Anyone using Amsoil products

[camper70]

A friend of mine who was a career mechanic is trying to convince me of the benefits of running their products in my TV. Does anyone on here have any experience with the products?

[BigH]

Originally Posted by camper70

A friend of mine who was a career mechanic is trying to convince me of the benefits of running their products in my TV. Does anyone on here have any experience with the products?

Their oil seems to tests well which led me to try it in a motorcycle several years ago. The motorcycle I tried it on has a transmission that shares the oil with the motor. On this type of setup one can feel differences when shifting. I didn't like it...the shifts felt more notchy to me. I never tried it again.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by BigH

Their oil seems to tests well which led me to try it in a motorcycle several years ago. The motorcycle I tried it on has a transmission that shares the oil with the motor. On this type of setup one can feel differences when shifting. I didn't like it...the shifts felt more notchy to me. I never tried it again.

And how many of those tests were totally independent labs, not picked by the "Manufacturer".


Over the years I've found that using an oil that has the API Service Rating recommended by the manufacturer does just fine and there's enough price competition in the market place to make oil's meeting those specs very affordable.

I've never had an engine failure on any vehicle using just the recommended weight and service rating. One vehicle even went 348,000 miles before I sold it to someone who drove it for another dozen years.

The key with motor oil is simple. Get the one that meets the manufacturer's spec and Change it regularly.

The rest is just marketing and profit margin.

[SlowrideHD]

Their advertising claims are a bit misleading but it tests out fairly good against competitors. Everyone makes decent oil these days in the major brands. I've used Mobil1 for over 20 years in everything I have that runs on gas. Excellent results with hardly any perceptible wear when looking at engine internals. I like to tinker with bigger bores, cams, head work, etc. So I see a lot of inside engine parts up close.

[WoodLark-SC]

I used to be an Amsoil dealer. Their products are good, but no better than Mobil 1, and they are a lot more expensive.

[Crusadernoob]

I must be old, I still use conventional oil in my TV. Do an oil analysis and have read hundreds of them, seen all the results of conventional, synthetic, with and without centrifugal oil filters, by pass filters. For my engine, Duramax, it does not care what HDEO I put in it, they just have no abnormal wear problems.

[camper70]

Thank's to everyone for your responses especially to woodlark-sc who was a rep for the company.

[Iwannacamp]

Y’all didn’t ask, but I vote for Schaeffers

[Tall frog]

I have used Amsoil for about 5 years , now in two Duramax, a 2015 and 2018. The 15 after 50,000 miles I sent a oil sample that had about 15,000 miles since last change and was sent a report saying "oil is still performing as intended and only metals were from breaking in the engine. Started seeing milage improvements of 2-3 miles per gallon. Traded in for the 18 with 78,000 miles (other problems with truck) and never used ANY oil between changes. So I am a believer

[DieselDrax]

Originally Posted by Tall frog

I have used Amsoil for about 5 years , now in two Duramax, a 2015 and 2018. The 15 after 50,000 miles I sent a oil sample that had about 15,000 miles since last change and was sent a report saying "oil is still performing as intended and only metals were from breaking in the engine. Started seeing milage improvements of 2-3 miles per gallon. Traded in for the 18 with 78,000 miles (other problems with truck) and never used ANY oil between changes. So I am a believer

The problem with your anecdotal evidence is that it doesn't prove that the oil had anything to do with your results and that using a different oil would have produced a different, less positive result.

With 50,000 miles you should not still be seeing break-in metals. The Duramax is typically fully broken-in by 25k miles, so still seeing break-in metals at 50k would actually be a red-flag to me.



If you took two engines, one that used big brand synthetic and one that used AMSoil, ran them for 100k miles under the same conditions and changed the oil at the same intervals, and then tore them down...you wouldn't be able to tell which engine used which oil because all modern synthetic oils provide more than sufficient lubrication and wear protection.


AMSoil may make decent oil, but it doesn't protect any better than any other synthetic no matter what their marketing people claim.


One of the biggest problems I have with AMSoil is their lack of certification for most of their products combined with their claims that various products "meet or exceed" standards that are mutually exclusive which makes those claims false. Only their XL line of oils are API certified and I'm not aware of any that are certified to meet various manufacturer specs.


Just a lot of money for no real gain or advantage over other products that are cheaper and more readily available.


Anyway, off my soapbox.

[Iwannacamp]

Originally Posted by DieselDrax

The problem with your anecdotal evidence is that it doesn't prove that the oil had anything to do with your results and that using a different oil would have produced a different, less positive result.

With 50,000 miles you should not still be seeing break-in metals. The Duramax is typically fully broken-in by 25k miles, so still seeing break-in metals at 50k would actually be a red-flag to me.



If you took two engines, one that used big brand synthetic and one that used AMSoil, ran them for 100k miles under the same conditions and changed the oil at the same intervals, and then tore them down...you wouldn't be able to tell which engine used which oil because all modern synthetic oils provide more than sufficient lubrication and wear protection.


AMSoil may make decent oil, but it doesn't protect any better than any other synthetic no matter what their marketing people claim.


One of the biggest problems I have with AMSoil is their lack of certification for most of their products combined with their claims that various products "meet or exceed" standards that are mutually exclusive which makes those claims false. Only their XL line of oils are API certified and I'm not aware of any that are certified to meet various manufacturer specs.


Just a lot of money for no real gain or advantage over other products that are cheaper and more readily available.


Anyway, off my soapbox.

So...do you use Amsoil?

Sorry. Devil made me. Funny is I feel just about as strong being pro..Schaeffers. Now I gotta check the specs. I do know one thing. I love their greases and fuel additives.
If you want to see 10% and better gain in fuel mileage, then use the Diesel Treat 2000...1 gal for 2000 at about $40 a gal.

[spock123]

I have always used synthetic oil in my Duramax. My son sells Amsoil but it is high. A little too high for me. I could do a oil test but it’s a hassle. I wonder how many diesel owners on here do a oil analysis

[Iwannacamp]

Whheewww. All their diesel oils are CK-4 or CJ-4.

Lt duty I checked said this.




And I thought the last part of this was interesting...cause of what I read about the Mercedes discussion

[Tall frog]

Originally Posted by spock123

I have always used synthetic oil in my Duramax. My son sells Amsoil but it is high. A little too high for me. I could do a oil test but it’s a hassle. I wonder how many diesel owners on here do a oil analysis

What I have seen in my trucks are longer change intervals and as for breaking my 18 has 42,000 miles and is also seeing break in metals on the last oil testing. Maybe the reason for the longer break in is because the oil is working better? By testing I
can keep the cost more even with other oils and I have seen better milage with Amsoil.
You like Coke and I like Pepsi [emoji1]

[DieselDrax]

Originally Posted by Iwannacamp

Whheewww. All their diesel oils are CK-4 or CJ-4.

Lt duty I checked said this.

Attachment 205483


And I thought the last part of this was interesting...cause of what I read about the Mercedes discussion

Attachment 205484

Problem is, the API CJ-4/CK-4 ratings are just ratings, not certifications.


If you look at the section regarding mfr specs/certifications it says "meets or exceeds" or "compliant." It's not actually certified for any of those mfr specs. For example, is says "GM dexos1 gen2 compliant." What does that even mean? There is no compliance, there is only certification and licensing, no compliance. GM provides a list of all dexos1 and dexos2 licensed oils (which are certified to meet GM's specs) and Schaeffers isn't on the list. Neither is AMSoil. So both brands only list things they can either self-certify or claim to "meet or exceed" which does not mean certified.


For comparison Mobil Delvac 1 ESP 5w40 states the following...

Specifications and approvals

Mobil Delvac 1 ESP 5W-40 engine oil meets or exceeds the requirements of:

• ACEA E9, E7
• API CK-4, CJ-4, CI-4 PLUS, CI-4, CH-4, SN, SM
• Caterpillar ECF-3
• Cummins CES 20086, 20081
• JASO DH-2

Mobil Delvac 1 ESP 5W-40 engine oil is approved by the following OEMs:

• Detroit Fluids Specification 93K222, 93K218
• Mack EOS-4.5, EO-O Premium Plus
• MAN M 3575
• MB-Approval 228.31
• MTU Oil Category 2.1
• Volvo VDS-4.5, VDS-4

Note they list both API requirements that don't require certification as well as mfr certifications/approvals.


Lots of people think ratings are certifications or saying "meets or exceeds" means something it doesn't.

[2Evil4U]

I am an Amsoil dealer and this is my take. (Also a 25 year practicing mechanical engineer specializing in rotating equipment failure analysis for whatever that's worth.)

If you have a vehicle that is under warranty and you are required to change your fluids based on mfg service intervals, you're wasting your money on expensive synthetics of any type. Synthetics only make $$$ sense under severe services and/or extended drain intervals backed up by oil analysis. (Or if they are specified by the OEM.)

I put about 8000 miles per year on my Cummins. OEM oil change interval is 15k miles or 6 months which ever comes first. I'm not about to dump 12 quarts of synthetic in the trash every 6 months with only 4k miles on it. It gets Rotella non synthetic.

I bought a 2003 Dodge Stratus new. 3.0L Mitsubishi. I put 230k on that thing with 25k mile oil changes using Amsoil. As far as I know it's still going.

YMMV

[DieselDrax]

Originally Posted by Tall frog

What I have seen in my trucks are longer change intervals and as for breaking my 18 has 42,000 miles and is also seeing break in metals on the last oil testing. Maybe the reason for the longer break in is because the oil is working better? By testing I
can keep the cost more even with other oils and I have seen better milage with Amsoil.
You like Coke and I like Pepsi [emoji1]

Engines produce increased wear during break-in that taper off, meaning you will see higher wear initially and once broken in the wear metals taper off. For reference...

Engines which are still being broken in after overhaul will produce more wear metal than at other times. This is nothing to worry about as wear metals are inevitably produced as part of the abrasive break in process and is one of the reasons why the oil drain period is shorter during these times.

So as I said, still seeing "break-in" (high wear) metals after 50k miles is a red flag to me. However, you didn't state if the numbers for those metals were higher than the average or not so there's some info missing.


If you're happy with the oil that's fine, not trying to change your mind.

[spock123]

I have always use synthetic oil in my truck since it was delivered to me from the factory. I use Rotella synthetic, I have always changed my own oil. It’s a 2012 3500 Silverado diesel with the last I checked 162,000 miles, it’s also been deleted, the motor oil looks it’s new since the delete

[Iwannacamp]

Originally Posted by DieselDrax

Engines produce increased wear during break-in that taper off, meaning you will see higher wear initially and once broken in the wear metals taper off. For reference...





So as I said, still seeing "break-in" (high wear) metals after 50k miles is a red flag to me. However, you didn't state if the numbers for those metals were higher than the average or not so there's some info missing.


If you're happy with the oil that's fine, not trying to change your mind.

If I understand any about engines...it has something to do with how you work it. Maybe that includes the 50k mile deal.

I don’t admit this to anyone smarter than me normally... I have an 05 Dodge 5.9 diesel I plan to change at 5k usually goes to near six(one free one every 5 right?). I run 3 gals Rotella 15-40 conv and 2 qts Schaeffers 7000. I feel the extra help is good. Bad idea?

[DieselDrax]

Originally Posted by Iwannacamp

If I understand any about engines...it has something to do with how you work it. Maybe that includes the 50k mile deal.

I don’t admit this to anyone smarter than me normally... I have an 05 Dodge 5.9 diesel I plan to change at 5k usually goes to near six(one free one every 5 right?). I run 3 gals Rotella 15-40 conv and 2 qts Schaeffers 7000. I feel the extra help is good. Bad idea?

I wouldn't say a bad idea, but ultimately if you want to know how well your intervals and oils are working then you should do used oil analysis to start logging baselines and trends.


My main beef with the boutique brands is the way they word things and how some people are misled because they don't know any better. I know a lot of people that run AMSoil and Schaeffers that are happy with the results. I'm not saying those products are going to cause engine failure. I'm just saying the higher cost of those products doesn't result in a comparable increase in engine life/longevity/etc that warrants paying that much money for them. Proper maintenance done at correct intervals with the correct oil is the best thing you can do for your engine, whether you do that with major brands of oils or expensive boutique oils isn't going to make any real difference in the long run, but if it makes people feel better and they don't mind spending more money then who am I to say they're wasting their money? Value means different things to different people.


I know oil threads can become hot debates, I'm not here to tell anyone they're doing or using anything wrong. Just trying to shed some light on the marketing speak some companies use that can make products sound like they've been certified or approved by manufacturers when they haven't. This is really only an issue under warranty anyway.


At the end of the day how often do you hear about oil-related engine failures? Not very often. The only example I can think of is with the Ram 3.0 EcoDiesel failures that seem to have been caused by an oil spec that wasn't designed to cope with the amount of soot some of the ED's produced which then lead to sludge and oil starvation-related failures, at least based on what I've read about the issue. That is why FCA changed from a 5w30 ACEA C3 oil to a 5w40 CK-4 oil. The biggest change is in the spec, CK-4 deals with soot much better than ACEA C3 oil, CK-4 is a proper HD diesel oil whereas ACEA C3 is a light-duty/car oil that can be used with gas or diesel engines. The viscosity change from 5w30 to 5w40 is relatively trivial, but 5w40 CK-4 oils are much easier to source than 5w30. Also, there are numerous 5w40 ACEA C3 oils available, so if it was a viscosity problem and not a spec problem then FCA could have very easily just changed the viscosity requirement and kept the same ACEA C3 spec requirement.


Anyway, hopefully this thread can stay civil but it's an oil thread...I'm not going to hold my breath.