I was in walmart the other day and stopped by the automotive dept. just to check things out. While I was checking oil prices I got to looking at labels. There was Synthetic, Full Synthetic, Fully Synthetic.... You would think that some unbiased group, like maybe the Society of Automotive Engineers or someone like them could come up with some sort of standard discription that regular folks could understand. What happened to truth in advertizing?

 

You're kidding, right?

 

No Jschira, he's not kidding.

I think hat he is getting at is the fact that some brands of synthetic are not the real deal as the Mobil 1 is. I'm sure he has heard how some, such as Castrol is Grp III and not a true syn.

Then he sees all the different ways one can word it on the bottle.

Customers are truly duped.

But, going back to what you said about purchasing what is "good enough" leads me to NEVER have a desire to purchase a synthetic oil. EVER.

 

WEEELLLLL, there is no real way to know what is in the bottle even if you are in the industry. Formulations change almost daily.Basestock compositions are changing in part due to manufacturing capacities because of the hurricanes. But there MAY be relief (?) for the unknowing. There are several thoughts in the industry in regards to the antique labeling promagated by API. One thought is that motor oils will be labeled like ATF. You would go find oil marked for use in a Ford, for instance. No High Mileage, No super duper synthetic, No 4x4 quasimoto hoto. just oil for a Ford engine. Then there are the folks that think that the guts of the oil should be on the label including basestock type, add pack, etc and let the consumer figure it out which is best for his engine- like, most folks have a clue about oil. My own opinion, leave it alone. Anybody that has the interest in motor oils has already searched the internet attempting to learn what makes a good oil. Problem there is they usually end up at BITOG and get very biased info. I would never suggest learning any subject from the folks that sell a product. Anyway, pick an oil that is rated for your engine. Change your oil at the manufacturers recommendations and know that you have done the best for your engine regardless of how much or how little you spent.