Consumer Reports, with one of the most
widely respected product testing laboratories in
the world has just released the results of an
extensive test on oil brands and oil changes, as
well as other issues regarding car care. In the
process, the test demolished much of the
conventional wisdom regarding car lubrication.
The two most surprising results: the frequency
with which oil is changed doesn't matter after
the first few oil changes on a new engine, and
the type or brand of oil used can not be shown
to make any difference.
The testers placed freshly rebuilt engines in
75 New York taxis and then ran them for nearly
two years, with each cab racking up 60,000
miles, placing different brands and weights in
different cars and changing the oil at 3,000
miles in half the cars and 6,000 in the other
half. At the conclusion of the test period, the
engines were torn down, measured and inspected.
The conclusions: Regardless of brand of oil or
weight, no measurable differences could be
observed in engine wear. Furthermore, there was
no difference among cars which had oil changed
at the shorter or longer interval.
Does this have any bearing on the
enthusiast's car, which is given almost the
opposite usage stored for long periods of time
then started and driven for short distances? The
tests suggested that our type of usage would
build up sludge and varnish, indicating that an
annual or semi-annual oil change is a good idea
regardless of how much mileage the car is
driven. But there is little indication that the
brand or weight needs to be given serious
consideration, and synthetic oil has no
discernible advantage over the old stand-bys.
More information on the tests and results can be
obtained from Consumers Union or the July issue
of Consumer Reports available at most
libraries.
Source: British Car Magazine,
October-November 1996
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