At its January meeting, the committee dug into the technical rationale for the category upgrade (the needs statement); heard progress reports from task forces dealing with its knottiest issues; and discussed what engine sequence tests GF-5 oils may require.

The statement justifying the need to go forward with GF-5 is not at issue. Hannah Murray of Toyota Motors reported that the needs statement lists three major objectives:

? Increased fuel economy, and improvement in both fuel economy improvement retention and durability throughout the oil change interval, relative to current GF-4 oils.

? Enhanced oil robustness during high-temperature, high-load operation, to improve engine and piston ring cleanliness while maintaining nitration and oxidation control.

? Chemical limits ensuring protection of emission system components to meet stringent federal and California regulations.

Murray noted that these goals had been modified to incorporate industry comments regarding the need for timely development of new tests, and for assurance of sufficient engine oil aeration properties in light of modern valvetrain control systems.

Task Force Actions
The meeting heard updates from three task forces. One, the Fuel Economy Engine Test Task Force, is working to design a new engine test, the Sequence VID (six-D) to measure fuel economy; its progress was covered in last weeks Lube Report. (See Who Will Pay for Fuel Economy Testing?)

Then theres the similarly named Fuel Economy Task Force, which is working to gather current fuel economy data on engine oils in the field. This data will be useful also in developing the Sequence VID.

Jim Linden of General Motors reported that fuel economy testing was under way at his companys Milford Proving Grounds, following Federal Test Procedures (FTP) and using a matrix of 10 oils. All four vehicles for the test – a Pontiac G6, Chevrolet SSR, Saab 9-5 and Buick LaCrosse – are 2006 models, and are now in place, as are the oils for the test.

The FTP puts the cars through simulated city and highway conditions, measuring the fuel efficiency improvement of the matrix oils at 2,000 and 6,500 miles, compared to that of an SAE 10W-30 reference oil. Preliminary results on the first of the 10 oils, a 5W-20 multigrade, showed good repeatability, Linden indicated. It showed that the viscosity effect is substantial and that there is a slight improvement with friction modified oil over non-friction modified oil. Also, at 6,500 miles the 5W-20 oil showed no reduction in the viscosity benefit compared to that seen at 2,000 miles.

This first four-car test included a Cadillac DHS, but the LaCrosse will take its place in future tests because the LaCrosse has the same engine (a 3.6-liter, V-6) as GM offered for the Sequence VID test development program. Having the same engine in both the VID program and the FTP database was a useful approach.

The cost to GM for the FTP fuel economy testing will be in the $2 million range. Charlie Sherwood of Ford reported that his company is also planning an FTP fuel economy test, with one car, at a cost of about $1 million. Additional FTP tests may be carried out by DaimlerChrysler and Japanese automakers.

ILSAC/Oils third task force is the Emissions System Compatibility Improvement Team, charged with evaluating methods to determine the impact of GF-5 oils on emissions systems function and durability. Their goal is to measure the impact of phosphorus and sulfur – antiwear agents that are considered damaging to emission systems – on catalysts and oxygen sensors. Physical, bench, field and engine tests will be investigated as an alternative to simply limiting these chemicals, and a report is due to ILSAC/Oil by Jan 1, 2007.

Last year, some concern was expressed whether there was sufficient time to complete this work by January 2007, and whether a test could be ever be developed that would give auto manufacturers sufficient comfort for them to lift the chemical limit on phosphorus or sulfur. But data collection is underway and will be presented for the team to evaluate at its meeting later this week.

Fords Sherwood, who had chaired the team, announced that increases in workload had forced him to give up the chairmanship; however, he will remain as co-chair with DaimlerChryslers Chris Engel.

New Engine Sequence Tests
The Jan. 11 meeting heard of three new engine sequence tests that are expected to be part of the GF-5 test battery. First, the GF-4 Sequence IIIG, which measures high-temperature deposits, wear and oxidation, will be replaced with the IIIH, which will measure high-temperature deposits and oxidation.

Second, an aeration test was discussed. Rather than developing a new test, the committee is looking into the possibility of incorporating a European test into the battery, or including the Navistar HEUI Engine Oil Aeration Test (EOAT), currently a heavy-duty diesel oil test.

Finally, an engine test focusing on chain wear has been a goal of Japanese automakers for some time. Toyotas Murray reported that the Japanese Automobile Manufacturers Association is no longer pursuing a chain-wear test but is still pushing for a soot-induced wear test. The GM Roller Follower Wear Test is a possible substitute for the dropped chain-wear test.

Murray also reviewed issues associated with inclusion of a Japanese or European test in GF-5. The American Chemistry Council, which governs U.S. engine testing, asserts that any non-U.S. test must meet the special requirements of ASTM, which often requires modification of the test and test procedures. That is what happened with the Nissan KA24E valvetrain wear test that was accepted into the GF-3 oil specification; it became the Sequence IVA in March 1999. But it took more than three years to reconfigure the test to correlate with Sequence VE wear results and to ensure that the test provided acceptable precision and discrimination. The precision testing matrix of 36 tests alone cost almost $500,000. The Sequence IVA will be included in the GF-5 test battery.

GF-5s Timeline
Ben Weber of Southwest Research Institute presented the current GF-5 timeline. Completion of all tests is scheduled for the first quarter of 2007, he said, with precision matrices run during the second and third quarters, and final acceptance of all ASTM tests into the new category by the end of 2007.

A technology demonstration period is slated for the first two quarters of 2008, he continued, followed in the third quarter by ILSAC/Oils approval of GF-5s tests and limits. When final approvals are completed, the clock can start running on APIs mandatory nine-month waiting period before it will start licensing the oils for market introduction. Thats currently scheduled on or about July 1, 2009 – just before most 2010 model year vehicles are introduced.

ILSAC/Oils next meeting will be April 12.