# Stihl two-cycle oil... RED?



## Whitespider (Sep 30, 2011)

I bought a new 6-pack of Stihl oil last week... Stihl oil has always been green colored for as long as I can remember.
Opened a bottle this morning... it is colored red? What's up with that?
Hope it's the same stuff I've come to trust over the years.
I mean, ya' know' if it ain't broke... don't fix it.


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## Somesawguy (Sep 30, 2011)

Is it the Ultra stuff? I haven't bought any for awhile, but it's always been green.


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## Whitespider (Sep 30, 2011)

Not Ultra... orange bottle...


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## HARRY BARKER (Sep 30, 2011)

its almost like it doesnt have enough dye in it,too easy to make a mistake......i switched to the husky oil which is still blue and easy to see.


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## John R (Sep 30, 2011)

Pretty sure that Stihl doesn't make their own oil, they probably get it from the cheapest bidder.


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## Whitespider (Sep 30, 2011)

The Stihl oil has been the same color green for over thirty years... and now it's red.
I called my dealer (where I got the oil) and asked him what he knew about it.
He told me he noticed the color change around mid-summer and asked Stihl(?) about it.
The answer he got was that it's the same oil, only the color has changed.
He also said, "Seems sort'a f**kin' stupid, don't it?"


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## stihl in ky (Sep 30, 2011)

Not sure how true it is, but I heard it was so when you brought the saw in for warranty work they could tell if you were using stihl oil because the red dye will show up in the fuel system. That way they can tell if your using stihl oil or not.


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## John R (Sep 30, 2011)

stihl in ky said:


> Not sure how true it is, but I heard it was so when you brought the saw in for warranty work they could tell if you were using stihl oil because the red dye will show up in the fuel system. That way they can tell if your using stihl oil or not.


 
Why would it matter?
There's no requirement to use Stihl oil.


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## Somesawguy (Sep 30, 2011)

John R said:


> Why would it matter?
> There's no requirement to use Stihl oil.


 
They are giving an extra year warranty if you're using their oil.


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## Wood Doctor (Sep 30, 2011)

*Sales Gimmick?*



Somesawguy said:


> They are giving an extra year warranty if you're using their oil.


How on earth could they trace and verify that? Seems to me like a sales gimmick.

My saws run fine on fuel mix oil that I buy at the store for three bucks a quart. I save a small bottle and use that for a 2-gallon mix measure.


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## JimmyT (Sep 30, 2011)

Whitespider, you can contact Omni in Shreveport LA. and they can tell you because they blended and bottled it.---Contact Omni Specialty Packaging | Industrial Lubricant Manufacturing, Shreveport, Louisiana


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## rdzracing (Oct 1, 2011)

Doesn't matter what oil u use just mix it at 32;1 or thicker. your 2-strokes will last forever. they want u to mix at 50;1 so they burn up faster


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## John R (Oct 1, 2011)

Somesawguy said:


> They are giving an extra year warranty if you're using their oil.


 
I was told that deal for the extra year warranty was if you use the Ultra oil.
My dealer said the orange bottle doesn't count.


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## Fuzly (Oct 1, 2011)

Just got a new leaf blower, the extended warranty is for Ultra oil. I get the feeling Stihl wants to phase out the dino oil and is buying it from whoever. The only two stroke oil I have ever bought that was red was Mobil.


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## indiansprings (Oct 1, 2011)

When you buy a new Stihl, they have a promotion going if you buy a six pack of Ultra oil at the time of the saw purchase they will double the warranty to two years. The dealer has a box he checks on the registration card whether or not to double the warranty. It gets registered with Stihl corporate that way. I have taken advantage of the program on the last two saws I've bought. It's really a no brainer.
No gimmick to it.


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## JimmyT (Oct 1, 2011)

Red is the Chinese culture represents happiness, good luck or power. I don't like the power meaning, may have to call Jesse Ventura and let him expose this Red conspiracy theory.


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## Whitespider (Oct 1, 2011)

rdzracing said:


> *Doesn't matter what oil u use just mix it at 32;1 or thicker. your 2-strokes will last forever. they want u to mix at 50;1 so they burn up faster*


 
That has to be the silliest thing I've ever heard about two-cycle oil. Running a two-cycle engine on fuel mixed with too much oil is darn near as hard on them as running too little oil. My saw has run on Stihl oil since I bought it new in 1992, mixed with 91-93 octane, ethanol-free gasoline... in twenty years I've never needed to do anything to the engine except replace the spark plug twice (and I still have those two plugs because they were still working).


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## Photog95 (Oct 1, 2011)

The extended warranty is for the ultra oil. I have a 6 pak to prove it. I have always used it anyway so when I bought my 250 this spring it was a no brainer. Get an extra year if I stock up on more oil.

As far as the 50:1 thing goes....I too am guilty of not trusting it. This goes back to my motocross days running top of the line synthetic oil in my race bike. It said you could mix at 50:1 as well but I always mixed at 40:1, and this has carried over to my saws out of habit. :beat_brick:


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## forestryworks (Oct 17, 2011)

rdzracing said:


> Doesn't matter what oil u use just mix it at 32;1 or thicker. your 2-strokes will last forever. they want u to mix at 50;1 so they burn up faster


 
Steamy pig ####!


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