I've just finished reading most of the oil journals over this holiday season and had come up with a plan that I was very satisfied with for my lubrication needs. I had planned on this schedule up until tonight:

Engine: Mobil 1 10w-30, 3k-5k miles, filter every change. This is mainly because of the relationship my father has with his oil distributor and the fact that I would get it for free and that it is the same oil he runs in his 'vette.
Tranny: GM syncromesh, 10-15k intervals or once a year
Differential: LE 607, 10-15k intervals or once a year

The conditions the car will be driven in will be routinely tough, VTEC multiple times when it is driven - very hard street driving in general. It will also see frequent autocrosses doing double duty with a co-driver and hopefully will see some track time with DEs and whatnot over the next year or two. In simple terms, the car will live a hard life but with the maintenance to support it.

I'm very confident with my choices for transmission and differential lubricats, it seems that they are THE best available for what I am planning to do. If you feel differently, please comment on it and why you think I should use a different lubricant!

My main concern now is the engine oil. I was speaking to a friend who is very in tune with the Porsche racing scene and mentioned my choice of Mobil 1 for engine oil. He was very concerned about this - it seems the formula for Mobil 1 has changed across the board, and not for the better! He said that the Porsches were seeing abnormal oil pressures with the new formulation, it was thinning out more than the previous oil.

This brings me to my question and ponderance. Is Mobil 1 still an above average engine lubricant for our cars? Has RR or anyone else researched this new formula? Is this even something I should be concerned with considering my plans for the car?

The cost of Mobil 1 to me is great - it's free, but if it is an inferior lubricant by a large measure to something else, I will certainly spend the extra money to have the best or one of the best in the engine.

Thanks for your time and any replies I may get!

 

Yes M1 is a above average motor oil, however the s2k is not a average engine. it should have the best oli you can get. and the tests show amsoil asm 10w-30 to be best so far. buy it online, its not hard to find IMOH

 

It certainly does appear that the Amsoil synthetic did extremely well in RR head to head testing. Unfortunately, the LE 10w-30 was not tested there as well, so I'm unsure as to how it compares. I know RR runs the LE in his personal S2000, so I would love to hear his reasons for choosing it over the Amsoil since he seems to not be brand loyal, only dedicated to finding and using the best lubricant for his purposes.

But, don't let this totally derail the thread. I would still like to know more about this "new" Mobil 1. I refuse to believe that using any of the superior synthetic or dino oils would seriously hurt the F20c, I just want to to know a bit more before I feel comfortable using the M1.

Also, looking over the threads again, it seems my diff fluid change interval is a bit excessive. Does 30k miles with LE 607 sound better?

 

LE 607 is very thick. I was dissuaded by users of this board from using it in the winter when the temps are very cold. I chose to go with Mobil 1 synthetic 75w90.

 

I would also like to see motul 300, and redline, and german castrol. in a comparison test. the LE oil that RR likes, is a synthetic blend, but still a good product. there is a wealth of good info at the bobistheoilguy website. BTW the amsoil product code is ATM. my mistake

 

Thinning oil would result in lower not higher pressure.

Although I am not an expert on motor oil formulation I can tell you that all modern oils are far better than that was used in the past and certainly up to the task for the vast majority of usage profiles. I continue to use M1 with no reservations.

I would say that second hand comments regarding causal observations of un-calibrated gauges should carry no weight when considering maintenance items.

 

Somehow, this doesn't fill me with awe. Is someone who is into "Porsche" racing supposed to be an expert in oil? What about the guy who's into "Benz" racing? Ford racing? GM racing? Ferarri? What about the guy who races lawn mowers?
I once knew a guy who used to work with Andy Granatelli at the races 35 years ago. Does this mean STP is good?
I'm in tune with the state of Neurohypophysial Hormone research and I could read every edition of "Nature" and "Science" magazine, but this does not make me an expert in brain surgery.

I've had Mobil 1 in my S for 5 years, not to mention in all my other cars for the past over 20 years. Should I be worried now?

 

I just said abnormal, of course it would be lower oil pressure.

I fail to see why these observations should not carry any weight. If you heard of 4 or 5 friends having trouble with a certain brand of gasoline, I would like to think you would consider not using that brand. I don't think I'm being unreasonably concerned, especially since Mobil 1 is supposed to have a new formula and from what I can tell, it is as of yet untested here.

 

Common X, cut me some slack. I used Porsche racing as a descriptor, just as I would have if it were my friend who races GM products telling me this information. I never came to any conclusions about the quality of Mobil 1 from this, it just prompted some questions from me.

For the record, I've used Mobil 1 over the past few years in many different cars and have had no problems. I would just like some more information about the apparant changes they have made.

 

Brent, I wasn't slamming you in any way. I'm just offering a rebuttal and another way of looking at it. "Name dropping" is fine but like you just said, no conclusions can be drawn.