E36 M3 oil weight

[Ludedude1992]

Rotella T6 5w40 did wonders on my s50!

[finnishkid]

Rotella t6 made my oil light flicker at idle when hot.

[Ludedude1992]

Really? That's odd. Sounds like an issue not related to the oil.

[skyotee]

So after reading through all this, it seems the 10w60 is for M cars starting with the E46/S54 and later, glad I asked! Also seems a lot of people using Mobil 1 in various weights, and Rotella T6 5w40 is popular though some have experienced some issues. I did some reading on Bob Is The Oil Guy forums, and found pretty much the same there.

Although, based on all this, and the post back at the start of this thread, which linked to a thread which had the BMW approved oils list and temperature/oil weight chart, and also looking at cost of the oil -- I am thinking the Castrol Edge 0w40 is the way to go. It is BMW approved LL01, covers the whole operating temperature range (should be good for hot climate), and runs about $26 for five quarts. And though no one mentioned it here, on the BITOG forum it had a lot of BMW advocates.

Any thoughts on that? Thanks for all the input, it has been very helpful (except for that Walrus guy)

[M52 POWER!]

LIQUI MOLY 5W-40 FTW, seriously.

Ive got a high mileage 203K S52. I was getting oil light flickering until I changed to the Liqui Moly. No flickering, engine seems happier.

[finnishkid]

Really? That's odd. Sounds like an issue not related to the oil.

it was fine with the t5 15w40

[Baby ///M3]

Does the oil weight vary for S52s that are turbocharged or supercharged?

I've tested different oil weights and found the motor at its smoothest (i.e. least amount of fluctuation in oil pressure at any speed) with 10w60 oil, which is the same type of oil I use on my E60 M5. But again, my S52 is supercharged and makes 380rwhp or so.

Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance.

Jon

[TheJordanWhitte]

LIQUI MOLY 5W-40 FTW, seriously.

Ive got a high mileage 203K S52. I was getting oil light flickering until I changed to the Liqui Moly. No flickering, engine seems happier.

I'm a big fan but it's hard to find regularly in my area:/

[mitch500]

So after reading through all this, it seems the 10w60 is for M cars starting with the E46/S54 and later, glad I asked! Also seems a lot of people using Mobil 1 in various weights, and Rotella T6 5w40 is popular though some have experienced some issues. I did some reading on Bob Is The Oil Guy forums, and found pretty much the same there.

Although, based on all this, and the post back at the start of this thread, which linked to a thread which had the BMW approved oils list and temperature/oil weight chart, and also looking at cost of the oil -- I am thinking the Castrol Edge 0w40 is the way to go. It is BMW approved LL01, covers the whole operating temperature range (should be good for hot climate), and runs about $26 for five quarts. And though no one mentioned it here, on the BITOG forum it had a lot of BMW advocates.

Any thoughts on that? Thanks for all the input, it has been very helpful (except for that Walrus guy)

Just get rotella t6. No one had issues with it, who ever said they had oil light flicker probably had underlying issues.

Been running this stuff forever, Mobile1 is junk.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Gene V]

Mobile1 is junk. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Based on your exhaustive research?

[MauiM3Mania]

Been running this stuff forever, Mobile1 is junk.

Not everyone seems to understand that oils go through and must pass a rigorous battery of tests in order to be labeled and sold as any particular performance standard. SN is the latest performance standard for gasoline engines and all Mobil 1 oils meet that standard.

Owners of M cars, at least those with solid lifters, appreciate M1 because the higher levels of ZDTP a zinc compound) than typically found in other oils.

Your engine may not 'like' M1 for a variety of reasons, but stating that Mobil One as junk is just baseless.

[Musicisair]

Why doesn't anyone just run BMW TwinPower Turbo Longlife- 01 SAE 5W-30?

[TheJordanWhitte]

Whatever oil you use you should also be doing this.

http://m.blackstone-labs.com/

[Gene V]

Why doesn't anyone just run BMW TwinPower Turbo Longlife- 01 SAE 5W-30?

No TwinPower turbo here...

[Musicisair]

No TwinPower turbo here...

Well, with you being in Hawaii don't you just run your car on sunshine and happiness?

[Gene V]

Well, with you being in Hawaii don't you just run your car on sunshine and happiness?

[JayhawkM3]

And the war rages on....

- - - Updated - - -

Whatever oil you use you should also be doing this.

http://m.blackstone-labs.com/

Cool! I just sent in for a kit! I never knew about this...

[sf95m3]

So this is my take on this subject. I purchased my 1995 M3 two years ago. The owner had just changed the oil so I drove it for about 2000 miles until I did the change. During this time I did substantial work, basically replacing everything under the hood, but the cams looked very clean so we didn't bother do any internals. When I changed the oil I used Royal Purple. I cannot remember the weight, but after only about 200 miles the lifters started clicking. I knew it had to be the oil, and so I replaced it with Castrol 20w-50, thinking the 145K miles required a thicker oil. The lifter sound persisted, even after doing several of the suggested 3000RPMs for 3 minutes. My friend who is a mechanic said probably the oil was too thick. I put in LiquidMoly 5w-30, took the car on the freeway for 20 minutes, then did the 3000 RPM for 3 minutes and the car is completely silent. The lifter sound which was very noticeable is completely gone. Moral of the story, at least for the 3.0 engine, if you notice lifter sounds, try a lighter weight oil. On the next change I will try the 10W-40 to see if any sounds come back. I had bought new lifters and had planned to do the work and am relieved $80 of oil solved the problem.

[MauiM3Mania]

How many miles on this S50?

I'd look at a real oil pressure reading and if low, then consider replacing the oil pump and pickup tube.

[blckstrm]

This topic is so dependent on your situation it's useless to have a general discussion.

How hot does it get? How cold? How many miles on your car? How do you use your car? What do your current oil reports look like? Do you have an issue (lifter tick, oil light flicker) you're trying to address?

Anything from basic 5w30 through factory 10w60 is "right" for your car depending on these factors.

[RBNetEngr]

It’s interesting that if you consult the Owners Manual (well, I know for my ‘95) it recommends 15W40 for an all-around oil, with 15W50
or 20W50 for summer season, back in the days when they really only talked about petroleum-based oils.



At the same time, BMW Dealers would recommend (and install if they changed the oil) 5W30 Synthetic. If you look at 5W30 in the Owners Manual you would probably be shocked to see that BMW Dealers were using 5W30!

More recently there have been recommendations to use 0W40 Synthetic (‘Euro Formula’). I have been using Mobil 1 0W40 European Formula for several years now.

[M3C]

The owner's manual numbers are related to mineral (non-synthetic) oils and might cause some confusion as now everything is synthetic and better compared to mineral oils.
My E36 M3 came from factory with mineral oil and on very 1st early oil change switched to synthetic M1 15w-50, after that using 10W-60 as even better protection, been using this many years now.
If it is very cold you want to go with 5W or even 0W but the second number (-40, -50, -60) the higher it is the better protection for engine at operating temp.

[jvit27]

Well, which S52 are you talking about? The S52b32US or the Euro S52b30?

Hold up... the what or the WHAT?

[pbonsalb]

The member who revived the thread is in the US. The rare few here with Euro motors usually specify. I have tried 0W30, 5W30, 0W40, 5W40, 5W50, 15W50 and found that they all work fine. Mostly I use 0W40, 5W40 or 5W50.

[RRSperry]

Brain cramp, S50b32