Which Crude Oil As Gasoline Substitute Brand Wins?
A head-to-head test of 3 crude oil as gasoline substitute options with the measured results for each. See how they ranked and watch the full test video.
Sour crude oil extracted from 7,000 ft, Madison Rock formation, North Dakota
Affiliate link. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
The measured results
Every number below is read straight from the test. Scroll sideways to see all measurements. Products are listed in the order they finished.
| Product | Smell/appearance | Lubricity/bearing scoring test (~800 RPM, 30 sec, load applied) | Engine fuel test | Safety data sheet | Appearance | Lubricity/bearing scoring test |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Sour crude oil extracted from 7,000 ft, Madison Rock formation, North Dakota | very strong sour smell from high hydrogen sulfide content | less scoring than even the 10W-30 reference oil, and a lot less scoring than the light sweet crude oil | ran straight with no gasoline dilution added; narrator says it worked quite well and was surprised how well it performed as a gasoline replacement | not tested | not tested | not tested |
| 2Light sweet crude oil extracted from ~9,000 ft, Bakken formation, North Dakota | not tested | not tested | too viscous to flow through the carburetor on its own; had to be cut with gasoline at roughly one-third gasoline to two-thirds crude oil to run; the adjustable carburetor jet was opened as far as it would go but could not be adjusted enough to run the crude oil undiluted | flash point of -20F / -29C; described as extremely flammable | noticeably thicker in viscosity than the sour crude oil | had more scoring (worse film strength) than both the sour crude oil and the 10W-30 reference oil |
| 310W-30 motor oil reference oil used in a previous video | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | not tested | used only as a baseline reference; scored worse (more scoring) than the sour crude oil but better than the light sweet crude oil |
How it was tested
- lubricity/bearing wear test (spinning bearing race at ~800 RPM under load for 30 seconds, scoring measured after)
- engine run test using the crude oil directly as carburetor fuel, with gasoline dilution added if needed
Data notes and caveats
This is a myth-test/experiment video (can a gas engine run on crude oil), not a consumer-product buying comparison, so no purchase price is ever mentioned for either crude oil. No single overall winner is declared: the sour crude oil ran as fuel with no dilution and also had the best lubricity result, while the light sweet crude oil needed roughly 1:2 gasoline dilution to flow through the carburetor and had the worst lubricity result of the three oils tested. Both crude oils were judged to successfully work as a gasoline substitute with the caveat that the light sweet crude required cutting with gasoline. Chapters (Sour crude oil 2 cups/473ml, Adjusting jet to increase fuel, Normal engine temperature, Mixing gasoline into crude oil) align cleanly with the transcript's test sequence.
More Myths & Experiments
Which Fuel Saving Devices Brand Wins?
Reduced speed plus increased tire pressure
See the resultsWhich Diesel Fuel Alternative Brand Wins?
5 products tested
See the resultsWhich Turpentine As Engine Fuel Additive Brand Wins?
2 products tested
See the results