Mobil 1 v Shell Helics Ultra

[Jay95R33]

Thought this may interest a few people.

I've been a long time user of Mobil 1 oil (5-50w).

I did an oil change last weekend and as the only Mobil 1 they had was the new stuff that was $68.90 for 5 litres (old stuff was $45 for 5 litres) I decided to try the Shell Helix Ultra (5-50w) stuff at $44.50 for 5 litres.

Both oils are full Synth etc...

I found that since changing to the Shell Helix that my oil temp is a consistent 7-10 degrees hotter, and oil pressure is also down.

With the Mobil 1 the oil pressure when hot and sitting on 100km/h in 5th on flat road, would sit on '4' on the factory oil pressure gauge.

Now with Shell Helix in exactly same situation, the factory gauge sits on '2' !!!

At idle (when hot) the Mobil 1 sat on '2' and now the Shell Helix sits on '1' !!

Looking at the specs on these cars, they say that the normal oil pressure at ~3000rpm should be '4' on the factory gauge - which is pretty much what the Mobil 1 gave me...

I'll see how the Shell goes in the next few weeks, but at the moment I wish I'd bought the new Mobil 1.

What have you guys found to work ??

J

[Guest RedLineGTR]

I use Shell Helix on my car. It seem to be good for my car. I have heard from certain people thats it not good lalala...but no proof. While using Shell Helix Ultra (5-40w)(dont think they have any others in that brand) the engine temp was cooler compaired to others oil such as Motul which i used for a while. Oil pressure sometimes is perfect sometimes its abit off, but i would say it would be more of the oil pressure sender. I find that when the car has run to normal op temp and i turn it off for a minute and i start it the pressure is lower than before, not sure what it is but it gets back upto normal after some drivin.

[JimX]

I've only used Castrol Formula R in my car since getting it, both 5W-30 and 10W-60. The only differences between the 2 I've found are slightly less power and economy, and slightly higher oil pressure with the 10W-60.

The oil pressure with the 5W-30 is fine though, it touches on 7 or 8 when cold (especially when revving) and sits on about 2 when warm/idle. The 10W-60 seemed to go off the scale when cold (probably 8 or 9) and settled down to a bit above 2 when warm.

I might try 0W-40 next, but I think it's pretty expensive. I'll see how the pricing is next oil change.

[Guest RedLineGTR]

the motul oil 8100 5-40w the oil pressure was the same, just the temp of the engine would not go down to much compaired to shell. I dont believe that mobil 1 is all that good since they used so much money on those adds on tv banners etc etc...they have to add to the price. If i had the money i would use redline oils in my car all the time but i dont have $150 to spend on every oill change.

Personal opion. As long as u change your oil often the less crap will be in the oil and less wear on engine parts. Oils around the $50 mark are pretty good...wouldnt go for any for like $20. I change my oil after a long cruise of fanging or before...whenever i have some spare time and money i'll pop down to the shops and pickup some fresh oil..

[Guest RedLineGTR]

tryed Castrol Formula R 10-60w....flushed the engine and ran some shell helix ultra through it. The oil pressure was too high at like 4000rpms i was getting like 6 on the pressure gauge. Not happy. waste of like $80 plus filter.

[Guest RedLineGTR]

Does anyone know of a full syn oil that has a rating of 10-40w thats not $100+??

[Jay95R33]

Lots of different opinoins.. This is good.

I'll see how the Shell goes for the usual 5000km etc..

Might try something different next oil change. But keeping the cost of 5 litres of oil at around $50 would be good.

J

lol - just edited so Helix is spelt correctly

[nismoman18]

well i am using shell helix now cos i figured, ferrari recommend it so may as well try it, its doin fine, and my engie doesnt knock like it did with motul next one im gonna try is castrol R and maybe mobil

[JimX]

Ferraris don't use turbos. They don't need a synthetic oil. I think it's dodgy marketing on Shell's part personally

Also note that on Castrol's site, they advertise the mineral-based 25W-50 as being used in Victor Bray's drag car. What they don't mention is he changes his oil between runs - again the temperature/viscosity tolerance is much less important than in cars where it needs to last 5000km or more.

[Guest RedLineGTR]

well said Jim.

[MarkR33]

i use shell helix ultra 5-40w its allright ,no problems so far seems to run ok

[Ronin 09]

I've said it once, and said it again:

If you go for any sort of synth oil, and you change the oil every 4-5000k's i don't think it is an issue. We should be worried about frequency of change, not so much the oil itself. We can argue till the cows come home about whether mobil/shell/motul/royal purple etc is best, but at the end of the day any of their synths will protect your engine regardless of how hard you drive it.

[Guest RedLineGTR]

Acutal lab test are the only way. As Ronin said..just change it often and it will be fine.

[nismoman18]

my car aint a turbo and shell is synthetic ? wat the bottle says nehow, but yeah ur right its all marketing, as long as my car is ok on watever oil i use

[JimX]

If your car isn't turbo then yeah mineral oil is fine. As to whether Shell is synthetic or not, it depends on the exact type. They make lots of different stuff.

[HEL-RZA]

A mechanic once told me to choose a type/brand of oil and stick to it because of the different additives etc in the oil its bad to mix brands....... is there any truth to this??? sounds like BS to me......

[JimX]

Most oils are designed to be compatible with others. I would be wary of topping up half a sump full of another type of oil (even though I've done it myself) but if you do a full drain before filling up with another type then you'll be ok.

[hippy]

can someone explain to me what oil pressure i should be lookin for on my car?? cause i don't really have a clue about whats good and whats not ... i'm currently using penzoil 5w 60 i think after changing from castrol and i notice that my oil pressure is lower than it was when i was using the castrol ... i better change my oil too ... its been 10k LOL but thats ok cause it hardly ever reaches boost ... about 95% in vacuum hehehe

[hungry6]

u ppls should not swap and change over different brand of oils wether synthetic or not. all oils are constructed different and behaves differently. all race car uses heavier oils for added protection but slightly less power , but power is ur game then go for the lighter oil. one thing is that mobil is a better lubricant than shell ultra , but shell ultra is more durable as in decay rate after 5000k the mobil might be dead where as the shell product might go on another 10-15000kays, so it different horses for different courses. a s a fact all the new BMW-AUDIS-FERRARIS-LAMBOGHINIS-VW-PORSCHES uses shell ultra only as a factory selected lubricant, and they also have extended their services out to 15-20000kays

[nismoman18]

ermmm BMW use castrol mate, just thought i had to tell u