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Read our primer articles on High Mileage Oil, Synthetic Oil and Kinematic Viscosity

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It is importand to note that any performance related testing is only as usefull as the level of comparison you have between the test and the intended real world application. The usefullness of certain tests in demonstrating the "quality" of a lubricant has been used to the marketers advantage in that they have convinced the marketplace (you and me) that because their product passes some test it is better than some other product. If you are going to use the results from performance testing you HAVE to know and understand the relationship between the test parameters and your application.

This type of information can be meaningfull when it is used intellegently, but it can also be very misleading if used without full understanding.
This particular subject has been the focus of several people in the past ie. George Tottenham who published a book recently containing and discussing some performance testing. Also Ken Ludema was a focal part of a group in STLE that was meeting to discuss these issues to try and develop some meaningfull and industry agreed to understanding that would identify tests and performance critera that would relate to specific real world situations.


regards.....
quote:
Originally posted by Gurkha:
Thanks,

It is significant to note that the Delo-400 failed two of the critical tests there whereas the Delvac passed it, goes to tell you about the quality level of Delvac.


Gurkha
The Falex wear test was designed to test for extreme pressure, such as in gear
boxes. The one-armed bandit, or pressure testing machine with a torque wrench
and spinning bearing, was intended for the same purpose.

If you'll go check an old Slick 50 ad sometime, you'll notice a number of independent lab references about the miraculous nature of the additive, but you won't catch me putting that stuff in my vehicles.

This test is being used in order to create a marketing advantage not pertaining to engine oiis,where soot absorbency should be tested for wear resistance and abrasiveness.
Franky,
Thanks for your reply and for the address of the Chevron lab, I shall be sending them samples soon. As for Delvac, I have seen some real good things written about its wear quality and in terms of performance, it is slightly ahead. I attribute the Delvac's performance due to its moly additive package which the Delo 400 lacks and in severe high stress, high heat conditions, that comes in real handy.
Although this test serves some purposes, it is the balance of cleanliness, deposits, wear, temperature carrying, filterability, etc. that make up the entire package. I have tests that show the high filter blocking of the Delvac and higher wear rates on valve train components.
But more interesting, earlier this week I found a site where they claimed the Delvac scored 46 pounds and Delo 48 pounds. So what is the pass/fail?
Something to keep in mind is that most of the data comparing the HDEO's is from the CH-4 versions. The CI-4 reformulations may change the relative performances of the oils quite a bit. I would, however trust Delvac or Delo to perform well, Chevron and Mobil are pretty trustworthy in that regard.

As a sidenote, Pennzoil has weakened LongLife's additive package recently, probably as a cost cutting measure.
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