BMW/Castrol

[Highroller]

Is BMW/Castrol essentially the same as GC, in terms of their chemical make-up, basestocks, etc?

 

[Thatwouldbegreat]

I believe the correct answer is ' not even close'! GC 0W-30 has PAO and complex esters, BMW oil is made from Group III. Both have BMW LL-01 ratings but I would think the GC is better.

 

[Highroller]

Thanks for the clarification, i thought so to, but someone on another board told me that they're essentially the same. Also told me that his vehicle was sludged due to using this type oil.

 

[Auto-Union]

BMW 0w-40 is a top-flite oil. aka Castrol Formula RS/Castrol Edge Sport/BP Visco 9000

 

[Highroller]

One would thought that in order to have the approval rating of BMW LL-01, it would have to contain at least some grp IV?

 

[gtx510]

I thought LL-01 (like MB 229.5) meant that the oil had to be a "full" synthetic. Being European (German) specs I assumed full-synthetic would mean Grp IV&V? am I also a jelly donut? ja? nein?

 

[JAG]

I'm sorry to say gtx510, that in this instance you are a jelly donut. Being only Group 4 and 5 is not a requirement for those specs. Lubromoly Long Time High Tech 5W-30 has Group 3 in it and meets MB 229.5 and BMW LL-01: http://www.liquimoly.de/web/lmhomeus.nsf/pages/index_produkte

 

[Primus]

As a rule, BMW oils are not only equal, but often are slightly better than its Castrol parent SLX or TXT oils if we consider their base stocks. And it seems that certain MSDS deviations are caused either by the country of origin/supply or by a dislike to details in some countries.

 

[Quattro Pete]

quote:

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Originally posted by Primus: As a rule, BMW oils are not only equal, but often are slightly better than its Castrol parent SLX or TXT oils if we consider their base stocks.

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Base stocks aside, if I'm not mistaken, the UOAs we've seen from these BMW oils (5w-30) in the US don't appear to be as good as those from from GC (SLX). It's been a while though, so maybe I'm wrong.

 

[Primus]

Pete, It seems you missed that BMW was in 5W-30 which, most likely, is TXT Softec LL01 or TXT Softec. Checking MSDS of these oils I found that in some countries both are gr.III oils, but in other countries Softec LL01 is gr.IV, or at least mainly gr.IV, and Softec is gr.III. Think the closest equivalent of GC (Formula SLX or SLX Longtec) 0W-30 should be BMW 0W-30 LL01.

 

[Jason8691]

So let me get this strait, BMW is running group III for extended drains? Most BMWs run 15k intervals right? So why do we stress over group III and extended drains?

 

[gtx510]

ok. ich bin EIN berliner. Good to finally know... GrpIII and entended OCI's? I try to change my gear oil and ATF more frequently than that. Generally, people hate maintenance. They think a $30k, or $60k, or $90k car should be "magic" and not require any maintenance. For some, a lower price only strengthens it's magical powers. expontentially? infinately? Anyhow, BMW is paying for your oil, why not give you as little of it as possible? Personally I think this is an US-centric "problem", which includes the "life-time" stuff. I hear BMW doesn't do that in other countries. Apparently their cars aren't magic like ours are. haha, suckers. If you need visual aids click the link below. http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=008933

 

[JAG]

When there is sludge like that the additive package failed in areas of detergency, dispersancy, and acid neutralization. Basestocks must take some of the blame if they oxidized and caused the additive package to neutralize acids from that process. Acids come from combustion byproducts and basestock degradation. The more needed to fix the latter, the less there is for the former. I think modern BMWs are sludgers. I wouldn't follow 15k mile oil changes if I owned one with any oil. It's just not worth the risk.

 

[gtx510]

What risk? http://www.auto-rx.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=891&SearchTerms=bmw OMG!!! http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=421615&page=2 http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/showthread.php?t=94785&page=1

 

[Quattro Pete]

Primus, Yeah, that was my point. The Castrol oil that BMW dealerships use over here appears to be inferior to SLX.

 

[Primus]

Think it's natural BMW 5W-30 is 1 step down from GC. Similar case with TXT and SLX and this is reflected in the price. At the same time seems nobody compared BMW 5W-30 and GC side by side in order to find out in which conditions base-stock advantages, if any, would be manifested. Besides, in Europe BMW dealership aslo offers BMW 0W-40 (for 1.5-2.0 Euro higher than 5W-30) and it's quite possible that this one may perform better than SLX.

 

[OriginHacker21]

Wow... It should be criminal to neglect an engine like that. Good grief. I love it when I've talked to BMW owners about the group III BMW oil for 15k being too long. They respond: "My tough BMW engine can handle it." You can't say much to that... How stupid can people be???????

 

[Quattro Pete]

Here are some UOAs of BMW 5w-30 vs GC, although the OCIs are not the same: http://theoildrop.server101.com/cgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=3;t=001401 But in this one, the two oils don't look all that different: http://theoildrop.server101.com/cgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=3;t=003416 Maybe the GC retains TBN better, so it could go longer distance?

 

[Primus]

Here the majority prefer 0W-40, but just because they burn it less then 5W-30.

 

[windnsea00]

The 15k oil changes are a joke on the normal BMW's let alone in the high winding Motorsport engines! Could you imagine driving the M5 with a high tech 5.0 V10, 8250 redline, individual throttles, etc. and changing the oil every 15k, yikes!