Recommended oil following my specs

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Hello everyone, first post here; I find this forum very helpful, it is great to confirm and see proof of different oil brands, properties and quality that some times are mislead by the market/average customer, and this is what I am trying to figure out..

Following forums questions:
1. What kind of vehicle you have = 160k miles 2001 BMW 3-series (E46) 325CI - 2.5L 6cyl in line 24v
2. What your owner's manual says = 5W-30 or 5W-40 API SH or higher, both may be used in any ambient temperature, changes accordingly to your BMW center (I do every 4000-5000miles and check oil level periodically).
3. Where you live = Michigan
4. How you drive = I always start the car and let it idle for 1-2min then accelerate slowly not passing 2000-2500rpm until it reaches operating temp; after that I really like to push the thing to 4000-5000rpm most of the times, and sometimes to the rev limiter.
5. What your daily drive is like = short trips 85% city during the week, highway trips during weekend (50-100miles).
6. Whether your car has any known problems = has a oil pan "sweat" that doesn't even drip, rest is all clean with new gaskets and car works perfectly.

I am using Mobil 1 5W-30 extended performance (Walmart) and genuine BMW (MANN) oil filter.

Now here is the questions;
-Previous owner was using 0W-40 Castrol Edge, should I go back to this oil viscosity?
-BMW used to have Mobil 1 as approved/recommended oil, now it is not in the list anymore (they recommend Pennzoil, Castrol, Genuine BMW) is it really changed or is it more like a "business" deal?
-What brand/model of oil DO you guys would use on this car w/ this mileage? I plan to track-day during summer.

This is kind unrelated:
-I noticed some deposits when changing my valve cover gasket (pics below), should I use these oil flush products in the following oil changes? or this can damage my engine/oil pump? if yes, which product do you recommend?
-Same question on these anti-friction additives (like liqui moly MOS2), should I use it?
-Same question on these Seafoam products that goes in the intake to clean the valves/pistons, should I use it? (my piston pics below)

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Thanks!
 
You can use any oil that carries the Longlife-01 specification regardless of grade (viscosity). Oil grade is irrelevant with a spec such as LL-01. Your current oil does not have LL-01 so I would not continue using it.

As to why Mobil 1 0W-40 no longer has Longlife-01, no one knows. It can be (endlessly) speculated about but the only real fact is that the oil no longer carries the spec. Walmart has Castrol 0W-40 which has the spec, that is what most people buy. There are other oils available at places other than Walmart, but no one knows if they are any "better" or not despite what they say. Be careful that the oil you buy actually has Longlife-01 and isn't labeled as "suitable for" or any other weasel wording.

I would not use any additives nor cleaners in that engine, but maybe that's just me. BMW does not recommend any so that's what I would go by.
 
I would use an oil that is LL-01 approved, Mobil 1 is no longer. I don't recommend using a cleaner. When you drain the oil, you are not getting 100% of that oil out, so some will still be in there after the fill.

If doing track days, I would recommend using the heavier 40wt.

Idling for that long before driving is not recommended. As soon as you have oil pressure, you can start driving gently like you say. I only wait about 15-20s.
 
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For a BMW of that vintage, any approved lube would be fine, as would "unapproved" M1 0w-40. I'd certainly see little advantage in an SN/GF-5 5w-30. If you happen to be partial to a 5w-30 for some reason, note that there are actual LL-01 5w-30 options from Pennzoil and Castrol.
 
Are you sure ? Castrol makes "smart oil" - it automatically resets to specs for cars made in the 90's and early 2000's ...
 
Originally Posted By: Garak
For a BMW of that vintage, any approved lube would be fine, as would "unapproved" M1 0w-40. I'd certainly see little advantage in an SN/GF-5 5w-30. If you happen to be partial to a 5w-30 for some reason, note that there are actual LL-01 5w-30 options from Pennzoil and Castrol.


Originally Posted By: 4WD
Are you sure ? Castrol makes "smart oil" - it automatically resets to specs for cars made in the 90's and early 2000's ...


HA HA! Fair enough.
 
You've got some varnish, but overall it doesn't seem very 'dirty'

Why not try some Pennzoil Platinum Euro in that car? Seems like it would be an excellent use case.
 
I'd recommend Edge as well, maybe a couple short OCIs could help remove a little varnish, but it doesn't look bad IMO
 
Skip the additives and the Mobil 1 5w-30 that is currently being used.

As stated above, Castrol 0w40 is the lowest cost LL-01 currently available. Otherwise, there is Pennzoil Euro 5w40 for a little more $$, and plenty of others as well.

I wouldn't hesitate to use the Mobil 1 0w40 or Pennzoil Euro 0w40 (now available at Walmart in 5qt jugs) in your M54 engine, but there's no real compelling reason to do so unless you can find them cheaper than Castrol 0w40.
 
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Wow thanks everyone for the answers! Either being 5W-30 or 0W-40 I will definitely use a LL-01 in my next oil change and skip all these aftermarket additives.

Now breaking down the specs, LL-01 is basically ACEA A3/B3 that requires HTSH =>3.5 were Mobil 1 is A1/B1 with 3.1.

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I found all this info above here on the forums. According to it I would have better efficiency instead durability with a lower HTHS number; now what does this durability means exactly? Lower oil changes intervals? I am not an oil/BMW engineer so will follow the specs but want to understand how it works, after all this is running in my engine right now.

And for oil weight, a higher 40 will give better protection for extreme scenarios/racing and a lower 30 would give better lubrication/efficiency?

I heard that a lower difference between the two numbers will make a better oil, as it need less additives to change viscosity, for example a 5W-30 would be better than a 0W-40 (25 vs 40). It is why I opt for 5W-30, also because I thought these manufactures requirements were all businesses relations (read $$$) but I guess this doesn’t make any sense now.. these oil specs are giving me headaches haha
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Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: 01_325ci
Now breaking down the specs, LL-01 is basically ACEA A3/B3 that requires HTSH =>3.5

Not exactly. LL-01 uses ACEA A3/B4 as baseline, but then it goes far beyond it. See here for comparison:
https://online.lubrizol.com/relperftool/pc.html


Thanks for the website, I get confused each time I try to figure this out.. so as far as I understood currently BMW LL-01 should meets ACEA 2016 A3/B4..
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BTW here is a picture that I took on the dealer the other day, it botters me if they develop these newer technologies/standards focusing newer engines only.. mine is not a twin turbo ///M, I wish..
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I went to 4 stores today and current 0W-40 Pennzoil and Mobil 1 euro formulas does not meet LL-01 (pics below), they meet A3/B4 tough.

I guess I will go with 5W-40 as I don`t like the idea of a 0 weight oil running in my high mileage sweating engine...

Funny thing is, the only available 5W-40 around is this, $10 per liter
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Two more questions:
-As this oil comes from Canada, will it be ok for American gas? I was reading about high sulpur here on the forums.
-Should I try to find 5W-40 Castrol w/ titanium tech? does it worth it?

Thanks again!
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Originally Posted By: 01_325ci
I went to 4 stores today and current 0W-40 Pennzoil and Mobil 1 euro formulas does not meet LL-01 (pics below), they meet A3/B4 tough.

I guess I will go with 5W-40 as I don`t like the idea of a 0 weight oil running in my high mileage sweating engine...

Funny thing is, the only available 5W-40 around is this, $10 per liter
mad.gif


Two more questions:
-As this oil comes from Canada, will it be ok for American gas? I was reading about high sulpur here on the forums.
-Should I try to find 5W-40 Castrol w/ titanium tech? does it worth it?

Thanks again!
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You're just joking about the 0W thing, right? You've shown some knowledge of oil in your posts, I refuse to think you're that ignorant. You do know that it is quite possible the 0W would be thicker at startup than the 5W? Even if it is not, it will be very, very close to the same viscosity at any temperature above 0 Fahrenheit.

And as long as it is Longlife-01 and not Longlife-04 there is no concern about the sulfur content of the fuel. It has nothing to do with the origin of the oil.

All the titanium does is substitute for the zinc as the central metal ion in the organometallic anti-wear compound. It's not a magical thing.

Lastly, if you pay $10 a liter for oil you will vastly overpay for a LL-01 oil.
 
Originally Posted By: kschachn
You're just joking about the 0W thing, right? You've shown some knowledge of oil in your posts, I refuse to think you're that ignorant. You do know that it is quite possible the 0W would be thicker at startup than the 5W? Even if it is not, it will be very, very close to the same viscosity at any temperature above 0 Fahrenheit.


Haha chill out dude, yes I am that ignorant it is why I am using the forums. Now you say quite possible? I thought this place were for tech data.. I am basing my statement on this video below and would like to know more if you could share;


Thanks for other replies.
 
Say it with me:

"The viscosity printed on the front of the bottle is irrelevant when choosing an LL01 oil."

Castrol 0W-40 is probably the best LL01 you can buy right now, and it's the cheapest as well, at least in the US.
 
Originally Posted By: 01_325ci
Haha chill out dude, yes I am that ignorant it is why I am using the forums. Now you say quite possible? I thought this place were for tech data.. I am basing my statement on this video below and would like to know more if you could share;

Thanks for other replies.


I really thought you were kidding, I wouldn't have phrased it that way had I not. The knowledge you showed in your other replies in this thread made me think you were.

The reason that it "may be" is because the viscosity falls into a grade which allows for a range. But the "W" rating is not a viscosity, it is a cold temperature performance spec that is met by oils due to their chemistry. There is no 0 weight oil. All oil is way to thick at cold temperatures so you want it as thin as possible. 0W-40 and 5W-40 both have the same operational viscosity (or at least fall in the range for a 40-weight oil). It is merely that at very low temperatures the 0W oil will be less "too thick" than will the 5W. But both will have nearly the same viscosity down to 0 Fahrenheit. At that point the 0W oil will start to deviate and be less thick.

Additionally as rooflessVW points out and it's a good point, oil grade is nearly irrelevant when a specification such as Longlife-01 is concerned. And in the case of 0W-40 vs. 5W-40 there is nothing to be lost by using the 0W-40, you only gain a possible cold weather improvement in the starting viscosity. This may be of benefit in Michigan, it likely is for my BMW in northern Wisconsin.

Also like rooflessVW points out, the Castrol 0W-40 by all accounts is a very good oil. There is no benefit in purchasing anything else.
 
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