Only products with current API licenses are allowed to use the donut and starburst logos, which are protected trademarks, he emphasized. There are nearly 650 licensed oil marketers, 45 percent of which are based in North America. The share based in Asia has been booming though, and is approaching 40 percent.

Ferrick, who manages the engine oil licensing system from API headquarters in Washington, D.C., also outlined efforts to ensure that oils in the marketplace are properly labeled and deliver the promised quality for consumers, and he eyed the possible timeline for introducing the next engine oil upgrades.

All license renewals must be completed by March 31 using APIs dedicated engine oil website, he explained. All companies that hold a license, or their oil supplier, will need to confirm data about their products, brands, the API categories met, contact information and other details, and enter the number of gallons they sold in the prior year.

Licensees are also responsible for all testing necessary to prove compliance with APIs Engine Oil Licensing and Certification System, he said.

Licensees pay a flat fee each year of $3,000 per company, not per product. A licensed company then can include any number of products under that approval.

Those renewing their licenses also pay an additional fee of $0.005 (one-half cent) per gallon of their total licensed product sold in the prior year, after the first million gallons. API member companies pay the same fees as nonmembers. Once payment is confirmed, the renewed license will be valid through March 31, 2016.

For 20 years, license renewals involved a paper-based application system. Oil marketers had to fill in six separate forms and API itself had to enter the data, which led to errors and delays and also made updates difficult.

Since last year renewals have all been managed online, and the data is entered and updated directly by licensees themselves, for increased accuracy and control. The secure, password-protected site for licensees is https://engineoil.api.org/Account

Manager/WelcomeMarketer.

We no long accept paper-based applications, Ferrick said in New Jersey. We did receive a few of those and we sent them back to the applicants and told them to do it online. He believes this advance has made it far easier for companies to join the system, as shown by a 20 percent increase in the ranks of licensees since the online system was adopted. It is more real-time and effective, he added.

All products holding a current API license are listed in a searchable database at https://engineoil.api.org/ Directory/EolcsSearch. Marketers and purchasers worldwide can check the database to see if an oil claiming to meet API standards has actually joined the system and is entitled to display its trademarks. For information about the EOLCS system, email ferrick@api.org.

API further protects the donut and starburst marks by monitoring the quality of oils sold in the marketplace. Launched 20 years ago, the Aftermarket Audit Program collects samples of passenger car and heavy-duty engine oils globally, based on a randomly generated blind list of licensed oils.

At one time, API targeted about 600 samples a year, but this number has been rising. In 2012, 776 samples were gathered while in 2013, the latest year for which testing data is available, a total of 916 samples were collected worldwide. They included 723 products packaged in bottles and 193 gathered from bulk dispensing tanks. Eighty-five percent were drawn from the United States and Canada, and the rest from Central and South America, Europe, Middle East and Asia.

Each sample was blind-coded and tested at Southwest Research Institute, an independent laboratory in San Antonio, Texas, for properties such as viscosity, volatility, shear stability, total base number, additive elements, pumpability and others. Products that fail testing face cancellation of their license if the problem is not addressed and corrected.

Ferrick reviewed the 2013 audit results in Dubai, at the ICIS Middle East Base Oils conference in October. In the United States and Canada, the samples of motor oil sold in bottles had fewer issues than those drawn from bulk tanks, API found. In fact, the difference was stark:

On the light-duty side, 412 bottles of API S category motor oils were tested and 76 percent were found to be in full conformance with API standards; another 6 percent were conforming but had paperwork issues. A scant 0.5 percent had additive deficiencies. However, 13 percent of the U.S. and Canadian samples did contain questionable additives, and 5 percent had problems passing one or more bench tests for physical or chemical properties.

Bulk oils were another story. Of the 152 light-duty oils sampled from U.S. and Canadian bulk tanks in 2013, 50 percent failed to conform to API license requirements for the S category claimed. Twelve percent had paperwork issues, and a whopping 28 percent were found to be formulated with questionable additives. Nine percent failed bench tests, and 5 percent had additive deficiencies. Some oils failed for more than one parameter.

On the heavy-duty side, the 2013 sample set included 75 products sold in bottles, 77 percent of which were conforming. Nine percent of these API C category oils had paperwork issues, and 11 percent had additive deficiencies. Only 3 percent failed due to a physical property or bench test issue.

Fourteen bulk heavy-duty oils were tested, with less impressive results. While 57 percent were fully conforming and 21 percent were OK except for paperwork issues, 21 percent contained questionable additives.

API has seen a worrisome spike in bulk oil deficiencies in recent years. In 2008, 9 percent of bulk oils had quality problems, but the following year 18 percent – twice as many – were found wanting. In 2013, 16 percent had quality issues.

This disturbing trend means that brands are being misrepresented, customers are not getting what they expect, and reputations are being damaged, Ferrick indicated in Dubai. One response has been APIs Motor Oil Matters program, which sets uniform regulations for identifying bulk motor oils, and certifies oil distributors and oil change locations.

API also supported the adoption of new labeling guidelines published in Handbook 130 by the U.S. Conference on Weights and Measures, which has the force of law in many states. Adopted automatically by most state regulators, the guidelines require the brand, viscosity grade and API service category be shown on all motor oil invoices, bills of lading and bulk tanks.

API of course has been working on the upcoming engine oil upgrades for heavy-duty and light-duty vehicles, known respectively as PC-11 and ILSAC GF-6, Ferrick said in New Jersey. Its not usual for us to develop both diesel and gasoline engine oil categories at the same time, but this time we are.

Some progress is being seen: The new heavy-duty engine tests for PC-11 have been selected and are undergoing matrix testing now to show they can discern good oils from bad, and limits for existing tests are being established. Diesel engine manufacturers wanted API to start licensing this new oil by April 2016, but APIs Lubricants Group believes that it may need until February or March 2017 to get licensing under way.

The delay will have an impact as well on the introduction of the next light-duty category, proposed for June 2017. APIs Lubricants Group needs nine months from when the heavy-duty category is approved to when we can have first licensing for the new light-duty oils, Ferrick stressed. And no fixed date has been approved at this time. If PC-11 can debut in February 2017, maybe were looking at November 2017 for GF-6.

Whenever the oils are approved, Ferrick promised, we will undertake an education campaign for the public. Some of these oils are going to be very unique and the engine performance will depend on getting those oils.

Just remember that no one has agreed to any dates yet. Stay tuned for changes!