Synthetic Oil

Oil of Choice

  • Castrol Syntec/Edge

    Votes: 233 8.4%
  • Royal Purple

    Votes: 325 11.7%
  • AMSOil

    Votes: 396 14.3%
  • Valvoline Synpower

    Votes: 160 5.8%
  • Mobil 1

    Votes: 992 35.9%
  • Other

    Votes: 660 23.9%

  • Total voters
    2,766

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

danielmid

Senior Member
Supporting Member
Joined
Mar 23, 2018
Posts
1,491
Reaction score
2,647
Location
Southeast WI
Ram Year
2015 Sport 4x4
Engine
Hemi 5.7
I would, especially with prices going up so high you might get similar performance as full sump redline. I think this strategy is even better then lubegard plus PUP. Redline is a balanced formula all by itself, group 3 is neutral, so it wont create any issue, as far as compatibility. We know for a fact the benefits of redline in hemi's, the question is can you get similar benefits with a strategy you suggest. To test it like we did redline, that would take multiple long term uoa's and many people running the same thing, so likely that wont happen. But I subscribe to this, I just think you make group 3 oils better if you do this. I probably subscribe to running 100% redline a little more, but I always hoped some guys would test this, especially any tick killing benefits that might appear.
Bimmerworld has the RL in stock with free shipping and no tax, let's do it.

I have a fairly good base to measure against with several UOA on this engine with the same oil. I moved climates and changed to a larger filter during this interval so a few variables but I feel okay about them.
 

Burla

Senior Member
Military
Joined
Apr 28, 2012
Posts
23,109
Reaction score
44,444
Ram Year
2010 Hemi Reg Cab 4x4
Engine
Hemi
Sounds good, this is added to what we had posted before from dave about compatibility. As far as mixing and uoa, you might commit to using this blend twice, or just send a bit off w/o a full change, when you do your uoa. Generally speaking the first uoa with redline is a toss away, we really don't know why but subsequent uoa's show how redline is working in any individual hemi.

I wouldnt go mixing high mileage oils with any performance oils, but as the paper out there says what you wanna try is ok. I also understand hemimann's question the benefits, we just dont know.
 

danielmid

Senior Member
Supporting Member
Joined
Mar 23, 2018
Posts
1,491
Reaction score
2,647
Location
Southeast WI
Ram Year
2015 Sport 4x4
Engine
Hemi 5.7
Sounds good, this is added to what we had posted before from dave about compatibility. As far as mixing and uoa, you might commit to using this blend twice, or just send a bit off w/o a full change, when you do your uoa. Generally speaking the first uoa with redline is a toss away, we really don't know why but subsequent uoa's show how redline is working in any individual hemi.

I wouldnt go mixing high mileage oils with any performance oils, but as the paper out there says what you wanna try is ok. I also understand hemimann's question the benefits, we just dont know.
Barring something unwanted happening I'll commit to at least two cycles of mixed.

Thoughts on next oil change (being past winter most likely) viscosity for the RL add in? Or stick with the 3qts RL 0W-30 for consistent data assuming that won't be a negative for summer months?
 

Burla

Senior Member
Military
Joined
Apr 28, 2012
Posts
23,109
Reaction score
44,444
Ram Year
2010 Hemi Reg Cab 4x4
Engine
Hemi
If you change it twice a year by all means do 5w30 on that and 0w30 on the change before winter. If I change it once a year I like to change it right before winter with the appropriate weight, in fact this is what I usually do right around xmas.

The data will most likely be similar either way, and if you like 0w30 stick with it, I just like to make sure the coldest months get the freshest oil.
 

Burla

Senior Member
Military
Joined
Apr 28, 2012
Posts
23,109
Reaction score
44,444
Ram Year
2010 Hemi Reg Cab 4x4
Engine
Hemi
Edge ep 0w20 is some good juice
Do you know if molybdenum is now required to get the gf-6 approval? Or even the gf-5? I know you are at the BITOG just wondering if that was ever discussed, I know the few oils that didnt have moly now do have moly, I wonder if that was a mandate? Does anyone know a general group 3 shelf oil with no moly count? I do believe zero moly might be allowed for certain applications like particulate filter apps, but I wonder about general gas engine spec, is moly required like zinc?
 

Travis8352

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 5, 2020
Posts
1,500
Reaction score
3,330
Location
Houghton michigan
Ram Year
2018
Engine
5.7 hemi
Do you know if molybdenum is now required to get the gf-6 approval? Or even the gf-5? I know you are at the BITOG just wondering if that was ever discussed, I know the few oils that didnt have moly now do have moly, I wonder if that was a mandate? Does anyone know a general group 3 shelf oil with no moly count? I do believe zero moly might be allowed for certain applications like particulate filter apps, but I wonder about general gas engine spec, is moly required like zinc?
The talk over there is that moly seems to be what some of the "cheaper" oils are using to meet the timing chain wear requirements for API SP and GF6. I dont think its mandated though. I have not seen a moly free oil in a while thats SP
 

Oiliver

Member
Joined
Nov 11, 2022
Posts
48
Reaction score
37
Location
Atlanta, GA
Ram Year
2017
Engine
5.7 HEMI
Hey guys, I've never been interested in lubricants, to me oil was always just ... oil. But with the price of everything going up, I want to get more out of my vehicles. That's why I joined here and started reading. And boy, did I find a lot of good information.

I am interested in making my engines last, so I looked into AmsOil and Red Line. They're both very very expensive, with Red Line slightly more so, but not as expensive as a new engine.

So far I learned that all these commonly available oils are fake synthetics. Only AMSOIL and Red Line are true 100% synthetic. I find AMSOIL to have some strange sales practices, so I looked more into Red Line. I found most information here and on a forum that deals exclusively with lubricants. Wow, I didn't know that there were oil nerds out there!

At $65 a gallon Red Line is very very expensive. I found the discussion bellow on the forum I was talking about. Other than the goofy annotations, the documentation looks legit like it's coming from the manufacturer. It looks like Red Line is now using Group III base oil. I am sorry, but if it's true, then it's absolutely not worth the money.

This would leave Amsoil as the only viable option as it's 100% synthetic. Their documentation and testing seems very thorough.


View attachment 507699

I have also found this video documentary about Amsoil:


Amsoil looks to me like a serious company that knows what it's doing.

I'm sorry about the long post but I wanted to get your opinion.

What do you guys think I should do?

Good morning everyone, I was wondering if anyone could help me with these questions. I'm sorry for quoting myself, however, it's Cyber Monday and I've found a few, somewhat decent, deals on lube here and there.

Thank you and Happy Cyber Monday!
 

danielmid

Senior Member
Supporting Member
Joined
Mar 23, 2018
Posts
1,491
Reaction score
2,647
Location
Southeast WI
Ram Year
2015 Sport 4x4
Engine
Hemi 5.7
Good morning everyone, I was wondering if anyone could help me with these questions. I'm sorry for quoting myself, however, it's Cyber Monday and I've found a few, somewhat decent, deals on lube here and there.

Thank you and Happy Cyber Monday!
Some of what you said there isn't true, but Amsoil is a good oil, I wouldn't hesitate to use it if I wanted to. I use Pennzoil Ultra Platinum myself, most people in this thread lean towards Red Line. I'm reading a bunch on another site about HPL Oils so I may try that out after the next few changes.

Keep up with the change intervals, use a good oil/filter, you'll do fine.
 

Burla

Senior Member
Military
Joined
Apr 28, 2012
Posts
23,109
Reaction score
44,444
Ram Year
2010 Hemi Reg Cab 4x4
Engine
Hemi
thanks
Good morning everyone, I was wondering if anyone could help me with these questions. I'm sorry for quoting myself, however, it's Cyber Monday and I've found a few, somewhat decent, deals on lube here and there.

Thank you and Happy Cyber Monday!
Redline has two line ups, their high performance line is pao/ester based with high moly, their professional line is over priced group 3 garbage that shouldnt ever be ran because you can buy the same **** cheaper. HPL is similar to Redline, one is ester based and one is more pao based with small difference in visc but large differences in moly. There is no evidence to date to say one if "better" in a hemi then another, so feel free to be one of the first to use HPL as the science appears very solid, plus they have lower zinc which it plenty ok since the moily boost. HPL in theory might be a tad better then the vooidoo juice we all know and love.

Amsoi 20 and 30 not in the same class to be honest, but there 0w40 is better then redlines 0w40 plus it is a great choice for a 5.7, the risk is yours as far as visc but so far so good with full intervals on amsoil ss 0w40 in the mds hemi.
 

Oiliver

Member
Joined
Nov 11, 2022
Posts
48
Reaction score
37
Location
Atlanta, GA
Ram Year
2017
Engine
5.7 HEMI
Is this HPL? -> https://www.hploil.com/

They look like just about any other small brand with big claims. Honestly, they're not very confidence inspiring.

Amsoi 20 and 30 not in the same class to be honest, but there 0w40 is better then redlines 0w40 plus it is a great choice for a 5.7, the risk is yours as far as visc but so far so good with full intervals on amsoil ss 0w40 in the mds hemi.
What's the risk with the viscosity? Is 0W-40 that thick? It's a 0W, so it should have no viscosity to it, especially since it stretches all the way to 40. At least that's what my service advisor said.

Thanks for the help.
 

Burla

Senior Member
Military
Joined
Apr 28, 2012
Posts
23,109
Reaction score
44,444
Ram Year
2010 Hemi Reg Cab 4x4
Engine
Hemi
Is this HPL? -> https://www.hploil.com/

They look like just about any other small brand with big claims. Honestly, they're not very confidence inspiring.


What's the risk with the viscosity? Is 0W-40 that thick? It's a 0W, so it should have no viscosity to it, especially since it stretches all the way to 40. At least that's what my service advisor said.

Thanks for the help.
0w40 only means it is the thinnest it can be for a 40 weight, the 0 is winter rating not really viscosity related, I will post a couple more viscosity graphs so you understand. 0w40 is thicker then 5w30 or 10w30, or 5w20, or 20/20. However, 0w40 is a special weight for oils, the info is in the thread I can't spend this much time posting why. Most of them are really 5w30 in disguise, now amsoil is different as it is built to be on the other end of 40 weight, the thick end. Amsoil is stout with great hths and noack viscosity, but it is thick. So it is possible to get a CEL for oil weight, it seams like this is more myth then facts, but there have been a couple so called CEL's for this over the last decade.

Oil weight as we understand it is how thick it is at engine operating temps, and 0w40 is just as thick as 15w40 in most cases, the difference is they add vii's to get better cold performance, but it is the same "thickness".
 

Burla

Senior Member
Military
Joined
Apr 28, 2012
Posts
23,109
Reaction score
44,444
Ram Year
2010 Hemi Reg Cab 4x4
Engine
Hemi
This chart shows oil weight versus winter rating, one end where they are close is operating temperature, the other end is cold performance or how thick it is at cold temps. Better you should email this to your mechanic :)

main-qimg-7b6e76656aa6da236d397575b12b9f50.png


You see 0w40 here the green line, thicker then everything on the board..

4kCoW4x.png
 

ramffml

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 12, 2019
Posts
2,772
Reaction score
5,017
Location
ramforum
Ram Year
2019
Engine
hemi 5.7

Looks like the "improved" lifters are having issues as well. Notice the new Valvoline with high moly he's using...

Too many ticks to keep track of here.
1) broken exhaust manifold
2) noisy injectors
3) bleed down
4) lifter failure

His tick is #3, and it's not a problem it just sounds really ugly and nasty for a few seconds and then it's immediately gone. We've noticed improvements in this specific tick just by changing out to an oil filter with a silicon anti drain back valve (like the RP filters).

So all hemis are susceptible to that: cold start, quick move in the parking lot, shut down, wait a few hours and then start back up - you'll get that nasty tick for a few seconds and then instantly gone.

The improved lifters are to fix tick #4, the one where the needle bearings stop rolling causing the lifter to hit the cam instead of rolling over it.
 

Oiliver

Member
Joined
Nov 11, 2022
Posts
48
Reaction score
37
Location
Atlanta, GA
Ram Year
2017
Engine
5.7 HEMI
0w40 only means it is the thinnest it can be for a 40 weight, the 0 is winter rating not really viscosity related, I will post a couple more viscosity graphs so you understand. 0w40 is thicker then 5w30 or 10w30, or 5w20, or 20/20. However, 0w40 is a special weight for oils, the info is in the thread I can't spend this much time posting why. Most of them are really 5w30 in disguise, now amsoil is different as it is built to be on the other end of 40 weight, the thick end.
Thank you very much for taking the time to help me. I won't touch 0W-40. I don't understand it. My friend Sam, who's a certified technician, says that it's for weird European engines. He says that the only one to use is the special SRT 0W-40, and only in the 6.2 and 6.4 Hemis. He probably knows what he's talking about. He's been doing this for a long time.

Amsoil is stout with great hths and noack viscosity, but it is thick. So it is possible to get a CEL for oil weight, it seams like this is more myth then facts, but there have been a couple so called CEL's for this over the last decade.
I have a friend who uses Amsoil 5W-30 in his 2011 Accord. I can't get over how beautiful that oil looks when he pours it into the engine. It's like liquid gold. He said that the color comes from the special anti wear additives and the pure 100% synthetic oil. It didn't look that thick to me. So I'm confused now, which Amsoil can I use so I don't CEL?

Oil weight as we understand it is how thick it is at engine operating temps, and 0w40 is just as thick as 15w40 in most cases, the difference is they add vii's to get better cold performance, but it is the same "thickness".
Oh wow, that's literally truck diesel oil! I'm not gonna touch that stuff. I don't need to wreck my engine. Thank you for the advice, you saved me from potentially making a catastrophic mistake. I saw Mobil 1 for Europeean vehicles 0W-40 on Rollback and wanted to buy that. Glad I didn't. Yep, Sam was right.

No. This is HPL, and they make great products.

You can buy here.
Oh Jesus, that's a scetchy looking website!
 

Burla

Senior Member
Military
Joined
Apr 28, 2012
Posts
23,109
Reaction score
44,444
Ram Year
2010 Hemi Reg Cab 4x4
Engine
Hemi
I was solely talking about how amsoil in low weights performs in hemi's compared to redline as to it's tick killing ability. In most applications I'd likely opt for the amsoil, just not in a hemi. srt 0w40 is pup 0w40 and is a great choice for a hemi, it will indeed be thinner then redline 5w30 for most of the interval, see the uoa's. That oil visc goes to 10's due to vii's, but redline 5w30 is usually still in the 12's, 11's at worst. Hemis are high wear engines and a performance oil is beneficial. If you don't have hemi tick, try some amsoil, more people on this board use it then redline, it is third most popular behind pennoil/m1.
 

Burla

Senior Member
Military
Joined
Apr 28, 2012
Posts
23,109
Reaction score
44,444
Ram Year
2010 Hemi Reg Cab 4x4
Engine
Hemi

Looks like the "improved" lifters are having issues as well. Notice the new Valvoline with high moly he's using...
after all it is advanced, lol.

I do subscribe to one thing though, try a couple oils and filters, see if you can kill that tick before nuking it with expensive oil and hard to find filters.
 
Top