Just changed to Mobil 1

B

bsl888

New member
Just did my 10K miles oil change to Mobil 1 full synth, as many of you have done. Now my 4Runner seems faster, the engine's more quiet, the engine's running cooler, the acceleration is incredible, it handles better, brakes better, the exterior seems cleaner, and heck, the stereo even sounds better......Ha, maybe it's just psychological.

At least I'll sleep better tonight knowing that my 4Runner's engine is well lubricated.
 
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bsl888 said:
Just did my 10K miles oil change to Mobil 1 full synth, as many of you have done. Now my 4Runner seems faster, the engine's more quiet, the engine's running cooler, the acceleration is incredible, it handles better, brakes better, the exterior seems cleaner, and heck, the stereo even sounds better......Ha, maybe it's just psychological.

At least I'll sleep better tonight knowing that my 4Runner's engine is well lubricated.
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I did my first oil change at 2000 KMs to get the break in junk out. Next oil change (8000KMs/5000miles) I'll be going Synthetic too.
 
I work for an small ($40 million/year) industrial synthetic lubricant manufacturer. Not one of the majors so I don't have a stake in what I'm writing here.

As far as I know, Mobil 1 is a group IV pao synthetic motor oil. Unlike Castrol Syntec which is a group II/III "hydrocracked" product. Hydrocracked/hydroteated oils have some of the same characteristics as group IV basestocks, but are not the same product. Remember 10 years ago when any synthetic motor oil at any auto parts store cost $6-10 per quart? Then all of the sudden "something" changed and the price dropped to $4-5 per quart? You think you're getting the same product with the price for a barrel of crude more than doubling in price roughly within that time frame? Especially when out of a barrel of crude 3-4% gets refined for synthetic base stocks?! :bash:

To make a short story long :p Castrol decided on their own to market and sell hydrotreated Group II/III products as "synthetic". Mobil said "Hey, you can't do that. The industry standard has always been Group IV and up, being classified as 'synthetic' " and took Castrol to Federal Trade Commission Court.

Castrol won the case, and since then the line between what constitutes a full synthetic and blended synthetics has been drawn with a giant size dull crayon instead of a freshly sharpened pencil. Now, check the price of a quart of your favorite "synthetic" motor oil and tell me if it's a Group II/III or a GroupIV !

Hope this helps the discussion! :D

PS- I only use Group IV products. I would not use a product that contains an EP (extreme pressure) additive package
 
Road Warrior said:
I work for an small ($40 million/year) industrial synthetic lubricant manufacturer. Not one of the majors so I don't have a stake in what I'm writing here.

As far as I know, Mobil 1 is a group IV pao synthetic motor oil. Unlike Castrol Syntec which is a group II/III "hydrocracked" product. Hydrocracked/hydroteated oils have some of the same characteristics as group IV basestocks, but are not the same product. Remember 10 years ago when any synthetic motor oil at any auto parts store cost $6-10 per quart? Then all of the sudden "something" changed and the price dropped to $4-5 per quart? You think you're getting the same product with the price for a barrel of crude more than doubling in price roughly within that time frame? Especially when out of a barrel of crude 3-4% gets refined for synthetic base stocks?! :bash:

To make a short story long :p Castrol decided on their own to market and sell hydrotreated Group II/III products as "synthetic". Mobil said "Hey, you can't do that. The industry standard has always been Group IV and up, being classified as 'synthetic' " and took Castrol to Federal Trade Commission Court.

Castrol won the case, and since then the line between what constitutes a full synthetic and blended synthetics has been drawn with a giant size dull crayon instead of a freshly sharpened pencil. Now, check the price of a quart of your favorite "synthetic" motor oil and tell me if it's a Group II/III or a GroupIV !

Hope this helps the discussion! :D

PS- I only use Group IV products. I would not use a product that contains an EP (extreme pressure) additive package
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So can you tell from the bottle if it is group 3 or 4? If not, how can we tell?

Is there a list out there that specifies what each manufacturer is using?
 
mtnracer said:
So can you tell from the bottle if it is group 3 or 4? If not, how can we tell?

Is there a list out there that specifies what each manufacturer is using?
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It's never easy. If you can get a copy of the MSDS (material safety data sheet, maybe available online?) it will normally say something along the line of 'synthesized hydrocarbon' (meaing it's a Grp IV/PAO) or 'Hydrotreated' (meaning a Grp II+). Also, I haven't checked in awhile but usually you will see the words "full synthetic" or "100% synthetic" with a Group IV product. Most of the Group II+ products will say something like "synthetic blend" or "premium blend", etc . I don't think the market has crumbled to the point of the consumer not knowing what's in the bottle (the ole snake oil days). Any reputable blender/manufacturer will tell you whether its a Group IV product or hydroteated, or some of each. You just have to ask the correct person that question.

Castrol, Chevron & Petro Canada are big in the hydrotreated products. Mobil, not so much. I did hear awhile back that Mobil was at least thinking about changing their Mobil 1 formula to a hydrotreated basestock and there was such an outcry in the market place they decided against it. Not sure how true that is.
 
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Mobil-1 used to do the advertisements where they "froze" and "cooked" their oil -- and it held up so much better than mineral oil (which was either frozen solid or burned to a crisp).

Mobil-1 also comes as the 'factory fill' in BMWs, Corvettes, Porsches and other exotics. Did they recently downgrade Mobil-1 so that it is not as good as it used to be?

I've been using Mobil-1 for more than fifteen years with no problems at all. I would hate to think that my engine's protection has been downgraded.
:bash:

But then again, I change my oil & filter so often that I could probably use cheap dino oil and still be good to go.
:D
 
Those high end manufactureres let their engines break-in with Mobil 1. And Mobil 1 even states on their site that it's okay.

As far as Mobil 1 being Group III....someone over on "BobIsTheOilGuy.com" did a test on Mobil 1 EP 5W-30. The whole rumor began with that one post when the guy stated that there was Group III basestock in Mobil 1 EP 5W-30.

I'd go with the companies that use Mobil 1 as factory fill (Porsche, Mercedes-Benz AMG, Chevrolet Corvette, Dodge Viper, etc.). They have a lot more money to put into research than some guy who posts on an oil forum.

[And I'll keep my mouth shut concerning Amsoil....]
 
Interesting infos everyone. Regardless of the speculation or evidence of Mobil 1 being group III or not true synthetic, I'm planning on changing my oil every 5K miles as specified to maintain my warranty.

Mobil 1 will probably give better protection than dino anyways. Besides, it's a Toyota engine and will last forever.

I hope I didn't start another oil debate.:D
 
bsl888 said:


I hope I didn't start another oil debate.:D
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no you didn't, one can just go to BITOG aka bobistheoilguy.com if they want oil debate, otherwise oil info.

i did changed mined at 1k to M1, then amsoil @ 10k, and dont ask me why. i got no answer. :p
 
It's nearly impossible to 'see' the difference between a GRP IV VS Grp III basestock in the lab.

Afterall, Mobil 1 historically has been the Number 1 synthetic retail motor oil for some time, whether it's based on name recognition or performance. As a result, it is extremely unlikely that they would have changed anything, especially since they have a plethora of OEM/Factory Fill contracts or approvals.

A quick FYI: I see that Mobil now has Extended Performance listed on their product data sheets. Be careful hurling around "E.P." (not the words 'extended performance') as a term. In industrial lubes that's always referred to 'extreme pressure' additives. Not anything you want in your motor oil.

I have no reason to think that Mobil changed their Mobil 1 formula, but I've not taken the time to check out Bob's site yet...and I'm too neew around here to start any good debates ;): .
 
Mobil 1 goes in all my 4 cycle engines, cars, trucks, lawnmower, generator, etc. It's the best protection for the price, without all the BS hype of some of the other compnaies (I.E. Amsoil).

New machining techniques and the extreme accuracy of the machining now means "break-in" is almost negligable at best. You still will have a bit of break-in debris, but nothing like it used to be. Synthetics are fine as an initial break in fill now because of this. Hence alot of high end vehicles using it as their initial fill oil, and their recommended oil to use throughout it's life.
 
Castrol/BMW is the factory fill on all BMW's...

though some dealerships have been known to run their own selection of oil for changes.
 
Mobil 1 uses some group III base stock, not POA. Even with using group III base stock Mobil 1 still produces excellent UOAs and ranks right up with the top 100% synthetics.

Koz
 
Casper said:
Castrol/BMW is the factory fill on all BMW's...

though some dealerships have been known to run their own selection of oil for changes.
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According to the guys on BITOG, Castrol does produce a Group IV fully synthetic oil. But, it isn't available everywhere. It has to be the "Made in Germany" labeled Castrol synthetic. I've seen this oil in 5W-30 at Autozone, but I use Mobil 1 5W-20 myself now.
 
Been using Mobil 1 for many years, great oil.

When BITOG.com had their discussions and the buy one get one free or better for Pennzoil Platinum full synthetic, I stockpiled two years plus worth of oil.

Either Mobil 1 or PP or conventional oil will do fine for 5K oil changes.

Though it seems as though Mobil 1 has changed their formulation/basestock from what I could read.
 
Light_Mania said:
According to the guys on BITOG, Castrol does produce a Group IV fully synthetic oil. But, it isn't available everywhere. It has to be the "Made in Germany" labeled Castrol synthetic. I've seen this oil in 5W-30 at Autozone, but I use Mobil 1 5W-20 myself now.
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Actually its not a 5W-30 as you have listed but a 0W-30 and I currently use it in my 4runner.
 
I switched to mobil 1 at 1k miles. The 'break-in' oil just has some added lubricant, which probably doesn't even have the lubricity and heat resistance of Mobil 1. My 4Runner has 75k right now, and my engine is literally as quiet and runs as good as when it had 1,000 miles on it. I run the Mobil 1 extended performance oil, and change it every 4-5k miles.
 
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