Motor Oil 2017 Test: Which Brand Wins?
This 2017 head-to-head test of 2 motor oil options has the measured results for each. See how they ranked and watch the full test video.
WD-40
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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 (5 more)+
Lubricity tester (bearing spun at 100 RPM under downward force, film-strength wear comparison)
- 1WD-40
the WD-40 test bearing showed noticeably more wear damage than a previously tested 10W-30 motor oil bearing; described qualitatively only, no numeric wear measurement given
- 210W-30 motor oil conventional
used as the baseline/control bearing from a previous test; showed noticeably less wear damage than the WD-40 bearing
Composition (from label/CAS research)
- 1WD-4045
to 50% LVP aliphatic hydrocarbons; a further aliphatic hydrocarbons component described in the transcript as '20 less than 25%,' which reads as a caption garble and is preserved verbatim rather than corrected; less than 25% petroleum base oil; less than 10% non-hazardous ingredients; 2 to 3% carbon dioxide
- 210W-30 motor oil conventionalnot tested
Boiling point
- 1WD-40361
to 369 F (183 to 187 C)
- 210W-30 motor oil conventionalnot tested
Cold flow test at -15 F
- 1WD-40
WD-40 and 10W-30 were both placed in a freezer to compare flow at that temperature; the transcript shows only the test setup with no spoken numeric or comparative result afterward
- 210W-30 motor oil conventionalnot tested
1-hour engine run test as a full crankcase oil substitute
- 1WD-40
engine survived the full hour, including periods under load via an engine brake and with the cooling shroud removed to run hot; cylinder head temperature reached approximately 500 F under load; significant blow-by/smoke observed from the crankcase ventilation tube; WD-40 level in the crankcase dropped from slightly above the top dipstick hash mark to barely touching the dipstick by the end of the test; compression dropped by 5 PSI over the course of the test (chapter marker states an initial compression reading of 110 PSI)
- 210W-30 motor oil conventionalnot tested
How it was tested
- label/CAS research into WD-40's chemical composition and boiling point range
- lubricity tester: a bearing spun at 100 RPM under applied downward force to compare film-strength wear between WD-40 and 10W-30 motor oil
- cold flow test: WD-40 and 10W-30 both chilled to -15 F to observe flow behavior
- 1-hour running engine test: a small engine's crankcase filled with WD-40 instead of motor oil, run under intermittent load via an engine brake with the cooling shroud removed, monitoring cylinder head temperature, blow-by/smoke, crankcase fluid level, and compression before and after
