Keeps Pistons Clean

Vehicle manufacturers face significant pressure to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions without sacrificing horsepower and performance. To accomplish this...

October 8, 2020

Vehicle manufacturers face significant pressure to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions without sacrificing horsepower and performance. To accomplish this task, most new engines use some combination of turbochargers, direct fuel injection and variable valve timing, three mechanisms that place unique demands on engine oil.

Tough new oil specifications

Those factors combined with the trend for lighter viscosities have prompted the industry to release two new oil specifications, ILSAC GF-6 and API SP. The ILSAC specification has been split into two parts. GF-6A applies to traditional 20- and 30-weight viscosities and is backward compatible to provide protection for a variety of older and newer engines.

GF-6B applies only to newer viscosities such as 0W-16. It has a greater focus on fuel economy and, therefore, is not backward compatible and is only designed for use in select new vehicles.

Preventing LSPI

While the move to smaller engines with more torque and better fuel economy may seem like a winning combination for drivers, these advances place more stress on engine oil, including low-speed preignition or LSPI. Both GF-6 and API SP focus heavily on wear protection and the prevention of LSPI.

AMSOIL meets the demands of the latest technology plus all-around protection that exceeds the highest industry standards, even when the industry test cycle was doubled.

AMSOIL aces double-length test

In the Sequence IIIH Engine Test, AMSOIL Signature Series 5W-30 was installed in a Chrysler 3.6L dual-overhead-cam V-6 engine. The engine was run for 180 hours at 3900 rpm, two times the length of the industry-standard test.

During the test, the oil viscosity increase was measured, and AMSOIL was barely challenged by the industry-standard testing, demonstrating only a 0.1 percent viscosity increase.

Even when the test length was doubled, AMSOIL delivered twice the viscosity control required by the standard.

At the end of the test, the engine was disassembled, and the pistons were measured for deposits. Even after doubling the length of the industry-standard test, AMSOIL delivered 40-percent cleaner pistons then required by the standard.

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