BMW Advantec Pro 15W50 Motorcyle Oil

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I ride a 2007 BMW R1200RT and decided to try BMW's new Advantec 15W50 made by Shell. It is sold in 1 litre blue bottles at BMW motorcycle dealers. Here is a VOA on it. I intentionally didn't give Blackstone the brand and weight of the oil, just to see what they came up with for the weight. They got it right.
BMW%20Advantec%2015W-50.jpg
 
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I hope the oil is sold at auto parts store prices. M1 seems a better product.
 
It is SM / MA2 rated. It is definitely not sold at "auto store" prices. Is Mobil 1 V-Twin 20W50 better? It has more zzdp for sure, but I am not sure that makes it better. I am sure both are fine for my application.
 
Originally Posted By: Spooled
It is SM / MA2 rated. It is definitely not sold at "auto store" prices. Is Mobil 1 V-Twin 20W50 better? It has more zzdp for sure, but I am not sure that makes it better. I am sure both are fine for my application.


I am sure too.
The whole ZZDP thing is getting real old. There are so many new superior chemicals in oils, its not 3 decades ago anymore and high ZZDP does not mean less wear, in fact it might mean more piston and ring deposits.
But anyway, the point is, Blackstone can only test for the decades old components of oil, not the new modern day chemicals which are far superior in most cases..we have to remember, oil and film strength is the best anti-wear agent.
Certainly looks like a nice robust oil and high flashpoint.
 
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what other "new superior chemicals in oils", better than ZDDP in a bike oils. Moly? Boron?

I don't think so. Only if the bike has catalist on emission control. Zddp still better to have it high, in a VII shearer, with a lot of big internal chain/sprocket timing engine. I don't know if this bmw is a shared sump wet clutch or not, but...
 
very interesting seeing that my bmw manual says NO moly additives!! not a lot but 155 ppm, many motorcycle oils use none! being on this forum you prolly realise that semi-syn is quite the rip-off aka polaris semi-syn. there being no laws as to the amount of synthetic in the blend, prolly group III "synthetic" in this case from GTL technology aka purebase pennzoil platinum which may be better than the highly refined CRUDE also classed as group III. at $14.50 a qt i went shopping + found Valvoline "fully synthetic" motorcycle oil meets the SJ/JASO MA2 spec for $8.50 a qt @ wallys. its surely a group III synthetic + not a group IV or V base oil at that price + being all group III may very well be better than the $14.50 BMW ADVANTEC PRO 15-50 spec'd for us!!
 
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Originally Posted By: benjy
very interesting seeing that my bmw manual says NO moly additives!! not a lot but 155 ppm, many motorcycle oils use none! being on this forum you prolly realise that semi-syn is quite the rip-off aka polaris semi-syn. there being no laws as to the amount of synthetic in the blend, prolly group III "synthetic" in this case from GTL technology aka purebase pennzoil platinum which may be better than the highly refined CRUDE also classed as group III. at $14.50 a qt i went shopping + found Valvoline "fully synthetic" motorcycle oil meets the SJ/JASO MA2 spec for $8.50 a qt @ wallys. its surely a group III synthetic + not a group IV or V base oil at that price + being all group III may very well be better than the $14.50 BMW ADVANTEC PRO 15-50 spec'd for us!!


I get this oil at $8.00 a quart. I do understand that some semi synthetics are not a great value. I was just interested in seeing what BMW and Shell came up with after Shell replaced Castrol as the supplier to BMW. That being said, I generally use Valvoline Racing Dino 20W50 in this bike. It does not share it's sump with the transmission, so practically any 20W50 can be used and I like the Valvoline Racing formula with extra zinc.
I assume that in the newer BMW bikes concerning moly, that they are referring to additives above and beyond what is normally found in oils meeting the MA specs for the bike. Apparently they feel it can attack coatings inside the motor.
 
Originally Posted By: alarmguy
Originally Posted By: Spooled
It is SM / MA2 rated. It is definitely not sold at "auto store" prices. Is Mobil 1 V-Twin 20W50 better? It has more zzdp for sure, but I am not sure that makes it better. I am sure both are fine for my application.


I am sure too.
The whole ZZDP thing is getting real old. There are so many new superior chemicals in oils, its not 3 decades ago anymore and high ZZDP does not mean less wear, in fact it might mean more piston and ring deposits.
But anyway, the point is, Blackstone can only test for the decades old components of oil, not the new modern day chemicals which are far superior in most cases..we have to remember, oil and film strength is the best anti-wear agent.
Certainly looks like a nice robust oil and high flashpoint.


Perhaps you could list the new age alternative anti wear compounds that do not show up in a Blackstone UOA??

Titanium was used in a few oils by Castrol, BUT it was used more for a marketing advantage, as they added so little the experts in my local oil lab thought it was some kind of joke. There is no real ecomonic alternative to the use of Zinc based anti wear additives, although using a group Synthoil base, MOS2 or more Boron compounds does help.
 
Perhaps you could list the new age alternative anti wear compounds that do not show up in a Blackstone UOA??

Titanium was used in a few oils by Castrol, BUT it was used more for a marketing advantage, as they added so little the experts in my local oil lab thought it was some kind of joke. There is no real ecomonic alternative to the use of Zinc based anti wear additives, although using a group Synthoil base, MOS2 or more Boron compounds does help. [/quote]

First let me preface this by saying I am not an oil expert, but an oil enthusiast that is interested in oil related subjects.

I am in the same camp as Alarmguy in thinking that there are additives that may not show up in an analysis due to the fact that they are not being checked for. It is simply my opinion and I have no way of proving or disproving that they are there. To me it is like the wind, I can't see it but I believe it is there because of reactions the wind causes. If I could prove that these additives were there or available, I would probably be working at an oil company or analysis lab. I don't think anyone has shown me they don't exist, so we can all believe what we want. I think everyone here is really just looking to find what oil may be best for their application from what they can find in different analysis results. Some oils with high zinc do great, some do just ok. I am more interested in the base oil than the additives. Obviously I want the right additives, but the base oil is 70% of what I am adding to the bike. It interests me that while the labs can list the additives, people on this board have to speculate what the base oil is or how it was derived. As far as I have seen, there is some speculation when oil analysis are posted here as to what group the base oil is. I would guess that there is some way to tell if a base oil was derived from gas to liquid technology or from another source. I know they are different, but it doesn't show up in the analysis we see, but I know there must be SOME difference, good, bad or indifferent. I am just saying that because I don't see something, I don't dismiss it being there.

In the case of this bike, it has 2 contradictory oil related needs. It is a flat tappet bike (zinc has proven to be good) and a catalytic converter (phosphorus not supposed to be good). I chose my primary oil (Valvoline Racing 20W50) based on what I thought was best for my application. I am sure the Advantec would be fine, I just have more criteria about the Valvoline. The Valvoline doesn't look super special on paper, but from most of the reports here, it has SOMETHING that works well in most bikes, so I use it. The bike is a 2007, so pretty much any oil I use today will outperform what came in it from the factory. Most bikes today have catalytic converters and overhead cams, so the question of whether more zinc is better will be less of an issue. I think that is why you see lower zinc and phosphorus number in this Advantec. It is geared to the modern BMW bikes.
 
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what i am interested in is the no moly additives. i have never read that moly is bad for coated parts. i use redline 20-50 motorcycle oil in another bike + it contains about 500ppm moly, no clutch issues or anything else. i would think redline to be very savy about oil blending + i am going to contact them for their input on this. manufactures put a lot of [censored] out to push their decent but overpriced factory branded lubricants as they know many unknowlegable riders are easily "scared" inth using only their factory recommended oils!!!
 
Spooled is right on. The new BMW Advantec oils are GTL group III+ formulated for new Euro 3 emission standards and shared sump BMWs/other Euro 3 shared sump machines. Think MA2 wet clutch materials, optimum wet clutch friction and less oil additives getting to catalytic converter. BMW/Shell absolutely will not release data sheets on this oil (ask me how I know). I've been waiting to see a VOA on either of the two Advantec weights. I'm wondering if there might not be a new generation of glycol based additives in it? Also want to see a couple of UOAs on this stuff after being whipped-up in a Ducati or BMW 1000 shared sump for 6K miles.

Spooled, I'm curious as to where you get this oil for $8/liter. Shell has allowed BMW to keep a close hold on it's marketing and dealers aren't selling it for less than $!&/liter unless discounted during factory service interval.

For what it's worth, it's not what I would be using in a 2007 RT with a dry clutch and separate sumps. My preference would be something with lots of group V in any air head (Motul or Redline) and RL Shockproof in the gearbox.
 
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I get it from my BMW Motorrad dealer. They treat very well on parts as my company sells them automotive parts.

I had the sample analyzed before deciding if I was going to use the oil in my bike. As I posted, I use Valvoline Racing 20W50 Dino. I don't have anything against Redline other than I think that they overdose some of their additives. Just my opinion, nothing scientific. I am not from the camp of more is better. I use the BMW factory oil in the gearbox. It is synthetic and the bike shifts well.

I too would like to see how this oil holds up in one of the late model BMW's, unfortunately it won't be me posting it as I love my 2007 RT and it still is in excellent shape with 30,000 miles.
 
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being a semi-syn the advantec only legally needs "some" group III oil in the blend!! i "assumed" all GTL oil was group III but recently read it needs the same severe hydrocracking as CRUDE oils from the ground to be group III. like most manufacturers oil its decent but overpriced for sure IMO
 
i ran into silkolene 15-50 motorcycle oil on the bay, $10 a litre del, its a group III with ester + meets bmw specs, returned the valvoline 20-50 synthetic motorcycle oil after surprisingly seeing a 16 noack!!!
 
BMW Advantec oil is available in three types ... Pro, Ultimate, and Classic.

AFAIK, Classic is not sold in USA

5W-40 is Ultimate, 15W-50 is Pro

Have not been able to determine the differences between Ultimate and Pro, as there is nothing on the bottle and I’ve found nothing on the internet. Clearly 5W-40 is full synthetic, as that’s what BMW requires in the wet clutch bikes. 15W-50 is surely suitable only for the older dry clutch models.

I’m pretty convinced they are both based on Shell’s natural gas refining technology and are likely quite similar to the Shell Advance motorcycle oil line. They are both labeled made in Germany.
 
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my 2016 G650GS specs the 15-50 advantec, not very old!!! i appreciate the analysis that many do but surely to get a LOT of info + detail would be very $$$$$. Blackstone is fine for the price but you get what you pay for hopefully!!!!
 
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