Big Box Botch-up or Why You Need OEM Marine Lubricants

diy-electrical-oem_lubricants-small

diy-electrical-oem_lubricants-largeFar too many people do this in the spring; drop into the nearest big box store and grab a season’s supply of universal, discount-priced 2-stroke oil, car oil for their 4-stroke outboard and inboard engines and maybe some all-purpose grease for their cables and steering gear.

The high school kid at the bog box store may or may not know anything about boats and marine engines but unless that store specially stocks (and you are clever enough to buy) genuine OEM marine lubricants, your engine can suffer.

We spoke to two of the industry’s top tech people: Steve Auger at Mercury Marine and Rob Bradley at Yamaha Canada.

“Your car engine rarely reaches maximum RPM even for a few seconds,” Steve Auger pointed out, “but your boat engine often runs at or near top speed – sometimes for long periods of time. The big box stores generally stock automotive products – a totally different application. Mercury sells Mercury and Quicksilver lubricants, specifically developed and tested to protect your Mercury engine and these meet all warranty requirements.”

The National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA) and the marine engine manufacturers have established and rigidly adhere to testing criteria for marine lubricants. For example, the tests for 2-stroke oils and 4-stroke oils include bench tests for viscosity, corrosion, filter plugging, foaming and aeration. NMMA spec oil must successfully pass a 100-hour general performance engine test as well.

FC-W™ lubricants have demonstrated the necessary performance and quality needed in marine high performance 4-stroke engines. These formulations can mean significantly reduced emissions to satisfy EPA requirements, meet warranty requirements and generally deliver increased customer satisfaction due to engines lasting longer with less maintenance and repair.

TC-W3® lubricants for 2-stroke outboards now have to go a step further, because new 2-stroke engines have moved towards higher cylinder temperatures and compression as part of meeting the EPA emissions reductions.

TC-W3® tests include varied bench tests for fluidity, lubricity, viscosity, etc., plus the oil must meet minimum, ring-sticking and carbon build-up on pistons in engine tests. The tests are run for 100 hours each and the engines are stopped every ten hours for inspection. The chemical make-up of the TC-W3® oils vary due to the various additive packages involved with each oil brand. Accordingly, it’s a performance-based qualifications program. The testing process is comprehensive and expensive, but worth the outcome for consumers and manufacturers.

Rob Bradley at Yamaha pointed out that, “Resistance to foaming and the aspect of fuel dilution are marine-specific considerations. When the new high performance 4-stroke engines are cold, the burn is not as complete and gas can dilute the oil. We control for that and test for a salt fog condition, too. Our Yamalube products are formulated to resist shear for wear protection; they have special corrosion inhibitors. You can’t be sure your engine is getting that protection from big box price point products.”

So, the conclusion is clear. Go to your Mercury, Yamaha, Suzuki, Honda or BRP dealer and buy the OEM factory lubricants. The price difference for the season could be as little as $20 to protect what could easily be a $10,000 engine.

Related Articles

Avoid Breakdowns and Expenses

Avoid Breakdowns and Expenses

Create a Custom Checklist for Your Boat

Almost every boat in Canada gets “winterized” in the fall and “summerized” in the spring. Here is an easy way to make sure it’s always done properly, to avoid breakdowns and expenses.

We suggest that you invest in about two hours of time from the marine technician at your dealership and together, create a winterizing and summerizing checklist.

Staying Warm or Keeping Cool

Staying Warm or Keeping Cool

Heating and cooling systems add immensely to cruising comfort, whether you boat in cool shoulder seasons or contend with hot, muggy summers. Most boaters learn quickly that extending their season is ideal – Canadian summers are so short, whether you’re on the west coast or the Great Lakes. In central areas, summer is short but it can be hot and humid, and winter is too cold for much cruising in all parts of Canada. Extending into spring and fall makes boating so much more enjoyable, to say nothing of helping justify the costs.

Reducing Engine Noise

Reducing Engine Noise

A quiet boat is a good boat. “Quiet” says well engineered, solidly built, comfortable to ride in…new. New boats are quiet. Old ones are noisy – power or sail. Why is that? In a recent technical presentation, we learned that the life expectancy of the sound absorbing materials in most new boats is about 10 years.

Video Gallery

Pursuit S268 Sport CC

By Andy Adams

The Pursuit S 268 Sport centre console is a do-it-all kind of boat with a solid sense of style. Centre console designs have been developed for the southern blue water sport fishing enthusiasts (and this boat would raise fish with the best of them) but the Pursuit S 268 Sport centre console offers far more utility and enjoyment than just fishing.

Read More

Destinations

Bayfield Marine Turns 40 with Big April Events

(l to r) Holly, Adam, Pat, Ron, Shelley

Ron and Pat Reder started out in October 1984 across the road from where they are right now on the Bayfield River in Bayfield ON. The store front was about 10 x 20 and the rest of that side of the building was a stock room, wood finishing room, then behind that was more back stock and the lunchroom. Expanding every few years for the store front, then moving over to this new building five years ago, this year with Adam, Shelley, and Holly are carrying on the business.

Read More

Lifestyle