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What is the best oil to use?

209K views 131 replies 63 participants last post by  330i ZHP 
#1 ·
I have a 2000 328ci and ive been trying to find out what the best oil is for me to use there are too many different opinions out there but it seems like royal purple is the best what weight should i use. Also i hear all different amounts of oil to put in my car is it 6quarts or 6.5quarts?
 
#48 ·
Oh dear lord, there's some serial morons stinking up yet another oil thread.

For those of you who confused but don't like reading, just follow cgnzsn's advice.

For those who want to know a little bit more, here's the straight scoop.

Your engine was designed to operate with oil in a certain viscosity range, which is a kV100 of roughly between 11.3 cSt and 14.5 cSt and an HTHS of at least 3.5 mPa***8226;s @ 150ºC. If you deviate too much from that range, your engine will wear prematurely, especially if you drive it hard.

The kV100 range for an SAE 30 oil is 9.3 to <12.5 cSt and for an SAE 40 range it's 12.5 to <16.3 range. The minimum HTHS requirement for both ranges is 2.9.

So it should be obvious that merely buying a 5W-30 or 5W-40 oil does not guarantee your oil will be within the correct viscosity range for your car. Furthermore, merely buying an API SJ, SL, or SM oil does not guarantee your oil will be in the correct viscosity range. If you buy an ACEA A3 oil, you can at least be sure you'll have the correct HTHS, but that's about it.

So what's the easiest way to make sure you've got the correct oil for your car. Use a BMW LL-01, LL-04, or even LL-98 if you've got a M52TU.

As for the proposition "I'm also going to choose an oil based on current (2008) oil specs and capabilities rather than relying on that old partially complete list BMW put together in 2001 (LL-01)", that's just pure inanity from a well known ignoramus.

If you actually want to learn something about the appropriate oil for your car, follow the "Oil" link below in the sig. If all you want to do blather on about how you've seen through the conspiracy the BMW/neocon/freemason cabal has foisted upon the sheeple, by all means carry on.
 
#49 · (Edited)
Well said (as usual) and to the point. I subscribe to the LL way of thinking for the reasons mentioned as well as a few others.

Not to confuse with my post about dino oils and good analysis results. I was merely making the point that without some sort of testing result, its hard to determine how ANY oil is performing. Well, outside the realm of it's got a neat colored bottle, it smells good, every "performance" mag uses it, makes my engine soooooo smoooooooth, tastes great on corn, girlfriend likes it as a rub etc etc. :D.
 
#54 ·
I'm not an "oil geek", but I stuck with Castrol and Mobil1 for a while, but have recently switched to Royal Purple 5w-30, and am really impressed. Car seems just a little more rev-friendly, and after 6k miles, I took the dipstick out and the oil looks as clean as when I put it in almost. Sure, it's kind of expensive, but it does seem high quality (not necessarily higher quality than the two I previously mentioned, but "high quality" nonetheless) and I don't have any problems with "peace of mind" when using it. In fact, I remember seeing a dyno chart somewhere showing a Nissan 350Z gain like 11hp from switching to Royal Purple oil. I AM NOT claiming that happened to my car, but I am saying that I noticed a bit of a difference. Could it be placebo? Possibly. Typically, though, those "placebo-effect" additives' effects go away pretty quickly.
 
#55 ·
We need to come up with a fun name for those individuals who MUST follow the manual EXACTLY or risk losing sleep at night. Do you think BMW recommends lowering your car with a coilover kit? Do you think BMW recommends putting 19" aftermarket wheels on your car? No, but people do it anyway, because they aren't too dense to realize that the manual is there for a reason: for legal reasons and to keep the grossly uneducated from screwing up their car. THEN there are those who know enough about engines (or any other topic) to know that some things in the manual do not have to be followed to a T.

The previous owner of my car changed the oil religiously, at the BMW dealership, with ONLY the finest of OEM oils. Guess what I found after pulling the valve cover? Sludge, and lots of it. Oh, but why?!??! I cried to myself! Then I realized that the OEM oil, or "european formula", or "made in germany" means little to nothing at all, except for the fact that it hurts my wallet.
 
#56 ·
nleksan: I noticed the same thing (car feeling more responsive). There are always skeptics on a forum (and I don't blame them, most of what you read on the internet is biased/inaccurate/flat-out wrong) but I sent my last batch of Castrol into Blackstone for a UOA and I'm going to do the same with this batch of Royal Purple when it's out.
 
#58 ·
Bear in mind that the Royal Purple starts out with a lower viscosity than any BMW approved oil and then UOA's show it tends to shear down to the SAE 30 basement within a few thousand miles. IF the RP makes the car seem more responsive and powerful, try putting in some xW-20 and see what that does for you.

As for the sludge under Hartman's valve cover, here's the important rule to remember "correllation does not necessarily mean causation" - based on the maintenance practices descibed, it seems equallly logical to say "Driving in Indianapolis causes sludge" as "Using OEM oil casues sludge". There is clearly something wrong with the engine, but oil selection and OCI is not it.
 
#60 ·
Bear in mind that the Royal Purple starts out with a lower viscosity than any BMW approved oil and then UOA's show it tends to shear down to the SAE 30 basement within a few thousand miles.
Then it oxidizes quickly because the now thin oil is getting beat up. Given a short bit of time, it will thicken right into the recommended range along with all the other baggage that heat oxidation brings.

IF the RP makes the car seem more responsive and powerful, try putting in some xW-20 and see what that does for you.
Should get into the low 12s easy :D.

As for the sludge under Hartman's valve cover, here's the important rule to remember "correllation does not necessarily mean causation" - based on the maintenance practices descibed, it seems equallly logical to say "Driving in Indianapolis causes sludge" as "Using OEM oil casues sludge". There is clearly something wrong with the engine, but oil selection and OCI is not it.
Dirt, moisture, coolant, and time. Mix in a little motor oil and thats how you make a sludge cocktail.
 
#67 ·
you got ripped off... next time, get it from tischer...
 
#69 ·
Engine Oil

I've read thru all of your posts and don't know why no one just say's what is right. So here it is, you need not ask anymore. And for those of you that don't know the difference between synthetic oil and fossil oil. You should have a large bank account so that you can afford to let you car spend lots of time at the BMW dealers, if you don't have the bank , drive something else or take the time to learn about yoru car. Here is the info:
BMW Members
Synthetic Engine Oils BMW High Performance Synthetic Oil is recommended for scheduled engine oil changes.


BMW High Performance SAE 5W-30 Synthetic Oil* (BMW part number 07 51 0 017 866)

* Does not apply to M vehicles - see below

BMW recommends that you check your engine oil level whenever you add fuel to your vehicle.

If you need to add oil between oil changes and BMW High Performance Synthetic Oil is unavailable, you may top up the oil level with one of the following approved synthetic oils. For information on checking your engine oil level refer to your vehicle's Owner's Manual.

The oils listed below meet BMW's Long-life rating and are acceptable for use in BMW Passenger vehicles and SAVs in the US market with gasoline engines.


BMW Long-life rating LL-01 Approved Synthetic Oils for the US Market:



•Castrol Syntec European Formula SAE 0W-30


•Mobil 1 SAE 0W-40


•Pennzoil Platinum European Formula Ultra SAE 5W-30


•Valvoline SynPower SAE 5W-30


Use only oils with an API rating of SM or higher.

The choice of the right SAE grade is based on the climatic conditions in the region in which you normally drive your BMW.

To best determine which SAE grade is best suited for your vehicle, contact an authorized BMW center.

The following is the only recommended and approved synthetic oil for BMW M (Motorsport) vehicles in the US market with gasoline engines, at the present time.
BMW Long-life rating LL-01 Synthetic Oils for BMW M vehicles equipped with S54, S62, S65 or S85 engines:



•Castrol TWS Motorsport SAE 10W-60 Synthetic Engine Oil


•Castrol Formula RS SAE 10W-60 Synthetic Engine Oil (BMW part number 07 51 0 009 420)


If Castrol High Performance Synthetic Oil is not available and you need to add oil between oil changes, only use synthetic oils with the following specifications for M vehicles:



•Viscosity - preferred SAE 10W-60


•Alternative - SAE 10W-40, SAE 5W-50 or SAE 10W-50


Use only oils with an API rating of SJ/CF, SK/CF or higher.

The following is a listing of synthetic oils recommended and approved for use in the BMW B7 ALPINA in the US market:

•BMW High Performance SAE 5W-30 Synthetic Oil (BMW part number 07 51 0 017 866)


•Castrol Syntec European Formula SAE 0W-30 Synthetic Oil


BMW recommended / approved engine oils for your vehicle

I hope this help you guys out, this is from BMW USA Site, and this is correct.

If you stil don't understand here is the link to the BMW site for the USA
www.bmwusa.com/Standard/.../SyntheticEngineOils.aspx
 
#73 ·
There site say's it is, so if the BMW site is incorrect, let them know. If you go to Valvolines site, they also claim to be approved by BMW. Did you check you facts?
So I was curious and checked Valvoline's site. According to it, 5/30 mst meets LL-O1 and LL-04, but it doesn't have 'formal approval' of rating for the LL-01.

However, evidently the HST is approved LL-01 in 5/40. Interesting to me as I want an LL-01 5/40.

Anyway, meeting specs and being approved as meeting specs are different...technically. It may just be paperwork, or may be $, or it may be BMW's strict standards.
 
#72 ·
Why don't you read the spec sheet for std Synpower 5W30 and tell us? My guess is you wouldn't know how to, unlike most posters here. We await your response on the specs with interest as I'm sure everybody else here does. A hint, Valvoline Synpower 5W30 is an ACEA A1 oil. :banghead:
 
#76 · (Edited)
A3/B3 requires HTHS to be >3.5 (A1/B1 is 2.6<HTHS<3.5) and designed for extended drain intervals. If you drive it hard (I would) then stick with the A3/B3. So as to Banghead, the lower HTHS will give you better mileage, but you will neet to change the oil more frequently, the A3/B3 would allow extended oil changes
 
#79 · (Edited)
Holy thread revival..

Btw oil used depends on the application, you should use different oil for street, winter track and summer track.. Thinner = colder, thicker = warmer, not to mention the amount of oil and oul pressure.. If you are asking what should I use, I say you should stick to OEM.. :)

I use RP 5w-30, yes I know it is not LL01 and it is thin but works perfectly for me and for my car the way and under conditions I drive my car.. How I know, experience, research and just my taste.. If my car blows up, which it hasnt since I have started using, i am confident it will not be because of the oil I use :)
 
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