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If a plan has liabilities other than for benefits, those nonbenefit obligations may be considered as reductions of plan assets.Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS) -Number 132R -Paragraph 5 -Subparagraph b Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS) -Number 132R -Paragraph 5 -Subparagraph d(iv)(b)(i) Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS) -Number 87 -Paragraph 49 falsefalsePension plan assets66false0natruenanaNo definition available.falsetruefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsehttp://www.lubrizol.com/taxonomy/role/disclosuremajorcategoriesofnonuspensionplanassetsaccountedforatfairvalue1falsefalsefalse00falsefalsefalsefalsefalse2falsefalsefalse00falsefalsefalsefalsefalse3falsefalsefalse00falsefalsefalsefalsefalse42falsefalseUSDtruefalse{us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxis} : Foreign Pension Plans, Defined Benefit {us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanFairValueOfPlanAssetsByMeasurementAxis} : Level 3 12/31/2010 USD ($) $eol_PE727-----1010-K0008_STD_0_20101231_0_402206x403828_402249x404429http://www.sec.gov/CIK0000060751instant2010-12-31T00:00:000001-01-01T00:00:00falsefalseForeign Pension Plans, Defined Benefitus-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxisxbrldihttp://xbrl.org/2006/xbrldius-gaap_ForeignPensionPlansDefinedBenefitMemberus-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlansDisclosuresDefinedBenefitPlansAxisexplicitMemberfalsefalseLevel 3us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanFairValueOfPlanAssetsByMeasurementAxisxbrldihttp://xbrl.org/2006/xbrldius-gaap_FairValueInputsLevel3Memberus-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanFairValueOfPlanAssetsByMeasurementAxisexplicitMemberiso4217_USDStandardhttp://www.xbrl.org/2003/iso4217USDiso42170USDUSD$OthernaNo definition available.No authoritative reference available.falsefalseLevel 367true0us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanDisclosureLineItemsus-gaaptruenadurationNo definition available.falsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalse1falsefalsefalse00falsefalsefalsefalsefalse2falsefalsefalse00falsefalsefalsefalsefalse3falsefalsefalse00falsefalsefalsefalsefalseOtherxbrli:stringItemTypestringLine items represent financial concepts included in a table. These concepts are used to disclose reportable information associated with domain members defined in one or many axes to the table.falsefalseDefined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]68false0us-gaap_DefinedBenefitPlanFairValueOfPlanAssetsus-gaaptruedebitinstantNo definition available.falsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalsefalse1truefalsefalse33000003.3falsetruefalsefalsefalse2falsefalsefalse00falsefalsefalsefalsefalse3falsefalsefalse00falsefalsefalsefalsefalseMonetaryxbrli:monetaryItemTypemonetaryAssets, usually stocks, bonds, and other investments, that have been segregated and restricted (usually in a trust) to provide benefits, at their fair value as of the measurement date. Plan assets include amounts contributed by the employer (and by employees for a contributory plan) and amounts earned from investing the contributions, less benefits paid. If a plan has liabilities other than for benefits, those nonbenefit obligations may be considered as reductions of plan assets.Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS) -Number 132R -Paragraph 5 -Subparagraph b Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS) -Number 132R -Paragraph 5 -Subparagraph d(iv)(b)(i) Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS) -Number 87 -Paragraph 49 falsefalsePension plan assets1The fair value of real estate collective funds is estimated using the net asset value published by the fund manager. In determining the net asset value, the fair value of each individual property owned by the fund has been estimated by an independent appraiser following established valuation procedures. Following is a reconciliation of this investment for the year ended December 31, 2010: (In Millions of Dollars) 2010 Balance at January 1, 2010 $ - Purchases 3.0 Actual return on assets 0.2 Currency exchange rate change 0.1 Balance at December 31, 2010 $ 3.32The fair value of government debt securities is determined through models that consider various assumptions, including time value, yield curves, credit ratings and current market prices. Corporate, state and political debt securities are valued using a matrix pricing in which securities are benchmarked against the treasury rate based on credit ratings.3The guaranteed insurance contracts invest in high quality government and corporate bonds. The fair value of guaranteed insurance contracts is determined by discounting the cash flows of the underlying investments based on current yields of similar instruments with comparable durations considering the credit-worthiness of the issuer.4The fair value of foreign currency forward contracts is based on the difference between the contract prices and market forward rates.5The fair value of equity securities and mutual funds using quoted prices reported on various U.S. and international stock exchanges is classified as Level 1. The fair value of common / collective equity funds determined based on the quoted prices of the underlying investments is classified as Level 2.368Major Categories of Non U.S. Pension Plan Assets, Accounted for at Fair Value (Detail) (Foreign Pension Plans, Defined Benefit, USD $)HundredThousandsUnKnownUnKnownUnKnownfalsetrue