Autoblog

Slick Thinking: new API oil standard

Dan Roth — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 18:01:00 EST

There are broad strokes that you can take toward increased efficiency. Going that route results in expensive new technology or plucking the low-hanging fruit. The other way, of course, is to optimize everything obsessively, from wheel bearings to wiper blades. Engine oil is a vital, yet unsung necessity, and it can play a big role in fuel consumption as well as its obvious task of protecting the engine's internals.

Oil is asked to do more than battle friction. It now has to hold junk in suspension for longer drain intervals than ever before and even drive the camshaft phasers on some variable valve timing systems. In light of the new requirements, the American Petroleum Institute has introduced a new rating. The GF-5 kicks in on October 1st, 2010, and the spec calls for an increased capacity for deposits and longer life, as well as a lower propensity to sludging. With the turbocharger's resurgence, GF-5's call for better protection will keep those red-hot snails from creating coal in their bearings.

How does all of this help fuel economy? Thinner oils that perform like more gooey viscosities in terms of heat tolerance and deposit control siphon off less of the engine's power. An oil pump with an easier life means an engine that gets more work out of a gallon of fuel. In the future, we're likely to see oils like 0W-20 increase in popularity as fuel economy standards tighten.

[Source: Autoweek | Image: GF-5.com]

Slick Thinking: new API oil standard originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 24 Apr 2010 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oil Painting: Lewis Hamilton rendered in used Mobil 1

Noah Joseph — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 18:29:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Etc., Celebrities

Components from F1 cars - especially championship-winning F1 cars - don't go to waste. Collectors eagerly snap them up and put them on display as fast as the teams will release them. But in this case, the motor oil from Lewis Hamilton's title-winning McLaren-Mercedes MP4-24 was used to create a tribute to the driver.

The painting you see here (at right, click to view in high resolution) was commissioned by ExxonMobil from David Maculuso, who has been painting with recycled motor oil for several years. Macaluso describes the F1-spec Mobil 1 that ran through Hamilton's Mercedes V8 last year en route to the title as an ideal medium, the engine dirt suspended in the viscose giving the final work unique texture and depth. A limited run of 50 lithographic reproductions will be offered to the public, while the original will be displayed at ExxonMobil's pavilion at the upcoming British Grand Prix at Silverstone, which conveniently coincides with National Oil Check Week in the UK. Details in the press release after the jump.

[Source: ExxonMobil]

Continue reading Oil Painting: Lewis Hamilton rendered in used Mobil 1

Oil Painting: Lewis Hamilton rendered in used Mobil 1 originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 08 Jun 2009 18:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Master Mechanics vote for 3,000-mile oil change interval

John Neff — Thu, 13 Jul 2006 08:01:00 EST

Filed under: Maintenance

In a survey conducted by Valvoline, sixty-percent of ASE certified Master Automobile technicians questioned said that a vehicle's oil should be changed every 3,000 miles. Twenty-nine percent said between 3,000-5,000 miles is acceptable and just two percent voted that between 5,000-10,000 miles is okay.

This has to be one of the oldest running debates in the world of car care. The advents of synthetic motor oil and systems that monitor oil life have weakened the age-old 3,000-mile argument. Special programs like BMW Assist (pdf), for instance, enable a vehicle to notify the dealer itself when an oil change is required, 3,000 miles be damned.

While it's true that the oil in your car is its lifeblood, it's tough to take serious a survey about oil change intervals that's conducted by Valvoline. (Those mechanics surveyed also just happened to vote Valvoline their number one oil of choice.) We're pretty certain those companies selling motor oil wouldn't mind 1,500-mile oil change intervals if someone were bold enough to recommend them.

The real question is how often do you wait to change your oil? We're curious if anyone out there who has a habit of going longer than 5,000 miles has suffered severe engine problems as a result.

[Source: The Auto Channel]

Master Mechanics vote for 3,000-mile oil change interval originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 13 Jul 2006 08:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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