Blackstone Analysis, Elf Excellium 5W/40 at 9700 Miles

[ClarkSJ]

I've been runnning some Blackstone tests on my 2005 S4 to see if a 10K OCI was possible with a high quality synthetic. First two tests were done using Valvoline Synpower 5W/40 at 5500 and 8200 miles. Latest test was Elf Excellium 5W/40 (now named Total), which I ran out to 9700 miles. Results look pretty good, in some ways better than the Valvoline.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/1152185...n/photostream/

[hercfe]

That's not bad. I had similar results with Mobil 1 0-30, 5-30, and 10-30 on 3 different engines. The high initial zinc content of the Elf really helps the engine shine through long OCI's. I wouldn't go much passed 10k though, even though Blackstone recommends 11. They recommended me a 7500 mile OCI on a 500 bhp 2.4l engine. I laughed in their faces when I called them to ask if I got the wrong sample return. 10k is even pushing it in your motor, as viscosity breakdown can and will occur regardless of mag, phos, and zinc content. Its all about heat cycles.