Not sure if anyone else is as obsessive about a topic as I sometimes will be. I recently went way too far down the rabbit hole on oil specifications. I believed I was using the "right" oil (Pennzoil Platinum 5w-30) based on literature & word-of-mouth, until I sent off a sample to be tested. It turns out, the oil I was using is too thin for my taste & too thin for the engine. SAE requirements for 30 weight is 9.3 to 12.5 cSt at 100C. This batch of oil I was using ended up at 7.59 cSt with only 943 miles on it; no water, antifreeze or fuel noted. This result puts the oil in the middle of the 20 weight range, not something I want rolling around inside my engine. I had briefly contemplated switching to a 40 weight oil, but instead I began searching for a 30 weight replacement. Shell/Pennzoil rates the Platinum 5w-30 oil at 9.8 cSt, within the range, but at the low end. Mobil 1 5w-30 is listed at 10.8 cSt, smack dab in the middle of the range, that's looking better. Then I found the Mobil 1 FS 5w-30. It is listed at 12.2 cSt, may as well call it the top of the range. I ended up draining the platinum at just over 1k miles and putting in the FS. I will be sending off another oil sample for testing once I get about 1k miles on this change.
Has anyone else sent off oil samples and gotten abnormal results?
Has anyone else sent off oil samples and gotten abnormal results?
