Which OEM approval would you choose from...?

[JXW]

-A40 - Porsche​

-BMW LL-01​

-Mercedes 225.5​

You can only pick one and why your choice?

 

[Bailes1992]

Porsche A40 but coupled with ACEA C3. An oil for nearly everything!

 

[Graham Piccinini]

Porsche A40. If an oil can pass this test, then it can take anything I throw at it, in any of my liquid-cooled vehicles.

Here is Porsche A40 testing procedure:
This test will last 203 hours. The engine, and the oil, will go through:
- 4 times the simulation of 35 hours of summer driving,
- 4 times the simulation of 13.5 hours of winter driving,
- 40 cold starts,
- 5 times the simulation of 1-hour sessions on the “Nürburgring” racetrack, A full lap of the Nordschleife, bypassing the modern GP track, is 20.832 km (12.944 mi) long. A stock Chevrolet Corvette C5 has a lap record at Nurburgring @8:40, stock Honda S2000 has a record@8:39, and stock Honda NSX is @8:38. Considering these numbers, this Porsche A40 simulation is equal to 80-90 miles of flatout track use. Or 100-120 miles if you drive Porsche 911 GT2 R with its lap record @6:38.
- 3.5 hours of “running-in” program
Measurements on the engine and on the oil will be done at regular intervals, and the following parameter
will be taken into account to grant the approval or not:
- torque curve (internal friction),
- oxidation of the oil,
- Piston cleanliness and ring sticking,
- Valve train wear protection. Cam & tappet wear must be less than 10 μm.
- Engine cleanliness and sludge: after 203 hours, no deposits must be visible.
- Bearing wear protection: visual rating according to Porsche in-house method.
One more thing for comparison. Just a rough idea of how the numbers stack up. Take everything with a grain of salt.
Most daily driven cars have an average speed (over the course of an OCI) of about ~35mph. That would make the 203hr test an equivalent to 7,105 miles of driving.
Assuming the average speeds are higher, let's say 50mph, and the 203hrs are now equivalent to 10,150 miles of driving.

 

[RooflessVW]

Choose for what? Without context the approvals are meaningless, IMO.

 

[Zee09]

VW 504 ☺

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

A40 racing.

Non-racing I'd roll a 3-sided dice.

 

[wemay]

Asian and American cars - dexos or SP
Euro - VW508.00 or VW504.00

 

[CleanSump]

225.5 because it is so special Mercedes hides its existence from the public..

 

[930.engineering]

Which OEM approval would you choose from?

The one the manual calls for.
.

 

[kschachn]

225.5 because it is so special Mercedes hides its existence from the public..

No one is hiding anything. There are other approvals like that one where it is or was used only for a very specific instance:

Sheet 225.5 (Multigrade oils SAE 15W-40)​

These break-in engine oils are only approved in exceptional cases for older diesel engines in model series 300 and model series 400 for oil distances of up to a maximum of 5000 km and oil operating periods of up to a maximum of 100 h. They have been replaced by the break-in engine oils described in Sheets 225.6 and 225.12. The break-in engine oils described in Sheet 225.5 may be used in exceptional cases only, if no other approved break-in engine oil is available! For use, see sheet 223.1.​

​

https://bevo.mercedes-benz.com/d/d/en/Spec_221_0.pdf

 

[weasley]

Agreed, although I suspect the OP meant MB 229.5?

 

[JohnnyG]

Agreed, although I suspect the OP meant MB 229.5?

Since the VST he's already using meets all three of those approvals, I'd say you are correct.

 

[kschachn]

Agreed, although I suspect the OP meant MB 229.5?

Difficult to read minds across the Internets so you can only go on what someone actually writes.

 

[JohnnyG]

In this case, it seems pretty obvious, given the fact that 225.5 is an MB "break in oil".
I'll wait to hear from the OP.

 

[JXW]

Gents, yes, I intended 229.5

Early morning typo, please excuse me for that error.

 

[Jimmy_Russells]

Porsche A40 but coupled with ACEA C3. An oil for nearly everything!

That's what Porsche C30 is

 

[dlundblad]

That's what Porsche C30 is

An A40 would be high SAPS A3/B4 while C3 is not correct? Seems a little contradicting.

 

[Snagglefoot]

It’s easy to find a motor oil that meets all three. That lends one to think that those “special” sets of European specifications are really not that special. I happen to use this in my 3/4 ton Chevy. Flame suit on.

 

[Snagglefoot]

A big player in Porsche A-40 is the minimum HTHS of 3.5. It requires a xW40 grade.

 

[JohnnyG]

Don't forget Ravenol VST, which the OP (and I) is/are already using. The VST is the 5W-40 version, and if IRC saps is 1.2.....
Technically though, we never did answer the OP's original question, which I think was "IF you had to choose one, which would be better".