Oil Recommendation - 2011 BMW 135i - N55 Engine

[CrustyNoodle]

Good day to all and my apologies for starting yet another "Engine Oil Recommendation" thread - I did search and whilst finding a few semi-relevant posts, none really hit the mark.

I have 2011 BMW 135i. This model uses the N55 engine rather than the older N54 engine - the key difference being that the N55 uses a single twin scroll turbo rather than the N54's twin turbo.
However this engine also has another key difference and that is that it uses BMW's fancy Valvetronic variable valve lift system which basically eliminates the need for a throttle plate as valve lift takes its place - Wikipedia Link



So that is why I say that I could only find semi-relevant info (ie none specifically on the N55 engine).

So the manual lists approved oil grades as:

• BMW High Performance SAE 5W-30
• BMW Longlife-01
• BMW Longlife-01 FE

It also says that alternative oil types must meet API SM or higher and then goes on to say that "BMW recommends Castrol".

The car is mostly driven on short trips (I know, it's a travesty) but it will see a few longer trips each year and some occasional track work (hill climb, AutoX, track day) - say 2 - 3 times a year. Total annual distance is probably around the 5-7k km mark (say 3,000mi to 4,500mi).
I live in a temperate climate (Melbourne, Australia) where winter minimums can go as low as -1*C (say 30*F) and summer maximums often hover around the 32*C (90*F) mark and can go higher but will generally not exceed 45*C (113*F).

So the question (obviously) is what would the experts among you recommend in oil and change frequency?

Given that BMW recommend Castrol, I'd guess that it would pay to start thinking there so the options available to me are:

• Castrol Edge Sport 5W-30 (listed as SAE 5W-30, API SM/CF, ACEA A3/B3/B4)
• Castrol Edge Sport 0W-40 (Listed as SAE 05W-40, API SM/CF, ACEA A3/B3/B4 and BMW LL01)
• And finally there is 10W-60 and 25W-50 which I'm guessing would not be appropriate

So should I go for one of these Castrol oils or should I avoid them altogether and go for something else?

 

[chubbs1]

Welcome! Can you get your hands on Mobil 1 0w40?

I would search for BITOG member Doug Hillary. He is from OZ too and he know a lot about the oils available in the area and is extremely knowledgeable.

 

[Merkava_4]

Amsoil says:

Quote:
LUBRICANTS & FLUIDS:
Engine Oil
Grade 1......SEO[1]
Performance Synthetic 5W-30 European Oil (AELQT)
Performance AMSOIL European Car Formula 100% Synthetic 5W-40 Motor Oil (AFLQT)
All TEMPS......5W-30, 0W-30, 5W-40, 0W-40


In Australia temps with a turbo, I'd run 5W-40 full synthetic.

 

[HTSS_TR]

Either BMW High Performance SAE 5W-30, Castrol Edge Sport 5W-30, Castrol Edge Sport 0W-40 (or Mobil 1 0W40 if available in OZ) will be good choices to keep warranty intact.

 

[jaj]

I'm not an expert on Castrol's non-North American products, but they don't recommend any of the "Edge Sport" oils for your car on the Castrol.com.au site. They do recommend three "Edge" oils - 5w-30, 5w-40 and 0w-40; presumably the labels show BMW LL-01 compliance. If not, don't use them.

This is not uncommon - the "Edge Sport" products are intended for a different audience than the "Edge" products, and while it says "Sport" on the label, it may not meet OEM requirements for your car. When I had an E92 M3, "Edge 10w-60" met the spec for the engine, while "Edge Sport 10w-60" did not.

 

[JHZR2]

I have the same car/engine. Currently I am keeping with the BMW 5w-30 that is used commonly here in NA. Why? Because for the first 4 years/50k miles, BMW gives me free service.

Im just changing the oil more often to deal with fuel dilution, etc.

You may operate in the lean stratified charge mode down there, which may make fuel issues a bit less troublesome.

In the long term Ill go with RLI or a really low NOACK oil that meets the requisite specs.

If BMW doesnt give you free service, and youll be doing all the changes yourself, Id look for the oil with the lowest NOACK volatility, and that has the least chance of having VIIs, etc.

Im not a fan of changing oil brands/types each change, so if you do get free service, Id stick with the BMW oil for now.

 

[d00df00d]

to BITOG!

On the "BMW recommends Castrol" thing, I would pay that no mind. BMW and Castrol have a long and fruitful partnership, but it's vastly more important for your oil to meet the right spec.

Does your fuel contain ethanol over there in OZ?

 

[salgra]

I got to say I am quite suprised you can run the LL 01FE, it is the low hths oil. would using it do any consession to engine durability? even on extended wot runs like i do on the autobahn? ( 40 Min WOT a few times a week is no exception.

 

[CATERHAM]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
If BMW doesnt give you free service, and youll be doing all the changes yourself, Id look for the oil with the lowest NOACK volatility, and that has the least chance of having VIIs, etc.
Im not a fan of changing oil brands/types each change, so if you do get free service, Id stick with the BMW oil for now.

Virtually all oils today (except some expensive boutique offerings) contain VIIs and all BMW spec' oils do.

If the price is the same I'd go with M1 0W-40 for it's higher VI and HTHS viscosity.
Originally Posted By: salgra
( 40 Min WOT a few times a week is no exception.

Now I'm truly jealous!
A friend who recently returned from a trip to OZ told me the Ozzy's have been totally whipped on the speed issue. No one drives even remotely fast there anymore even by Canadian standards.
It would only be on the occational track day that the OP would possibly see high oil temp's, so for street use it's a non issue.

 

[salgra]

I do drive 40 min @ top speed, and i do love it @ 3 in the morning on my way to austria

 

[river_rat]

Originally Posted By: salgra
I got to say I am quite suprised you can run the LL 01FE, it is the low hths oil. would using it do any consession to engine durability? even on extended wot runs like i do on the autobahn? ( 40 Min WOT a few times a week is no exception.

For that car, I would like to see some good, current ACEA specs, too...a stout HTHS. But then I assume the engineers know what they are recommending, ans we don't know if they made any changes to the bearing loads, clearances, surface finish, materials, and/or the oil distribution system. Those kinds of things may affect/maintain engine durability for a given HTHS.

 

[CATERHAM]

Originally Posted By: salgra
I do drive 40 min @ top speed, and i do love it @ 3 in the morning on my way to austria

The Bimmer has a factory electonically limited maximum speed of 155 mph (250 km/h) if I'm not mistaken although there is a common aftermarket fix for that.
What's the top speed of your car?

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Hmmm..I thought AUS moved to LL04 by now.

Valvtronic has been around a long time and there are a ton of Castrol products available.

Stick with the approved OEM rating and don't worry so much about weight.

 

[CrustyNoodle]

Gent's, thank you indeed for your learned comments and apologies for my slow reply. I'll respond in turn (where I can):

Originally Posted By: d00df00d

to BITOG!

On the "BMW recommends Castrol" thing, I would pay that no mind. BMW and Castrol have a long and fruitful partnership, but it's vastly more important for your oil to meet the right spec.

Does your fuel contain ethanol over there in OZ?


Hi d00df00d, and thanks for the welcome.

We do have E10 and E85 here but it is clearly labelled as such so it is a fairly simple matter to avoid it if necessary. Does ethanol in the fuel make a difference to the oil recommendation?

As it stands, I intend to avoid ethanol blends as this car has well documented issues with the longevity of its high pressure fuel pump (were talking around the 200Bar or 3,000 psi mark) and I'm a little suspect on the ethanol exacerbating the issue.

Originally Posted By: CATERHAM

A friend who recently returned from a trip to OZ told me the Ozzy's have been totally whipped on the speed issue. No one drives even remotely fast there anymore even by Canadian standards.
It would only be on the occational track day that the OP would possibly see high oil temp's, so for street use it's a non issue.


You'd better believe it! We have so many speed cameras around that if you speed, you are guaranteed of getting a ticket and it doesn't take much to loose your license. Now-a-days they've even put a limit in the Northern Territory of 130km/h (80 mph) which used to be unlimited. Everywhere else the max. limit on interstate freeways is 110km/h (70mph) and most city freeways and country roads are just 100km/h (62mph).

The consolation to all this however is that the roads do feel a great deal safer with very few people tailgating and pulling silly manoeuvre's as they know they will be caught if they do it. Driving in Aus these days (admittedly it does change a bit state by state) feels more like driving in say Switzerland. If I drive in countries like Italy or even the UK I really notice the difference (haven't driven on mainland USA for many years so can't comment there).


Originally Posted By: BMWTurboDzl
Hmmm..I thought AUS moved to LL04 by now.

Valvtronic has been around a long time and there are a ton of Castrol products available.

Stick with the approved OEM rating and don't worry so much about weight.



It appears that Aus is not LL04 (possibly due to sulphur content of fuel??). In fact, on my travels to the local Autobarn on the weekend I found the Castrol Edge Sport 5W-30 listed itself as LL-04 (from memory) but specifically said that it was not approved for use in Australia and New Zealand ??

 

[d00df00d]

Originally Posted By: CrustyNoodle
We do have E10 and E85 here but it is clearly labelled as such so it is a fairly simple matter to avoid it if necessary. Does ethanol in the fuel make a difference to the oil recommendation?

Ethanol attracts water, and water increases the rate of acid formation. As I understand, this can limit the length of oil change intervals. Based on that, using ethanol-free fuel should give you a bit more flexibility to choose the oil change intervals you like.