Castrol Malaysia shows the difference between fake and genuine engine oil – don’t be swayed by “savings”

Castrol Malaysia shows the difference between fake and genuine engine oil – don’t be swayed by “savings”

Castrol Malaysia has posted a video on its official Instagram page that shows the difference between genuine and fake engine oil. A long-present issue in Malaysia, fake engine oils should be avoided because it can lead to costly engine damage, offsetting whatever “savings” you gained earlier.

In the video, a fake bottle of Castrol Magnatec priced at just RM60 is unboxed and placed alongside an original, with both looking nigh identical at first glance. In fact, the company points out that aside from the cheaper-feeling label and cap, both bottles are very similar in appearance.

Pouring out the contents, the fake engine oil is observed to have a more golden colour and diluted, while also having a strong “burnt” smell. The genuine engine oil is the opposite, as it has a darker colour, is less diluted and doesn’t have said odour.

Taking care of your car’s engine requires a bit of research, so put in the work to survey the recommended retail prices of genuine engine oil by referring to official stores or online marketplaces. If you find a place selling the same engine oil for multiple times cheaper, be wary to ensure you’re not buying fake engine oil that can reduce the longevity of your car’s engine.

One initiative by the government to curb the sale of fake engine oils is a new regulation mandating engine oil products sold in Malaysia to be SIRIM-certified. Enforcement of the regulation was supposed to start in April this year but has since been postponed to October 2025.

Under the new regulation, all engine oils have to undergo an authentication process through SIRIM QAS International, which is responsible for certifying and issuing product compliance labels for that purpose. According to the Guidelines for Certification and Marking of Engine Oils for Motor Vehicles on the SIRIM QAS website, products have to undergo several tests before they can be certified.

Upon meeting compliance to these, the applicant will be given certification of a genuine product licence or a batch verification report, which it can then use as a basis to mark the product with the SIRIM genuine product certification. A conformity label, which must be affixed at the top of the container lid of the engine oil, will provide additional security. Periodic testing will be conducted to ensure compliance, with offenders receiving fines or jail time upon conviction.

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Gerard Lye

Originating from the corporate world with a background in finance and economics, Gerard's strong love for cars led him to take the plunge into the automotive media industry. It was only then did he realise that there are more things to a car than just horsepower count.

 

Comments

  • Bob Mal on Jul 15, 2025 at 12:42 pm

    And 1 would assume the golden lighter colour is the better one well everyone says it since its sold in Lotus means it is original having come from HK but does HK manufacture petrol?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 8 Thumb down 14
  • Fake Engine Oil on Jul 15, 2025 at 1:18 pm

    WHO print the Fake Castrol cover sticker and bottle?
    BOTH should be charged not only the sellers.

    Stealing technology selling fake products
    MALAYSIA Nanba 1

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 14 Thumb down 0
    • Saman them is useless nowadays
      They would just find another place to operate
      Best is to put them and their families in jail for life
      and burn down their factories

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 1
    • awaKL on Jul 15, 2025 at 3:52 pm

      Don’t think we are that great in terms of stealing technology but we are very good at Re-badging, copying and replacing with low quality products just to satisfy cronies at the expense of all Malaysian an tax payers money.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 8 Thumb down 0
    • Jasonx on Jul 16, 2025 at 8:11 am

      Number 1 at stealing and copying is China, not us. Don’t think too highly of Malaysia

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 1
  • KPDNKK should do their job, fake items should not be in the market at the first place if they are on the ground !

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 13 Thumb down 0
    • opmanmy on Jul 15, 2025 at 4:22 pm

      Well said…seperti biasa…mana enforcement…tengok lazada, shopee…berlambak lambak fake seller…claim ori summore. Lazada, shopee, byk fake products…semua ada from IT to anything.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 10 Thumb down 0
  • john Lim on Jul 15, 2025 at 4:03 pm

    Can’t event differentiate, if the fake one also selling same price as original

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 0
    • opmanmy on Jul 15, 2025 at 4:24 pm

      Ya lor…byk fake seller kat online platform Lzd, Shpe. The platform just don’t care even if you report it. The seller continue to sell. Already complained few times…kesian see next customer kena…from IT products like SDcard, HDD external, engine oil, car parts, etc.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 6 Thumb down 0
    • Ryan Ong on Jul 20, 2025 at 8:02 pm

      I do my car maintenance on my own, so over the year I got deal with few fake engine oil, and all of them got 1 same characteristics and it’s the smell, the smell of the fake engine oil is next level, busuk gila like it was on someone engine before and the recycle it, the outer packaging can’t tell fake or ori anymore due to they might recycle it and pack with fake engine oil, from now on I only bought Mizu engine oil, although they said it is cheap and poor quality, but for me at least it’s original.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • FireAce on Jul 15, 2025 at 4:24 pm

    Even Castrol didn’t bother to tell customers to check labels and stickers (Yes, including the new SIRIM stickers) on the bottle. They know it’s futile since to the 99% of the layman eyes, there is no difference. So everyone, take a big, deep sniff at your oil before pour it in on the next oil change, “Bon Appétit”.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 0
  • KotakPeti KotaBaru on Jul 15, 2025 at 4:59 pm

    Ini semua produk warga SjkC

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 17
  • SibuMan on Jul 15, 2025 at 5:02 pm

    Yellow people are genius in faking orgasm.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 11
    • Kea Was on Jul 16, 2025 at 8:23 am

      Seen the mirror thus far who causes Malaysia loses in corruption to RM Trillions since independence.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 1
  • alldisc on Jul 15, 2025 at 6:57 pm

    Problem with engine oil is pricing in Malaysia – too many middleman taking profit.

    First is importer. Or manufacturer.
    Second is regional distributor.
    Third is stockist.
    Fourth is retailer.

    Biggest problem is they never allow you to buy direct from factory. Must go through the fourth tier first, unless if you buy in bulk.

    A system with too many 25% mark up players in the middle. Trust me, genuine engine oil pack of 4L out of factory is not that expensive either synthetic or mineral based.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 0
  • and those genuine oil sellers with SIRIM cert will use it as an excuse to increase their price even further.

    yes, fake oil is bad, no doubt about it. but there are also those genuine oil that is parallel imported in(just like cars) from other countries, where they are produced there genuinely and able to sell here at a cheaper price than local genuine oil but not as cheap as fake oil.

    I fear that the gov and the local genuine oil producers is conspiring to remove all no local sellers(genuine or fake) from the market and set to increase their prices to benefit their cronies at the expense of the rakyat.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 6 Thumb down 1
 

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