Shell vs. Mobil

Is Rotella really that much better than Delvac? Both good prices, but a big difference, and crude keeps coming down.

My opinion: yes

Either one will be fine.

Dean

use what you want rotella is a over the road truck engine oil not a off road oil,, different specs for crank loads no matter what they print on the pkg,, it is Not the same a HD dsl oil is,, again run what you want its yours, I do not know what the Mobil oil is rated for, I know there are those here who rave about shell oil,, I am not one of them

Wow - those are great prices. The last bucket of Rotella I bought was pushing $70
Pete

I'd be buying my rebate limit of the Delvac and not worrying about it. Gotta be a diesel truck on the farm that can use it.

I was taught that oils had a American Petroleum Institute API rating on the label, inside a small circle. If it is labelled "S" it is rated for Spark-ignition engines, if it is labelled "C" it is labelled for Compression-ignition engines. It may be rated for both. The label will further say another designation after the S or C, and the latest designation will be the latest and best version of the oil. The rest of it is advertising ?.

I cannot verify the Rotella. I can however tell of my days working in the shop at a Shell gas station and when it went to Mobil.
Our faithful customers, who brought their cars in at 3K intervals for oil changes, went from Shell oil to Mobile, The Shell oil came out in black stinky chunks and the mobile came out about as clear as it had gone in. This was not synthetic oil to reg oil comparison. If the Rotella is made to the same standards. . .
That was. . . 1997 perhaps. I'm retired and still don't use Shell, or Havoline, but that is another story.

I use Mobil Delvac for everything. I used it in my trucks one went 889000 miles before inframe next went 1.223000 miles before inframe. I switched from cheveron had better oil pressure when hot less dirt and never smelled burnt. Oil analysis would show at
15000 miles it had several thousand more before it was bad.

D'n D ..... Is it common to have a rebate limit on such a good deal as the Mobil? I guess whatever suits the manufacturer ..... number of rebates per person/name, or maybe per address, etc? A guy might have to make a whole bunch of separate purchases, instead of eight jugs at once. What has your experience been with oil rebates?

You've got it backwards, Delvac is better than Rotella. Shell just has better marketing brainwashing buyers.

My 886 hates Rotella and burns oil when I use it. My pickup leaks when I use it. The rebates were enough insentive. I switched several years back and haven?t thought about it since.

There are lots of exceptional rebates on 15W40 diesel oils at this time. This is likely a temporary phenomenon, probably to the impending introduction of a "newer, better, etc.," replacement.

The Mobil Delvac rebate is the best that I have ever seen. You can buy up to six 5 gallon buckets of Delvac and get a $35 rebate on each bucket up to a max of $210. If you buy the oil on sale, as I did, the cost per bucket is about $25.

If you do this, be sure to follow the rebate instructions precisely. If you make a mistake or cut corners you will not get your rebate.

Dean

There is very little difference between the two. Best oil with millions of miles and hundreds of thousands of hours tested-- F/S oil bought at your local F/S farm COOP. Designed and mfg for farm/heavy truck usage.

The freight line I worked for did a test for an area mobile oil distributor . Boss bought 2 identical GMC (427 engines) straight trucks and ran one on Mobil 1 and the other on Shell Rotella T 15-40 for 3 years. The trucks put on about 2,000 miles a week. From what we were told not much difference in the wear in engines. The Mobile 1 was more expensive to use. The whole 38 years that I worked for company we use Shell products. The company at one time had 30 tractors, 6 straight trucks, 1 tow truck, 1 pickup,5 company cars, 4 fork lifts, and a Hough loader and all using Shell oil.

I like either one but run Rotella in everything only because it's easier for me to get.

But that 32oz Power Service is a Great Deal
Tom

Last time I bought some, the Rotella was the better deal. I think I need to go buy some Delvac and stock up.

Lot of it depends on the condition of the engine.

An engine in good condition, with little blowby, will do well on good oil. And you should use good oil to help keep it in good condition. Either brand is good. Depends on what color bottle you find attractive.

When the engine starts to go bad, then it's a different story. You get a lot of blowby, and soot starts to thicken the oil in short order. This requires more frequent oil changes. This is the time to use the cheapest thing you can get your hands on, that still has the correct API "C" rating for your engine. Bear in mind, that older engines really don't require what's out there today, but will do fine on the modern oils. Anyways, the worn engine with blowby does fine on the Walmart Super Tech (which meets most standards the other ones do)

Whatever you do, stay away from Castrol 15-40, it's not recommended for HD use by the manufacturer. For use in light trucks, and automobiles which run on diesel.

Internet is full of arguments on the virtues of different brands of oil :lol:

Some guys swear by the Lucas stuff. Personally, I don't believe in making oil thicker with additives. Your pump, and bearings, were designed for the viscosity available in regular motor oils. Thicken that stuff up, and it impairs the flow at lower temperatures, and during startup. If it was good stuff, the engine maker would recommend it. It's prime use, far as I'm concerned, is for trying to get a ruined engine limping along till it can be rebuilt. It's akin to the old trick of adding oatmeal to transmissions, and rear ends, by used car dealers. Lucas isn't any different than the old Motor Honey.

Nother thing while I'm at it :lol:

Power Service...………...MOTS......give them your money if you wish.

Lot of guys like to run it in Winter. I guess it's not gonna kill the engine, but it's mostly not necessary.

Gelling is the main issue in Winter. Used to be able to buy #1 and #2 Diesel, not sure it's still available, or if it's just put in the tanks without disclosure during Winter months. #1 being the choice for Winter. My days or running in real cold weather ended about 30yrs ago, so I'm not up on it anymore.

Plain ol' kerosene will solve gelling problems, or judicial amounts of unleaded gasoline (just make sure it's burnt off by the time the weather warms up)

Gasoline is real risky, because it can increase volatility to the point of preignition, which can damage the engine. I never thought it was even usable, until I worked for a trucking company out in CO that used the stuff. I was certain the heads were gonna come thru the hood They didn't, and the fuel never gelled even in sub zero weather. Live and learn I guess. The dood that owned the company instructed us to NEVER add more than 10% gasoline. Was his truck, his rules. I never felt comfortable adding ANY gasoline, but it seemed to work. I DO NOT RECOMMEND GASOLINE, JUST THOUGHT IT WAS AN INTERESTING THING I ENCOUNTERED WHEN I WAS STILL A YOUNG MAN.

You don't know the difference between Lucas oil stabilizer and Motor Honey. Lucas is a petroleum product and Motor Honey is
not. I have used Lucas as directed and never noticed the oil to get thicker but it does make oil stay on cylinder walls and
you don't get dry start up if engine sets for a period of time.

I was always Rotella and then Mobil started those deals a couple years ago. Did some research, asked around and tried it. Everything on the farm and at work is on Delvac now. No problems.

Just be patient on getting the Delvac rebate.

Been 6 weeks since I sent mine in...they do say 6-8 weeks.

Fred

I have used gasoline a few times but power service
works just as well and it?s got a lubricant in it which
gasoline I?m sure has to be the exact opposite .
When it hits 40 below it takes more power service to
keep from gelling but it?s a lot easier than thawing
our an engine

(quoted from post at 14:09:18 11/09/18) There is very little difference between the two. Best oil with millions of miles and hundreds of thousands of hours tested-- F/S oil bought at your local F/S farm COOP. Designed and mfg for farm/heavy truck usage.

Click to expand...

Do you really think a little ol store chain like F/S specs out their own oil concoction beyond the name brands?
And then prices it below all others?

Power service or the like is very necessary in NY. without it you fire up and run about 5 minutes. Then you spend the next two hours Looking for "Power Service 911" and new filters. Then you get covered in diesel fuel and the ol lady freaks out. Much easier to dose your fuel with a few cents worth of snake oil!