FT owners heads up. On May 1, 2020 the GF-6 engine oil standard will be released. It is aimed at ensuring adequate wear protection when running high fuel economy oils particulary in boosted GDI engines. There are new and improved wear performance tests that must be passed before light weight SAE 20 and SAE 30 oils will be certified.

Summary info:

"ILSAC GF-6 will contain three new tests and four replacement tests, which will balance the fuel economy targets with sustained durability.

The final standard will deliver a number of improvements relative to ILSAC GF-5, including:

• Fuel economy and fuel economy retention
• Engine durability
• Wear protection for idle-stop
• Low-speed pre-ignition minimisation"

"In addition to hardware changes, lower viscosity oils are also one of the key levers in reducing fuel usage. While lower viscosity oils can deliver fuel economy benefits, it is essential these oils also maintain engine durability. This means performance improvements over the current ILSAC GF-5 specification were required​​​​​​."

"Another OEM tactic to reduce fuel consumption, while maintaining torque and power, is to reduce engine displacement and make up the difference in power by turbocharging. However, these downsized and boosted engines can exhibit a destructive abnormal combustion event called low-speed pre-ignition (LSPI). This phenomenon occurs prior to the spark being triggered and is often followed by heavy knock that can lead to severe engine damage.

Lubricant properties have been identified as significant influencers on LSPI frequency and intensity."

"The issue has become so severe that OEMs were forced to initiate joint task-force development of a dedicated timing chain wear (TCW) test that is to be included in the forthcoming ILSAC GF-6 performance specifications for passenger car motor oils." Prof. Dr. Boris Zhmud, Head of R&D, BIZOL Lubricants



​​​​"This image (courtesy of Driven Racing’s Lake Speed, Jr.) illustrates what occurs during a “mixed film condition.” When the film thickness is a bit too thin, metal-to-metal contact occurs between the microscopic peaks of the bearing journal and the bearing itself."

https://www.pennzoil.com/en_us/education/what-you-need-to-know-about-ilsac-gf-6.html

https://www.underhoodservice.com/timing-chain-wear-oil-quality/

 

Interesting.
I wonder if JLR will yet again change the recommended oil spec for our engines once this is released?
And will it stay at 0W-20 or change?

 

About time! Please keep us posted when oils get certified.

 

RacerX,

Thank you for posting this information. When I purchased my F-Type R new and had the bonnet open in the garage the first thing I realized was the oil fill was 0W20. I'm coming from Chevrolet Camaro and Corvette 6.2L supercharged engines that ran 5W30 from factory but I was told to put 5W40 from the tuner/shop that has been building 700-1000HP chevs for years. He said as long as these were not ''cold'' starts meaning in colder climates and also respecting a warm up time before beating on the car.. which to me was common sense to begin with.. That being said there have been ZERO issues to my knowledge from the camaro/corvette, the mustang and neither with this Jaguar community/club on premature engine wear caused by factory fill of 0W20 (Jaguar Mustang) or 5W30 for chev. This is coming from people who beat on their cars and have oil analysis done every oil change or second oil change. Myself and a friend with an SVR who constantly drive hard have zero signs of premature wear after 3 years... Is it because we change our oil every 3000 miles?? Possibly...

So I'm very happy to know that newer/improved oils of the same weight or higher are coming to better protect our cars and will stayed tuned!

 

No problem. We all need to stay abreast of improvements. Everyone is doing the best they can.

My point isn't that 0W-20 is the "wrong" oil, its the right oil for Jag to recommend with luxury cruising in mind. It saves fleet mpg fines which are presumably passed-on in some way to customers. But its not a performance oil. I think there are more than a few performance enthusiasts driving the h-e-double-toothpicks out of our cars. And I think there are some indications of early wear issues with Fs. Some engines sound like a can of coins at start-up.

SAE 30 used to be the base recommendation for Vettes, but from the Mobile 1 webpage:"Mobil 1™ 5W-30 is the recommended service fill for many generations of Corvette, but for all C7 Corvettes we recommend upgrading to Mobil 1™ ESP Formula 0W-40. Please download our PDF for more information.

Today, Mobil 1™ ESP Formula 0W-40 synthetic motor oil is the factory fill for all C7 Corvette models and can be used by most C7 Corvette owners on both the street and the track (2019 ZR1 owners are asked to use Mobil 1™ 15W-50 for track days)."

 

Thank you for the info! I'll be sure to make the changes! I will also follow closely for the F-Type.

 

I do regular oil analysis, use recommended 0w20 oil and race my car. Here is what Blackstone said to me after the last (fall 2019) analysis:

This is with doing 3,000km oil changes, as I am trying to compensate for track wear.

 

I have never tracked my car but certainly would not keep the current 0W20 oil in my car for a 20 minute track session! Doesn't the SVR owners Manual state the use of 5W40 for track use and DOT5 brake fluid or am I way off?

 

My understanding that oil grade (i.e. w20) is related to expected operational temperature. 0w20 will get too thin sooner than 0w30, but if cooling keeps up then "too thin" will not happen. Yes, when racing your engine tends to get hotter, but that is not always/necessary the case.

Switching to 5w40 has a potential upside of keeping the car better lubricated at higher end of thermal profile (e.g. heat soak) but it has also potential downsides. In a car that has so many engine systems controlled by oil pressure I decided not to risk different oil grade while still being under warranty. Now is the time I am re-evaluating this decision.