Here is a July 2017 article that has info from Blackstone Labs. They see no difference between oil brands when it comes to oil analysis and wear metal in the oil. Buy a quality oil, brand makes no difference. Amsoil, Mobil 1, Pennzoil or Walmart store brand SuperTech will give you the same results. The conversation with a customer is pretty funny.
Motor Oil Study Finds That Motor Oil Brands Are Not Important
For every article that says there is no difference between conventional motor oil and synthetic, I can find one that says the opposite. High end performance cars and race cars pretty much only use synthetic oil. Most of the wear on an engine occurs at start up, synthetic oil is superior to conventional oil during start ups, especially in cold weather. I know I've posted information about this before so I won't go into detail again. With everything that is said on this thread if you change your oil, oil filter and air filter diligently your Explorer will be fine, unfortunately oil and inner wear of the engine is not the limiting factor for longevity on these engines.
Below is an article from Triple AAA, Google the title and you can find it:
Synthetic or conventional oil? The verdict is finally in
If you're a good car owner and follow a reasonable maintenance schedule, you most likely change your oil at least twice a year.
This has always been my practice. Scrupulous drivers do it more often, using the traditional "every 3,000 miles" rule. And so do drivers who run their vehicles hard.
But a big question comes up when undertaking this basic task, either yourself or at a professional garage or oil-change location: traditional or synthetic oil?
There are two considerations when making that call: cost and quality. Everybody knows synthetic costs more. But is it worth it?
AAA conducted an extensive scientific analysis to find out. The results, published earlier this month, aren't shocking, but they could guide consumer behavior toward spending a bit more money to get a long-term review.
Synthetic is better. A lot better.
"Synthetic oil outperformed conventional oil by an average of nearly 50 percent in its independent evaluation, offering vehicles significantly better engine protection for only $5 more per month when following a factory-recommended oil change schedule," the organization said in a statement.
In the study, AAA found that "synthetic engine oils performed an average of 47 percent better than conventional oils in a variety of industry-standard tests," John Nielsen, the organization's managing director of automotive engineering and repair, said in a statement.
"With its superior resistance to deterioration, AAA's findings indicate that synthetic oil is particularly beneficial to newer vehicles with turbocharged engines and for vehicles that frequently drive in stop-and-go traffic, tow heavy loads or operate in extreme hot or cold conditions."
Worth it to spend a little more
A lot of drivers already kind of knew that. I did, but there have been plenty of times when I opted for "dinosaur oil" over the higher-tech and pricier synthetic stuff.
AAA was quite honest about the findings. You aren't going to hurt your engine if you skip the Mobil 1, one of the best-known synthetics. But you aren't going to put yourself in the poorhouse if you flip for the synthetic, either — these oils add only $64 a year on average to vehicle-operation costs.
You might think you're being upsold at the oil-change place. But the upsell pays off for you and the mechanic.
AAA didn't go light on the research. The report it produced is a deep dive into these lubrications.
"AAA's engine oil research focused on eight industry-standard ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) tests to evaluate the quality of both synthetic and conventional engine oils in terms of shear stability, deposit formation, volatility, cold-temperature pumpability, oxidation resistance and oxidation-induced rheological changes," the organization said.
I've been opting for synthetic for a few years now because I figure it would cover me better than changing the oil more often.
It is important to remember that you don't need to go synthetic if cost is an issue — that's the catch. When my 1998 Saab 900S was on its last legs, I went back to conventional for oil changes. I wasn't going to deprive myself of a decent bottle of wine for that jalopy, which I loved but had to send to its final reward when I moved back East a few years ago.
However, if you own a newer car or want to maximize the long-term value of your vehicle, AAA's advice is clear: pay the extra money for the extra protection.
