I might be wrong, but IIRC, Amsoil doesn't carry an API seal for rating.

Not to imply any synthetic is sub-par, but this would concern me as a potential customer.

 

I've never seen a bottle of Amsoil on the store shelf, so I checked their website. Seems they carry the current API ratings.

 

API ratings and certifications are two different things. Some Amsoil products are certified, others aren't.

 

 

Thanks for pointing out the distinction between rating and certification Ken. I only checked Amsoil's 10w30 oil which has both. I went to the [link:www.api.org/programs_services/quality/enginoil.htm|American Petroleum Institute] website to learn more about it. You can search their site to find which company's are licenced by the API to display the API Service Symbol or the API Certification mark.

The API Service Symbol "donut" is divided into three parts:

The top half describes the oil's performance level.
The center identifies the oil's viscosity.
The bottom half tells whether the oil has demonstrated energy-conserving properties in a standard test in comparison to a reference oil.

API 'doughnut'----> https://www.ford-trucks.com/user_gallery/displaythumbnail.php?&photoid=3244&.jpg


The API Certification Mark "starburst" is designed to identify engine oils recommended for a specific application (such as gasoline service). An oil may be licensed to display the starburst only if the oil satisfies the most current requirements of the International Lubricant Standardization and Approval Committee (ILSAC) minimum performance standard for this application (currently GF-2 for passenger cars).

API 'starburst'----> https://www.ford-trucks.com/user_gallery/displaythumbnail.php?&photoid=3245&.jpg


Amsoil is licenced and authorized to display the API Service Symbol (doughnut) on the following products:

AMSOIL PCO 15W-40 SJ/CH-4
AMSOIL XL-7500 10W-30 SJ/CF*
AMSOIL XL-7500 5W-30 SJ/CF*

Amsoil is licensed and authorized to display the API Certification Mark (starburst) on the following products:

AMSOIL XL-7500 10W-30
AMSOIL XL-7500 5W-30

For comparison:

Pennzoil has 9 lubricants licensed to display the API Service Symbol and 2 lubricants licensed to display the Certification Mark.

Chevron has 23 lubricants licensed to carry the API Service Symbol and 2 lubricants licensed to display the API Certification Mark.

Since Amsoil lists 19 different motor oils for automotive, industrial and motorcycle lubricants, the license to display the API Service Symbol on no more than 3 of their products is a legitimate concern.

So there is a difference between meeting the requirements of an API Service Classification and actually being licensed to display the symbol on your product.

 

Wow! You do your homework!

 

Thanks, guys...I've been using synthetics for 15 years (Mobil 1 and Castrol Syntec) and as of this date, I've never been able to kill a truck that I've run them in. I've got almost 200,000 miles on a *cherry* 1987 Ford Ranger 2.9L I bought new in late '86, been using Mobil 1 engine and gear lubes in it since the 400 mile mark- I'm selling that truck to a family friend and she had a shop go through the thing a few days ago with a fine tooth comb. The engine compression is perfect, not more than 10 lbs difference between cylinders, it doesn't use any oil at all and it runs like new.
I've changed the oil in that Ranger anywhere from 3,000 to 7,000 mile intervals, sometimes only changing the filter and tossing in a quart if I was in a hurry or tight on $$.

I don't want to start that old dino vs. synthetic debate here, and maybe the truck would have done just as well on a quality dino oil, but all I know is my own experience.

I've also been looking at the Amsoil and Red Line products, and that's what prompted my question. I still would like to try the Amsoil stuff, and probably will someday.

I recently put Red Line in the E4OD tranny on my '96 F-250 460, I'm the second owner at 122,000 miles. Drained it dry, including the torque converter, and refilled it with the Red Line D4 ATF- It was definitely due for a change. I will say, wow, what an IMMEDIATE difference. It used to shift pretty mushy (I also drive a 2000 F-150 with the same trans and it feels the same). As soon as I rolled out the drive with the new lube in the tranny, it felt like a whole different truck.

No kidding guys, I don't sell oil (I'm an electrical engineer and part-time rancher). The shifts on that F-250 firmed up an unbelieveable amount, it slams the gears now, whether I'm passing someone on a two-lane or towing a horse trailer. I can't explain it, but it's a HUGE seat of the pants difference. I was thinking of buying a shift kit for the thing from Banks, now I don't think I will.

Well, that's what this dicussion forum is about, thanks for the well-researched info, and maybe I have something to offer in return.

"El Guapo"
Two Easters Ranch
Berthoud, Colo.

 

Well, A good friend at work is an Amsoil distributor, so I thought I'd give it a try. It's expensive,($73 for a case of 5w-30 and a filter-his cost) but they advertise that you don't need to change your oil for 25,000 miles! and a filter change at 12k!. The web site makes it look better'n sliced bread. SO, I'll give it try.
Had been using Mobile 1 til now.


What kind of filter do you use?

 

Well, that's one of my other concerns about Amsoil, is the insane amount of time they say you can run it before a change. Now, maybe that's true, and perfectly OK. But, like many other people I would NEVER do that. Even if that's perfectly OK, why make claims that 90% of the public will dismiss as ridiculous hype? I have absolutely no reason to go a year and a half between oil changes, neither does anyone else. So why even push the issue?

Then there's those Amsoil dealers that are completely out of control- for example, claiming on newsgroup postings and web sites that "a vandal dumped sand in the transmission of my wife's Ford minivan, then they tightened the drain plug so that I couldn't get it out, but because of the Amsoil in it, it ran fine for a year."
Puh-leeze! Besides, since when did Ford start putting drain plugs in those transmissions? Everyone else has to drop the pan to change the oil. (go search groups.google.com for these sort of postings if you don't believe it)

OK, I'll plead ignorance, and as I said I'm trying to have an open mind and try different things, but because of the above, I just don't trust that company and its products. That's why I'm asking questions about them here. I don't feel comfortable with them. If nothing else, their marketing person(s) should be shot or go back to selling used cars or ##### enlargers on the internet.

Something else. Because of Amzoil's overly-agressive dealers and marketing, it's impossible to even have a discussion about oil any more, here or anywhere else, without accusations of being a shill for the product, or someone else's. The atmosphere is toxic. I feel uncomfortable about putting a plug in for Red Line as a happy customer, as I did earlier because of what's been going on. There's too much trash talk happening, in large part because of Amsoil. They seem like they just-don't-care, and there's no such thing as bad publicity.

That said, I don't think that there is such a thing as a 'bad' or even substandard synthetic oil these days, Amsoil or anyone else.

Filters? More often than not, I've always used Fram. Mostly because maybe 10 years ago when I used to subscribe, Consumer Reports rated them on top.

Since then, I've switched to the Bosch filters where they're available. Yes, I understand that Amsoil sells a premium oil filter.

Thanks.

 

In Europe, where people are less lawsuit prone, Mobile claims longer oil change intervals. Buy the Mobile instead of the Amsoil and use oil analysis to extend drain intervals. Save your money by purchasing Mobile instead of feeding the Amsoil MLM food chain.

 

I am an Amsoil dealer, in part because I can get
the stuff at dealer cost for $20 a year dealership
cost. I'm not one of these dealers you mentioned.
Amsoil says you can go 25,000 miles OR 1 YEAR on their
standard synthetic oils like their 5w-30. I think you
should look at their web site or contact me before you
try your hand at bad humor about a product you admitted
you know nothing about.

 

My sincere apologies if you felt my earlier posting was out of line.

Note that I am here asking questions, as much as stating personal opinions. Many people have seen unprofessional conduct and bogus claims made by Amsoil dealers (not Amsoil itself), and I mentioned one specific, verifiable incident. This is not helping the company or their product's credibility. Imagine the outcry if a Mobil 1, Shell, Castrol or Valvoline retailer had publicly claimed that their oil protected a vehicle's transmission for a year "after a vandal dumped sand into the filler".

I've been a long time user Castrol Syntec and Mobil 1 and as I mentioned, I've recenty found Red Line gear lubes to be apparently very good as well. Professionally, my experience with synthetics is in industrial gearboxes on mission-critical equipment that's literally never shut off, 25 and 30 HP electric motor drives that have run continuously 24x7 for ten years and more before overhauls.
I know of one that's been running non-stop since 1984 and only now are the gears and bearings getting noisy.
I've been more than pleased with the performance and life of the vehicles I've used these synthetic products in for 15 years. Like many others, I've been happy with both company's traditional dino oil products, too. I'm not going to put down a premium quality traditional oil.
I honestly have no reason to switch engine oils, I can pick up either of my favored brands almost anywhere, but I am always interested in a 'better' product, reading and learning about things automotive. Yes, I have been through the Amsoil web site and reviewed their tests and comments- thanks for asking.

I'm glad you're happy with the product. Amsoil has been around for quite a while now, and again, I'm sorry if you were offended by my prior comments.

 

Why should we contact you? To boost your sales? To hear the same tired sales pitch? I've got nothing against the Amsoil products. I DO, however, have something against their legalized pyramid scheme method of distribution and the garbage their dealers pull. Every single one of their dealers who has ever posted here has claimed "not to be one of those types of dealers" and sooner or later, they all show themselves to be just that. Already, every post you've made has been in the oil section and every one of them save 1 has mentioned Amsoil.

Its sad to see how MLMs turn otherwise nice people into zombies who view people as prospects and message boards as free advertising mediums. I make no apologies for how I feel about the Amsoil marketing method and how their dealers represent themselve.

If you wish to participate on this site, put away the sales pitch.

 

fourphils:

Yes, the above post from our Administrator was directed at you. The charter for this forum reads, "For discussion of oil and lubrication. NO DEALERS - NO EXCEPTIONS."

Please abide by these guidelines.