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The Ultimate Lubricant Test
The 74-day Ferrari 'Magic India Discovery' Tour reached its conclusion at the famous Gateway of India in Mumbai. During the trip, two Ferrari 612 Scaglietti, one red, the other ivory, both sporting a specially designed livery, travelled over 13,000 kilometres and visited 57 cities - all without an oil change. At the end of the tour, Shell sent samples of the used Shell Helix Ultra motor oil for analysis.
74 days, 13,000 kilometres, 57 cities, all without an oil change
Ferrari Technicians with the 612 Scaglietti
Lubricant is the lifeblood of the engine. Its job is to help keep the components clean, protect the moving parts from mechanical wear, reduce friction and power loss and cool the engine. Shell Helix Ultra also contains active cleansing agents to help prevent dirt build-up and ensure optimal performance.
The Ferrari 'Magic India Discovery' Tour provided Shell with a unique opportunity to put Shell Helix Ultra 5W40 to the ultimate test.
Ferrari Technicians taking an oil sample.
In order to do this Ferrari deliberately chose to leave the oil unchanged whilst the cars experienced very harsh driving conditions, including dust, temperatures above 45°C and slow speeds due to unsealed roads and the multitude of traffic.
The Ferrari 612 Scaglietti owner’s manual recommends that the first oil change take place after 10,000 kilometres or one year. In the build-up to the Ferrari 'Magic India Discovery' Tour, the two Ferrari 612 Scaglietti completed around 5,000 kilometres in pre-testing and preparation, which when added to the tour distance, is a total of 18,000 kilometres. In normal driving conditions, the two cars would be coming up on their second recommended oil change.
“In collaboration with Shell, we made a deliberate decision not change the oil within our recommended timeframe,” explained Ferrari engineer Andrea Costantini. “We knew that this would give us the chance to test and evaluate the engine in the tough conditions of India. We have been working with Shell for many years, and we trust them, so we knew that the oil would not let us down on tour.”
Oil sample from a Ferrari 612 Scaglietti
Once the cars had completed their gruelling journey, the Shell Helix samples were taken from the Ferrari engines and sent back to Shell’s facility in Chester, UK for analysis. The results from the laboratory’s detailed analysis – which tested the viscosity, the level of acidic combustion products, the wear related elements and additive elements of the Shell Helix – proved very exciting for Shell. The data confirmed that despite the challenging conditions, the oil had performed - and continued to perform - remarkably well.
Mark Wakem, Shell Lubricants Development Project Leader for Ferrari explained at the time: “What immediately stands out is that the analysis results for both 612 Scaglietti are almost exactly the same. This is fascinating, because it is very rare. Despite the two cars having made the same journey, normally you must still allow for variations in engine manufacture. What we can assume here is that Ferrari’s precise approach to engine building means they have truly created identical twins. It also clearly demonstrates the consistency of the Shell Helix Ultra oil, across two different vehicles.”
The Ferrari technicians had checked the oil carefully on a daily basis throughout the entire tour, to monitor the health of the engine and they were very pleased with its performance.
“We did not have a single engine concern during the tour,” Costantini continued. “These results from the laboratory are very interesting, because they show that the Shell Helix Ultra motor oil was working perfectly, but they also show how well the Ferrari engines performed under very tough conditions. This was the aim of the Ferrari ‘Magic India Discovery’ Tour - we wanted to show that a Ferrari can handle any challenge.”