Type of engine for which the oil is designed. If compatibility with your type of engine is not directly indicated in the oil specifications, you should not use this brand. The fact is that all types of modern engines have their own characteristics, and a lubricant not designed for these features can increase wear, reduce power, or even lead to breakdown. Modern oils can be produced for the following options:
—
Petrol. A four-stroke internal combustion engine (ICE) running on gasoline is implied. The main type of motor for modern passenger cars, it is also quite common in medium and high power motorcycles.
—
Diesel. ICE on diesel fuel.
—
Gas-gasoline. Petrol engine (see above), supplemented by gas-balloon equipment and capable of using natural gas as fuel. One of the main features of working on gas is the high operating temperature.
—
Hybrid. Most often, hybrid cars combine a gasoline or diesel engine with an electric motor and can be powered by either one or the other. Both the design of the "hybrids" themselves and their engines can have significant differences from classic cars.
—
2-stroke. Two-stroke internal combustion engines are widely used in motorcycles — in particular, almost all scooters, many entry-level and mid-level motorcycles, as well as tools l
...ike chainsaws, are equipped with such engines. Their main feature is the use of a fuel-oil mixture instead of a separate filling of gasoline and oil.
There are brands of oil that are compatible with several types of engines at once.International standards, compliance with which is stated in the characteristics of this brand of oil. In modern brands of oil the following options may be found:
— API is a standard developed in the USA by the American Petroleum Institute. Provides two separate classifications - for gasoline (
API SG,
SH,
SJ,
SL,
SM,
SN,
SN Plus) and for diesel engines (
API CI-4,
CH-4,
CG-4,
CF,
CE,
CD); in the first case, the first letter in the standard designation is S (for example, API SL), in the second it is C (for example, API CI-4). If the oil is suitable for both types of engines, a double designation is used - for example, API SL/CI-4; in this case, the index of the type for which the oil is best suited is put first (in our example, this is gasoline). The standard also includes the classification of two-stroke engines - TA, TB,
TC,
TC+,
TD.
— ACEA is a standard used by the association of European automakers of the same name,
...an alternative to the American API. Includes three classes: A/B - all oils developed before 2004 for different types of engines. Actually, until 2004 there were two classes here - A for gasoline engines and B for diesel engines; then they were combined ( A1/B1, A3/B3, A3/B4 and A5/B5). However, separate designations can still be used. C - oils for all types of engines, meeting the Euro-4 environmental standard and compatible with additional equipment such as catalysts and particulate filters. APEA C1, C2, C3, C4 and C5 occur. E - a separate class for diesel engines of heavy equipment, including special ones. It is marked APEA E4, E6, E7 and E9.
— JASO — developed by the Japanese Auto Standards Association. It is one of the main modern standards for oils for gasoline motorcycle engines, within this purpose it has two classes - F for two-stroke engines, namely FA, FB, FC, FD and M for four-stroke (subclass MA for wet clutch MA-1 and MA -2, MB for dry). As well as a new GLV-1 approval for ultra-efficient gasoline engines and hybrid power plants.
— ILSAC is a standard created jointly by the American and Japanese Automobile Manufacturers Associations. Used for oils designed for passenger cars with gasoline engines. There are only five ILSAC categories ( GF-2, GF-3, GF-4, GF-5, GF-6A), in general they are similar to certain API categories (see above), but differ in increased requirements for energy saving and limitation of harmful emissions .
A list of specific oil standards recommended by the manufacturer for a particular engine is usually indicated in the official vehicle specifications. Note that many standards are interchangeable; compatibility data (as well as a description of each individual category) can be found in specialized sources.
