REGULATION
Managing Risk, Ensuring Compliance with the ACEA European Engine Oil Sequences
David Wright, ATIEL QMS Chair
Engine lubricants perform a vital function by protecting moving parts, reducing wear & tear, limiting harmful exhaust emissions and supporting vehicle performance & fuel economy.
These types of lubricants comprised of complex chemistries have been developed and thoroughly tested to ensure they provide adequate protection and prolong the life of the vehicle.
Using an engine lubricant that is not intended for use in a specific vehicle, or which does not use the correct underpinning technology, can cause accelerated wear to moving parts, risk an increase in harmful exhaust emissions, lead to lower performance & poorer fuel economy or, in extreme circumstances, catastrophic engine failure.
The engine oil sequences of ACEA, the European association of vehicle manufacturers, are a set of market standards against which Lubricant Marketers can make performance claims. The use of such claims against these sequences are not mandatory but if they are made, then Lubricant Marketers must follow the European Engine Lubricant Quality Management System (EELQMS), developed by ATIEL jointly with ACEA the European association of major motor manufacturers, and ATC, the Additive Technical Committee.
Why the ACEA claim is important These claims form a baseline performance requirement for many OEM specifications and are often cited in vehicle handbooks as a secondary option when the OEM specified lubricant is not available.
44 LUBE MAGAZINE NO.176 AUGUST 2023
Claims made by Lubricant Marketers against the ACEA engine oil sequences are self-certifying. Lubricant Marketers must ensure the correct underpinning technology is used in any finished lubricant formulation to assure the end user that any performance claims made can be fully achieved, documented and supported by with the right technical evidence.
Lubricant Marketers are responsible for the integrity of the finished lubricant during the entire supply chain. They will specify the requirement to develop a particular engine lubricant, work with their technology provider, or additive company, and base stock manufacturer to develop the lubricant before marketing the product to end users.
It is therefore essential that any self-certifying claims made against the ACEA engine oil sequences are fully supported by the technology provider and these can be evidenced within an auditable quality management system.
Risk Matrix
Engine lubricants with claims against ACEA engine oil sequences usually fall into one of two categories. Engine oil either meets the relevant ACEA engine oil sequences that are claimed, or it doesn’t - there is no conditional compliance permissible under the sequences, claims must be met in full.
Performance claims that are fully supported by the technology provider, using a valid additive package at the correct treat rate with approved base stocks to the required quantities, as documented within
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