Castrol Syntec 5w40

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double vanos

double vanos

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Back in Arizona. Finally
Two more oil changes and I'll be out of GC for my '02 330ci.

I'm wondering if Syntec 5w40 would be a suitable replacement - I wouldn't be asking if it wasn't for the little matter of GC meeting BMW Longlife '01 and the 5w40 only meeting Longlife '98. How much difference is there between these two rating?

If it's just a matter of LL'01 being more suitable for BMW's extended drains and that's it, all will be well because I use 5k OCI's in the Bimmer. But maybe there is more to it and that. Anybody got any ideas? Cheers DV.
 
Use LL-01 as specified. It is specifically formulated for double-VANOS and Valvetronic equipped BMW engines. If you want Castrol, use "5W-30 BMW Synthetic" sold by BMW dealers. It is good, robust oil.
 
I haven't been able to find a full list of LL-01 approved oils yet, but here are a few to consider in addition to the BMW 5w-30 available in dealerships (this is from memory, so please correct me if I'm wrong): Mobil 1 0W-40, Valvoline Maxlife Full Synthetic 5w-30 (both of these are really easy to find in just about any parts store), Amsoil European 5w-40 (states that it "meets LL-01", but I'm not sure if it's officially approved or not), Elf Excellium Full Tech 0W-30 (hard to find, but I really like that it has a Cst of 12.18 @100c - really close to GC), Elf Excellium LDX both 5w-30 and 5w-40 (this is right off the official Elf website), Pennzoil Platinum European formula 5w-30 (also hard to find). I believe that Lubro Moly 5w-40, Castrol Syntec 5w-40 and Valvoline Synpower 5w-40 are all LL-98. Of course, Mobil 1 5w-30 or any of the other "thinner" 5w-30s are not. Hope this helps.
 
My preferences for my '03 3.0 liter Z4 -
1. GC (got 24 qts now)
2. BMW parts counter Castrol 5W-30 (with BMWCCA discount)
3. M1 0W-40

All will treat your bimmer well for the long haul.
 
Thanks for the responses everyone!!! Based on what I've read I'll either go with BMW's oil or the Elf products listed above. Then of course the Lubro Moly products that can be easily obtained from BAVauto (they're good people). Cheers all! DV
 
The "dealer oil" with the CCA discount would cost me about $4.50. About what my last quarts of GC cost me. Very good stuff that Bimmer oil is. If you're not a member yet, its worth it to join. If not for the parts discounts then for the excellent Roundel mag that comes with membership.

We have the full line of Lubro Moly at every Advance Auto Parts I've been to lately. Check there if you want to go with it, could save lots in shipping vs. BavAuto.
 
http://www.valvoline.com/products/Synpower.pdf

The Valvoline Synpower 5W-40 meets BMW LL 04, BMW LL 01...and lots of other tough specs.

The plus side is that like Mobil 1 0W-40 is easy to find.

Mobil 1 0W-40 is another good choice.

I still prefer Redline 5W-30 and 5W-40, once warranty is no longer a concern.

Amsoil Euro 5W-40 is a good oil.

I also like the Elf Excellium Full Tech 0W-30 which is very GL like...but it seems slightly better than GC in my cars so far.

The other European oils are probably also worth a look...Motul, Lubro Moly, etc.
 
I've found through anecdotal and personal observation that while the BMW 5w30 gets good UOAs, it tends to varnish and sludge if run for any kind of extended interval let alone the full BMW OLM interval.

Have I done documented experiments? No. Do I have pages of analysis? No. I have BMWs in the family that use this oil at half the OLM interval (ie. twice the number of changes recommended by BMW) and they have lots of orange staining and noticeable varnish deposits. I've also read in forums about engines running the standard OLM interval with some visibly obvious sludge issues.

So, it gets good UOAs but I wouldn't personally run it for a long time. Maybe 1/3 of the BMW OLM if you want to maintain cleanliness. M1, GC and a number of other oils also offer good UOAs and are cleaner. I was a long-time M1 0W40 user and now I am happier with GC.
 
M1 0W40.

Meets tougher specs than BMW's LL-01 like MB's 229.5 and Porsche's oil specs.
 
shanneba, the pdf's I posted are more recent (from 12/2006), except that this server is acting up at the moment. I'm gonna have to find another place for them. Anyone want to host them for me?
 
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.
 
And, BTW, the newest Valvoline Synpower 5W-40 bottles have several newer Euro specs listed, including BMW LL-04, VW 505.01, and some MB numbers as well.
 
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.
banana.gif
I now have another choice
of 30 wt oil next to GC that meets the BMW specs.
grin.gif

I think this would be a great oil for your Beemer.
canada.gif
patriot.gif
cheers.gif
 
With 5k intervals, you don't need long life oil. And, we all know what happens to some engines that follow those intervals even with the recommended oil.

Use any full synthetic in a similar weight required. Since you're south, I'd consider the 40wts since GC is pretty thick. The 5k interval, if time on oil isn't excessive, makes oil selection a non-issue.
 
Quote:

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.

Click to expand...


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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