Oil recommendation for 2004 BMW 530i - E60 - M54 engine

[samiamz]

2004 BMW 530i - E60 with M54 engine and ZF6HP19 auto trans - 90,000 miles - 21 yr old now - usually driven in summer.
Had been using the 3 yr prepaid oil change program at the dealership - but can't anymore as it's 20+ yrs old.

Had trans rebuild done 4 months ago - at local shop after trans fault (Clutch E) codes. Usually not driven aggressively.
I plan to put on 5-7,000 miles per year and change oil yearly. Next oil change due will be approx July 2025

I could use Mobil 1 EuroFS 0W-40 from Wallyworld with LL-01 - if Mobil has a rebate this summer
OR
I could get one of the kits from FCP Euro with their LRG

But I also picked up a bunch of Total Quartz oil from Advance Auto last year during their clearance.

Looking at the stash I have:
Total Quartz 9000 Energy 5W-30 - with the following approvals - MB-229.5, VW 502.00/505.00, ACEA A3/B4, API SL/CF, LL-01 - 4 qt
Total Quartz 9000 Energy 5W-40 - with the following approvals - MB-229.5, VW 502.00/505.00, ACEA A3/B4, API SN/CF, Porsche A40- 7 qt (no LL-01 cert).

(Plus I have 10 qts of Total Quartz Ineo MC3 with the LL-04 cert, MB-229.5)

My question is Can I use the Total Quartz at next oil change? Use all 4 qts of the 5W-30 LL-01 oil + 3 qts of the 5W-40 (no LL-01 cert)
OR
all 7 qts of the 5W-40? (no LL-01 cert)?
Total qt needed for oil change is approx 6.8 qts
Have not posted before in the Euro section of the forum, so not sure how important the LL-01 cert is in addition the the other ones.
Thank you all for reading and your replies.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

2004 BMW 530i - E60 with M54 engine and ZF6HP19 auto trans - 90,000 miles - 21 yr old now - usually driven in summer.
Had been using the 3 yr prepaid oil change program at the dealership - but can't anymore as it's 20+ yrs old.

Had trans rebuild done 4 months ago - at local shop after trans fault (Clutch E) codes. Usually not driven aggressively.
I plan to put on 5-7,000 miles per year and change oil yearly. Next oil change due will be approx July 2025

I could use Mobil 1 EuroFS 0W-40 from Wallyworld with LL-01 - if Mobil has a rebate this summer
OR
I could get one of the kits from FCP Euro with their LRG

But I also picked up a bunch of Total Quartz oil from Advance Auto last year during their clearance.

Looking at the stash I have:
Total Quartz 9000 Energy 5W-30 - with the following approvals - MB-229.5, VW 502.00/505.00, ACEA A3/B4, API SL/CF, LL-01 - 4 qt
Total Quartz 9000 Energy 5W-40 - with the following approvals - MB-229.5, VW 502.00/505.00, ACEA A3/B4, API SN/CF, Porsche A40- 7 qt (no LL-01 cert).

(Plus I have 10 qts of Total Quartz Ineo MC3 with the LL-04 cert, MB-229.5)

My question is Can I use the Total Quartz at next oil change? Use all 4 qts of the 5W-30 LL-01 oil + 3 qts of the 5W-40 (no LL-01 cert)
OR
all 7 qts of the 5W-40? (no LL-01 cert)?
Total qt needed for oil change is approx 6.8 qts
Have not posted before in the Euro section of the forum, so not sure how important the LL-01 cert is in addition the the other ones.
Thank you all for reading and your replies.

Yes you can use all of them. Personally I would avoid mixing as much as you can so in your case that means 1 fill of MC3, 1 fill of Total 5w40, and then mix whatever you have remaining (MC3 w/ Total 5w30).

 

[edyvw]

Yes you can use all of them. Personally I would avoid mixing as much as you can so in your case that means 1 fill of MC3, 1 fill of Total 5w40, and then mix whatever you have remaining (MC3 w/ Total 5w30).

^This.

 

[GRUMPYDUDE2]

Any of the oils you spoke of will work very well. 21 yoa BMW will not known the diff.
No need to over think it, and sleep well at night.

 

[BISCUT]

Yes you can use all of them. Personally I would avoid mixing as much as you can so in your case that means 1 fill of MC3, 1 fill of Total 5w40, and then mix whatever you have remaining (MC3 w/ Total 5w30).

Another THIS!! TO me, more important for early OCI. I'm running a 14 X3 N22 engine. I picked Mobil 1 0-40 on sale for $52 a 12qt plastic saver box at Wally recently.

 

[samiamz]

Yes you can use all of them. Personally I would avoid mixing as much as you can so in your case that means 1 fill of MC3, 1 fill of Total 5w40, and then mix whatever you have remaining (MC3 w/ Total 5w30).

Thank you
Good to know that they could all be used - esp on a short oil change of 5-7k miles.
Was wondering if there was a whole lot of difference in the LL-01 and MB 229.5 approvals - Are they close enough to be somewhat interchangeable in a pinch?

 

[Egg_Head]

Use what you have, save your $$ for VANOS failure.

 

[kschachn]

Was wondering if there was a whole lot of difference in the LL-01 and MB 229.5 approvals - Are they close enough to be somewhat interchangeable in a pinch?

Not really. Throw VW 502 00 approval in there as well.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

.....Was wondering if there was a whole lot of difference in the LL-01 and MB 229.5 approvals - Are they close enough to be somewhat interchangeable in a pinch?

Generally speaking the approvals are based on their own engines. The Mercedes approval does contain a LSPI test to reflect their current engine lineup. BMW engines don't suffer from LSPI so BMW doesn't test for it. Especially an older one like yours.

 

[edyvw]

Thank you
Good to know that they could all be used - esp on a short oil change of 5-7k miles.
Was wondering if there was a whole lot of difference in the LL-01 and MB 229.5 approvals - Are they close enough to be somewhat interchangeable in a pinch?

Yes, generally, MB 229.5 is more stringent.
LL approvals have only bit more stringent oxidation requirements to increase OCI.Not relevant for your engine or OCI.

 

[Vaca]

I had a 2004 530i (e60) with the same M54 engine and used the old German Castrol 0w-30 for the first ~100,000 miles and then Mobil 1 0w-40 Euro until I sold it with over 240,000 miles. OCI was between 7000-10,000 miles. Never an engine issue! Never a problem with the Vanos either, but I changed the seals once just to be safe. Had to do the valve cover gasket twice and the oil filter housing gasket once. Also changed the crankcase ventilation valve and hoses once as preventative maintenance. Honestly, it still ran perfectly when I sold it - wish I didn't. It consumed roughly one quart every 2000 - 3000 miles towards the end, but no smoke and always passed annual PA state inspections without issue.

Also, the transmission never had an issue, I just changed the fluid once around 120,000 with the ZF Lifeguard 6 fluid.

 

[Marcozi]

Buy any oil that carries the BMW LL01 certification. BUT, buy only MANN oil filters. Aftermarket have been know to fall apart in the filter housing. BTW, I owned a 2001 330Ci for 17 years, and did almost all of the maintenance on it.

 

[samiamz]

Yes, generally, MB 229.5 is more stringent.
LL approvals have only bit more stringent oxidation requirements to increase OCI.Not relevant for your engine or OCI.

Okay thanks.
So, If I understand this correctly, I could use the 7 qt Total 5W-40 which has the MB-229.5 approval, but not the LL-01 approval - in the M54 with a short 5-6000k OCI interval - without any significant detriment.

 

[edyvw]

Okay thanks.
So, If I understand this correctly, I could use the 7 qt Total 5W-40 which has the MB-229.5 approval, but not the LL-01 approval - in the M54 with a short 5-6000k OCI interval - without any significant detriment.

You can use it longer than that.
LL01 today is far more stringent than when M54 was current. Those approvals are constantly updated. Since M54 went out of production, LL01 had like 5 updates. You can run it 5k, 7.5k, 10k, it will be absolutely fine. I personally run 5k.
The difference in oxidation requirement between MB229.5 and LL01 is really not that big at all. MB229.5 is anyway gold standard of approvals when you take into consideration all requirements MB229.5 has.

 

[svenson]

(Plus I have 10 qts of Total Quartz Ineo MC3 with the LL-04 cert, MB-229.5)

one correction here, there is no mb 229-5 in MC3 its MB 229.52 ,its a C3 oil ..just to be accurate!

 

[samiamz]

one correction here, there is no mb 229-5 in MC3 its MB 229.52 ,its a C3 oil ..just to be accurate!

You are absolutely right, I missed the extra digit.
Looking at the Lubrizol charts 229.52 seems to be a bit more comprehensive than 229.5.

 

[FlyingTexan]

Looking at the stash I have:
Total Quartz 9000 Energy 5W-30 - with the following approvals - MB-229.5, VW 502.00/505.00, ACEA A3/B4, API SL/CF, LL-01 - 4 qt
Total Quartz 9000 Energy 5W-40 - with the following approvals - MB-229.5, VW 502.00/505.00, ACEA A3/B4, API SN/CF, Porsche A40- 7 qt (no LL-01 cert).

(Plus I have 10 qts of Total Quartz Ineo MC3 with the LL-04 cert, MB-229.5)

Odd it'd have MB-229.5 and A40 but not LL01.