Quote:
Originally Posted by havelegs
Really, what even is the difference with those oils listed above?
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There are quite a few differences in those oils. How much they matter is a different story.
Mobil 1 Supercar 5W50 is the newest of those oils and is specified for the new C8 Z06. I don't have a ton of information on that oil, as it's not that common and there hasn't been that much in the way of oil analysis done. However, it meets the Dexos R spec, it's a good oil to use in the Camaro, and it has the newest API SP ratings.
Mobil 1 Supercar 0W40 is a slightly older formulation of oil. It's a rebranding of the old Mobil 1 ESP Formula. You'll notice it doesn't have the newest additive packages. It has higher levels of calcium and anti-wear additives. The base oil also contains more ester than the other formulations. If I recall correctly, oils with high levels of ester do need a little stronger of an additive package because the ester is polar and competes with things like ZDDP and detergents in the engine. That doesn't make it a bad oil, it's just different. The Camaros aren't all that susceptible to things like LSPI, so the oil is still fine to use, but it's not quite as resistant to that as the newer SP rated oils.
Mobil 1 Euro FS 0W40 is the newest formulation of an old favorite. The older formulation was similar to the Supercar, but the new SP rated versions are very different, with a lot lower calcium (which is a great detergent, but not so great for DI engines). That oil is classified as high SAPS, which means it's generally going to be better for things like extended oil drain intervals. This is a very common European car oil that's been around for years.
Mobil 1 ESP X4 0W40 is similar to the Euro, but this is a mid SAPS formulation which is better for things like exhaust particulate filters. It meets most of the same standards for things like wear protection as the FS Euro oil.
Which one is best? If you were going to track the car heavily, or if you were going to track it with more aggressive tires than stock, then the 5W50 Supercar is probably your choice. That oil is significantly thicker on startup, though, so you would want to make sure you don't beat on the car when it's cold. Which is something you should avoid no matter what oil you run.
Of the three 0W40 oils, I would say it's all a tossup. The Camaros don't have any kind of exhaust particulate filters, so whether you use a mid SAPS like the ESP X4 or the high saps like the FS Euro won't make a difference. What you are probably most concerned about with your oil is that it protects the engine. In that respect, all three of the 0W40 oils meet basically the same standards.
The Supercar formulation (and DexosR in general) is an evolution of the old Dexos2 certification. It is based closely on ACEA C3 standards for wear and engine protection with some additional GM requirements mostly based around fuel economy and emissions equipment protection (which you probably aren't too concerned about on these cars). The ESP X4 is based on the ACEA C3 standard, and the Euro FS is based on ACEA A3/B4 standards. If you look those up, the things we mostly care about, like wear protection, are the same between ACEA A3/B4 and C3 (which is also Dexos2).
So, the Supercar is the same oil that used to be Dexos 2 (which was what GM wanted for a track ready oil on these cars and is basically the protection of ACEA C3). ESP X4 is also ACEA C3, so that's going to give you the same protection. Euro FS is A3/B4, which is the same protection as ACEA C3, but without additives that are designed for exhaust aftertreatment that we don't have. So all three of those oils will give you the protection you need.
At that point, you just decide whatever is easiest or whichever you like better and go with that.