API SN Category

The API Lubricants Group finalized the user language and test requirements for both API
SN and its supplemental category - Resource Conserving. This new supplemental
category expands the previous Energy Conserving supplemental category (which
provided only fuel economy claims) by also adding greater emission system protection,
turbocharger protection, and enabling engines to operate on ethanol-containing fuels up
to E85. API SN, when licensed with Resource Conserving, is equivalent to ILSAC GF-5.

The first allowable license date for API SN coincides with the ILSAC GF-5 first license
date of October 1, 2010.

Examples of both the API SN only and the API SN Resource Conserving Service Symbol
donuts are shown below

More information on the API SN specification and its comparison to API SN Resource
Conserving and ILSAC GF-5 is provided. Below are a few of the key comparisons:

API SN with Resource Conserving is equivalent to ILSAC GF-5. In contrast,

API SN does NOT require
 Sequence VID Fuel Economy
 Sequence IIIGB Phosphorous Retention
 TEOST 33C
 Emulsion Retention
Other requirements for API SN only depend on the viscosity grade to be licensed

To compare API SN, API SN with Resource Conserving and GF-5 please see below
API SN, SN with Resource Conserving vs ILSAC GF-5
• All performance requirements same as ILSAC GF-5,
except as shown. NR = Not Required
API SN, SN with Resource Conserving versus ILSAC GF-5

API SN API SN with Resource

ILSAC GF-5
Conserving
0W-20, 0W-30,
0W, 5W, 10W 0W, 5W, 10W
Viscosity Grades 5W-20, 5W-30, Others
multigrades multigrades
10W-30
Seq. VID Pass NR NR Pass
Seq. IIIGA or ROBO Pass (all 0W-XX, 5W-XX, 10W-XX) NR Pass
Seq. IIIGB Phosphorus Retention, % 79 NR NR 79
Phosphorus, % max/min* 0.08 / 0.06 NR / 0.06 0.08 / 0.06
Sulfur, % max*
0W-20, 0W-30, 5W-20, 5W-30 0.5 NR 0.5
10W-30 0.6 NR 0.6
All other viscosity grades -- NR 0.6
TEOST MHT* 35 45 35
TEOST 33C 30 (NR for 0W-20) NR 30 (NR for 0W-20)
10 min.
Foam 1 min. settling settling 1 min. settling
Scanning Brookfield, Gelation Index, max 12 NR 12
No Water
Emulsion Retention NR No Water Separation
Separation
Seals Per GF-5 Limits