77 Lubricants Motor Oil SF 15W-40

Worth knowing

The word “older” in the data sheet is not tied to a model year, so the API classification itself is the guide. API treats SF and CD as obsolete classes: the first, it warns, is not suitable for most petrol car engines made after 1988 and may give insufficient protection against sludge build-up, the second for most diesels made after 1994. The article on API class SF explains what SF added over SE and which earlier classes it could replace.

If the engine documentation says API SN or ACEA A3/B3, this oil does not have those classes. At the same 15W-40, Motor Oil SL 15W-40 does, and also claims compliance with MB 229.1, VW 501.01 and VW 505.00, although its data sheet lists no approvals; sulphated ash is 1.1 % against 0.66 %, and its base number 9.5 mg KOH/g against 8.5. Both have a pour point of -36 °C, but that is not the limit for cold starting: the data sheets give the CCS cold-cranking viscosity at -20 °C as 3,780 mPa·s for the SF version and 3,380 for the SL, while the SAE J300 limit for 15W at that temperature is 7,000 mPa·s.