PGM

Anyone using or recommending AMSOIL's European Car Formula 5W40. The company is claiming that it meewts the VW/Audi spec. I've been running Mobil 1 0W40 and looking for a better alternative.

Reggie

why are you looking?

ToblertheDog

Yes, I've been using for a short period of time...approx. 2300 miles.

bhvrdr

meet the spec if, yunno, they actually decided to pay the money to have it tested and certified. I figure a good solid handshake and promise from them is good enough for me. Who needs actual certifications when you can really "trust" the company you know?

daveak05

probably is a better alternative to Mobil 1. i think it has tested out very well in some UOA's, ask RI RS4 about that.

Mobil 1 is not a quiet oil, for lack of better word. engines seem to run a little noisier, from my own experience on several different cars.

i used to swear by Mobil 1 years ago, dating back to late 80's with my sportbikes and later living year round in clod mountain climate. but it has undergone some many changes, that i'm no longer a big fan of the stuff.

the 502 qualification is overdone, IMO.

daveak05

yeh, 502 for warranty purposes, drop the whole nonsense afterwards, IMO.

RI A6

It's a good oil. In oil analysis, it performs better than any Audi 502 approved oil that I've ever seen, and way better than Mobil 1 0W-40. It does not officially meet the 502 approval, however, since it says something like "recommended for Audi/VW 502 applications" many service techs will not look any further.

If you are a stickler for staying within the letter of the 502 spec for warranty reasons, then Lubro Moly Voll-Synthese (Full Synthetic) 5W-40 is about the best I've seen, based on limited data. (We had one owner who used it right after Mobil One, and it performed much much better.) Pennzoil Platinum Euro is also a decent value, if you can find it. Both can be ordered online.

If you want to sort of stray outside of the spec, then Amsoil Euro is good stuff.

If you want the best oil for your engine, bar none, then go for Renewable Lubricants Bio Synthetic Super High Performance 5W-40 HD (RLI BioSyn), which was custom formulated for the RS4 engine.

If you are going to keep your car for the warranty period and get rid of it, then stay with a 502 approved oil. It's Audi's problem if the engine blows or a cam chain stretches.

For my money, if you're going to keep your car for a long time then stray from the 502 specification, and go with the RLI BioSyn.

daveak05

"cam chain stretches"? one oil over another?? or based on different oils at all???

RI A6

Now that I've seen a Q7 and a few S4 engines in analysis, I can say that the RS4 has a high iron wear signature. There is one functional major difference between the RS4 engine and these two. The RS4 engine uses a simplex sleeve-type chain for strength at high RPM, instead of the more common (and more quiet) simplex roller bearing chain.

Chain "stretch" is generally not stretching at all, but rather a phenomena related to bearing wear in the chain links. Reduction in wear will result in a reduction of the chain stretch rate.

Even in the 502-realm, some oil additive packages are better equipped for chain drive bearings than others, since extremely high pressures and stresses are developed in them. Mobil 1, for instance, seems to be one of the oils that has a problem with engines that use cam chains. It might very well be why some Audi engines with M1 sound noisier.

Amsoil Euro and RLI BioSyn both reduce iron wear by significant amounts.

daveak05

i would think an oil that doesn't perform or hold up as well would show adverse results in the typical areas of wear, whereas a chain needs only to be drenched in oil to be properly lubricated.

breaking it down to how a simple roller bearing is affected by one oil over another seems a bit of a stretch, IMO. tension, stress, and proper adjustment(tensioners) are real factors in chain longevity.