28 Apr Memorabilia: Wynn’s Friction Proofing Oil Company

This month Assistant Curator Cheslynne Ruiters looks at the history of one of the world’s oldest motor oil companies…

Wynn’s Friction Proofing Oil Company was the brainchild of a 70-year-old retired attorney, Chestien Wynn.  In 1939, Wynn discovered a formula that reduced engine wear by reducing friction. This surface treatment for metal actually changed the chemistry of the metal making it softer and better. Starting off in a one-car garage at his home in San Gabriel, California, Wynn filled and labelled glass bottles with his product and sold them to local petrol stations and garages. Soon the product became very popular amongst motorists and sales began to increase, but then WW2 broke out and resources dried up, production ceased until 1946.

In May 1947 Chestien’s son Carl E Wynn joined the company, which moved to a two-car garage at 1222 Duarte Road, San Gabriel and was renamed the Wynn Oil Company. An average of 40 cases of products per day was produced. In 1948 a fire destroyed the garage and a few weeks later the company opened a production facility in Azusa, California. In the 1950s, Carl became more serious about testing the company’s product by using two motors, one treated with Wynn’s Friction Proofing Oil and the other not, and both were immersed into salt water for 14 days. In front of an audience of engineers, the motor treated with Wynn’s started without difficulty, and the other did not…

When sales reached $1 million, Wynn’s was prepared to expand, and three years later initiated international distribution. In 1950, American race driver Johnny Parsons won the Indianapolis 500 automobile race in the Friction Proofing Special. The establishment of a new World Land Speed Record in 1957 on the Bonneville Salt Flats by the Wynn’s Friction Proofing Streamliner continued the company’s high performance publicity. Driven by Roy Leslie, the car travelled more than 435 km/h (270 mph). In 1958 Wynn’s Belgium was established for the production and export of the Wynn’s product range in Western and Eastern Europe, Africa, the Middle East and India.

With divisions in more than 14 countries, Wynn’s Oil products are marketed in more than 100 countries through independent distributors and sales representatives. Wynn’s Precision produces injection and composite-moulded O-rings, composite gaskets and seals, and several other plastic and rubber products for automotive, aerospace and industrial manufacturing industries.

Throughout its 80-year history, Wynn’s has remained at the forefront of technology and its market leadership continues today with an array of products designed to effectively treat and improve your car’s engine. As the one-time marketing tag line put it, It’s Wynn’s – or lose…