Does your engine matter to you? If your engine were to break down today on your way home from work… would it matter to you then. There are couple of basic principals that keep your engine reliably and they are keep it clean and keep it lubricated.
When I say keep it clean I am mainly concerned with the insides of your engine. You really need to use high quality air filters that are proven to remove small dust and particulate (these things sand blast your engine at the air velocities and exhaust velocities inside your engine).
Lubrication on the other hand is more complex. A multitude of elaborate chemical compounds are blended and tested to create a fluid capable of standing up to direct exposure to explosions inside your cylinders. They must stand up against gasoline or diesel contamination down in the crankcase. Lubricants must resist the shear forces of moving parts, slapping, hammering, sliding, and ripping at the molecular level.
It is a tough tough environment to survive.
This is where a thorough synthetic oil review is needed to be sure an oil will stand up to the rigors of your engines…
The first step in evaluating an oil is to take a look at its components. What type of basestock is used as a starting point, what is in the anti wear additive package, and are the detergents high quality and long life?
Additives in synthetic oil are provided to deal with the conditions associated with the internal environment of the engine. Additives in conventional oil are provided to handle the thermal breakdown of the oil itself and the engine environment. A PAO based oil is very stable on its own and has a naturally long life providing proper lubricating film in an engine. This means the purity and thermal breakdown resistance of synthetic base allows the final base and additive combination to protect better and last longer than conventional oil and additive.
Adding detergents to keep the engine clean further enhances oil life and protection. Alkalinity is increased to minimize engine corrosion by neutralizing acids introduced by the byproducts of combustion. Other additives include anti wear agents to provide additional protection against wear (like zinc added to prevent damage when metal to metal contact occurs under abnormal high load conditions).
For a complete synthetic oil review you should also take a look at all the physical test data demonstrating the oils capabilities. A complete report of the top synthetic oils on the market can be found here in the best motor oil review.
