Summary of "Are All Motor Oils the Same? Let’s Find Out!"

Product Reviewed: Various motor oils including Aviation, Motorcycle, Diesel, Gasoline engine oils, Marine oil, and different viscosity grades (notably Mobile 1 10W30, Mobile 1 0W8, Motorcraft 10W30 Diesel, Philip 66 Aviation 20W50, Quicksilver 10W30 Marine, and Motul 10W30 Motorcycle oil).

Main Features Tested:

Cold temperature flow characteristics (oil flow speed at room temperature and after freezing at -40°C/-40°F)
Wear protection (measured via lubricity and wear scar size tests)
Thermal breakdown and evaporation resistance (Noack volatility test at ~400°F for 2 hours)
Additive package content (phosphorus, detergents, dispersants, anti-wear additives)
Viscosity and film strength
Total Base Number (TBN) indicating acid neutralization capacity

Key Findings:

Flow Characteristics:

Mobile 1 0W8 oil flows fastest at both room temperature and after freezing, finishing tests in about 1 second at room temp and under 20 seconds frozen.
Motorcraft Diesel 10W30 and Mobile 1 10W30 Gasoline engine oil flow slower but still relatively quick.
Philip 66 Aviation 20W50 flows slowest due to higher viscosity.
Marine and Motorcycle oils flow slower than thinner automotive oils, especially after freezing.

Wear Protection:

Motorcraft Diesel 10W30 showed the smallest wear scar (5.57 mm), indicating excellent film strength and wear protection.
Motul 10W30 Motorcycle oil performed best overall with the smallest wear scar (5.47 mm), narrowly beating Motorcraft.
Mobile 1 10W30 Gasoline oil had a 12% larger wear scar than Motorcraft (6.23 mm), showing less wear protection.
Mobile 1 0W8 thin oil had the largest wear scar (6.56 mm), indicating more wear despite fast flow.
Philip 66 Aviation 20W50 had moderate wear protection (6.35 mm wear scar), relying on viscosity rather than additives.

Thermal Stability and Evaporation:

Philip 66 Aviation oil had the lowest evaporative loss (~2.39 g), best resisting thermal breakdown.
Motul Motorcycle oil performed nearly as well (~2.62 g loss).
Mobile 1 10W30 had moderate evaporative loss (~5.26 g).
Motorcraft Diesel 10W30 lost the most (~8.69 g), showing more volatility.
Marine oil evaporated faster than Motorcycle oil but still performed decently.

Additive Packages:

Mobile 1 0W8 had the highest anti-wear additive content (~2494 ppm phosphorus), likely to compensate for its thin viscosity.
Motorcraft Diesel had a strong additive package (~2128 ppm phosphorus), correlating with its excellent wear protection.
Motul Motorcycle oil had a good additive package (~252 ppm phosphorus).
Mobile 1 10W30 had less aggressive anti-wear additives.
Aviation oil had minimal detergents/dispersants but relied on viscosity for wear protection.

Total Base Number (TBN):

All oils had similar TBN (~6.9 to 7.8) except aviation oil, which was much lower (~0.61), indicating less acid neutralization capability.

Pros and Cons:

Product Pros Cons Mobile 1 0W8 Fastest flow, high anti-wear additives Largest wear scar, less wear protection Motorcraft Diesel 10W30 Excellent wear protection, strong additives Highest evaporative loss, slower flow Mobile 1 10W30 Good flow, moderate wear protection, low evaporation Larger wear scar than diesel and motorcycle oils Philip 66 Aviation 20W50 Best thermal stability, low evaporation, high viscosity film strength Slowest flow, low detergent/dispersant content Motul 10W30 Motorcycle Best wear protection, good additive package Slower flow, more expensive Quicksilver 10W30 Marine Good wear protection, decent evaporation Slower flow, more evaporation than Motorcycle oil

User Experience / Observations:

Thinner oils flow faster, especially in cold conditions, but may sacrifice wear protection unless compensated by stronger additive packages.
Heavier oils (like aviation 20W50) provide better film strength but flow slower, especially in cold.
Oils designed for diesel and motorcycles