Which Crude Oil As Gasoline Substitute Brand Wins?
This head-to-head test of 3 crude oil as gasoline substitute options has the measured results for each. See how they ranked and watch the full test video.
Sour crude oil extracted from 7,000 ft, Madison Rock formation, North Dakota
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The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Products are listed in the order they finished.
All measurements (6 more)+
Engine fuel test
- 1Sour crude oil extracted from 7,000 ft, Madison Rock formation, North Dakota
ran straight with no gasoline dilution added; narrator says it worked quite well and was surprised how well it performed as a gasoline replacement
- 2Light sweet crude oil extracted from ~9,000 ft, Bakken formation, North Dakota
too viscous to flow through the carburetor on its own; had to be cut with gasoline at roughly one-third gasoline to two-thirds crude oil to run; the adjustable carburetor jet was opened as far as it would go but could not be adjusted enough to run the crude oil undiluted
- 310W-30 motor oil reference oil used in a previous videonot tested
Lubricity/bearing scoring test
- 2Light sweet crude oil extracted from ~9,000 ft, Bakken formation, North Dakota
had more scoring (worse film strength) than both the sour crude oil and the 10W-30 reference oil
- 310W-30 motor oil reference oil used in a previous video
used only as a baseline reference; scored worse (more scoring) than the sour crude oil but better than the light sweet crude oil
- 1Sour crude oil extracted from 7,000 ft, Madison Rock formation, North Dakotanot tested
Smell/appearance
- 1Sour crude oil extracted from 7,000 ft, Madison Rock formation, North Dakota
very strong sour smell from high hydrogen sulfide content
- 2Light sweet crude oil extracted from ~9,000 ft, Bakken formation, North Dakotanot tested
- 310W-30 motor oil reference oil used in a previous videonot tested
Lubricity/bearing scoring test (~800 RPM, 30 sec, load applied)
- 1Sour crude oil extracted from 7,000 ft, Madison Rock formation, North Dakota
less scoring than even the 10W-30 reference oil, and a lot less scoring than the light sweet crude oil
- 2Light sweet crude oil extracted from ~9,000 ft, Bakken formation, North Dakotanot tested
- 310W-30 motor oil reference oil used in a previous videonot tested
Safety data sheet
- 2Light sweet crude oil extracted from ~9,000 ft, Bakken formation, North Dakota
flash point of -20F / -29C; described as extremely flammable
- 1Sour crude oil extracted from 7,000 ft, Madison Rock formation, North Dakotanot tested
- 310W-30 motor oil reference oil used in a previous videonot tested
Appearance
- 2Light sweet crude oil extracted from ~9,000 ft, Bakken formation, North Dakota
noticeably thicker in viscosity than the sour crude oil
- 1Sour crude oil extracted from 7,000 ft, Madison Rock formation, North Dakotanot tested
- 310W-30 motor oil reference oil used in a previous videonot tested
How it was tested
- lubricity/bearing wear test (spinning bearing race at ~800 RPM under load for 30 seconds, scoring measured after)
- engine run test using the crude oil directly as carburetor fuel, with gasoline dilution added if needed
Data notes and caveats
This is a myth-test/experiment video (can a gas engine run on crude oil), not a consumer-product buying comparison, so no purchase price is ever mentioned for either crude oil. No single overall winner is declared: the sour crude oil ran as fuel with no dilution and also had the best lubricity result, while the light sweet crude oil needed roughly 1:2 gasoline dilution to flow through the carburetor and had the worst lubricity result of the three oils tested. Both crude oils were judged to successfully work as a gasoline substitute with the caveat that the light sweet crude required cutting with gasoline. Chapters (Sour crude oil 2 cups/473ml, Adjusting jet to increase fuel, Normal engine temperature, Mixing gasoline into crude oil) align cleanly with the transcript's test sequence.
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