The American Petroleum Institute (API) has licensed approximately 400 CK-4 and more than 60 FA-4 oils submitted by large, medium, and small oil marketers.
API says it expects availability to grow substantially over the next few years as more oil marketers add oils meeting the new standards to their product lines to address the needs of a variety of engine technologies–new and old, and in use both on- and off-highway.
“New API CK-4 and FA-4 oils should be readily available in bulk through diesel oil distributors for trucking fleets and other operators of diesel vehicles,” says Kevin Ferrick, Senior Manager of API’s Engine Oil Licensing and Certification System (EOLCS). “They are also available in packages through local retailers.”
API CK-4 oils are intended for diesel-powered engines previously using API CJ-4 oils, and API FA-4 oils are intended for newer engines, typically 2017 model-year engines and beyond. The upgraded API CK-4 and FA-4 oil specifications have been eligible for licensing since December 1, 2016 and the new oil products also help diesel engine manufacturers meet more stringent emissions requirements.
API CK-4 oils are backward-compatible, meaning they are designed to be used in engines where API CJ-4 engine oils have been previously recommended. CK-4’s introduction is long overdue, according to API, as CJ-4 oils have been in the market for more than 10 years. CK-4’s long-overdue introduction provides a number of improvements over CJ-4 including improved shear stability, oxidation resistance, and aeration control as well as protection against catalyst poisoning, particulate filter blocking, engine wear, piston deposits, degradation of low- and high-temperature properties, and soot-related viscosity increase.
FA-4 oils provide similar improvements over CJ-4 oils, but it is important to note that FA-4 oils are only intended for use in newer on-highway diesel engines. The API FA-4 oil standard was developed specifically to provide engine manufacturers with a tool for meeting more stringent greenhouse gas emission standards.
API has also developed a different API Service Symbol “Donut” for API FA-4 so that consumers can easily distinguish between CK-4 and FA-4. The new API FA-4 Donut features a shaded section (either black or color) to differentiate FA-4 oils from CK-4 oils. The CK-4 Donut looks the same as the CJ-4 Donut.
