Which Engine Oil Additive Brand Wins?
In our test we compared 2 engine oil additive options head to head. Lucas Synthetic Oil Stabilizer came out on top. See the measured results, the runner-up, the budget pick, and a link to the full test video.
Lucas Synthetic Oil Stabilizer
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The quick take
The short version of why each pick lands where it does, built straight from the measured results.
“I sort of think that Lucas did a better job”
The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Products are listed in the order they finished.
All measurements (7 more)+
Lubricity test at 100% concentration
- 1Lucas Synthetic Oil Stabilizer
seems to have equal lubricity to plain 10W-30 conventional oil
- 2ZMAX
a lot of damage done to the bearing, described as the most damage seen in any testing to date
Engine self destruct test
- 1Lucas Synthetic Oil Stabilizer
ran 28 minutes before failing; engine not seized, piston not stuck, only a small amount of scoring on the piston, camshaft has no abnormal wear
- 2ZMAX
ran only 17 minutes before failing; engine seized up, connecting rod destroyed, piston has score marks and is badly damaged
MSDS flash point
- 1Lucas Synthetic Oil Stabilizer425 F
- 2ZMAX270 F
MSDS boiling point
- 1Lucas Synthetic Oil Stabilizer500 F
- 2ZMAXnot tested
Lubricity test, oil mix ratio (1 part ZMAX to 10 parts oil)
- 2ZMAX
does very little for film strength, does not appear to enhance the oil at all
- 1Lucas Synthetic Oil Stabilizernot tested
24 hour pretreat and soak lubricity retest
- 2ZMAX
bearing damage the same as an untreated bearing
- 1Lucas Synthetic Oil Stabilizernot tested
MSDS composition
- 2ZMAX99%
white mineral oil per the MSDS
- 1Lucas Synthetic Oil Stabilizernot tested
How it was tested
- cold flow test (products chilled ~6 hours, checked how they flow when cold)
- lubricity tester bearing wear test at 100% product concentration
- lubricity tester bearing wear test at manufacturer mix ratio with oil
- lubricity retest after 24 hour high heat (200+ F) pretreat soak
- engine run-to-self-destruction test after 3 hour break-in with each additive in the oil
- post-failure teardown inspection (piston, cylinder wall, connecting rod, camshaft)
- MSDS comparison (flash point, boiling point, composition)
“I sort of think that Lucas did a better job”
Data notes and caveats
Two-product head-to-head; runnerUp is ZMAX by elimination rather than an explicit second-place declaration. Lucas synthetic engine ran 28 minutes to failure versus ZMAX at 17 minutes, and ZMAX also lost badly on the lubricity tester at both room temperature and after a 24 hour heat soak. No prices were mentioned in the transcript or description for either product.
