5 Ways fully synthetic oil improves engine performance

For decades, engine oil has played a vital role in ensuring engines powering vehicles remain lubricated and functional. Engine lubricants have come a long way and conventional engine oil is no longer the norm, replaced by superior lubricants such as synthetic engine oil. Fully synthetic engine oil has been a prominent lubricant in almost every type of engine since its discovery in 1929. Fun fact. The Allied Forces restricted oil access to Germany during World War II, so the latter relied on synthetic oil as fuel for its military operations. The American Energy Crisis during the 1970s drove the industry to improve the quality of artificial oils, leading to a surge in popularity for synthetic oil applications. 

In modern times, fully synthetic oil has clearly become the norm in the automotive industry, establishing itself as the superior engine oil solution. It has clear advantages over the latter and is known to keep engines lubricated longer than conventional engine oil solutions.

Synthetic Engine Oil vs Normal Engine Oil – What’s the Difference?

While conventional engine oil provides adequate lubrication for engines, synthetic engine oil is superior in every way and has therefore become the norm. Most modern engine oil brands sell various synthetic engine oil products. Motul, the French lubricant manufacturer, has specialised in this category and sells premium grade fully synthetic engine oil for bikes as well as cars. Particularly their 5w30 fully synthetic engine oil for petrol and diesel cars, which has found itself becoming a popular choice among most modern car owners.

There’s no visual difference between synthetic oil and conventional oil. The difference lies in the way the oils are made. Conventional 5w30 motor oil is based on petroleum and is thick at low temperatures and thin at high temperatures. This variance needs to be altered in order to work as a lubricant for engines. So oil manufacturers use additives to change the oil’s properties and reduce its viscosity.

Conversely, synthetic oils are designed from scratch to match a specific type of multi-grade oil from the get-go. While conventional motor oil matches the properties of synthetic oil at the beginning of its life, the additives degrade over time, causing the oil to regain viscosity and variance. Synthetic oils, on the other hand, are able to maintain chemical stability without relying on additives and therefore maintain engine lubrication much longer.

What are the advantages of fully synthetic engine oil?

Synthetic engine oils are artificially manufactured and designed for improved performance as compared to conventional motor oils. This inherently makes them a better solution, but let’s delve into the specifics of how synthetic oils are better.

Synthetic oils provide better engine protection

Vehicle’s engines are made of moving parts and components that frequently come into contact with each other at high speeds and generate a lot of friction as a result of this. The role of engine oil is to keep these moving parts lubricated and smooth-functioning. Fully synthetic engine oils like Motul’s 7100 10W30 synthetic engine oil for motorbikes are capable of ensuring the engine stays protected a lot longer than regular engine oil.

Using synthetic oils makes for cleaner engines

Motor oil constantly circulates through your vehicle’s engine. In doing so, it forms deposits along the engine’s components, making it less smooth. Conventional engine oils form sludge from these deposits, reducing your engine’s lifespan over time. By contrast, synthetic engine oils contain fewer impurities and therefore, resist deposits and sludge formations. A cleaner engine is a happier engine.

Synthetic oils protect turbochargers and superchargers

Most modern vehicles utilise smaller engines designed for better fuel-efficiency and reduced carbon emissions. In doing so, they’re shifting towards forced induction from turbochargers and superchargers as power sources. Synthetic oils flow quicker to critical parts, improving the overall performance and lubrication of the engine. This extends to 

the turbochargers as well. Turbocharged engines revolve a lot faster than non-turbocharged ones, and require superior lubrication as a result. This is why synthetic engine oils are the better choice for vehicles with forced induction systems.

A combination of all the above factors reveals that you can drive your vehicle a lot longer on synthetic engine oils as compared to non-synthetic engine oils. Regular engine oil is usually rated for around 5000 kilometres before an oil change is required. By contrast, synthetic engine oil is rated for anywhere between 15000 kilometres to 24000 kilometres, depending on the brand and composition of engine oil. The synthetic engine oil price is also relatively affordable for the extra range you get. At the end of the day, consider it an investment in the well-being of your vehicle. Be it a bike or a car, it’s always advisable to use a reliable brand of synthetic engine oil.