VLS’ biennial industry lunch took place recently, as ever at London’s RAC club, the spiritual home of automotive gatherings. This year’s VLS lunch landed at just the right time to capitalise on a rare moment of general interest in the oil industry, what with prices rising due to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. ...

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The Verification of Lubricant Specifications (UK) (VLS) has closed the Silverhook investigations, VLS 010226 and VLS 010227, after the company took corrective action. In April 2025, VLS received a complaint about Silverhook Ultra-V 0W-30 PCEO. The case concerned the product’s compliance with SAE J300, which specifies for an SAE 0W-X grade, the Low Temperature Pumping ...

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2025 was another year of change in an increasingly complex oils and lubricants market, as VLS Chairman Darren Frogson explains to PMM. Not quite an ‘annus horribilis’, but 2025 certainly posed continued challenges for the automotive aftermarket, and particularly for engine oils and lubricants. These essential components of modern vehicles play a vital role in ...

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The VLS has launched an investigation and issued a warning about engine oils making claims against Stellantis specification used for Peugeot, Citroen, Fiat and Vauxhall models. The Verification of Lubricant Specifications, an independent and impartial body which investigates lubricant product complaints, has launched a widespread market investigation and issued a caution over engine oils making ...

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Many workshops are still unsure about oil specifications. It’s the VLS’ job to make sure that changes. Independent membership organisation the Verification of Lubricant Specifications, with the support of Comma Oil, surveyed the attitudes of UK workshops to engine oil by sending a web-based survey to over 12,000 UK workshop contacts by email. The results ...

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The Verification of Lubricant Specifications (VLS) has launched a widespread market investigation and issued a caution over engine oils making claims against the Stellantis FPW 9.55535/03 specification, used by vehicles including Peugeot, Citroën, DS, Fiat, Vauxhall and Opel models. Darren Frogson, VLS Chairman, stated: “The Stellantis FPW 9.55535/03 specification was initially launched in June 2023 ...

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Alan Outhwaite, chairman of the Verification of Lubricant Specifications Technical Review Panel, gives readers of PMM some details about the recent spike in lubricant investigations and the work the organisation does to uphold standards in the lubricants industry. When VLS was first formed in 2013, there was a clear lack of understanding in some areas ...

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The PMM Awards are back, celebrating the standout articles that defined 2024! Read on to discover who took home the top honours! Every month, the PMM team works tirelessly to produce a magazine that is informative, instructive and entertaining for our readers. It is important to us that you remain as engaged, whether that’s with ...

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Data from the Department for Transport has shown people are making fewer trips  and travelling fewer miles, with average vehicle mileage falling since 2002 from 9,000 miles a year to 7,000 miles in 2023. Several factors are said to be driving the changes, including the rise in people working from home, as well as the ...

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David Wright, Company Secretary of the Verification of Lubricant Specifications (VLS) brings PMM readers up to speed on the latest lubricant investigations. In 2013, reputable lubricant blenders and manufacturers came together to launch VLS, an independent organisation providing a credible and trusted means to verify lubricant specifications, bringing transparency to the lubricant marketplace. 2023 was ...

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