Oil suggestion for a late model BMW

[trooper001]

Short and sweet: The car is a 1994 E36 318is that specs for a xW40 oil according to the owners manual. I was going to run Rotella T6 5w40, but I came accross some German Castrol 0w30 and also have a case of BMW 5W30 Synthetic oil. Would GC or BMW Synthetic be fine? I'm thinking yes because both run on the heavy side, close to a 40 viscosity oil, plus have a HTHS of 3.5 and meet the A3/B3 specs. Am I on the right track or should I just run Rotella?

Oh and I'm planning to do 8k-10k mile OCI. None of these crazy 15k romps.

 

[Craig in Canada]

Everything you list will be fine. For your climate, Rotella T (15W40) should also be fine unless you're in some kind of cold area of California. I've found the BMW 5W30 to be a bit "dirty", leaving staining and some goo build up in an M62 engine on half service monitor intervals (~7000mi) but there are also UOAs from people who have had great luck with it.

I have a 1998 528i. My owner's manual says to use 15W40 until something like -18C where it might have trouble starting. It also says that "special oils" (owner's manual code for BMW 5W30) is OK at all temps. I like Rotella T best in this engine but it isn't suitable for my winters. I've used M1 0W40 (very noisy) and GC for many miles in the last 10 years with great UOAs. I've found 15W40s to be quieter and smoother. I've only recently switched to T6 which I intend to run year round to capture that Rotella T smoothness but be more appropriate for my climate.

If I lived in "the South" or California, I would run T all year round and change at an appropriate interval (start at 5k mi and use a lab to confirm).

 

[JHZR2]

Ive loved rotella syn 5w40 in my 318i.

 

[01fordcobra]

I have a buddy that has been using the AMSOIL XLOQT-EA 10W40 in his and loves it.