What primary problem did the German wartime synthetic oil aim to solve versus Amatuzio's consumer oil?

An engineering scarcity problem versus an engineering performance problem for the average user

The context surrounding the development profoundly shaped the objective of the two pioneering efforts. The German synthetic oils during WWII were fundamentally driven by necessity, solving an immediate engineering scarcity problem where conventional resources failed under extreme operational constraints imposed by global conflict. Conversely, Al Amatuzio’s work in the 1970s, while using the same chemical foundation (PAOs), was aimed at solving an engineering *performance* problem for the average user. His goal was to transform the highly stable base stock into a complete, reliable, marketable product that could meet or exceed industry standards for durability and deposit control in everyday automotive applications, moving beyond simple availability to optimized, mass-market usability.