Castrol Syntec 5w40

[VeeDubb]

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Double Vanos. Valvoline Maxlife Synthetic just became
available here in Canada. I was happy to see that it meets
the BMW LL-98/01 specs.

I now have another choice
of 30 wt oil next to GC that meets the BMW specs.

I think this would be a great oil for your Beemer.

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I like this oil too. I've run maxlife synthetic in my VW 1.8T (sludge monster) for the last 40,000 miles at 5k intervals. I have no oil consumption (pcv still functioning) and there are no hard deposits (although there is some mild brownish stains that could be due to the high moly levels). Not only that, I got unbelievably good wear numbers even with high fuel dilution. I would think this oil is more than adequate for replacing GC, considering that it meets just about every spec GC meets. Plus, its cheaper and easier to get.

 

[gtx510]

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Called BMW North America call center tollfree number found on the underhood "High-Performance Motor Oil" sticker recently and the guy that answered recommended only Mobil 1, Castrol, and Valvoline 5w-30 oils. That's not even close to what the owners manual calls for as far as being LL-01 or LL-04 approved.

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The guy at BMW is correct, but did not mention Mobil 1, Castrol, and Valvoline do make specialized 5W-30 European formulas that meet LL-04. These oils are marketed in Europe but rare in the average auto parts stores here in the US.

The dealer BMW High Performance 5W-30 oil is made by Castrol.

Bowser

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Isn't it annoying how the BMW-NA tech guy doesn't know enough about US oil to make an educated rec'd? They should give them an approved oil list like VW/Audi and MB do.
Valvoline Maxlife synthetic 5W30 meets API SL/SJ, ACEA A3/B3/B4, BMW LL01/98, VW502.00/505.00, MB229.3/229.1
I've only seen it in one Walmart and it was on the "clearance shelf". I bought 9qts for a little more than $4 each.
http://www.valvoline.com/pages/products/product_detail.asp?product=101