A lubricating
oil viscosity index improver (V.I.I.) additive comprising an
ethylene-propylene
copolymer, said additive having the following features:-a shear
stability index (SSI) of from 18% to 30%, preferably from 20% to 28%, measured in a Group I
base oil according to the ASTM D7109-12 standard (30 shear cycles); -a thickening capacity (TP) in the range of from 3 cSt to 8 cSt, preferably from 4 cSt to 7.5 cSt, as measured in Group I base oils according to the ASTM D7042-04 standard,-a thickening capacity (TP) in the range of from 3 cSt to 8 cSt, preferably from 4 cSt to 7.5 cSt; -a gel index defined by the following ratio: ([eta] 0 DEG C / [eta] 40 DEG C) / ([eta] 60 DEG C / [eta] 40 DEG C) wherein [eta] represents the steady-state dynamic
viscosity measured in the Group III
base oil, said gel index being less than or equal to 7000, preferably from 30 to 6000, more preferably from 50 to 5000; -the initial gelation temperature is a temperature lower than or equal to 10 DEG C, preferably from 0 DEG C to 10 DEG C, measured in the Group III
base oil; -a shape stability defined according to the following formula: [
Delta] L% = [(L / L0)-1)] * 100 less than or equal to 5%, preferably less than or equal to 4%, more preferably less than or equal to 3%, where L is the length after 24 hours and L0 is the initial length equal to 10 cm. The lubricating
oil viscosity index improver (V.I.I.) additive can be advantageously used in base oils of
mineral sources, synthetic sources, or mixtures thereof. Preferably, the mineral-derived or synthetic-derived base oil is selected from the group consisting of base oils belonging to class I, class II or
class III.