Castrol Syntec---RIPOFF !!!!!

[hal26]

Castrol syntec is not a true synthetic lubricant.It is merely a Group 2 petroleum basestock lube that is in fact no better than off the shelf Pennzoil or Havoline dino.Mobil took Castrol to court over this scam but unfortunately due to semantics interpretation lost the case primarily due to the fact that there are a few additives that are considered to be synthetic.It is decent $1.25 a quart oil-but $5 a quart.....what a ripoff !!

:eek

[Fang]

Appreciate the heads-up! And I agree with your estimation that it's a good-enough $1.25 oil product, but a complete rip-off at $5.00 per quart. I'll stick with Mobil 1, myself. JMPO. I think I pay $4.27/qt for Mobil 1 automobile oil at the local Super Trak; motorcycle oil may be a bit more expensive - I'll have to check. Anyway, good job, sir!

[Gizmo]

Originally posted by hal26
Castrol syntec is not a true synthetic lubricant.It is merely a Group 2 petroleum basestock lube that is in fact no better than off the shelf Pennzoil or Havoline dino.Mobil took Castrol to court over this scam but unfortunately due to semantics interpretation lost the case primarily due to the fact that there are a few additives that are considered to be synthetic.It is decent $1.25 a quart oil-but $5 a quart.....what a ripoff !!

:eek

This is true however since the court settled in Castrols favor most "synthetics" including Mobil 1 have gone to a similar formulation. Why not it costs them less to produce. There are a couple of exceptions to this the first is Amsoil which still produces a "true" synthetic oil and sorry I cannot recall the other.

[Fang]

TO: Gizmo

Sir: Are you telling me that the "Lowest Common Denominator" syndrome has struck again, and that Mobil 1 has debased itself (literally!) to the point where it is now no better than Castrol Syntec? Are you relatively certain of your facts? Amsoil it will be, if indeed you are correct.

Have you ever wondered about changing transmission and differential oil(s) every 6,000 miles? No one does that in a car. No stick-shift BMW car changes trans or diff oil at those intervals, and indeed, most cars never change diff oil at all, simply topping off as needed, if needed. So, why do we gladly (?) spend handsome sums of money in parts, materials and labor to do so? I would appreciate input from anyone on this subject, no matter how subjective (or not) the opinions are. TIA :confused: :dunno

[Gizmo]

Originally posted by Fang
TO: Gizmo

Sir: Are you telling me that the "Lowest Common Denominator" syndrome has struck again, and that Mobil 1 has debased itself (literally!) to the point where it is now no better than Castrol Syntec? Are you relatively certain of your facts? Amsoil it will be, if indeed you are correct.

Yes, I wish I could recall the reference for you but this thread was kicked around on one of the other boards and a very good reference was cited indicating that many of the synthetic oils have gone this route. What I failed to mention was that this same reference indicated that these newer synthetics if you will are still very good and mimic the original characteristics of pure synthetics. So if you like to use synthetics Castrol Syntec, Mobil 1 are still very good products that do what they claim to do. This is what I gleaned from the article.

Have you ever wondered about changing transmission and differential oil(s) every 6,000 miles? No one does that in a car. No stick-shift BMW car changes trans or diff oil at those intervals, and indeed, most cars never change diff oil at all, simply topping off as needed, if needed. So, why do we gladly (?) spend handsome sums of money in parts, materials and labor to do so? I would appreciate input from anyone on this subject, no matter how subjective (or not) the opinions are. TIA :confused: :dunno

[bmwmick]

Bruce,
This contradicts what Mobil1 has on their website......
http://www.mobil1.com/products/trisynth/faq.jsp
I think this is the article that started the controversy.
http://www.caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=27&article_id=3631


Mick;)

[wilhelmggw]

Here's what this much respected dealer has to say on the subject:
Technical Insight - FAQ Synthetic Oil (http://www.bmwoforlando.com/pages/services/tech/faq/syn-oil.htm)

[Cliffy777]

is Mobil 1 a Group IV synthetic oil? I guess I will have to look the next time I am in a store.

[wilhelmggw]

Originally posted by Cliffy777
is Mobil 1 a Group IV synthetic oil?
GREAT QUESTION! I looked and looked for that information on the Mobil 1 website. I even e-mailed the company and got no reply. Seems to me if it were, they'd be eager to tell the world about it. Actually that was a big reason I decided to go with Amsoil. Like Mobil 1 has only feel-good, nice-sounding stuff to say about itself, while the Amsoil site has technical information galore.

[Cliffy777]

I thought I was stupid or blind. I went to the Mobil 1 website to see if they are Group IV and could find no indication. I am glad you came up empty.
Screw it - maybe I'll just stick to Castrol GTX - it worked okay in all my other bikes.

[mdcruiser]

I've always used Red Line. This thread has educated me a lot, and I was pleased to see at the Red Line site that it too is a pure Group IV oil:

http://www.redlineoil.com/why_redline.asp

[cat0020]

very informative reading..

http://motorcycleinfo.calsci.com/Oils1.html

I'm sticking with Mobil 1 Redcap and maybe Delvac in the future.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v237/cat0020/RS_at_speed.jpg
2002 R1150RS.. at 80+ mph.. with 24500+ miles.. Mobil 1 redcap since 6000 miles.

[mcholt212]

Nice friggin' bike Cat!!!!!!

[Ted]

I've used Mobil-1 engine and gear oils in my bikes and cars and have always been very happy (sure smooths out the K-bike shifting clunk!) It consistenly gets high scores across the board and is now the stock oil in many of the high performance cars sold today.

As for Amsoil, it may be excellent oil but the only people I ever seem to hear singing it's praises also happen to sell it.

[mtngsrider]

My dealer says good, old Castrol GTX, at about a buck a quart on sale, is just fine if you change your oil every 3000 miles or so. Been using it for years in all my bikes and never had a problem.

Trent
r1150gs

[breyfogle]

Originally posted by mtngsrider
My dealer says good, old Castrol GTX, at about a buck a quart on sale, is just fine if you change your oil every 3000 miles or so.

I've heard an oil company rep who was pushing (in his case Golden Spectro) synthetic admit exactly the same thing !!

[BarkSlayer]

Cat...nice pic. However, in spite of its lubricating qualities, the Mobil 1 red cap doesn't appear to be a particularly comfortable oil.

[honard]

My last BMW had over 250K miles when I sold it. I plan on keeping my R1100RS for as long. After reading and rereading the links on the above posts, clearly Shell Rotella T Synthetic is the way to go. The cost is right ($3.25 / us quart) for a Type IV true synthetic. CAT0020, your link was probably the most informative post I've found yet with regards to the oil debate.
Thanks

[StevieWonder]

My last BMW had over 250K miles when I sold it.

WOW ... now that's IMPRESSIVE. :clap How many overhauls? What kind of oil did you use?