redrocker55

Check out this thread on oil analysis...

https://www.audiworld.com/forums/sho...2#post23997462

Here's my latest post on the above link...


Just received the latest sample from my oil analysis. This last oil change I used AMSoil 5w40 European Formula. This is the oil I have chosen to use going forward. In my past oil changes in the S4 I've used German Castrol and even though the additive package in the AMSoil is slightly lower...ie...TBN of 6.2 vs 8.2 and 9.5 from the German Castrol...my wear metals are down slightly. For me, who is going to do 5,000 mile oil changes for the time being, I'm not as worried about the TBN as I am about wear metals. So the AMSoil wins for this engine IMO. The past 2 oil changes I used German Castrol for the second number listed and the AMSoil for the first number listed for those who are interested.

I'm sure both oils are 100% good to go at the 10,000 mile oil change intervals. AMSoil's big selling point is extended drain intervals. For me...who enjoys changing the oil and I get into analyzing it...the 5,000 mile interval, for the time being, is good for me. Also, direct injected engines can be tough on oil so if I do migrate to a 10,000 mile drain interval, it will happen after analyzing the oil at slightly increasing intervals to see how the fuel levels and the insolubles are growing as the oil gets more and more miles on it.

The TBN in brand new AMSoil European formula starts out at 8 where the TBN in German Castrol, supposedly, starts out in the 13 range.

Here's what Blackstone Labs had to say about this most recent oil change. Hope this helps someone out there...


DAN: You can see the difference in oils by looking at the additive package. Here calcium, magnesium, phosphorous, and zinc are all at lower levels. If we compare this sample to the last one, we see that after a similar oil change interval, most wear metals improved. These aren't terribly big improvements, but every little bit helps, especially if this oil is cheaper. The TBN read 6.2, so it is likely the TBN doesn't start out as high, which fits with the lower levels of additive. Everything looks good here and we think you could easily go 4,500 miles next time.

1st number is the oil change at 7,636 miles
2nd number is oil change at 5,293 miles
3rd number is oil change at 2,850 miles
4th number is my first oil change at 1,566 miles
5th number is my S4 Average
6th number is the universal average for all S4's they've tested with the 3.0 TFSI engine.

Aluminum 2 3 3 5 3 3
Chromium 0 0 0 0 0 0
Iron 7 10 8 18 11 14
Copper 6 8 8 25 11 7
Lead 0 0 1 1 0 1
Tin 2 6 0 2 3 2
Molybdenum 0 0 1 0 0 24
Nickel 0 0 0 0 0 1
Manganese 1 2 3 12 4 2
Silver 0 0 0 0 0 0
Titanium 0 0 0 0 0 0
Potassium 0 2 1 4 2 2
Boron 45 4 11 58 24 34
Silicon 8 13 19 67 24 11
Sodium 3 4 3 5 4 5
Calcium 1736 2004 1749 1867 1872 1989
Magnesium 14 504 402 11 307 322
Phosphorus 747 933 862 735 842 812
Zinc 890 1231 1060 951 1073 1011
Barium 0 0 0 0 0 0


SUS Viscosity @ 210°F 63.4
cSt Viscosity @ 100°C 11.16
Flashpoint in °F 415 >365
Fuel % <0.5 <2.0
Antifreeze % 0.0 0.0
Water % 0.0 <0.1
Insolubles % 0.2 <0.6
TBN 6.2

Rhytid

Hey, thanks for that link. I had seen that thread before but I couldn't quite remember exactly which board I saw it on.

Anyways, I am sure both the Castrol and Amsoil are good as your analysis shows. But you don't have any data (other than the initial oil change) with the Fuchs oil, right? And the initial oil change should be taken with a grain of salt due to the initial wearing in of the engine with expected higher metal wear.

Just wondering if the Fuchs is another viable alternative to the German Castrol(hard to find?) and the Amsoil (more expensive?).