[Three_thirty_I]

Originally Posted by CTinline-six

The BMW 5w30 is pretty good oil. What is the availability of Castrol Edge 0w40 in your area?

In my area it is cheaper than the BMW oil, easier to find, and carries the BMW LL-01 certification.

I run it in the E90 325xi with the N52 and a 2004 330xi E46 with the M54. Both run very smooth and the engines are very clean inside.

Well, I am still trying to decide whether to stick with what the cars have always been running, and specifically the current BMW oil, and I would prefer to stay with the current viscosity even though on the M54, which is using oil (typical oil control ring issues), 5W40 is usually preferred.

I think Castrol Edge 0W40 is most likely available here, or maybe a slightly different viscosity.

Originally Posted by Efthreeoh

I've been on extended drain intervals for 12 years using BMW's oil and OE/OEM (MANN) filters. I've been in both the top end and bottom end of the engine and found no sludge whatsoever. There is nothing wrong with BMW's oil and you can use it with confidence.

Yep, I know about your thoughts on BMW oil and the service intervals, and I still think that the fact that your cars do high annual mileage from mostly long distance driving does help - it's the cars that do much shorter daily driving with the extended service intervals that seem to be affected. At least that's how I see it.

At the end of the day, I have no real problem continuing with the Castrol 5W30 oil that both cars have been running, but it comes down to the cleaning properties of the different oils. So I gather either way, I am fine to continue using the existing oil or the current BMW oil?