thicker oil or better oil contents

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Hi everyone,

I have a 2009 BMW 318d with 2 liter N47 engine, with quite some mileage: 175k. Stock one, DPF is in place, so LL-04 and Euro-5. Last 50k I use Castrol Edge titanium FST 5w-40 due to it high viscosity. However I heard some stories that Castrol oils make the inner of engines dirty. Now I wonder if I should use

1. continue to use this Castrol Edge titanium FST 5w-40
2. Use M1 ESP 5w-30 because of Mo etc, despite the fact it's thinner
3. Use M1 ESP 0w-40 as clean oil.

What would you suggest, please?
 
Last edited:
Use the specified grade.

BMW engines "go dirty" either because of BMW's aggressive oil change intervals or neglect. Not because of Castrol.
 
Use an LL04 oil, any LL04 oil, for the specified intervals.

The viscosity printed on the front of the label is irrelevant when discussing LL01/04 rated oils. The viscosity is dictated by the specification.
 
Switch over to Valvoline 5W-40. Good stuff.
smile.gif
 
Originally Posted By: ilyamiee
Castrol oils make the inner of engines dirty.


False. Castrol Edge is a solid oil.
 
Originally Posted By: rooflessVW
Use an LL04 oil, any LL04 oil, for the specified intervals.

The viscosity printed on the front of the label is irrelevant when discussing LL01/04 rated oils. The viscosity is dictated by the specification.

+1
 
Originally Posted By: Chewie
Originally Posted By: ilyamiee
Castrol oils make the inner of engines dirty.


False. Castrol Edge is a solid oil.


^^That^^

The story you heard about Castrol being dirty is just another fairy tail in the oil world.
 
Originally Posted By: FordCapriDriver
Keep using the oil you are using now, Castrol will not make your engine dirty inside.


LOL Castrol has their act together.
 
Originally Posted By: alarmguy
Originally Posted By: Chewie
Originally Posted By: ilyamiee
Castrol oils make the inner of engines dirty.


False. Castrol Edge is a solid oil.


^^That^^

The story you heard about Castrol being dirty is just another fairy tail in the oil world.


I disagree regarding one Castrol product, GTX. Spent 7 years in a Toyota Forum discussing oil consumption issues and sludge complaints. Peel back the onion and GTX conventional white bottle was used almost every time. It has/had a flashpoint that is lower than other conventional oils which is no good for hot running aluminum Toyota engines. Clogs the oil return holes with boiled oil and the heat breaks down the oil fast, leading to sludge. GTX is/was a cheap oil weak on detergents, improvers, low flashpoint, etc. That may be fine for the old cast iron Chevy, but not a all-aluminum Toyota.

I'm using Edge EP currently, not bad. But I would never, ever use GTX on anything including my lawnmower
 
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You can use either oil weights but the 5w-30 is the preferred oil to use for best overall results.There is a misconception that if you have high milage, that you need thicker oil due to "wear" tolerance between parts.This is generally incorrect,since getting lube to the moving parts is the most critical.Thicker oil is slower to get in between moving parts, as well as having less base oil per qt.[Main lubrication ingredient.] due to required additional additives required to make a wider 0w-40 multigrade or any other "thicker" oil(Resulting in less base oil per quart.).
shocked.gif
In my earlier days in tech training, we took a extremely high mileage{More than 1/4 million miles.) Ford Taurus V6 & ran multiple test with different weights of oil.The results were eye opening to say the least.With the thicker straight 30w weight as well as even the most popular 10w-40 multigrade, the results were much worse (Less pronounced with 10w-40.)than with the factory recommended 5w-30 oil. H.P. & fuel efficiency was lower,emissions higher, and idle rougher. In fact, the straight weight would cause a smog test to possibly fail due to to both high emissions & unstable idle speed.
So no matter how many miles you have on the vehicle, it is best to stick to the factory spec. grade of oil{Unless you have a very high consumption of oil, for which you can as a last resort make a single switch up in multigrade oil type or use an oil additive[STP or any stabilizers.] to do the same.
smile.gif
 
Thanks again for your unique insights into tolerances, and motor oils in general. After your last posts I didn't think it could get any better but you did it again
smile.gif


Originally Posted By: GSL
smile.gif
You can use either oil weights but the 5w-30 is the preferred oil to use for best overall results.There is a misconception that if you have high milage, that you need thicker oil due to "wear" tolerance between parts.This is generally incorrect,since getting lube to the moving parts is the most critical.Thicker oil is slower to get in between moving parts, as well as having less base oil per qt.[Main lubrication ingredient.] due to required additional additives required to make a wider 0w-40 multigrade or any other "thicker" oil(Resulting in less base oil per quart.).
shocked.gif
In my earlier days in tech training, we took a extremely high mileage{More than 1/4 million miles.) Ford Taurus V6 & ran multiple test with different weights of oil.The results were eye opening to say the least.With the thicker straight 30w weight as well as even the most popular 10w-40 multigrade, the results were much worse (Less pronounced with 10w-40.)than with the factory recommended 5w-30 oil. H.P. & fuel efficiency was lower,emissions higher, and idle rougher. In fact, the straight weight would cause a smog test to possibly fail due to to both high emissions & unstable idle speed.
So no matter how many miles you have on the vehicle, it is best to stick to the factory spec. grade of oil{Unless you have a very high consumption of oil, for which you can as a last resort make a single switch up in multigrade oil type or use an oil additive[STP or any stabilizers.] to do the same.
smile.gif
 
Use the thickness recommended.the long version. If you got direct injection ,fuel dilution is gona be one of your concern .if you don't have direct injection , follow the poster recommendation here (thin oil)
 
Originally Posted By: alarmguy
Originally Posted By: Chewie
Originally Posted By: ilyamiee
Castrol oils make the inner of engines dirty.


False. Castrol Edge is a solid oil.


^^That^^

The story you heard about Castrol being dirty is just another fairy tail in the oil world.


Fairies don't have tails, they have tutu's.

And if Castrol Edge was a solid oil, it wouldn't pump very well.
 
That's interesting because GTX was typically a premium priced oil and was considered the go-to by many savvy owners of many cars.
Certain Toys of the old days did have serious engine deposit issues, but that was more a matter of design than oil used, just as the high consumption seen with some later Toyota engines is a matter of design, not oil used.
 
Originally Posted By: alarmguy
Originally Posted By: Chewie
Originally Posted By: ilyamiee
Castrol oils make the inner of engines dirty.


False. Castrol Edge is a solid oil.


^^That^^

The story you heard about Castrol being dirty is just another fairy tail in the oil world.



I believe there is some truth to the Castrol stories and experiences, but, it has to do with the older Castrol formulations. Pennzoil has the reputation of causing sludge and deposit in the 70's and 80's, and we all know that is different today. Castrol has the reputation for being dirty with their older formulations, not their current oils.

I used Castrol Syntec, starting around 1998 or so, and used it around three years. This was when I started shining a flashlight down the oil fill hole. I was surprised at the deposit buildup I saw occurring, considering it was supposed to be a synthetic oil and keep the engine cleaner.

But, then again, other oils during that time period probably were not much better. In the 20 years since then, oils have changed a lot. Better oxidation and thermal breakdown properties. Better deposit control for cleaner engines.
 
Castrol is *fine* however, I avoid them like a plague due to the Gulf Coast oil spill. Can't support BP or any of their products after that.

That being said, I do not know what is available in Czech Rep, but I always have been a fan of Delo (Chevron) or Shell products over here in the states. From my fleet perspective, I have always run a 10w30 but then again I have the "POS" or PSD 6.0 Fords and a few OLD sprinters.
 
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