DiscusInferno
Go Kart Newbie
- Location
- Kalifornia
502 is a performance spec, there is no base oil requirement. Not sure where you're getting this, besides some internet lore. There are plenty of German "synthetic" oils that meet 502.
You're right, "synthetic" is a marketing term, but in Europe--or anywhere else, there is no motor oil that is "100% synthetic", they just require a higher % of PAO and esters. There's still mineral oil in the additive pack and pour point depressants. PAO base stock come from hydrocarbons as well, so I don't get why people are so hung up on the distinction?
Lastly, there's zero evidence that PAO's outperform group III or III+ oils. All base oils have their advantages and disadvantages. What matters is if the oil is able to pass performance tests. 504/507 and MB 229.5/5.1 are some of the toughest specs out there. If an oil passes those tests, there's zero reason to obsess over the base oil composition.
It pissed off Mobil so much, that they sued Castrol and Castrol won.
So, in Europe, many companies label their oils as: Group IV is labeled "Synthetic" and Group III is labeled "Synthetic Technology"
Esters are Group V stocks, and there is no such thing as 100% ester oil.