Jim Gambill, North American industrial and commerical brand manager for Chevron says its new heavy-duty, 5w/30 engine oil is a bit ahead of the curve. That’s because truck fleets are only now beginning to experiment with using lighter viscosity motor oils to enhance fuel economy. To that end, Gambill says Chevron’s new  Delo 400LE 5W/30 full synthetic was designed to help fleets manage inventory costs by covering a wider array of engine options as well extend exhaust aftertreatment.

Delo 400LE carries a gasoline engine rating, so fleets will be able to use it in a wider array of vehicle and get a better handle on inventory control. Additionally, Gambill says the new oil has excellent low temperature performance, validated down to -56 degrees Fahrenheit.

Fuel economy, however, is the main focus for the new oil, and Gambill says that in J1321 track testing it delivered fuel economy boosts of up to 4.5 percent in both Class 6 and Class 8 vehicles.

The oil is a full synthetic product, so Gambill notes that it is more expensive than conventional blends. But, be notes that applying its fuel saving characteristics across an entire fleet of Class 8 tractors could yield savings of up to $90,000 a year. To that end, Chevron has put a new cost calculator on its website that allows fleet manager to plug in various operating variables to see for themselves potential fuel savings.

Additionally, Gambill says Delo 400LE can reduce CO2 emissions by as much as 8,000 pounds per year with the follow-on benefit of increasing SCR and DPF life because a smaller amount of pollutants flow through those systems during that time.

Gambill says the new 5W/30 oil joins Chevron’s heavy-duty 10W/30 and Natural Gas lubrication products to round out an entire product line built around fuel economy.