# An oil analysis thread (Royal Purple)



## abawp (Nov 30, 2005)

Just got an oil analysis back from blackstone labs on my car. I have ran between 5w30 and 10w30 synthetic Royal Purple for some time now (since ~71,000 miles), so I figured an actual analysis is in order to see what was what. Below are some links regarding their oil analysis procedures and what they mean:
Standard Oil Analysis
TBN, or Total Base Number Analysis (this usually costs extra)
According to research that I have done,*Royal Purple is not a VW 505.x specific oil*. I could be wrong in this assumption as it is possible VW could have changed their oil specifications, but this is what I know at the moment.
Some details on the car:
Stock everything, sans custom ebay intake.
The car has been through 2 trial software reflashes; REVO and APR
The car is mostly driven like the everyday commuter car and general hauling vehicle with a spirited run every so often (or whenever an interesting corner comes up and no one is in front of me







).
Oil change and analysis was done at precisely 98,610 miles @ 5,408 service interval
Timing belt has been changed








Ok, enough of me blabbering and on with the analysis. The resolution of the screenshots are large, so I will hotlink them and provide quick notes on what they say.
Gif #1
Gif #2
I don't feel like typing all the metals out, so here are the properties:
Property---------------------Value------------Value S/B
SUS Viscosity @ 210*F------62.9-------------59-65
CST Viscocity @ 100*F------11.03-----------9.9-11.9
Flashpoint in *F--------------370-------------- >375
Antifreeze %------------------0-----------------0
Water %-----------------------0--------------- < 0.1
Insolubles %-----------------0.3-------------- < 0.6
TBN---------------------------5.5
They say the analysis showed higher than average copper levels, not sure what could be done to lower this (copper levels was a concern of theirs). Anyway, these are the results, and their recommendation for an interval increase was 6,250 miles (vs VW's 5,000 mile service interval). Let the discussion begin, and if anyone else has had an oil analysis done on their oil (can be any type), feel free to post up.


_Modified by abawp at 10:18 PM 11-11-2008_


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## mescaline (Jul 15, 2005)

VW's 5000 miles? What VW dealer recommends 5000 mile service interval? That's 8000km ... over here we do 15 000km interval on regular and 30 000km on long-life oil.


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## VWGolfA4 (Apr 5, 2000)

*Re: (mescaline)*

I thought the dealer has always said every 5k miles?








Maybe I misunderstood you but my service book says every 5k.


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## abawp (Nov 30, 2005)

*FV-QR*

I am going by the service interval thread, and what the local dealer near me has said:
 DIY/FAQ: Complete MkIV Service Inverval and Maintance Schechedule List - 1.8T, 1.9TDI, 2.0, 2.8
Here is the maintenance schedule for my car (note the first two items):


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## mescaline (Jul 15, 2005)

5000 miles..thats 8000km, dude you got a lot of oil changing to do







I change mine every 15 000km, using Valvoline synpower 5w-40.


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## epjetta (Sep 19, 2006)

*Re: An oil analysis thread (abawp)*

copper is from bearing meaning they are falling apart. i personally dont like royal purple. my friends race motor went out right after changing over to it. i run amsoil in everything and have NEVER had a failure and the one motor i disassembled after 200,000+ miles looked so clean inside compared to other engines that i will never change.


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## abawp (Nov 30, 2005)

*Re: An oil analysis thread (epjetta)*


_Quote, originally posted by *epjetta* »_copper is from bearing meaning they are falling apart. 

You mean from the turbo?


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## AZV6 (May 3, 2006)

*Re: An oil analysis thread (abawp)*

I don't like the flash point either, should be well above the 400F mark to be worth a damn.
The lower the flash point the greater tendency for the oil to suffer vaporization loss at high temperatures and to burn off on hot cylinder walls and pistons. The flash point can be an indicator of the quality of the base stock used. The higher the flash point the better. 400 F is the minimum to prevent possible high consumption.
As I have said many times this oil is not approved and for a reason.
It is no good.
CST Viscocity @ 100*F------11.03-----------9.9-11.9
this one is pretty low too, usually with a good oil your about 14+ which means to me the oil is breaking down. Bearings are going to suffer.
My suggestion, use something like Pentosin or Motul.
I will have my pentosin analysis to show later.
All I have used in my VR6. 
Change your oil RP is garbage.
Jason



_Modified by AZV6 at 3:33 PM 11-12-2008_


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## rajvosa71000 (Jun 9, 2004)

*Re: An oil analysis thread (AZV6)*

Elf Exellium NF or Pentosin is what I recommend http://****************.com/smile/emthup.gif


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## abawp (Nov 30, 2005)

*Re: An oil analysis thread (AZV6)*


_Quote, originally posted by *AZV6* »_
I will have my pentosin analysis to show later.


Can you show me your Pentosin analysis when you get a chance?
I will be honest though. I am a little concerned about the engine differences between the VR6 and the 1.8t and how oil interacts with the individual engine characteristics.


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## AZV6 (May 3, 2006)

*Re: An oil analysis thread (abawp)*

I would not be concerned due to the fact that the oil is VW 502.00, 505.00 approved. 
Which means it will cover Vr6 and 1.8T. My oil change is at 10K miles with at least 4-5 months of 100+F driving. Yours is at 5K intervals and in moderate climate, so I think it will give you a good Idea of what the oil can handle and do for your vehicle.
When I get it back I will post it.
I am not sure what RP's viscosity index is but I bet it does not hold up to the rest that are approved.
Pentosin is 167, motul 8100 x-cess is 167, and 505.01,505.00,502.00 specific Motul is 167, I use Motul 300 V-power in another car- with 196.
Rp is around 160- which is low IMO. Flashpoint is 455 they claim but on your OA it is below what is considered minimum.
Viscosity Index is an empirical number indicating the rate of change in viscosity of an oil within a given temperature range. Higher numbers indicate a low change, lower numbers indicate a relatively large change. The higher the number the better. This is one major property of an oil that keeps your bearings happy. These numbers can only be compared within a viscosity range. It is not an indication of how well the oil resists thermal breakdown.
Jason
_Modified by AZV6 at 8:54 AM 11-13-2008_

_Modified by AZV6 at 8:55 AM 11-13-2008_


_Modified by AZV6 at 8:56 AM 11-13-2008_


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## abawp (Nov 30, 2005)

*Re: An oil analysis thread (AZV6)*


_Quote, originally posted by *AZV6* »_
Viscosity Index is an empirical number indicating the rate of change in viscosity of an oil within a given temperature range. Higher numbers indicate a low change, lower numbers indicate a relatively large change. The higher the number the better. This is one major property of an oil that keeps your bearings happy. These numbers can only be compared within a viscosity range. It is not an indication of how well the oil resists thermal breakdown.

When you refer to bearings, are you specifically mentioning the internal bearings of the engine? These are usually a hardened alloy, probably containing Molybdenum, am I right?


_Modified by abawp at 12:44 PM 11-13-2008_


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## AZV6 (May 3, 2006)

*Re: An oil analysis thread (abawp)*

I am referring to crank bearings, rod bearings and so forth.
Moly is a good anti friction additive and if oil breaks down it can help protect the engine but only for a little. Zinc is a better anti-friction additive. 
% zinc is the amount of zinc used as an extreme pressure, anti- wear additive. The zinc is only used when there is actual metal to metal contact in the engine. Hopefully the oil will do its job and this will rarely occur, but if it does, the zinc compounds react with the metal to prevent scuffing and wear. A level of .11% is enough to protect an automobile engine for the extended oil drain interval, under normal use. Those of you with high reving, air cooled motorcycles or turbo charged cars or bikes might want to look at the oils with the higher zinc content. More doesn't give you better protection, it gives you longer protection if the rate of metal to metal contact is abnormally high.
Zinc in your OA is pretty low. .10- .11ppm is where you really want to be especially in a Turbo. Like I said more is not better. .12ppm or more is nice but not needed.

IMO DUMP RP all together and use Motul, Pentosin, ELF, or even mobil 0W-40 approved oils. 
I see no advantage in using RP, Redline or others in the non-approved rebel category! This OA proves it is not that good.



_Modified by AZV6 at 6:34 AM 11-14-2008_


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## metallica71787 (Apr 1, 2004)

Approved or not here is a list of MAJOR companys in the oil market. Some good info.
A complete series of oil quality tests was conducted by Bret Boster of Puyallup, Washington on a series of popular oils including Torco, AMSoil, Castrol, Mobil and others. The tests were performed by Sam Blumenstein of COME Racing Engines, on their in-house dyno. The tests, being run by an AMSoil representative, might have been biased. Yet you can study the methods and results in the document Oil Against Oilsâ€ http://www.performanceoilnews....shtml and decide for yourself if this was a battle of â€œoil philosophiesâ€ - or an actual battle for blood between the oils themselves rather than the experts. The overall rating according to Boster:
1. AMSOIL
2. BP Visco 5000
3. Mobil 1
4. Mobil 1 (different price)
5. Hi-Tec HTO
6. Shell Helix Ultra
7. Royal Purple
8. Castrol R
9. Castrol SLX
10. Torco


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## AZV6 (May 3, 2006)

*Re: (metallica71787)*

Link does not work


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