Synthetic oil

[Kevin D. Caldwell]

That being the case, what is the deal with the "Syntec Blend" brand by
Castrol?  I too, have been a long time Castrol user based upon the
premise of it being a true synthetic.  And now, at least from what I'm
hearing, you're saying that's not true.  If it truly isn't, I'll be
switching to Mobil 1


-----Original Message-----
From: quattro-admin at audifans.com [mailto:quattro-admin at audifans.com] On
Behalf Of Chander Balakrishnan
Sent: 08 September, 2003 8:02 PM
To: Chander Balakrishnan
Cc: Quattro List
Subject: RE: Synthetic oil

Here is the scoop on synthetic oils.

I spoke with Castrol's product manager for Syntec and this is what he
had to
say.  All of Castrol's "synthetic" oils in the U.S are made from mineral
oil
as the raw material.  Their Syntec is made from highly refined and
processed
mineral oil and in the processing, there are some structural changes
which
allow Castrol to call it a true synthetic.  In the industry this is
referred
to as Group III base stock.  Gp I and Gp II are used in the usual stuff
you
find in Wal-mart, AutoZone etc.  The Gp III base stock is very different
from the base stock used in Mobil 1.  Mobil 1 uses Polyalphaolefin (PAO)
as
the base stock.  PAO is made from Linear Alpha Olefin (LAO) which in
turn is
made from ethylene.  The PM said that the Gp III based synthetic like
theirs
cannot compete with the PAO synthetic in the 0-W market, but can compete
on
performance in all other weights.

The Castrol PM also said that all "synthetic" oils in the U.S except
Mobil 1
are like Castrol's.  There are some boutique makes - Redline, Amsoil etc
that are also like Mobil 1.

All the above comments apply for Passenger Car Motor Oils (PCMO).

Chander



-----Original Message-----
From: Chander Balakrishnan [mailto:balakrishnan3 at comcast.net]
Sent: Monday, September 01, 2003 10:22 PM
To: Doug Johnson
Subject: RE: Synthetic oil


Doug: I have not bought Rotella yet.  Not due for an oil change for
sometime.  I will have to check my neighborhood W-M.
Thanks.

Chander



-----Original Message-----
From: Doug Johnson [mailto:ur-quattro at msn.com]
Sent: Saturday, August 30, 2003 10:12 PM
To: Chander Balakrishnan
Subject: RE: Synthetic oil


Chander,

I took a look at Wal-Mart the other day, and couldn't find synthetic
Rotella.  What they had, and this was cases located on the top shelf,
appeared to be dinosaur Rotella.  You are buying synthetic Rotella from
Wal-Mart. right?

Thanks!

 ~ Doug


> -----Original Message-----
> From: quattro-admin at audifans.com [mailto:quattro-admin at audifans.com]On
> Behalf Of Chander Balakrishnan
> Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2003 5:44 PM
> To: Quattro List
> Subject: Synthetic oil
>
>
> This is a multi-part message in MIME format.
> --
> By the way, Castrol Syntec is not really synthetic.  They use a highly
> refined mineral oil as the base stock (group III).  That is relatively
> recent, just before Castrol was acquired by BP.  I work for BP, in a
> business unit that makes Polyalpha olefin and the raw material
> used to make
> PAO. PAO is the true synthetic base stock (used by M1 etc.).  PAO is
made
> from a small range of alpha olefins - in the C8 - C12 range (mostly
C10 -
> decene) as the raw material.  And these alpha olefins are synthesized
from
> ethylene.
>
> Where does one buy Rotella from ?  I have been buying M1 15W-50 from
> Wal-Mart in 5qt jugs, for about $ 18.  IS Rotella cheaper ?
>
> Chander
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Message: 2
> From: benswann at comcast.net
> To: duandcc_forums at cox.net
> Cc: quattro at audifans.com
> Subject: Synthetic oil for I-5s
> Date: Tue, 19 Aug 2003 16:21:21 +0000
>
> Dave,
>
> I have had nothing but positive results using Castrol Syntec 5W50
> year round
> for over 10 years.
>
> For non-synth Castrol 20W50 has been good, perhaps a good idea to
> switch to
> 10W40 in winter.  I have had problems with viscosity breakdown on
> other oils
> even other brands of 20W50 where the engine runs hotter and the
> oil pressure
> switch trips because oil thins out even in under 1000 miles of
driving.
>
> Ben
>
> --
> [ winmail.dat of type application/ms-tnef deleted ]
> --
>
>