steelers6

I emailed blackstone labs a few days ago regarding brand name and generic brand synthetic oils,just wanted to see if there was a big difference between the 2 brands,Alex Miller emailed me saying,and im quoting Alex Miller from BLACKSTONE LABS,"As long as the oil is API CERTIFIED and you use the correct grade or a comparable one,you really cant go wrong with whatever brand you use,wether its a MOBIL 1,REDLINE,AMSOIL synthetic or a SUPERTECH synthetic by WALMART,WE dont see one brand outperforming the other" Alex Miller also said "synthetic oil isnt really that much better than conventional motor oil" yeah i was pretty blown away as i was talking to him,just wanted to share some of his expertise from BLACKSTONE LABS...

Doublebase

It's funny you mention that, the part about synthetic vs. conventional...it's not the first time I've heard about someone from Blackstone not endorsing synthetic motor oil. In fact I want to say that I've read the people who work at Blackstone don't even use synthetic oil, they use conventional for 7,000 mile intervals. Of course I kind of doubt "everyone at Blackstone" does the exact same thing regarding oil changes, but I found that interesting.

As for the comments about you can't really go wrong with any synthetic that is API certified, I'm kind of surprised the guy said that, here's why...

The people that send their oil in for sampling to Blackstone are oil nuts. They love oil, they love the debate, they believe in the products. To kind of dismiss the whole thing is a little foolish for a guy who works for a company that plays a roll in this whole oil saga. It's like Santa saying...hey Santa is just your mom, sorry to disappoint, Merry Christmas.

And although I tend to agree with the guy to a point, I do think some oils are better than others. How much better? Perhaps that's where the line gets very very blurry. Perhaps that's what Alex Miller was saying. And the thing that's funny? I've read many many used oil analysis's from Blackstone...sometimes people send multiple reports with different oils measured side by side, and Blackstone very much points out one oil doing better than the other. Then recommends oil change intervals based off those results. So believe me, whether they mean to or not, they do compare oils and see differences in performance...sometimes rather big ones. Perhaps they don't pay attention to that on a case to case basis, or care, but it happens all the time.

Nice thread, I love oil talk.

superdenso

Mercedes requires Mobil 0w40 in the SL
Chevrolet used to require a Mobil in their Corvette
*Engine builders have their favorites...never heard the SuperTech just as good statement before.

Then there are the break-in oils...sounds like you (Steelers6) triggered ye' ole' the canned response with two servings of "Legal-speak"

roadfrog

Sometimes, synthetics will have a more robust additive package than conventional oils. Also, synthetics will last far longer and have higher OCI's than conventional. The synthetic oils will also perform better at extreme temperatures (LOW AND HIGH). Nothing wrong with conventional oils, especially in the last decade or two, where advances have been made.

As for the TRUE reason why a specific brand of oil is recommended by a manufacturer, it comes down to marketing. My former 7 series BMW had "Castrol Recommended" on the cap, but it had nothing to do with it being the best oil. $$ speaks. Same with Mobil 1 on Vettes. Mobil 1 is a major sponsor in many things including NASCAR and Castrol in European racing.

steelers6

Yeah man i thought it was real interesting,i was on the phone like REALLY,ok,its like over the yrs we see so much positive advertising for brand name synthetic oils and conventional oils,that we really tend to overlook a quality,inexpensive generic oil like SUPERTECH by Warren Industries sold at Walmart,read a lot about SUPERTECH,as far as testing it ranked up there with the big name brand oils,lot of great reviews also,real interesting stuff though...