mobil 1 TD 0w40 I took notice of what he said but I still don't believe it.

Is he talking crap or could the widely held opinion of thousands if not millions of car owners that take an interest in their cars, be wrong?

Worryingly, I have 50ltrs of Millers Trucksynth sat in the garage for future use. It is a fully-synth 5w30 and carries the Merc 228.5 spec(long drain van and truck oils). While it is at the thinner end of the viscosity range, it is suitable for our usual ambient temps as per the attached chart(how many days of +30 degree temps do we get).



AM I GOING TO KILL MY ENGINE WITH THIS OIL?

 

[Blobcat]

I understood that your engine failed due to a con rod breaking. I doubt any oil would make a difference in that incidence.

Below is a link to Mobil1 and a quote on the thicker is better myth

http://www.mobil.com/UK-English/Lubes/PDS/GLEUENPVLMOMobil1_Fuel_Economy_0W-30.asp


Thicker is Better Myth
The reason that oil viscosities have gotten thinner is because bearing clearances have become smaller. Using thicker oils will interfere with oil flow and the oil pressure will increase. In a worn engine it may be okay to increase the viscosity of the oil because the bearing clearances have become larger.

 

[mioba]

I would tend to stick with the advice given by the people who make the engines, in this case MB.
Also mobil have been maging oilf for a long time too.
so we have super experts in the fields of engines and oils respectively
If they recommend mobil 1, then they do it for reason. Lets be honest they have been making cars for a long time.
I have been using mobil 1 in my mercs always.
If engines have improved so much then so can oils!

 

[Rory]

While it is at the thinner end of the viscosity range, it is suitable for our usual ambient temps as per the attached chart(how many days of +30 degree temps do we get).

I've looked at those charts before and it seems to me (and the chart seems to show) that in the UK we could use any old viscosity - they all look suitable!

Simple logic would seem to indicate the thinner the better when cold and thicker the better when hot (within the normal automotive ranges). However thinner (cold) and thicker (hot) of course bear no relation to each other - thin cold oil is way thicker than thick hot oil!!

 

[flagstaff]

mobil1 in a sprinter. now i've seen everything.

 

[Coulsdon Eagle]

mobil1 in a sprinter. now i've seen everything.

i've used it in my Vito, but now i just use either Castrol GTD Plus or Castrol GTD Magnatec, whichever is on sale cheaper in Makro at the time (cheapskate)

 

[Parrot of Doom]

This stockport garage, was it SFR?

Personally, I find it extremely difficult to see how a recommended oil could be bad for an engine. Worn-out oil yes, revving the nuts off when its cold yes, overheating yes, but synthetic oil bad? Doubt it. My last car had a 4.0 Rover V8 engine and had been supping fully synthetic Mobil 1 all of its 11 years, and was still in perfect condition.

 

[Sprint'n'Go]

This stockport garage, was it SFR?

My last car had a 4.0 Rover V8 engine and had been supping fully synthetic Mobil 1 all of its 11 years, and was still in perfect condition.

I can see your reasoning there, but it isn't. I wont name and shame the guy as he is only guilty of expressing his opinion and hasn't done me any harm.

I hope that 4ltr V8 was in an anniversary edition defender. I am only down the road in Ashton-u-L so look out for me.