File in Section:
Bulletin No.:

Service Bulletin

Date:

00 - General Information
11-00-90-001A
December, 2012

INFORMATION
Subject:

Global Information for GM dexos 1™ and dexos 2™, Engine Oil Specifications,
Licensed Brands, and Service Fill

Models:

2013 and Prior GM Passenger Cars and Trucks
Excluding All Vehicles Equipped with Duramax™ Diesel Engines
Excluding the Corvette Engines Built at Wixom - RPO LS7 and LS9 for the Z06 and ZR1
Excluding the Corvette Engine Built at Wixom - RPO LS3 for the Grand Sport Coupe
with Manual Transmission

This bulletin is being revised to add model year 2013 vehicles, update the Subject text,
exclude Corvette engines built at Wixom, Michigan as identified in the Models section and
add a section for Corvette Engines Built at Wixom Requiring the Use of Mobil 1™ Oil. Please
discard Corporate Bulletin Number 11-00-90-001 (Section 00 - General Information).

GM dexos 1™ Information Center
Website
Refer to the following General Motors website
for dexos 1™ information about the different
licensed brands that are currently available:
http://www.gmdexos.com

GM dexos 1™ Engine Oil Trademark
and Icons

2596596

2595547

Copyright 2012 General Motors LLC. All Rights Reserved.

The dexos™ specification and trademarks are
exclusive to General Motors, LLC.
Only those oils displaying the dexos ™ trademark and
icon on the front label meet the demanding
performance requirements and stringent quality
standards set forth in the dexos ™ specification.
Look on the front label for any of the logos shown
above to identify an authorized, licensed dexos 1™
engine oil.

Page 2

December, 2012

GM dexos 1™ Engine Oil Specification
Important: General Motors dexos 1™ engine oil
specification replaces the previous General Motors
specifications GM6094M, GM4718M and GM-LL-A-025
for most GM gasoline engines.
The oil specified for use in GM passenger cars and
trucks, PRIOR to the 2011 model year remains
acceptable for those previous vehicles. However,
dexos 1™ is backward compatible and can be used in
those older vehicles.
In North America, starting with the 2011 model year,
GM introduced dexos 1™ certified engine oil as a
factory fill and service fill for gasoline engines. The
reasons for the new engine oil specification are as
follows:
• To meet environmental goals such as increasing
fuel efficiency and reducing engine emissions.
• To promote long engine life.
• To minimize the number of engine oil changes in
order to help meet the goal of lessening the
industry's overall dependence on crude oil.
dexos 1™ is a GM-developed engine oil specification
that has been designed to provide the following
benefits:
• Further improve fuel economy, to meet future
corporate average fuel economy (CAFE)
requirements and fuel economy retention by
allowing the oil to maintain its fuel economy
benefits throughout the life of the oil.
• More robust formulations for added engine
protection and aeration performance.
• Support the GM Oil Life System, thereby
minimizing the replacement of engine oil, before
its life has been depleted.
• Reduce the duplication of requirements for a large
number of internal GM engine oil specifications.

Corvette Engines Built at Wixom That
Require the Use of Mobil 1™ Oil

Bulletin No.: 11-00-90-001A

The following Corvette engines built at Wixom,
Michigan are equipped with an OEM oil fill cap that
identifies Mobil 1™, SAE 5W-30 as the engine oil that is
required to be used in these engines.
• Corvette Engines Built at Wixom - RPO LS7
and LS9 for the Z06 and ZR1
• Corvette Engine Built at Wixom - RPO LS3 for
the Grand Sport Coupe with Manual
Transmission

International Lubricants
Standardization and Approval
Committee (ILSAC)
GF-5 Standard
In addition to GM dexos 1™, a new International
Lubricants Standardization and Approval Committee
(ILSAC) standard called GF-5, was introduced in
October 2010.
• There will be a corresponding API category,
called: SN Resource Conserving. The current
GF-4 standard was put in place in 2004 and
became obsolete in October 2011. Similar to
dexos 1™, the GF-5 standard will use a new fuel
economy test, Sequence VID, which demands a
statistically significant increase in fuel economy
versus the Sequence VIB test that was used
for GF-4.
• It is expected that all dexos 1™ approved oils will
be capable of meeting the GF-5 standard.
However, not all GF-5 engine oils will be capable
of meeting the dexos 1™ specification.
• Like dexos™, the new ILSAC GF-5 standard will
call for more sophisticated additives. The API will
begin licensing marketers during October 2010, to
produce and distribute GF-5 certified products,
which are expected to include SAE 0W-20,
0W-30, 5W-20, 5W-30 and 10W-30 oils.

Corporate Average Fuel Economy
(CAFE) Requirements Effect on Fuel
Economy
Since CAFE standards were first introduced in 1974,
the fuel economy of cars has more than doubled, while
the fuel economy of light trucks has increased by more
than 50 percent. Proposed CAFE standards call for a
continuation of increased fuel economy in new cars and
trucks. To meet these future requirements, all aspects
of vehicle operation are being looked at more critically
than ever before.
New technology being introduced in GM vehicles
designed to increase vehicle efficiency and fuel
economy include direct injection, cam phasing,
turbocharging and active fuel management (AFM). The
demands of these new technologies on engine oil also
are taken into consideration when determining new oil
specifications. AFM for example can help to achieve
improved fuel economy. However alternately
deactivating and activating the cylinders by not allowing
the intake and exhaust valves to open contributes to
additional stress on the engine oil.

3239561

Bulletin No.: 11-00-90-001A

December, 2012

Page 3

Another industry trend for meeting tough fuel economy
mandates has been a shift toward lower viscosity oils.
dexos 1™ will eventually be offered in several viscosity
grades in accordance with engine needs: SAE 0W-20,
5W-20, 0W-30 and 5W-30.
Using the right viscosity grade oil is critical for proper
engine performance. Always refer to the Maintenance
section of a vehicle Owner Manual for the proper
viscosity grade for the engine being serviced.

GM Oil Life System in Conjunction With
dexos ™ Supports Extended Oil
Change Intervals
To help conserve oil while maintaining engine
protection, many GM vehicles are equipped with the
GM Oil Life System. This system can provide oil
change intervals that exceed the traditional 3,000 mile
(4,830 km) recommendation.
The dexos ™ specification, with its requirements for
improved oil robustness, compliments the GM Oil Life
System by supporting extended oil change intervals
over the lifetime of a vehicle.
If all GM customers with GM Oil Life System equipped
vehicles would use the system as intended, GM
estimates that more than 100 million gallons of oil could
be saved annually.

GM dexos 2™ Information Center
Website
Refer to the following General Motors website
for dexos 2™ information about the different
licensed brands that are currently available:
http://www.gmdexos.com

2601674

The dexos ™ specification and trademarks are
exclusive to General Motors, LLC.
Only those oils displaying the dexos ™ trademark and
icon on the front label meet the demanding
performance requirements and stringent quality
standards set forth in the dexos ™specification.
Look on the front label for any of the logos shown
above to identify an authorized, licensed dexos 2™
engine oil.

GM dexos 2™ Engine Oil Specification
•

dexos 2™ is approved and recommended by GM
for use in Europe starting in model year 2010
vehicles, regardless of where the vehicle was
manufactured.
• dexos 2™ is the recommended service fill oil for
European gasoline engines.
Important: The Duramax™ diesel engine is the
exception and requires lubricants meeting
specification CJ-4.
• dexos 2™ is the recommended service fill oil for
European light-duty diesel engines and replaces
GM-LL-B-025 and GM-LL-A-025.
• dexos 2™ protects diesel engines from harmful
soot deposits and is designed with limits on
certain chemical components to prolong catalyst
life and protect expensive emission reduction
systems. It is a robust oil, resisting degradation
between oil changes and maintaining optimum
performance longer.
The dexos™ Specification and Trademarks are
Exclusive to General Motors, LLC.
Mobil 1™ is a Trademark of Exxon Mobil
Corporation

GM dexos 2™ Engine Oil Trademark
and Icons

2601682

GM bulletins are intended for use by professional technicians, NOT a "do-it-yourselfer". They are written to inform these
technicians of conditions that may occur on some vehicles, or to provide information that could assist in the proper
service of a vehicle. Properly trained technicians have the equipment, tools, safety instructions, and know-how to do a
job properly and safely. If a condition is described, DO NOT assume that the bulletin applies to your vehicle, or that your
vehicle will have that condition. See your GM dealer for information on whether your vehicle may benefit from the
information.

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