Royal Purple VS OEM

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HyundaiGuy

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Hi All,

Some of you my have seen the post where I was offered a great deal on a 2009 Mini Cooper Clubman S. I was going to pass until I drove it. My 58K mile Accent sold for good money in less than a day, so now I have a "new to me" 2009 Mini Cooper.

Looking under the hood, the oil was nasty- changed only once a year or 15K at the dealer per Mini's free maintenance program. The engine in second generation Minis is built by Peugeot and is direct injection. If I am not mistaken, DI engines run "dirtier." Is this correct?

The on board computer said the next oil change was due in 7000 more miles. No way was I doing that. Many of the guys on the Mini boards recommend Royal Purple 5W30. The manual says BMW LL04 certified oil- Pennzoil Platinum 5W30 Ultra Euro Formula, Mobil 1 0W40, Castrol Syntec 5W30 or Mini OEM 5W30- which I believe is Castrol. One other approved oil is Valvoline 5W30 Synthetic, but like the Pennzoil, it isn't the same formulation one sees everywhere.

I won't be going by the engine computer as engine is DI and turbocharged. I won't leave anything in there for 15K miles. Is LL04 really needed for OCI of 4 months/7500 miles?

I used the Royal Purple 5W30 yesterday- bought on sale for $7.49 a quart, along with an OEM filter.

Any better choices? Go by the book? Is Royal Purple OK for my usage/application?

Edited for spelling.
 
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Absolutely. Royal Purple is one of THE best oils you can buy, period. It sounds like your application would be ideal for Royal Purple use.
 
RP is good oil. The "best" is always an argument. IMO the M1 0w-40 is one of the best oils anywhere for the money. I believe it is the most certified and accepted oil by mfgrs on the planet. But it's not purple!

Almost any name brand synthetic is better than needed. Especially at short OCI's.
 
Amsoil AFL might work but it could cause your barn to catch fire and your head to go bald. M1 0w40 works in everything, but your iron could fall off and you'd be stuck with wrinkly shirts.
 
I was between the Mobil OW40 and the RP 5W30. I really don't want to go to a 40W this early, I was thinking of saving that as by high mileage "go to." I might have to give that some more thought.

yonon- We have two independent Mini specialists here in town, and the one I most likely will visit when needed uses Amsoil. I have been sporting the Mr. Clean look for years, so I should feel right at home. Never thought about it, but there aren't a whole lot of barns here- I never made the Amsoil connection.
 
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I am not a Castrol guy at all, but what about German Castrol 0W30? Easy to get as well, and sometimes on sale for the same price as all their other "synthetic" oils. It will say made in Germany on the back, I can find it at Walmart and Canadian Tire. And I think it meets all your specs.

Is Mobil 1 0W30 a GrIII? If it is closer in formulation to German Castrol in regards to base stock I'd probably prefer that or any other Euro spec oil.

Royal Purple, I don't know why, but just feel like it is sub par for what you pay for the stuff.
 
Originally Posted By: Falken


Royal Purple, I don't know why, but just feel like it is sub par for what you pay for the stuff.


Thats pretty typical for many of the critics of RP. (Not picking on Falken!)

That UOA link above tells a much more factual story. Royal Purple is a great oil. Might be perfect for this Mini.
 
Originally Posted By: Falken
Royal Purple, I don't know why, but just feel like it is sub par for what you pay for the stuff.


I bought it on sale so I saved ten bucks. I still don't think it is a bad deal at regular price as it is a true synthetic oil and not hydro cracked dino.
 
gfh,

I think you guys get a much better price on RP than we do in Canada... it is 15$ a Litre up here, plus we pay 15% sales tax, so the tax gets piled on the added cost for a whopping price per litre (17$). And our dollar is on par, so it isn't an exchange rate issue.

German Castrol (I am not a Castrol fan but here I am being open minded to value) can be had for under 7$ a litre on sale. After taxes, 8$. I don't think RP is twice as good as GC, but I could be wrong and come out and say I have never used either oil.

Royal Purple is never on sale. That may change with their gallon jugs they have started selling at Canadian Tire, but it was 54$ for 3.78 Litres I believe not too long ago. Still over 14$ a litre.

My point is, pick on me all you want if I am missing out on great oil... I will hunt for it and be thankful in the end in the spirit of Bitog
smile.gif
 
If it specs a LL-01, then doesn't it require a higher HT/HS than the Royal Purple provides?
 
I'd bet money the purple dye RP uses in its oil turns off more auto enthusiasts than it attracts.

They should hold off on ordering trucks filled with purple goo and invest in better additives or maybe up the TBN... heck, even lower the price a dime or two... but keep purple stuff out of my engine where you can't see it anyway.
 
If you can get RP for a good price, go for it. One of the better off-the-shelf oils for sure, but definitely NOT worth $9.99/qt. Pep Boys occasionally has a $35 change special with RP.
 
Originally Posted By: yonyon
Amsoil AFL might work but it could cause your barn to catch fire and your head to go bald. M1 0w40 works in everything, but your iron could fall off and you'd be stuck with wrinkly shirts.

I would agree, minus all the unfortunate luck. Amsoil AFL does meet BMW LL04. I have used RP oil and it is a good product. If that is your choice by all means use with confidence. I have found that Amsoil products, at least for me, can be had for less money and are as good if not better than RP.
 
Originally Posted By: The_Eric
If it specs a LL-01, then doesn't it require a higher HT/HS than the Royal Purple provides?

You're right, RP 5W-30 is a light 30wt oil with a HTHSV likely in the 3.0-3.1cP area, typical of most OTC 30wt oils.
I'm sure the OP will likely be fine using it but I'd be more comfortable if he had an oil pressure or oil temperature gauge.

The OP could do some research to see if the lighter BMW LL-01 FE 0W-30 oil was ever recommended as an option for his Mini engine. Is has a similar HTHSV to RP 5W-30.
 
Originally Posted By: dparm
By the way, is your Mini out of warranty? If not, I would stick with approved oils.


The Mini has 18 months and 28K left on the warranty. With my commute, the warranty will be up in about a year.I doubt anything will go wrong with a 7500 mile OCI.

The oil has only been changed per Mini's warranty requirement. What do y'all think about leaving the RP in for 5K and draining it to rid of any dirt that may be there from the previous extended oil changes then switching to Mobil 1 0W40?
 
I would use an oil that meets the spec, if you want to change it more often than required that is your decision, but particularly with remaining warranty, I would use the specified oil and be able to prove it.
 
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