Patrick Burris, Royal Purple Tech Advisor: You raise several points that we have to address frequently. Synthetic oil is largely misunderstood by the average consumer, and many misconceptions have been spawned over the years regarding its use. We've listed what we consider to be the top 10 most common myths surrounding synthetic oils, along with the facts, which should answer your questions as well as some others.
1 Myth: Synthetic oils are thinner than mineral oils.Viscosity is a measure of the resistance to flow of the oil at a specified temperature. Synthetic and mineral oils of the same SAE viscosity will have similar resistance to flow. The difference is that a synthetic will retain its designated SAE viscosity through a much broader temperature span.
2 Myth: Synthetic oils cause seals to leak.Properly formulated synthetic oils will generally not cause an engine oil leak. Synthetic oils possess a higher degree of natural solvency, which can clean and remove deposits left by other oils. The removal of extensive oil deposits can expose marginal or damaged oil seals that may then leak.
3 Myth: Synthetic oils are not compatible with mineral oils.Automotive oils, whether synthetic, mineral, or a blend, are compatible. However, it is a good practice to not mix brands or different base oil types unless there is no other option available. I'll choose topping off my engine with a mineral oil as opposed to running a quart low.
4 Myth: Once you use synthetic oil you cannot switch back to mineral oil.In most cases, switching from a mineral oil to a synthetic or vice versa is a routine occurrence and no short-term or long-term issues will develop.
5 Myth: Using synthetic oil will void my warranty.As long as you use the correct viscosity grade and current API engine service classification you will not void your warranty. A quick Google search for the "Magnuson Moss Warranty Act" will offer further enlightenment on this subject.
6 Myth: Synthetic is only for new cars.Synthetic oil can be used in any car or truck engine built or rebuilt after 1970, regardless of age. As long as the engine is in good mechanical condition and not consuming or leaking oil, there should not be any issues with older engines.
7 Myth: You have to break your motor in on synthetic in order to run synthetic.Synthetics can be used before, after, or even with mineral-based oils.
8 Myth: Synthetic oil does not burn.Most synthetic base oils used to make automotive engine oils will burn. While mineral oils will burn at a much lower temperature, even quality synthetic oils will burn at combustion temperatures.
9 Myth: You can't use synthetic oil in a diesel engine (or turbocharged, supercharged, or rotary engine).As long as you use the correct viscosity and current API engine service classification, you can use synthetic oil in any engine.
10 Myth: All synthetics are the same.Not all synthetic motor oils are created equal. For instance, mineral-based motor oil with a very good additive package can easily outperform synthetic motor oil with a mediocre additive package. Although additives are typically only 15 to 25 percent of the makeup of motor oil, they can impact a lubricant's performance much more than the base oil. There is no easy way for a consumer to determine the quality of motor oil's additive package. Price is often an indicator of quality, since the more advanced additive technologies cost more to produce. However, performance is the ultimate measure of additive package quality.
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