BMW dropping Castrol

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Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
w00t! they are changing to an oil I actually like, LOL!!! Was kind of hoping it was going to be Mobil but SOPUS will do
smile.gif


It'll be interesting to see what ends up in a bottle of "BMW High Performance Synthetic 5w-30" going forward. I'm not aware of any SOPUS products currently available in North America that would fit the bill, so possibly it'll be some new concoction.. maybe a slightly thinner version of PU 5w-40...



Shell Europe has several BMW LL01 and LL04 for sale they can use.
 
Originally Posted By: shDK
Shell Europe has several BMW LL01 and LL04 for sale they can use.

Right, I know. I was just wondering whether that's the path they're going to take or whether they'll just decide to manufacture something locally here in the US.

I can't recall now whether the current "BMW 5w-30" oil is made in USA or imported from Europe.
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: shDK
Shell Europe has several BMW LL01 and LL04 for sale they can use.

Right, I know. I was just wondering whether that's the path they're going to take or whether they'll just decide to manufacture something locally here in the US.

Well, could be.
What I have noticed is that Shell Helix L in Europe is better on paper then Pennzoil Euro L that we have here.
 
Originally Posted By: dparm



(as seen on M3post)



So......switching to Shell, but requiring Castrol for warranty? Sounds positively un-Teutonic.

(Yes I read where it says "during the transition". A better document would have specified the Shell product that could also be used, or that Castrol would be used until dealer stocks were exhausted.)
 
Originally Posted By: Kuato
(Yes I read where it says "during the transition". A better document would have specified the Shell product that could also be used, or that Castrol would be used until dealer stocks were exhausted.)

We don't know who the audience for this document was. Possibly it's some internal BMW circulation that somebody intercepted.

And it sounds like at the time of writing they did not yet know which exact Shell products would take Castrol's place. Once they do, I'm guessing they'll make it official by updating their customer-facing website and possibly running a joint marketing blitzkrieg with SOPUS. Until then, it's business as usual for all BMW customers/owners.
 
Originally Posted By: Artem
They are "pleased" to announce the change to Shell.

I've never liked BP since that oil spill off the Gulf. BP is considered a Top Tier gas station here but it only makes up around 10% of my fill ups, even though there are several near by. I end up driving further up the street just to fill up with Shell instead.

I hope Shell serves them well.

Well here on the Northern Gulf coast there is nary a BP station to be found since the oil spill. We were hit hard and directly on our beaches and bays with the BP oil in Pensacola and locals refused to buy BP products. As a result all of the BP stations closed, as far as I can tell.

The irony of that is that most local of the BP stations were originally AMOCO stations, which had a loyal following around here. If they had changed their brand back to AMOCO (or never changed it) they would still be in business here.

Regarding the BMW switch to Shell Oil, I think it is great move. I don't have a dog in that fight (not a BMW owner) but all of my oil stash consists of SOPUS products, with the exception of M1 0W40 for my SRT8 (which is ironic since Fiat now recommends Pennzoil Ultra Euro 0W-40).
 
To clarify, special oils like Castrol Edge Professional TWS will continue to be used. This only affects the BMW-branded oil, like the High Performance 5w30 and the LL04 (whatever it's called). However, there is always Shell Helix Ultra 10w60 that might be offered instead of TWS.

BMW uses Castrol for some transmission and differential fluids too, but they also use Pentosin.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
I am surprised (and a little disappointed) that they did not go with a more recognizable and more high-end supplier such as ExxonMobil.

Oh well.
shell was the lowest bidder. nothing more
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
I am surprised (and a little disappointed) that they did not go with a more recognizable and more high-end supplier such as ExxonMobil.


A few years ago Honda changed from Ex-Mobil to Connoco Phillips.
 
SOPUS is a huge name. People know the Pennzoil name for sure, and they recognize Shell from the gas stations.

Frankly, 99% of owners won't know/care, especially since BMW has the no-cost maintenance for 4/50k.
 
It should be pointed out here that in the market for transportation lubricants world wide, Shell and its subsidiaries are No. 1. This was reported in 'Lube Reports" several years ago. I don't have a link, but it can probably be "googled" with little effort. FWIW

Oldtommy
 
Hi
Even my engine oil cap have Castrol on it, but I use oil that I trust and proved that are true in what they say as I experienced.'Liqui moly is a great oil and additives that works, its a German made and for the 4th year won the best oil in Germany, in 3 different magazines. A good oil it doesn't matter what car you have, because I have 2 different cars and brands. both with good power the seat leon tdi fr has 220hp that I use it every day and the other one is a Honda integra type r turbo with 500hp. never had an issue and not only that saved my friend,s integra also turbo with 800hp,with a an additive you do it with the oil, it called Ceratec of Liqui moly.

Regards
Ivan
 
As long as a brand-name oil passes the LL-01, MB 229.x, Porsche A40, VW 50x, etc., you know you've got good oil. Until the oil makers publish how well their oils did in each spec test for comparison, we can't really distinguish between brands that all say they "meet or exceed", pass/fail, the tests. We know those are tough tests to pass. In fact, Mobil1 0w-40 throws in the Nissan GTR test for good measure.
 
Wow. Castrol and BMW go way way back. This is huge in the BMW community.

I'd be interested to hear Doug Hillary opine about this.
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: BMWTurboDzl
Wow. Castrol and BMW go way way back. This is huge in the BMW community.

I'd be interested to hear Doug Hillary opine about this.


Me too!
 
Castrol and BP is the same company. Now their more then ten years under the same company.
 
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