'01 325i BMW w/ 142k on it....what oil?

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dsblk93gt

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Mar 17, 2008
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Plattsburgh, NY
I usually run either Mobil 1 or Penzoil Platinum in my cars/trucks but I am not sure on this since I think BMW has different oil requirements I was told? Alot say a 5w30 or 5w40. I'm in FAR upstate NY so a 5w30 in winter maybe and 5w40 in summer? This has the M54B25 2.5L motor. I love this engine so far, man it's smooth.
 
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Yep, change visc for seasons or use a 0w-40 / Euro 5w-30 like German Syntec or MaxLife Synth.

I change visc for seasons anyway.

Normal 5w-30 for winter is hard to beat. PP 5w-30 is thinner in cold than even 0w-30 Mobil 1. COme summer, back to some heavy-duty 5w-40 HD synth. Rotella Synth is popular.

Is there a brand that you like?
 
0/5w-30 would work fine year round. I ran the BMW 5w-30 from the dealer during my warranty (free changes) and in between I used 0w-30 Castrol syntec even in the hot Houston climate.

BMW recommends BMW-LL01 oil for your car. Not too many oils have that spec, Mobil1 0w-40, Castrol Syntec 0w-30 (not the 5w-30) are two of the more common oils available. The syntec 0w-30 can be found at most AutoZone stores.

Change at least every 7500 miles, not the 15,000 the service indicator suggests and your engine will be well protected.

My 2003 330Ci OUAs are posted in the forums.
 
Originally Posted By: shanneba
0/5w-30 would work fine year round. I ran the BMW 5w-30 from the dealer during my warranty (free changes) and in between I used 0w-30 Castrol syntec even in the hot Houston climate.

BMW recommends BMW-LL01 oil for your car. Not too many oils have that spec, Mobil1 0w-40, Castrol Syntec 0w-30 (not the 5w-30) are two of the more common oils available. The syntec 0w-30 can be found at most AutoZone stores.

Change at least every 7500 miles, not the 15,000 the service indicator suggests and your engine will be well protected.

My 2003 330Ci OUAs are posted in the forums.



I agree.
 
There is no reason to change oil wt. from summer to winter. Go with M1 0-40 and use it year round. That's what we did in the 60s.
 
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"0w-30 will work fine all year"

Mid-summer it's too thin, mid winter it's not even as thin as PP 5w-30, so it's really the worst of all worlds.



"No reason to change visc for summer/winter"?

Well, 5w-40 is very thick in the -20f the poster routinely sees in "far upstate" New York, another BAD choice.


Here we have what has nowadays become the typical BitOG response, tell everybody what YOU are using, ignore the original poster's criteria, and post some nonsense answer without any basis in fact or reality.

Post just for the sake of posting, it doesn't cost anything.

More reading and less posting is my prescription.
 
German cars always spec oils that are thicker than average for the times.
No big deal, it's just the way it is.

M1 0-40 is a very good oil that is tough. It's suitable for turbocharged engines. This should be high on your list for that car.
 
Originally Posted By: Audi Junkie
"0w-30 will work fine all year"

Mid-summer it's too thin,

Why would it be too thin? Isn't the engine operating temp pretty much the same all year long?
 
I think the Mobil 1 might be the one for me to get since I can get it at Walmart. I just need to find a decent filter now. I may just order some BMW filters as they are not that much anyways.

I have read it is a must to replace the copper washer/gasket on the drain plug every oil change do to the aluminum oil pan.

BTW, thanks for all the info/replies!
 
Originally Posted By: dsblk93gt
I think the Mobil 1 might be the one for me to get since I can get it at Walmart. I just need to find a decent filter now. I may just order some BMW filters as they are not that much anyways.

I have read it is a must to replace the copper washer/gasket on the drain plug every oil change do to the aluminum oil pan.

BTW, thanks for all the info/replies!


I'd definitely go with the BMW filter; it will come with a new drain plug washer. You can order them from several BMW dealers online. If you are a BMW Car Club member you may receive a 10%-25% discount.
 
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
 
As a long-term M52B28 owner (and a maintainer of M62 and M62TU engines in the family) who has run a number of oils, I recommend GC. M1 0W40 was dramatically noisier in my M52 than anything else, although UOAs were still great. The racket alone is enough to keep me away from M1 when other options exist.

You don't need to run anything but GC all year but if you feel like running summer/winter oil you can run 15W40 dino HDEO (ie. Rotella) in the summers without a problem, so long as you don't try to do a long drain interval with dino. You can use a UOA to determine a good drain interval if needed. I've done 8000km on quality dino 15W40 in the summer without an issue. You could also run a syn/semi-syn 5W40 HDEO but in summer temps it won't buy you a whole lot for the extra cost.

If you're usually garaged and not subjected frequently to the full brunt of winter overnight temps, you could run a 5W40 year round without problems, but GC 0W30 will work better in the cold stuff. (Honestly, a 5W40 would probably be fine in full winter too - 0W30 is just 'nicer')

Your #1 factor when shopping for oil is ACEA A3. Don't get an xW30 without an A3 rating. The BMW LL approvals are great but they start with A3 and then add more tests for "extended drain". If you aren't running extended drain then a lot of what BMW LL adds on top of ACEA A3 is less important.
 
Originally Posted By: shpankey
btw.. that is supposed to be MST SynPower, which is awesome. Good luck finding it though! lol


Amazon.com to the rescue
grin2.gif
 
Originally Posted By: dsblk93gt
I don't think I can get the German Castrol anywhere around here though.

Check your local AutoZone.
 
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