Chevron unveiled its new line of Delo 400 engine oils meeting the American Petroleum Institute’s new CK-4 and FA-4 heavy-duty diesel oil specifications, offering improvements in fuel economy and engine protection.

These new API specifications, which go into effect Dec. 1, were requested by engine makers to help them protect modern engines while improving fuel economy. FA-4 engine oils are designed to provide optimized fuel economy and protection for the newest engines. CK-4 engine oils are backward-compatible but provide better protection for current engines than the previous CJ-4 category.

Shawn Whitacre, Chevron senior staff engineer and chairman of the ASTM Heavy-Duty Engine Oil Classification Panel, called the rollout “one of the most significant new product introductions in our history, and the most extensive laboratory development program we’ve ever developed.

“On top of the very significant laboratory test program, we’ve added to what I would say is the most rigorous, varied and exhaustive field testing program we’ve ever undertaken.” The new oils have been testing in close to 500 Class 8 trucks, as well as a broad variety of off-highway equipment such as cement mixers, construction equipment, mining and agricultural equipment.

The oils feature what Chevron is calling Isosyn Advanced Technology, a combination of Chevron’t premium base oils, formulation expertise and additive chemistry. Officials note that Chevron is unusual in that it has its own company making the chemical additives necessary for engine oils today. (In fact, Chevron says, it was the first company to start adding chemicals to base oils back during WWII, allowing submarines to run longer between maintenance.)

Chevron says the Isosyn Advanced Technology enables increased durability, through better oxidation control, anti-wear protection and piston control, while extending drain intervals compared to API CJ-4 oils.

“We are seeing some of the longest drain intervals and best engine protection in our company history,” said Len Badal, global Delo brand manager.

The technology also enables the company to offer lower-viscosity oils for better fuel economy.

Badal pointed out that when the last oil category, CJ-4, was rolled out about 10 years ago, “We really only were worried about one viscosity grade, 15W-40. There was a little bit of 5W- 40 but that was a small part of the business. As you can see today we have a significantly wider range of products, and it’s getting bigger as new regulations come down, as we meet different customer applications.”

In fact, Chevron predicts by the time the next oil category comes around, we will see even lower viscosity products. “You’re going to hear things about 0W-20s and 5W-20s and 0W-16s that today are not in the language of HD engine operators,” Badal said.

As part of its product rollout, Chevron will launch an advisor service to help customers select the best products by assessing their business needs, analyzing their current lubricant choices and developing a customized action plan.

For fleets that buy new trucks factory-filled with FA-4 engines but don’t want to handle two oils, Chevron said, it’s OK to use a CK-4 (or even a CJ-4 while they are still available), but there likely will be a trade-off in fuel economy and extended oil drain intervals.

The 2017 Delo 400 Product Line

The new Delo 400 product line will be available in a variety of viscosities and will support both API CK-4 and FA-4 categories.

The first product to be available, starting in September, will be the Delo 400 XLE 10W-30 synthetic blend meeting API CK-4. It offers up to 1% fuel economy improvement for large trucks, deli says, and offers significant cost savings across entire fleets with maximum engine durability protection.

Delo 400 ZFA 10W-30 is the new oil meeting the FA-4 category. Chevron says this 10W-30 offers the best fuel efficiency of the 10W-30s in its product line, with a 20% improvement over CJ-4 10W-30. Even though no engine makers have yet approved FA-4 oils for older engines, Chevron says in its own testing, this oil has performed well in EPA 2010 and EPA 2013 engines.

Delo 400 XSP 5W-30 is a full synthetic meeting API CK-4. It offers up to a 2% fuel economy improvement for large trucks, excellent low-temperature performance, and the longest oil drain intervals in the Delo 400 lineup. It also can be used in a wide range of engines, from heavy-duty diesels to diesel Sprinter vans to gasoline vehicles.

Delo 400 XSP 5W-40 is a full synthetic meeting API CK-4. Chevron says it offers 20% better oil oxidation resistance, extreme cold pumpability, high temperature protection, and a 50% reduction in wear vs. CJ-4 products.

Delo 400 XLE 15W-40, a synthetic blend meeting API CK-4, offers up to 25% longer oil drain intervals over OEM published intervals, Chevron says. It features clean piston technology, meeting Mercedes Benz stringent MB228.51 piston cleanliness requirements.

Delo 400 SDE 15W-40 is a premium conventional base oil meeting API CK-4. Chevron says it offers 38% better wear performance vs. a CJ-4 15W-40, up to 20% increase in total diesel engine life to rebuild, and excellent engine cleanliness performance.

And depending on market demand, Chevron also has developed a ZFA 5W-30 full synthetic oil meeting FA-4.

Because there are two separate oil categories, Chevron has paid attention to packaging and labeling to help customers differentiate between them. Specially labeled caps color coordinated labels and caps (red for CK-4, yellow for FA-4) are designed to make it easy to differentiate. In addition, full synthetics will be in light gray bottle. synthetic blends in charcoal gray bottle, and a new pearlized blue will designate the premium conventional product.

For more information go to www.ChevronLubricants.com