just an fyi, Z doesnt like old oil. I put 6k on some 5w20 RP, kind of a trial by error test if you will, the engine noise was starting to get ridiculous, changed it out with 5qts of RP 5w30, now she purrs like a kitten, its incredible how much a difference fresh oil makes.

I use Valvoline SYNPOWER but it's not on the chart. I'm trying to fugure out where the copper wear actually comes from when using the other two Valvoline products. It seems to be Valvoline's only weakness.

Hmmm. Wonder if part of the difference was due to the high temp weight.

I need to do some more research...

Yeah, except the wear characteristics from that data set for RL weren't very good...

It's not just about warm fuzzies... honestly, I would have never thought based on my gut that Castrol or Quakerstate would outperform Mobil 1.

To the best of my knowledge, so long as you are operating the motor within the tolerances of the lubricant, you shouldn't see vastly greater wear between two otherwise identical road cars with similar mileage -- we aren't making comparisons between DD's and track only vehicles that might be repeatedly pushed to the limit of mechanical tolerances, and even torn down at the end of a race.

Probably the biggest difference would be air and oil filtration quality.

Even if we take that data with a pinch of salt, I'll trust a pinch of salt over warm fuzzies any day.

AK's wear data for Redline is promising, but the lead wear was obscured, so I am still unclear on that. Not suggesting he was deliberately making it hard to read or anything -- I'm sure it was just accidental as you can barely make out the top, but I can't tell if that value is "0" or "9".

Anyone else gotten Blackstone analyses for Redline?

I'm not trying to stir the pot -- I'm trying to make a decision based on empirical data rather than vague feelings located somewhere in my viscera...

Good question, I bought the 20 weight because it was all they had left and I religiously use RP, dont ask me why. But yeah, seems the valve chatter has gone away significantly.

If your goal is to get everyone to stop using Redline, it's probably not going to work. (I believe you're being genuine in your inquisitions). If your goal is to talk yourself out of using Redline, you're well on your way.

i'd like to see a comparo between RP and Redline so I can justify spending $8.50 a quart...

I've done quite a bit of research just by typing "redline vs royal purple" or "royal purple vs mobil 1". Of course, you have to sit through the anecdotal evidence, the brand hate/brand fanboys, and insults to get to some of the "facts", but it's worth it.

RP, according to the Internet (and it's never wrong), is one of the top 3 or 4 oils out there for performance engines. If you're happy with RP, and especially if you obtain a positive oil analysis from something like Blackstone, I'd stick with it. :tup:

Wow, I found this on one of the forums, the results shock the chit outta me, RP appears to be one of the best in this test, good to hear, great for my piece of mind.

http://www.animegame.com/cars/Oil%20Tests.pdf

Good article, but I found this on another site. Apparently the site that originally posted (and conducted) the test, issued this message shortly after: (NOTE: This doesn't mean RP isn't a good and trusted oil, of course. )

OILS AIN'T OILS – The post script

If there's one thing we try and do here at Street Commodores, it's give you, our readers un-biased info on which products are good, and which ones suck. There's so much BS marketing guff out there, that it can be tough to nut out which products can walk the walk – so that's where we come in, doing our best to sort the Holdens from the Lada Nivas.

A few months back (issue 108), you might remember we did an oil comparison. At the time, we thought it was a bloody good thing, and we don't mind telling you we were pretty proud to publish an article that basically bagged a heap of big name brands. You see, at Street Commodores, we can't, and won't be bought. We like to play things straight. And in the name of playing things straight, we'd like to tell you what has happened since that story went to print.

Basically, we made a few oil companies very cross, and some others quite happy; but we've also been educated some more on engine oils, and being the type of publication that we are, we wanted to fill you in on it. The information we've learned since then suggests the test we performed may be irrelevant. Some sources have advised us that the test we used would have been better served testing some of our favourite greases rather than the engine oils we commonly use on our street cars. Sure, we did the test with the best intentions, with a level playing field for each oil and no preconceptions as to who would perform better than another, but when, and if, we mess up, we like to think that we're man enough to set the record straight.

So keep an eye out in an upcoming issue real soon for an in-depth look at what makes up the contents of your oil, what to look for when choosing one, why certain ingredients are so important and whether the test we used was irrelevant for testing oils.

Why would I want to talk anyone into doing anything? I'm not selling anyone any oil :confused:

I'm trying to make a decision on oil based on objective data rather than anecdotes or theories about what should and should not work. Whatever decision criteria anyone else chooses to use is his business.

Also, I haven't ruled out Redline, I'm just not sold on it based on the information I've seen thus far.

What I'd like to do is try to match each oil's adiditive spec sheet to the results and see if there's an obvious pattern.

In keeping with this idea, some of the oils with the lowest wear ratings in that data set also have the highest concentration of molybdenum, which is added specifically for that purpose.

Also, allegedly, some of the oils favored by racing teams provide superior protection only with more frequent change intervals -- I need to do more research on that, but the implication is that for a DD, these oils may not be ideal.

Regarding your post -- yes, apparently some of the tests oil manufactures report findings for are more appropriate for testing gear lubes and greases rather than engine oils (alledgedly Amsoil is especially guilty of this) -- that's why I take independently gathered wear data from a highly similar engine more seriously than theories about the meaning of various spec sheets or oil classifications by themselves.

man unless your racing your car often i dont really believe you need to get this deep into oil..just change it often...if your looking for Moly just throw some of this into your oil..its excellent.

Products - MoS2 Anti-Friction

this thread is starting to turn into BOBtheoilguy stuff..just relax..hahah.

Thanks -- I'll look more into that. The only thing is whether it stays in suspension or winds up pooling at the bottom of the oil pan...

Mixed reviews on BITOG after a quick search... tough to find good oil analysis data :shakes head:

As to why I care -- the same reason everyone else does. You want to put oil in your baby that you trust to keep it together and running smoothly. I just like to make these decisons based on the best available data, that's all.

In the absence of wear data, you're left with with untested hypotheses about what an oil's spec sheet means and faith.

This is the "oil nerds" thread after all :icon17:

Here's my plan. I did my first change already (early, at 1500 miles) with Nissan Ester oil. I'm going to do a Blackstone analysis done to make sure everything has been good so far. Then I'll do another analysis on my Redline after an additional 5k miles (or whatever Blackstone suggests). If Redline doesn't look like it's meeting or exceeding the protection provided by the Ester Oil, I'll try out RP, or maybe M1.

Trying to figure out what oil is perfect for me by looking at other people's results will leave me dizzy. Those drivers will have different motors, different driving habits, different roads, different intervals, different everything.

I definitely am in the same boat as you as far as wanting what's best for the car though, and I applaud you for it.

I understand what your saying but as previously stated by many here there is no "perfect" oil to meet everyones needs..everybody has different driving habits and weather to contend with..UOA's really mean nothing to us as those are specific to YOUR vehicle only..