Hi, I'm new here, I did a quick search but came up with nothing? I expect it has been talked about to death in the past so please bear with me! I've just bought an E86 3.0si and was wondering what engine oil you would recommend, Obviously it's Castrol but having had Turbo Volvo's i always used Shell oil for them as their base oil stock is good, I'm hearing Motul, Millers, Mannol legend etc, All new to me, I'm happy to spend whatever it cost's if it gives the engine the ultimate protection it needs, Mine is on 128K miles and is smooth and silent, Being an ex mechanic i like to give it a good ragging after it has warmed up! I look forward to your suggestion's! Cheers.
Engine oil recommendations?
- Thread starter Scotty_Z4
- Start date
This imho, as long as you change no later than 1 year/8-10k miles. Of course that depends on driving style.j3nks79 said:
5W30 Fully Synthetic is most peoples choice however high mileage cars can use 5W40 Fully Synthetic. I use Millers Oil from Opie Oils 5W30 in the 44k Z3 and 5W40 in the 98k Z4. Filter wise I use Mann brand with the small oil cap stem o rings included, other brands only supply copper sump plug washer and cap large O ring.
Don't worry about branding, additives or LL04 spec. LL04 is the BMW designation for oil that can be lobbed in there and changed when the light on the dash comes on. It's idiot-proof oil. If you're keeping your car for a while you should be changing your oil every 6-8k (or every year if sooner), rather than waiting for the light to come on. Regular changes are more important than any BMW designation, branding or additive.
Instead of LL04 or brands/additives, look for "A3/B4" specification as a more reliable measure of product quality, and only buy fully synthetic oil. https://www.opieoils.co.uk/t-acea-car-engine-oils-specification-explained.aspx
For lower-mileage Z4s a 5W30 is absolutely fine.
If your car is higher mileage and/or you drive it hard, you'll be better off with a 5W40 as it will retain higher viscosity (and thus oil pressures) when warm.
If you use your car predominantly for trackdays or motorsport, you'll be looking for something like a 5W50 (or a 10W50 if you don't use it in cold weather).
If you wanted to understand a bit more about your car's oil, you can do as I have and send a small sample away to Miller Oils (https://www.millersoils.co.uk/oil-analysis/). For a relatively small fee they send out a sample bottle that you fill and return to them, and they send you a report (see mine below) showing the presence of bearing materials and fuel/coolant contamination. This should give you a good idea of the general health of your engine, and potentially alert you to any impending issues.
Instead of LL04 or brands/additives, look for "A3/B4" specification as a more reliable measure of product quality, and only buy fully synthetic oil. https://www.opieoils.co.uk/t-acea-car-engine-oils-specification-explained.aspx
For lower-mileage Z4s a 5W30 is absolutely fine.
If your car is higher mileage and/or you drive it hard, you'll be better off with a 5W40 as it will retain higher viscosity (and thus oil pressures) when warm.
If you use your car predominantly for trackdays or motorsport, you'll be looking for something like a 5W50 (or a 10W50 if you don't use it in cold weather).
If you wanted to understand a bit more about your car's oil, you can do as I have and send a small sample away to Miller Oils (https://www.millersoils.co.uk/oil-analysis/). For a relatively small fee they send out a sample bottle that you fill and return to them, and they send you a report (see mine below) showing the presence of bearing materials and fuel/coolant contamination. This should give you a good idea of the general health of your engine, and potentially alert you to any impending issues.
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Fred Smith said:
Personally I’m happy halving the BMW to 8k. 16k feels too long; it’s even worse on the CBS cars because the interval is dictated by heat cycles etc; my old M140i went to 19k before it decided it needed a service.
A DIY change is cheap enough and doesn’t take that long.
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Tarnished is basically burned on oil deposit to the metal components. Also I’ve seen oil filters that crush in on themselves not allowing correct oil flow causing pressure problems and oil starvation.
Oil is the blood of the engine and you don’t want it contaminated with debris and breakdown to moisture and petrol etc.
regular oil changes will prevent a lot of wear on your engine.
Oil is the blood of the engine and you don’t want it contaminated with debris and breakdown to moisture and petrol etc.
regular oil changes will prevent a lot of wear on your engine.
I have a z3 and z4. Both don't get driven much so they get changed annually regardless of distance traveled. Follow the recommendations in the manual and use a proper brand like Liqui Moly or such. If you are in a cold climate go with the lighter weight recommended by BMW. Viscosity is a science and things like bearing clearance mean you should stick with what the guys who designed and built the engine think. And change it either at 5k miles or 12 months. Oil is cheap compared to engines.
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If you're looking for specific, verifiable data relating to the exact engine in your car, I've got bad news for you. It doesn't exist.Fred Smith said:
Instead, you have two choices:
1. Listen to the BMW intervals, which are designed for the lowest common denominator of car owner, using "long-life oil" and should be considered the bare minimum of maintenance for a new car.
2. Do it more regularly.
If you do choose #2, nobody here can tell you if 6k/8k/12k is the right interval, because there's no hard data. One thing we DO know for sure is that regularly changing your oil is a good way to improve the longevity of your engine. Oil loses its lubrication and cooling properties over time and heat cycles, starting the very first time you turn the key after changing it.
At the end of the day, a DIY oil change costs about £50. If you think that 6-8k (as I do) is excessively frequent to spend £50 and an hour, then that's fine. If you want to make sure your engine stands the best chance of living a long and healthy life, change more frequently than BMW suggest.
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It's prudent to find a sweet spot between 'better safe than sorry' and 'wasting your money', but there too many variables for there ever to be a definitive answer that works for everyone. 5,000 miles of short journeys in stop-start traffic places far more strain on components than 15k of motorway cruising. Mineral oils degrade faster than synthetics. Etc.
Personally, for my usage which is mostly 'fast road', in my cars I typically change every 5-6k and use only fully synths. For cars which I drive infrequently I wait until I've done those miles rather than change annually, as a fully-synthetic oil isn't going to degrade sat in a sump.
The interval can vary. Every so often I'll cover 2,500 hard-driven miles in a week on a road trip. I'll change the oil right after that. Motorway cruising doesn't form a large part of my driving repertoire, but if it did I'd be ok extending the change frequency in a motorway car to 10-12k, again assuming fully synth.
Personally, for my usage which is mostly 'fast road', in my cars I typically change every 5-6k and use only fully synths. For cars which I drive infrequently I wait until I've done those miles rather than change annually, as a fully-synthetic oil isn't going to degrade sat in a sump.
The interval can vary. Every so often I'll cover 2,500 hard-driven miles in a week on a road trip. I'll change the oil right after that. Motorway cruising doesn't form a large part of my driving repertoire, but if it did I'd be ok extending the change frequency in a motorway car to 10-12k, again assuming fully synth.