UGH... Mobil 1 15w50

[BigJohn]

Ok... before lovers start to respond.... I love M1 15w50. Before haters respond... I also hate m1 15w50.

Let me explain.....

I know this oil is beloved by the BMW crew. It is frickin awesome oil.... But I am learning, there are times NOT to use it.

Case in point.... My newly purchased BMW R1100R with low mileage.

After purchasing, I dumped all lubes. Then I poured back in... Rotella T4 15w40 conventional. The bike ran perfect...

Then after about 500 miles, I decided to dump the cheap Rotella and pour in some liquid GOLD.... M1 15w50.

Frick... within 200 miles, I have oil leaks and seeps on the engine. On start-up, the engine has some weird squealing noises that totally concern me.

Tomorrow I am dumping $26 of oil..... and going back to Rotella T4 15w40 Conventional.


......

 

[cptbarkey]

Are you sure you didnt over or underfill?

 

[Oillover]

Why did you dump the Rotella T4 to being with?
It's cheaper and has the JASO-MA rating, while (IIRC) the M1 15w50 does not.

I ran T4 in my bike and it ran perfectly.
If I had kept the bike, I wouldn't hesitate to run it again!

 

[BigJohn]

Are you sure you didnt over or underfill?

Zero doubt

 

[BigJohn]

Why did you dump the Rotella T4 to being with?
It's cheaper and has the JASO-MA rating, while (IIRC) the M1 15w50 does not.

I ran T4 in my bike and it ran perfectly.
If I had kept the bike, I wouldn't hesitate to run it again!

Yeah... call me a dummy.... Should have stuck with T4

 

[Ausfahrt]

I experienced a similar issue with my hexhead. The rear main seal leaked with M1 15w-50 but not with conventional oil.

How many miles are on the R1100R?

 

[kschachn]

Why did you dump the Rotella T4 to being with?
It's cheaper and has the JASO-MA rating, while (IIRC) the M1 15w50 does not.

Sort of, right? It’s not JASO licensed. JASO issues licenses.

 

[cheesepuffs2]

I know people on this forum in general will mostly disagree that one oil within a certain spec will leak while others won't, but I've experienced this same thing in an older car, twice, once with Mobil 1 5W-30 and once with Mobil 1 10W-40 High Mileage. Engine didnt leak oil, then switched to Mobil 1, started leaking almost instantly. Switched back away from Mobil 1, leaking went away.

I really like Mobil 1 for newer vehicles, but in anything older I won't use it anymore. Again, people will say "that can't be right", but there has to be something (in my opinion) about how they formulate their oils that causes this.

 

[weaponoffreedom]

Did you use a motorcycle oil, I though 15w50 was not JASO MA rated? Isnt the bike oil 20w50?

 

[cheesepuffs2]

Did you use a motorcycle oil, I though 15w50 was not JASO MA rated? Isnt the bike oil 20w50?

Many (most?) BMWs are dry clutch, no need for a JASO oil.

 

[ammolab]

I have an R1200R with 66,000 miles. No leaks or squeaks with M1 15W-50.

Did you wash that bike? Water on the alternator belt makes a horrible squeal. It will go away quickly….or just let the bike dry for a few hours.

 

[weaponoffreedom]

Many (most?) BMWs are dry clutch, no need for a JASO oil.

oh, did not know.

knowledge is power, thanks.

hey I know how to fix the issue..........get a Honda! hahahah

 

[benjy]

bac in the day before the Castrol SCAM mobil I 15-50 was a high quality PAO prolly with ester as needed, today not so much as it was reformulated like others using cheeper group III oils that became legally marketed as "synthetic"!!!

 

[cheesepuffs2]

bac in the day before the Castrol SCAM mobil I 15-50 was a high quality PAO prolly with ester as needed, today not so much as it was reformulated like others using cheeper group III oils that became legally marketed as "synthetic"!!!

Mobil 1 was still using PAO in certain oils pretty recently, years after the Castrol deal. M1 EP had a good amount of PAO until like a year and a half ago when they switched to GTL. M1 V-Twin apparently still has PAO.

 

[Overfill]

If it doesn't leak now after going back to T4, let us know?

 

[cheesepuffs2]

Did it stop leaking after the switch back to T4?

 

[oil pan 4]

That's because it's a bmw not because you used mobil1.

 

[BusyLittleShop]

Mercy John... you don't need to swap oil to cure the leaks... all your bike needs is some knowledgeable maintenance...