[JamusMcFamus]

I've been doing oil analysis on my cars for a few years now, but I just started on my 2011 328iT. Car had 43,300 miles on it at the time of change, with 6,800 on the oil. Valvoline 5w30 Synpower. I replaced that with Motul 8100 X-Cess 5w40.

I'll post them every time I get one done. Enjoy.

Of note, I bought the car with ~38,000 on it, hence this being my first analysis.

[Sotek]

Thank you for sharing!

[Taskmaster]

That high AL number is scaring me.

Why not use Mobile/Castrol 0w40, I know they are BMW approved and I've seen nothing but good things from them?

[SPJR]

Thanks for sharing! I personally run Mobil 5w30 but never sent my oil out to blackstone for testing. I probably will next time as I'm curious to see what would pop up.

Here is a very interesting read on motor oil conducted by an independent reviewer published from 2013:

https://540ratblog.wordpress.com/201...-test-ranking/

[Eagle1oh7]

Nice! I'm at the 47.7K mark, I think at 50k I'll see about getting my oil analyzed to see how my engine is doing. I drive it quite hard at times, so I hope all is still well.

[Twoforty]

Originally Posted by SPJR

Thanks for sharing! I personally run Mobil 5w30 but never sent my oil out to blackstone for testing. I probably will next time as I'm curious to see what would pop up.

Here is a very interesting read on motor oil conducted by an independent reviewer published from 2013:

https://540ratblog.wordpress.com/201...-test-ranking/

Great article.
Thanks for sharing.

[BavarianMWfan]

Now I know where you live lol thanks for sharing

[SPJR]

Originally Posted by BavarianMWfan

Now I know where you live lol thanks for sharing

Yeah just FYI you should edit that PDF in a different way because you can actually delete the black markings...

[rookieoftheyr90]

what're the cons of the 5w-40? Just did a change this weekend and used the same product as OP

[thomas88162]

Originally Posted by rookieoftheyr90

what're the cons of the 5w-40? Just did a change this weekend and used the same product as OP

There is nothing really wrong with it other than its a bit on the thick side of what the manufacturer ( the people who machined the tolerances in your engine) call for.

[e90mbition]

I use the same oil as OP and everything seems ok, I used it on my e46 prior and drove it past 300k km no issues

[thomas88162]

Ermm... that's really beating a dead horse. You can't really go wrong with modern oils; as long as it gets changed when it should ( and, of course, you stay close to the recommended viscosity) then your oil has little to NO bearing on engine longevity.

[MarkkyyMan]

Originally Posted by thomas88162

Ermm... that's really beating a dead horse. You can't really go wrong with modern oils; as long as it gets changed when it should ( and, of course, you stay close to the recommended viscosity) then your oil has little to NO bearing on engine longevity.

[thomas88162]

Originally Posted by MarkkyyMan

Hmm? Not sure I understand your single-character post.

[MarkkyyMan]

http://www.drivenracingoil.com/news/...-on-motor-oil/

"In addition to providing anti-wear and fluid film protection for your engine, the motor oil in a variable valve timing engine must also resist foaming and shearing. Both of these events will affect the performance of the VVT system."

I honestly see that being one of the main causes for most peoples VANOS issues. Not all "modern oils" are the same..

[thomas88162]

Yea, so don't use the wrong viscosity, like I said. Yes, some are a little bit different, but they all have to meet the same general requirements. I'll even admit to having my brand preferences, but many use "cheap" oils without issue..

[JamusMcFamus]

Motul's 8100 X-Cess 5w40 meets LL-01, so I see no reason not to use it. I've used it in my E46 for quite a while and that engine also calls for LL-01, so I see no reason not to continue using what I know works.

I've also seen on BITOG that Mobil 1 0w40 is great stuff.

[thomas88162]

I'm sure you can't go wrong with it, keep it changed regularly and you'll have no issues