About Us

VoxPop® Publishing is a division of the Institute of Materials (IOM). Since 1984, IOM, an independent organization, has been publishing test results on engine oil samples it collects randomly throughout the world.

Samples are purchased strictly from the retail market, wherever the general public shops.

As the oils are received, they are blind-coded and sent to independent laboratories where an extensive battery of tests are run on each one. The tests are run in conformance with standards and practices of technical societies serving the automotive and petroleum industries and all test data must pass rigorous quality assurance measures before being accepted by IOM.

When a request is received for a VoxPop® report on a specific brand and type of engine oil, test data for that oil is extracted and compared to the data from hundreds of other oils purchase in the same geographic region. To make sure accurate comparisons are made, only oils of the same SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) viscosity grade, and API (American Petroleum Institute ) service classification, and ILSAC (International Lubricant Standardization and Approval Committee) standard are compared.

If more than one sample of a particular brand of oil has been tested, as is frequently the case, the range of data for all samples of that brand is reported along with the data for the most recent sample collected.

The information contained on this website and the VoxPop® report gives the reader the opportunity to learn enough about engine oil to become reasonably skillful in their choice of this important product and to even tailor their choice to best serve their particular engine and driving conditions.

VoxPop® is a registered trademark of the VoxPop Publishing Division, Institute of Materials, Inc., Midland, Michigan. VoxPop® publishes test results on various engine oils. A product's rating refers only to the particular brand and formulation specified, not to other brands or formulations sold by the same company. Results of any given test are not to be construed as an endorsement of one product or criticism of another. Our reports are for purposes of comparison and application by knowledgeable individuals, given consideration to the specific application desired. VoxPop® ratings and reports may not be used in advertising or for any other commercial purpose. All bulletin, publications, and websites of VoxPop® and the Institute of Materials, Inc. which are furnished to the industry and to the public are copyrighted and may not be reprinted or copied in any way without express written permission of the Institute of Materials, Inc.