[tm5]

^^^ agree I have not seen anything that specifically states you can use 0w40 or 5w40 dexos 2 in place of 15w15 for ZL1 1LE track usage - did I miss it?

[mjk3888]

Originally Posted by TrackClub

MJK: BOTH 0w40 and 5w40 dexos 2 oils have been certified by GM as good for BOTH street and track duty. 5w40 dexos 2 is NOT track ONLY oil! 15w50 is.

Moreover id argue that 5w40 is a much better summer oil to provide motor protection during hot summer vs cold winter starts. Especially in hot climates.

IMO there is nothing "magical" about the Mobil 1 0w40 except it now gives GM dealers ability to service GM performance cars with dexos 2 oil vs old 5w30 which was street only. Thats it!

Where do you get a notion that Motul has some additives that are cats unfriendly???

I think folks are reading way too much into this GM ***dealers*** marketing release and jumping to huge conclusions based on unjustified assumptions.

NB Corvette Racing team uses Mobil 1, Valvoline and Motul as their choices for lubricants. All three are top notch companies. And all 3 make GM certified top quality dexos 2 oils! And THAT is what GM recommends to be used in our cars in either 0 or 5w40 spec.

I have daily driven on the 5W40 Motul X-Clean 8100 (Dexos 2), although it could be a coincidence one of my primary cats had to be replaced under warranty after about a year of running that oil exclusively. The manual only states that the 15w50 ZL1 oils must be changed back to the non track oil after an event so you could assume that its safe to run the Motul year round.

My decision to run the new Mobil 1 is based on 2 things. First the oil was specifically engineered with our GM LTX engines in mind, the other oil options may meet the dexos 2 requirements, but they weren't specifically engineered for our engines. You can choose to believe that its marketing hype, but I don't feel it is. Secondly, the new oil is branded as Emissions Systems Protection. I'm certainly not a chemical engineer, but I think that my cat potentially getting clogged by the Motul and the fact that this new oil tested on our cars is branded "ESP" isn't just a coincidence. I believe they found that a certain formulation was required to give high temp protection on track without clogging up emissions equipment.

That being said if my Cat never was replaced and I didn't hear of anyone else having such an issue, I would likely run the mobil 1 once to see if it ran different temps then switch back to Motul if the price gap was significant enough.

[TrackClub]

Originally Posted by mjk3888

I have daily driven on the 5W40 Motul X-Clean 8100 (Dexos 2), although it could be a coincidence one of my primary cats had to be replaced under warranty after about a year of running that oil exclusively. The manual only states that the 15w50 ZL1 oils must be changed back to the non track oil after an event so you could assume that its safe to run the Motul year round.

My decision to run the new Mobil 1 is based on 2 things. First the oil was specifically engineered with our GM LTX engines in mind, the other oil options may meet the dexos 2 requirements, but they weren't specifically engineered for our engines. You can choose to believe that its marketing hype, but I don't feel it is. Secondly, the new oil is branded as Emissions Systems Protection. I'm certainly not a chemical engineer, but I think that my cat potentially getting clogged by the Motul and the fact that this new oil tested on our cars is branded "ESP" isn't just a coincidence. I believe they found that a certain formulation was required to give high temp protection on track without clogging up emissions equipment.

That being said if my Cat never was replaced and I didn't hear of anyone else having such an issue, I would likely run the mobil 1 once to see if it ran different temps then switch back to Motul if the price gap was significant enough.

Appreciate your position. But frankly Mobil stating that an oil was developed specifically for one type of an engine sounds a bit far fetched to me personally and it does sound like a great marketing opportunity only because GM has chosen this specific oil as a factory fill and the one dealers will (finally) stock. Well, thats how it feels to me anyway

Bottom line for me: i will go by what a manufacturer states in the car's manual vs what a lubricants partner states in their media release. If GM says Mobil 1 is the only oil authorized for warranty then i will switch. Thus far they have said ANY Dexos 2 is fully authorized.

I am unaware of frequent cat failures and dont recall reading of any except for yours. I have run Valvoline all year with no ill effects. I am not an engineer either but if oil was responsible for a cat failure then likely both cats would go vs just one? That would be my layman's logic here.

NB 15w50 is mandated as track oil ONLY for ZL1 1LE and must be replaced after track duty (and i believe the same applies to ZR1).
A regular ZL1 has the same oil requirement as SS 1LE.

No doubt we will see a 2019 Camaro car operating manual soon and this should clarify GM's position on oils et al. Until then i am sticking with info contained in my 2017 manual, which has been repeated in 2018 manual.

NB i do prefer 5w40 for warm summer starts. And apparently so does GM given even a higher rating of 15w50 oil as mandated for 2 of their top track cars.
But as a generic oil 0w40 will certainly do the job as GM has to satisfy requirements of any season with a single oil offer, including -20 winter starts just in case somebody is dd'ing all year round in cold climates. And in THIS case 0w40 would be a better choice.

Anyhow, i am sure one cant go wrong with the new Mobil oil as it falls within what was recommended in the first place spec wise. But i think it is premature and without merit (at this stage) to suggest this oil is somehow superior to other top quality Dexos 2 offers only because a Mobil marketing press release would like GM consumers to believe this is the case.

Of course i might be wrong, but i drive a GM car not a Mobil car hence will wait on a word from the former while taking the word from the latter with a grain of marketing salt

[JeffFox]

I had my dealer use one of my 2 free oil changes to fill my 2017 SS Camaro with the new Mobil 1 0w-40 ESP Dexos 2 oil for a $35 up charge. I did this because I believe this to be the only track/street all season warrany approved oil available at a Chevy dealer. Now I am good for track and DD in Wisconsin. So it was a great solution for me.

[TrackClub]

Originally Posted by JeffFox

I had my dealer use one of my 2 free oil changes to fill my 2017 SS Camaro with the new Mobil 1 0w-40 ESP Dexos 2 oil for a $35 up charge. I did this because I believe this to be the only track/street all season warrany approved oil available at a Chevy dealer. Now I am good for track and DD in Wisconsin. So it was a great solution for me.

I think i still have 1 free oil change left and for that purpose it makes perfect sense (or for a purpose of servicing a car at a dealer in general).

[thescreensavers]

Oil temps are mainly a function of RPM not what oil you are running.

I currently run Motul which is a good oil but looking to save a little $ if Walmart starts carrying this oil

[Norm Peterson]

Originally Posted by TrackClub

I think i still have 1 free oil change left and for that purpose it makes perfect sense (or for a purpose of servicing a car at a dealer in general).

As long as you can trust them to do the job right, anyway.

Never mind why that thought occurred to me.


Norm