Efficiency Benefits - Driveline Applications

Lubrizol’s Asteric™ VMs Enable High VI Fluids

Vehicle and equipment manufacturers, along with consumers, are demanding higher efficiency lubricants that save energy, protect equipment better and last longer. Lubricant marketers strive to address these needs with differentiated products that offer more value for their customers.

The Impact of Viscosity Index on Driveline Components

Using higher viscosity index (VI) fluids represents one approach to increasing the efficiency and performance of automatic transmissions, continuously variable transmissions and manual transmissions. Higher VI fluids are more fluid at low and normal operating temperatures, so churning loss is reduced in transmissions. High VI fluids also retain viscosity better at higher temperatures to provide better component durability and maintain efficiency.

This graph illustrates the effect of Viscosity Index on the lubricant's viscosity at low and high temperatures.

Lubrizol has conducted efficiency and fuel economy studies on high VI transmission lubricants containing Asteric VMs.

Two transmission fluids were tested on a transmission efficiency rig. The viscosity characteristics are shown below. The high VI fluid contained Asteric VM. The results for transmission efficiency vs. fluid temperature are also shown below. Under all speed/load combinations, the high VI fluid containing Asteric VM gave 3-4% greater efficiency on average.

Viscosity Characteristics of Conventional and High VI Fluids Used in Friction Torque Tester (FTT) and For F-150 Tests.

Transmission efficiency results from friction torque test rig. A 3-4% efficiency improvement was measured under cold conditions.

A Ford F-150 truck was run on a chassis dynamometer according to the US EPA FTP-75 cold temperature procedure using the same two fluids from the efficiency rig study. The results are shown below. The high VI transmission fluid containing Asteric VM had a 0.11 MPG or 0.8% increase in comp0osite vehicle fuel economy as compared toe the lower VI fluid.

F-150 Composite Federal Test Procedure (FTP) Fuel Economy. Overall improvement of 0.11 mpg (0.8%)Statistically significant difference at the 95% confidence level.

In summary, high VI fluids containing Lubrizol’s Asteric VMs demonstrated better efficiency and fuel economy in both rig tests and in actual vehicle tests.