Mobil 1 Supercar Oil - Thoughts?

[Honcho]

Noticed M1 came out with this oil. It's a little bit thinner at 100C than their "regular" 0W-40 that I use religiously. What interested me is Mobil says the Supercar blend has additional anti-oxidation additives to help prevent the oil from going bad due to aging. Presumably this is because supercars sit in the garage most of the time. Any NSX owners use this stuff and have feedback?

 

[MrHugo]

Noticed M1 came out with this oil. It's a little bit thinner at 100C than their "regular" 0W-40 that I use religiously. What interested me is Mobil says the Supercar blend has additional anti-oxidation additives to help prevent the oil from going bad due to aging. Presumably this is because supercars sit in the garage most of the time. Any NSX owners use this stuff and have feedback?

I would like to know too. I have been using Mobil 1 Extended Performance

 

[Honcho]

I would like to know too. I have been using Mobil 1 Extended Performance

Went onto BITOG for the deep dive. Turns out the "Supercar" oil is just the rebranded "ESP" oil. This was made for the C8 Corvette and is designed to be better for DI engines (a lot less ash). Overall recommendation is to continue to use the "FS" 0W-40 for port injected engines as it's a bit thicker at 100C and uses a thicker base stock- it's more likely to hold up to shear at high temps and hard usage (track). I'll stick with it.

Extended Performance is also a really good oil, as is the "regular" Mobil 1 full synth.

 

[MrHugo]

Went onto BITOG for the deep dive. Turns out the "Supercar" oil is just the rebranded "ESP" oil. This was made for the C8 Corvette and is designed to be better for DI engines (a lot less ash). Overall recommendation is to continue to use the "FS" 0W-40 for port injected engines as it's a bit thicker at 100C and uses a thicker base stock- it's more likely to hold up to shear at high temps and hard usage (track). I'll stick with it.

Extended Performance is also a really good oil, as is the "regular" Mobil 1 full synth.

Thanks, so you recommend Mobil 1 FS 0W-40 for our NSX? Southern California

 

[Honcho]

Thanks, so you recommend Mobil 1 FS 0W-40 for our NSX? Southern California

Yes- I've used it in my NSXs and my GT-R. Suitable for all conditions, including track. Kaz uses it in all customer cars as well. Nothing wrong with a 5W-30 or 10W-30 either, but I like having the extra viscosity margin for track use.

 

[MrHugo]

Cool, let me try it after I use up all my 10w-30 EP

https://www.amazon.com/Mobil-120760-Synthetic-Motor-0W-40/dp/B00HG76A9A/ref=asc_df_B00HG76A9A/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=198054161189&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=14615718910341541015&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9031091&hvtargid=pla-368572428939&psc=1

 

[DRIFTER]

My understanding is that Mobil 1 is not what it use to be. Anyone do a recent oil analysis on it?

I switched to Amsoil a while ago.

 

[Honcho]

My understanding is that Mobil 1 is not what it use to be. Anyone do a recent oil analysis on it?

I switched to Amsoil a while ago.

I'll be doing a UOA on it in about 100 miles. It's always been really, really good in past tests (I do them every other oil change for the NSX and GT-R. IMHO a lot of the oil comparos are marketing exercises where one company (usually smaller) bashes another (usually bigger) to convince people to buy their wonder-oil. In truth, any full synth that meets the manufacturer's spec is going to be more than adequate. I always tell people to pick a favorite brand and just change every 3-5,000 miles- they're all good these days.

I can say from a sample size of one (LOL) that when I opened up my 91 for its timing belt job, the internals were gleaming and there was zero trace of wear in the cam journals. This was with a steady diet of Mobil 1 0W-40. But, I think any quality synth (including the boutiques like Royal Purple, Redline and Amsoil, etc.) would have yielded the same results. I stick with M1 because it's reasonably priced, easily available at Walmart and is a known quantity to me, since I've been using it for 25 years. I could just as easily say the same thing about Castrol, Shell, Pennzoil, Valvoline, etc. if I had used them instead. The additive package in the FS blend of 0W-40 is really good, too.

On the NSX, the cam journals are a good place to look to get a sense of the wear state of the engine (and the oil quality/frequency of oil changes) because the aluminum is soft and the camshafts are hard steel coated in a super-hard nitride. Any lubrication fatigue/failure is going to show up there pretty quickly and be very evident.

 

[DRIFTER]

Tons of misinformation on the topic I agree. This is why I love independent studies on the topic. Service intervals are key no doubt about it. I would rather have a vehicle that was changed in sorter intervals over higher quality oils.

 

[Old Guy]

The Supercar 0W40 seems to be a very GM DexosR specific oil. I notice that the 0W40 is not API SP qualified; but, I really do not know what the significance of that is.

Does the Corvette engine use port and direct injection or just direct injection? If it is pure direct injection, automakers have been specifying oils to deal with the problems with valve deposits and other peripheral issues associated with direct injection. I have an Audi A4 which is pure direct injection and Audi has some very specific oil requirements in its 508.00 standard for the DPAA engine beyond oil weight. 508.00 compliant oils are low SAPS which may not be a positive feature for older port injection engines if they are not designed around that requirement. Aside form the oil weight issues in the 508.00 standard I would not use a 508.00 oil in an older engine design. Newer may not always be better.

So, you might want to have a look at the GM DexosR requirements. Beyond the marketing hype, those requirements may or may not be beneficial for a naturally aspirated port injected engine with what are now rather antiquated emission controls. Mobil's application guide on their web site recommends either 5W30 Extended Performance, Advanced Full Synthetic or Full Synthetic. Not sure about the differences between the latter two because I have never seen the Full Synthetic offered for sale around here. Interesting to note that the original manufacturer spec10W30 is not on Mobil's recommended list.

 

[Honcho]

The Supercar 0W40 seems to be a very GM DexosR specific oil. I notice that the 0W40 is not API SP qualified; but, I really do not know what the significance of that is.

Does the Corvette engine use port and direct injection or just direct injection? If it is pure direct injection, automakers have been specifying oils to deal with the problems with valve deposits and other peripheral issues associated with direct injection. I have an Audi A4 which is pure direct injection and Audi has some very specific oil requirements in its 508.00 standard for the DPAA engine beyond oil weight. 508.00 compliant oils are low SAPS which may not be a positive feature for older port injection engines if they are not designed around that requirement. Aside form the oil weight issues in the 508.00 standard I would not use a 508.00 oil in an older engine design. Newer may not always be better.

So, you might want to have a look at the GM DexosR requirements. Beyond the marketing hype, those requirements may or may not be beneficial for a naturally aspirated port injected engine with what are now rather antiquated emission controls. Mobil's application guide on their web site recommends either 5W30 Extended Performance, Advanced Full Synthetic or Full Synthetic. Not sure about the differences between the latter two because I have never seen the Full Synthetic offered for sale around here. Interesting to note that the original manufacturer spec10W30 is not on Mobil's recommended list.

Good observation as always. The BITOG consensus seems to be that is is the DexosR requirement that makes the ESP/Supercar different and it has two purposes: (1) fight carbon/sludge buildup and (2) extend life/improve performance of the catalytic converters to meet strict emissions requirements. As a result, it's thinner, not as shear stable and uses a lot more VII than the "FS" 0W-40. Recommendation is to use the FS unless you have a DI car that requires DexosR oil. Apparently, the FS is still one of the best overall oils you can use.

**EDIT**

I really need to get out of the oil forums- the rabbit hole over there runs DEEP lol.
Anyway, to answer @DRIFTER's question, M1 0W-40 was reformulated in 2016. They changed the base stock from a PAO Group IV to a GTL Group III. GTL is Gas-To-Liquid oil and derived from natural gas. This is why it lost the Nissan GT-R and BMW certifications. GTL oil is quite good, but it is less resistant to shear and oxidation compared to PAO. Then in 2022, it was reformulated again to go back to a PAO base, likely due to the massive spike in natural gas prices. It got the Nissan and BMW certs back.

So, the 0W-40 today is a lot like the original stuff, which is a very, very good motor oil for older engines like our NSX. The 2016-22 version was slightly thinner due to the GTL base stock, but both versions met or exceeded API's strict certification regime.

 

[MotorMouth93]

M1 0w40 did terribly as far as wear metal counts go compared to amsoil and liquimoly 5w40 when I religiously did oil analysis after each change a few years back in my 540i, so I just stick with the latter 2 now which both did very well. M1 had significantly worse wear metal counts at 5000 miles than LM did at 9000 miles, and I ran the M1 for two 5000 mile intervals and had the same result both times. I mostly run LM 5w40 in both the NSX and 540 since the late year japanese service manual lists 5w40 as an acceptable fill.

That's splitting hairs though. These cars were built to run forever on 10w30 conventional oil. Any decent synthetic of the right weight is fine.

I lightly honed the cam tunnels in the cylinder heads for my built motor using an 800 grit hone to make sure they were perfectly deburred (the edges are SHARP from the factory) as well as add some cross hatching for oil retention. Should be interesting to see how the caps look during the eventual teardown.

 

[Old Guy]

I am assuming the FS in Mobil 1 FS 0W-40 refers to Full Synthetic? I am curious as to what the difference is between Advanced Full Synthetic versus Full Synesthetic. In the 5W30 weight they have virtually identical densities, viscosities and pout points and met all the current API requirements. The primary interesting distinction that I could find is that the Advanced Full Synthetic has Honda HTO-06 approval, the Full Synthetic does not. However, as far as I can tell HTO-06 is a requirement specific to Honda / Acura vehicles that are turbocharged so not a benefit for first gen NSX owners.

 

[Honcho]

I lightly honed the cam tunnels in the cylinder heads for my built motor using an 800 grit hone to make sure they were perfectly deburred (the edges are SHARP from the factory) as well as add some cross hatching for oil retention. Should be interesting to see how the caps look during the eventual teardown.

To your point:

John's cam journals from his oil-starved engine:



My 1992 cam journals after 20 years of Acura shop synth blend every 3,000 miles:



Just goes to show that even "crappy" shop blend oil will be fine for the NSX if the change intervals are followed. Most of the oil debates over on BITOG are about what the oil will do at the margins of the performance envelope. 30,000 mile OCI, 300F oil temps, running in -50C conditions, etc. It's fun to discuss, but largely irrelevant for our use case.

 

[MotorMouth93]

Yup...I'm not sure if it was the barely dented oil pan touching the pickup or David McDavid Acura clogging up the oil pathways in the heads with RTV that resulted in the cam damage, but those heads probably wouldn't have survived much longer if left unchecked. They were dangerously close to the service limit for cam bore wear.

 

[RYU]

Presumably this is because supercars sit in the garage most of the time. Any NSX owners use this stuff and have feedback?

Easy solution! Drive the car

 

[Wild Turkey]

Mobil's application guide on their web site recommends either 5W30 Extended Performance, Advanced Full Synthetic or Full Synthetic. Not sure about the differences between the latter two because I have never seen the Full Synthetic offered for sale around here. Interesting to note that the original manufacturer spec10W30 is not on Mobil's recommended list.

Based on the owner's manual, this what I've been using, available in Canada at a store called Canadian Tire. Is this not full synthetic?
https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/mobil-1-10w30-synthetic-engine-motor-oil-4-73-l-0289451p.0289451.html?rq=mobil 1 10w30#srp
I notice that the Mobil 1 site recommends 5W30, which is what the owner's manual recommends for cold weather driving. I orginally laughed at the winter use, but Prime has enlightened me to winter use by many primers (not me!). Based on the Mobil 1 recommendation and others in this thread, I think I'll switch to the 5W30 EP since it's only $9 more, but I really want to use the OP oil because Supercar.

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