Warren Oil is a leading independent lubricant marketer in the US. It markets its lubricants, both conventional and synthetic, domestically and internationally, under the WARREN OIL® brand, the LUBRIGARD® brand, the ITASCA® brand, and the COASTAL® brand. In addition to manufacturing and marketing a full line of automotive and heavy duty chemicals, including anti-freeze and brake fluids, under its proprietary AUTOGUARD® brand name.  Warren Oil also manufactures and markets private label products for a number of Fortune 500 companies.  

For those that may have missed it in the June 7th issue of JobbersWorld, Valvoline does not plan to officially license General Motor's dexos1 and dexos2 trademarks.

Valvoline advised its marketers as follows:

"As some of you may be aware, General Motors ("GM") has decided not to join the rest of the industry in taking advantage of the benefits of GF-5. Instead GM has decided to introduce two new specifications of their own; dexos1™ for gasoline engines in North America and dexos2™ for both gasoline and diesel engines in Europe. These specifications will be GM's primary recommendation for all 2011 model year vehicles. GM will also be parting from Industry practice in charging a very significant royalty for licensing the dexos1™ or dexos2™ oils.

Valvoline is pleased to announce that its SynPower MST 5W-30 which we have marketed for several years already meets all the requirements of dexos2™ and can be used in all GM passenger car gasoline and diesel vehicles. We will also introduce a product that meets the dexos1™ specification for gasoline-only vehicles during the Fall of this year. However, Valvoline does not plan to officially license dexos™ for these products in order to minimize the cost impact to customers who would be replacing GF-4 motor oils with dexos™ motor oils. As always, Valvoline stands behind all of its products. Use of appropriate Valvoline products for GM vehicles will NOT void the vehicle's warranty."

Valvoline's announcement that it is saying no to officially licensing General Motor's dexos1 and dexos2 trademarks has many now asking, who will be next? Will other majors follow Valvoline's lead and decide not to officially license dexos? And if they do, does this effectively spell the beginning of the end for General Motors dexos trademark?

In addition, some say unless GM is willing to give lubricant away for free, Valvoline is on solid ground when it says, "Use of appropriate Valvoline products for GM vehicles will NOT void the vehicle's warranty." This is because the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act prohibits OEMs by law from requiring the exclusive use of  OEM service parts, including oil and filters - unless they provide the products for free.

In JobbersWorld's view, Valvoline has taken a bold step by effectively standing up to GM. It will be interesting to see what happens next.  
 

 

ConocoPhillips today announced the introduction of a next generation, premium low ash natural gas engine oil, EL MAR® LA4EXD, and the addition of a mainline low ash product, EL MAR LOW ASH, to its line of Conoco® natural gas engine oil offerings. 

Formulated to meet the increased performance demands of today's high-output natural gas engines, the new Conoco oils are designed to help natural gas industry operators increase productivity by enabling their engines to operate smoothly at maximum efficiency, protecting the hardware, and minimizing down time, while also improving the bottom line by reducing operational expenses.

"At ConocoPhillips Lubricants, we understand the challenges of keeping natural gas engines operating at peak condition under the most demanding circumstances. Operators who use our new EL MAR LA4 EXD formulation stand to benefit from enhancements in wear reduction, engine parts cleanliness, valve recession control and ability for extending oil drain service," said Reginald Dias, director, Commercial Products, ConocoPhillips. "In fact, both the EL MAR LA4EXD and the EL MAR LOW ASH have passed extensive field tests, and performed extremely well under the most severe conditions, ultimately keeping engines clean and running at optimal levels."
 

The Association of Independent Oil Distributors (AIOD) announced this month its launch of the Purus Assurance System, a fluid analysis program administered by POLARIS Laboratories™ to support AIOD's newest brand, Purus. The Purus Assurance System offers easy to use oil, fuel and coolant test kits, fast test results and easy-to-access equipment sampling histories and secure, paperless reporting.

According to AIOD Executive Director Doug Roberts, the Purus Assurance System allows the Purus distributors' customers to identify minor equipment problems before they become major failures. "By identifying dirt, wear particles and other contaminants that can cause failure or prematurely shorten equipment life, users can increase equipment reliability and minimize downtime."

 

Bryan Debshaw, POLARIS Laboratories™ CEO, said Purus Assurance supports customer support goals both companies share. "We both work to provide our customers with something more than the products we sell," Debshaw said. "Value-added services, like fluid analysis, demonstrate our commitment and concern for their success. And the key to successful fluid analysis is utilizing the data to reduce downtime, improve reliability and increase profitability."