They shouldn’t be top choices. Again, primary reason why these oils are used is not protection, it is CAFE.
BMW manual allows LL01FE. Until warranty is still valid, that is only oil I would run.
Running 0w-20 STP SYN in bmw 340i (B58) do I need to change immediately?
- Thread starter Bryce1552
- Start date
BMW manual allows LL01FE. Until warranty is still valid, that is only oil I would run.
There is LL04. That is only oil I would use in it. Period.
Castrol is only supplier of TPT on North American market. Rest of the world is Shell.
That Shell 0W20 probably is not as same as TPT. VOA and some other tests proved that Shell made specific oils for BMW.
And my only point was that there most certainly is a technical reason for deviating.
Like if you drive hot and high mountain passes in the summer, or you visit a track once in a while - sure.
0w-20 is fine for suburban lifestyles with fuel conserving start/stop cycles at red lights and short trips.
If it meets spec, it's fine for 95th percentile of drivers on public roads.
f355spider
$50 Site Donor 2024
Actually, LL01 is on the BMW list for the B58 as "technically appropriate", as is LL01FE and LL14FE+.
LL17FE+ is the "recommended" oil.
Can anyone coach me on posting the TIS pdf file?
It’s definitely not in the manual though, which is what I said. It’s not even allowed in my manual for S55 printed in 2021.
I realize it’s perfectly fine. Who wants to find out and test the accuracy of an undated list out of TIS vs a warranty claim though? BMW dealers and BMWNA can be problematic if they choose to be. TIS is the reference but if you ask your SA to fill a B58 with LL01 they will probably freak out and tell you no.
If people know better and choose to deviate that’s cool, but I don’t want to be the guy to tell someone to run something that some pedant could possibly object to. The odds are low but nothing surprises me anymore when it comes to warranty claims. Out of warranty, sure have at it.
Last edited:
The TIS oil table is dated July 2020, so it's contemporary.
B58 is listed as being able to use pretty much everything, although there are - outdated - caveats like LL-04 is not compatible with North American fuel.
0w-20 LL-17FE+ is the 'recommended' oil in that table, and is a similar low SAPS formulation to LL-04.
Per Bimmerworld:
BMW never certified LL-04 for the US market because a) there weren't many Diesels for sale here, b) it was incompatible with the high amounts of sulfur and Ethanol in US gasoline. However, since 2014 our gasoline more closely matches European sulfur levels and since 2017 it's been lower than the past European levels. Oil analysis can give you more insight how your local fuel is interacting with the oil. LL-04 and LL-01 are interchangeable/compatible but LL-04 is preferred for BMW turbo engines for its higher ZDDP and low SAPS. Food for thought: the official BMW Motorsport oil recommendation for the M4 GT4 race car is a LL-04 spec oil. Our race team has used the Red Line Euro Series 5W40.
Also per Bimmerworld:
The B46 is an super-efficient engine for lower emissions and greater fuel economy. BMW uses a very thin oil to help deliver that better economy - a 0W20 with either LL14 or LL17 formulas. Looking over the limited amount of technical specs available, this 0W20 oil is about 30% thinner than the original 5W30 oil. Marketing backs this up with claims of improved fuel economy. The thinner oil is also beneficial for cold starts and continuous Stop/Start cycles. For these reasons we recommend staying with the Genuine BMW 0W20 oil or Pentosin 0W20 for normal driving in traffic. But it will never be a good oil for spirited driving or track use. If you regularly make runs to red line we recommend using the Red Line 0W20 which has good low temp specs but with more ZDDP for better strength.
For aggressive driving with regular runs to red line, we don't yet have an official recommendation. We need to know more about the engine internals, wear, and clearances to say which is our favorite oil. Just looking at paper specs, the BMW 0W30 may be a good option for sporty driving. It has slightly thicker viscosities and better HTHS strength than the BMW 0W20 but is not as thick as the Red Line.
Although their advice is specific to the B46, I think it represents a careful and well-balanced set of recommendations applicable to B48's and B58's as well.
The problem is that Bimmerworld and others won't diverge from the official weights recommended by the automaker. Bimmerworld has a long standing relationship with BMW NA and they won't jepordize that by recommending a heavier weight (ie. 5w40). Everyone is towing the company line for CAFE.
The UK handbook for my car (has the B58) lists 0w40 and 5w40 as suitable viscosities. As long as it meets LL04.
I don’t think there is any oil in 0w40 or 5w40 that meets the other two specs.
Where would you put M1 0w40 in this list?
Nowhere. It is not LL01 approved.
OK to use in older engines (N51/52/55). I would skip it in N54 due to CBU issues.
I used it in my N52 on track. Always truest M1 0W40.
But, newer engines? No. No specific tests important to new generation of engines.
Oh no, I forgot this was a BMW thread. Sorry I was asking in regards to a VW 2.5 port injected motor.
Apologies.
You can put basically anything in a 2.5 5-cyl.
My 2007 Rabbit lived on a diet of 0w-30 Castrol back in the day.
Similar threads
- Locked
- Locked