Quote:
Originally Posted by ManyMoonsAgo
I have been running Red Line 5W40 for two and a half years now and it must be working as my three year old factory fuel pump is still going strong.
LOL - Unrelated Sarcasm intended, so pull the flamethrowers back.
In all seriousness, I would be interested to hear why boutique oils do not submit for BMW LL01 ratings - is it really the cost or is it because BMW will not allow it due to contractual obligations to Castrol and Mobil1?
Red Line especially as there seems to be a very loyal and rabid following amongst BMW owners. Heck, even in Red Line's technical papers section, the only specific manufacturer that is singled-out is BMW.
Oh and I must have a level-headed (one that actually uses common-sense) dealership, because they know I only use Red Line oil, yet continue to perform warranty work on my car (including the engine which turned out to be a non-issue) without any flak. |
There are a large number of oil companies with oils that have passed the LL01 test sequence, we just do not see them in the United States due to the relatively low volume of sales. But if this were a European dominated board there would be a long list of suitable oils. So the failure of the boutique oils to undergo the testing is not due to some ExxonMobile/Castrol/BMW agreement to keep them out.
Cost is certainly an issue. While I am not familiar with the details of the BMW test sequence, typical European approvals involve a test engine that is run for a lengthy period under high temperatures. The oil is repeatedly tested and, at the end, the engine is disassembled and checked for wear by weighing the engine parts and comparing the before and after weights. I have no reason to think that BMW is any different. This type of testing is not cheap.
It is not a matter of an oil being "good", it has to have the properties that a particular engine is designed to expect. This is especially true with today's tight clearances, modern materials and high operating temperatures. As I sit here typing there are two types of oil in my garage. Both are the same price (not cheap), both are made by the same company, both are in similar looking bottles, both have the same marketing name ("Syntec"). But the specifications that the oils are made too are very different, and mixing them could lead to expensive issues down the road.
Finally, there is a third issue that makes European approvals problematical for the boutique oil companies. Once an oil has been tested/approved the formulation is locked in. This can be a problem for a small/low volume company that wants to seek out the lowest price for additive packages and base oil stocks.