Synthetic vs. Conventional Oil

Bucko

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So I have 6 quarts of Mobil super synthetic 5W-20. It does not have the SP rating. Should I use it on my OBX or my wife's Ecosport, or get rid of it. I change my oil and filter every 5000 miles or annually.
You're going to be .6 quarts low in your Bronco Sport if you use it there. :shock:
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sajohnson

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Have you been talking to my wife? She modifies it a bit: "not-all-that-convincing blowhard."
I know you're joking, and of course I was just speaking about forums in general (not anyone in this thread), but after I posted that comment it occurred to me that it could be misinterpreted.

The Bronco Sport Forum is on the short list of forums I find helpful.
 

sajohnson

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So I have 6 quarts of Mobil super synthetic 5W-20. It does not have the SP rating. Should I use it on my OBX or my wife's Ecosport, or get rid of it. I change my oil and filter every 5000 miles or annually.
I have the same issue -- I have maybe 8-10 cases (6 quarts each) of Mobil 1 5W30 API-SN. I was stocking up when it was on sale at Costco, back when my wife and I were both driving a lot. I hate to see it go to waste. I can use a bit of it in power equipment, but nowhere near that much.

Also, there's the question of if synthetic oil, in sealed bottles, stored in a cool garage (it's built into the mountain) has a 'shelf life', and if so, what it might be. I believe the oil mfrs typically say 5 years, but that seems pretty short. Then again, I'm not a petroleum engineer...
 

sajohnson

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This is the back label on a 5 quart jug of Mobil 1 5W30:


Ford Bronco Sport Synthetic vs. Conventional Oil 1679601612498



I'm curious as to why it says:

"Meets or exceeds the requirements of" Ford 961-A1

But then:

"Recommended by ExxonMobil for use in applications requiring" Ford 946-A, B1

I'm assuming "Recommended by ExxonMobil..." is the oil company saying (essentially) "This oil is not officially approved by the vehicle mfr, but we are certifying (pinky swear) that it would get approval if it were submitted to them.

Does that sound right?

Next to that is says:

"Has the following builder approvals": and there is Dexos1 Gen3 and Honda HTO-06.

So that's 3 different claims -- only the last of which clearly states that has mfr (GM and Honda) approvals.

I'm not overly concerned about it but it does seem odd to have the different language.

BSBL owners who want to be absolutely sure to comply with 961-A1 might have questions.
 
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Mrmike

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You're going to be .6 quarts low in your Bronco Sport if you use it there. :shock:
I think my OBX takes 5.3 quarts on a oil & filter change. But the question is can I use this oil or would it be detrimental to my 1.5 motor?
 


sajohnson

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So I have 6 quarts of Mobil super synthetic 5W-20. It does not have the SP rating. Should I use it on my OBX or my wife's Ecosport, or get rid of it. I change my oil and filter every 5000 miles or annually.
Unless there is a Ford mechanical engineer lurking here, any answers you receive (including mine) are worth what you paid. :cool:

What is the API rating on the 5W-20? Maybe SN or SN+?

What year is your wife's Ecosport? Which API rating does the Ecosport manual require?

Here is some info that might be helpful:

https://www.api.org/products-and-services/engine-oil/eolcs-categories-and-classifications/oil-categories

https://www.api.org/products-and-services/engine-oil/eolcs-categories-and-classifications/latest-oil-categories

This is a bit dated -- goes to SN+:
http://www.pqiamerica.com/apiserviceclass.htm
 

Mrmike

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Unless there is a Ford mechanical engineer lurking here, any answers you receive (including mine) are worth what you paid. :cool:

What is the API rating on the 5W-20? Maybe SN or SN+?

What year is your wife's Ecosport? Which API rating does the Ecosport manual require?

Here is some info that might be helpful:

https://www.api.org/products-and-services/engine-oil/eolcs-categories-and-classifications/oil-categories

https://www.api.org/products-and-services/engine-oil/eolcs-categories-and-classifications/latest-oil-categories

This is a bit dated -- goes to SN+:
http://www.pqiamerica.com/apiserviceclass.htm
The oil in question is Mobil Super synthetic. The API rating is SN Plus SN SM SL. My wife's Ecosport is a '21 Titanium with the 2.0 (non turbo). I don't know what the manual says. It only has 12000 miles on it. I'm going to use the SN Plus oil in it for my next oil change. I change oil & filter every 5000 miles or 1 year. I will make sure I purchase Mobil 1 with the SP rating in the future.
 

sajohnson

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The oil in question is Mobil Super synthetic. The API rating is SN Plus SN SM SL. My wife's Ecosport is a '21 Titanium with the 2.0 (non turbo). I don't know what the manual says. It only has 12000 miles on it. I'm going to use the SN Plus oil in it for my next oil change. I change oil & filter every 5000 miles or 1 year. I will make sure I purchase Mobil 1 with the SP rating in the future.
Sounds good Michael!

I found some specs for the Ecosport (this only lists oil capacity though):
https://media.ford.com/content/dam/fordmedia/North America/US/product/2021/ecosport/21EcoSport_Tech_Specs.pdf

Ford says SN+ is more than adequate. They specify SN. See manual page 288:
https://manual-directory.com/view-manual-pdf/?mid=15177

You're in better shape than I am. I have a bunch of Mobil 1 5W30 SN that I can't use, except in power equipment.
 

Mark S.

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I have a friend that installed one of these toilet paper filters on his diesel just a couple of years ago. I think that system is a bypass system where only a small percentage of the oil flow goes through it. It is meant to catch the smaller particles that the primary filter does not.
High-bypass, supplemental oil filters have been in use--mainly by fleet operators--for quite some time. Some operators run the same (synthetic) oil for tens of thousands of miles. All the oil goes through the bypass filter approximately every 20 laps around the oil system, but it catches everything down to 1 or 2 microns. Without all the contaminants there's no reason to change the oil until it loses lubricity.
 


Mark S.

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Here's an interesting comparison of different oils from the same retailer. Wally-world sells the Super Tech brand, and you can get several different version of 5W30 that meet Ford's requirements for warranty purposes. They range in cost from $17 per jug to almost $30 per. Are the higher priced options worth the money?

 
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Bucko

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Best bet after watching? Stick with 5K oil and change it at 5K and save money on oil changes. Other considerations? Driving conditions (towing, dusty areas) would warrant more frequent changes.
 
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Bronco2.7

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I went with Kirkland full synthetic 5W30 as it was $26 for 10 quarts. Tough to beat a $13 oil change. Guy suggested it is essentially Castrol GTX and met the dexos gen2 and SAE/alphabets requirements it's good to go.
I run the Kirkland in my f350 turbo deisel.
 

sajohnson

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Here's an interesting comparison of different oils from the same retailer. Wally-world sells the Super Tech brand, and you can get several different version of 5W30 that meet Ford's requirements for warranty purposes. They range in cost from $17 per jug to almost $30 per. Are the higher priced options worth the money?

Good video.

Probably not an issue, but starting around 2:30 when he is measuring the amount of weight lost from heating, he does not start with the same amount of weight in each carafe. So giving the weight loss in grams is not as accurate as if he had used equal weights, or given loss as a percentage. Minor detail I guess -- the full synthetic is clearly better.

Starting around 9:52 he says he likes the "10,000 mile" oils, but wouldn't trust them for more than 5-6,000 miles. While that's not a crazy low or high number of miles, it's really impossible to make blanket statements about oil life, given the different: vehicles; operating conditions; engines, etc. It may be a reasonable *average*, but (for example) way too long for someone in Fargo who only drives short distances -- much of them in below zero temps.

For other drivers that may be wasteful. After all, the OLM in the BS goes as high as 12,500 miles (IIRC) and that's assuming the Motorcraft synthetic blend oil is being used.

Otherwise, his videos seem objective and helpful.
 

Mark S.

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...given loss as a percentage.
At around 2:52 he says the 10k oil experienced 14% less evaporation than the 5k oil.

Starting around 9:52 he says he likes the "10,000 mile" oils, but wouldn't trust them for more than 5-6,000 miles.
Just goes to show how hard it is to untrain our brains once we get an idea ingrained in there. This guy is clearly data-oriented, but he just can't bring himself to trust the data.

After all, the OLM in the BS goes as high as 12,500 miles (IIRC)
Back to the Owner's Manual:

Your vehicle has an Intelligent Oil-Life
Monitor system, a message appears in the
information display at the proper oil
change interval. This interval may be up to
one year or 10,000 mi (16,000 km).
Sponsored

 
 




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