Lubricants industry leaders and major stakeholders gathered in March at Lubricant Expo 2026 to discuss challenges, opportunities, and the technology to move forward together. Here are my top takeaways for the passenger car industry.

By Greg Reynolds, Marketing Manager –Lubrizol Additives

My Top Four Takeaways from Lubricant Expo North America 2026

The lubricants industry has always been one built on collaboration—merging innovative new technologies with the right applications to enable greater protection, efficiency and longevity.

This was evident at this year’s Lubricant Expo 2026 North America. No matter your role, there were connections to make and insightful conversations to be had as the industry looks toward its shared future.

If you missed the show, I have you covered: Below are some of the biggest takeaways impacting the passenger car industry, including key industry challenges, opportunities, and the technologies required to build a successful future.

1. Additive Versatility

Procurement of high-quality base stocks has not always been the easiest job for lubricant marketers in recent years. With supply chains rocked by a global pandemic, ongoing supply hurdles, and other factors influencing the pricing and availability of raw materials, lubricant professionals have needed to stay nimble and versatile when sourcing raw materials. This was a driver for many conversations at Lubricant Expo North America.

All of which remains true as of 2026—making additive versatility a more important priority than ever.

In today’s marketplace, additive technology that maintains wide coverage among different base oils can enable you to remain agile, optimize costs, and take advantage of alternative raw materials supply channels when necessary.

2. Formulation Simplicity Amidst New Performance Requirements

The passenger car engine oils marketplace saw the introduction of ILSAC GF-7 just last year—yet already, conversations at Lubricant Expo North America had turned toward its eventual successor, ILSAC GF-8.

Category developers are eyeing a first license date in 2028, though meeting that goal depends on successful and timely development of new engine oil tests sometime this year. At any rate, GF-8 is expected to be a meaningful upgrade from GF-7, with a continued focus on fuel economy improvements, and oil marketers should already be thinking about the best strategies to upgrade their product portfolios.

GF-8 won’t be the only specification upgrade hitting the marketplace, either. GM’s dexos1™ Gen 4 specification is expected to see first license on a similar timeline, with additional performance requirements that go beyond those expected in GF-8. Meanwhile, the American Petroleum Institute (API) recently proposed the development of a new performance specification specifically catering to hybrids. Engine oils meeting such a specification would deliver elevated performance in certain areas—including low-temperature wear protection, emulsion retention, and more—compared with conventional engine oils.

Lubricant Expo Recap: Enabling Progress with Additives