BMW LL-01, Merc. 229.5 ? Good Stuff ???

[geeeman]

Does anybody know the specifics of these standards? What are they, and how tough are they to pass?

And why are there SO FEW! oils available in N.A that meet them. M1 0W40 and Castrol GC 0W30 are the only two OTC products that meet these specs...(are there others...?)

Is an oil that meets these spec's unique, or exceptional, or simply one of the few that have bothered to try...

 

[Alex D]

These standards are so tough because they have to accomplish a few tough feats: In general, oilchange intervals in Europe are very long. Between 7500 and 15000 miles vs. 3000 to 5000 on avarage here in the US. Secondly, oils must be suited to be thin enough to be energy conserving, but also tough enough to withstand prolonged high speed cruising (dare I say WOT) on the autobahn. You can see that for an oil to meet all these specs, it needs to be well made.

Look at GCs qualities. They directly reflect an oil made for these conditions.

quote:

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Originally posted by geeeman:
Does anybody know the specifics of these standards? What are they, and how tough are they to pass?

And why are there SO FEW! oils available in N.A that meet them. M1 0W40 and Castrol GC 0W30 are the only two OTC products that meet these specs...(are there others...?)

Is an oil that meets these spec's unique, or exceptional, or simply one of the few that have bothered to try...

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[JohnnyO]

quote:

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Originally posted by Alex D:
In general, oilchange intervals in Europe are very long. Between 7500 and 15000 miles vs. 3000 to 5000 on avarage here in the US.

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My dad's BMW has the service light come on every 15000 or so for an oil change, the dealer says that's perfectly okay. The manual says either BMW's own oil or Mobil 1, it holds something like 12 quarts and two filters. I dunno, I'm afraid to work on it.

Dad also has 85000 on it and it has YET to burn a single drop of oil. Dipstick is on full. Always. FYI, I'm 43 so dad is an official "old guy".

 

[Alex D]

Exactly my point. When Car&Driver did their long term test on a BMW 330I, the oil change indicator did not come on until 18,000 miles. I am from Germany (born and raised) and all my folks still live over there. My dad has a couple of VW turbo diesels and he changes his motoroil only every 15000 miles on those too.

quote:

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Originally posted by JohnnyO:

quote:

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Originally posted by Alex D:
In general, oilchange intervals in Europe are very long. Between 7500 and 15000 miles vs. 3000 to 5000 on avarage here in the US.

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My dad's BMW has the service light come on every 15000 or so for an oil change, the dealer says that's perfectly okay. The manual says either BMW's own oil or Mobil 1, it holds something like 12 quarts and two filters. I dunno, I'm afraid to work on it.

Dad also has 85000 on it and it has YET to burn a single drop of oil. Dipstick is on full. Always. FYI, I'm 43 so dad is an official "old guy".

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[F1Crazy]

geeman,
Most of European manufacturer specs are based on ACEA specs and additional tests on certain engines. Check this site for specific info, M-B specs start on page 45, VW specs on page 54. BMW LongLife specs are not listed but they are based on ACEA A3/B3 specs, check the post from Primus in this thread for the list of engines and applicable oils.

 

[TooSlick]

The other spec I look for is VW 502/505 ....The VW 502 spec requires very demanding high temp/high load testing in a test that runs for 248 hours - with no makeup oil added. VW 505 requires testing in an automotive diesel for cam/lifter wear - also a very demanding test ....

For comparison:

APL/SL requires the Sequence IIIF, high temp test
3.8L, GM V-6 engine

test duration: 80 hours
makeup oil allowed - yes
Max viscosity increase @ 40C - 275%


VW T-4 test - part of the VW 502 spec
2.0L, VW engine

test duration: 248 hours
makeup oil allowed - no
Max viscosity increase @ 40C - 100%

The API gas engine tests are really a joke, compared to the most stringent European tests ....The CI-4, HD diesel tests ARE equal to those in Europe, ie the ACEA B5 test series.

Tooslick
Dixie Synthetics

 

[Sin City]

Quote from TooSlick

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The API gas engine tests are really a joke, compared to the most stringent European tests

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I have thought this for a long time. If you want the best oil you can get and don't want to buy Amsoil or Redline than just look for the ACEA A3/B3/B4 specs and you can't go wrong. Just be sure that the oil is not rated ACEA A3-96 since that is an out of date specification (the -96 means specification from 1996).

To anyone new to bobistheoilguy. You will alway get valuable and unbiased information from TooSlick.