[falwakeel]

Hi all

Wanted to see your thoughts on an engine oil. Recently I have found that MotoMaster 5W40 Synthetic is bmw ll-01, has anyone tried it? My car oil consumption is high and I can’t keep topping a liter every three weeks or so with expensive brands

It is available at Canadian Tire:
https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/m...r_psugg_q=5w40

Thank you!

[Wolf 335]

What’s causing so much oil loss?

[TheMidnightNarwhal]

Hmm... the listing doesn't say it's LL01 but the bottle image does. Make sure you double check in store if it is. I'd be pretty surprised but at the same time it says it's made with Shell so I guess it makes sense. Might just be a different bottle from what I usually buy, Pennzoil platinum euro 5w-40.

In fact the Canadian tire is running the usual 45% sale right now and it's on th Pennzoil so you'd be better off buying the Pennzoil, it's 35$ https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/p...9358p.html#srp

That said, LL01 isn't that important either it seems if you're not interested in doing the long oil change intervals but I like to follow the specs.

[falwakeel]

Originally Posted by TheMidnightNarwhal

Hmm... the listing doesn't say it's LL01 but the bottle image does. Make sure you double check in store if it is. I'd be pretty surprised but at the same time it says it's made with Shell so I guess it makes sense. Might just be a different bottle from what I usually buy, Pennzoil platinum euro 5w-40.

In fact the Canadian tire is running the usual 45% sale right now and it's on th Pennzoil so you'd be better off buying the Pennzoil, it's 35$ https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/p...9358p.html#srp

That said, LL01 isn't that important either it seems if you're not interested in doing the long oil change intervals but I like to follow the specs.

I went to the store today and checked it, it is clearly the right one for bmw as it has bmw ll-01 and these go on sale for $22.29 each. I have tried Pennzoil and have no issue with it. But I was reading through the reviews on Canadian tire website, most of the customers who used it agreed on how much the oil consumption improved. I do change my oil every 3500km

[falwakeel]

Originally Posted by Wolf 335

What’s causing so much oil loss?

No idea. I have 2007 323i with ONLY 80k km on the clock. I have fixed everything including all the leaks, yet I need to top it up every 500 km with 1-L and rally I am tired chasing my tail on this one. I have no blue or white smoke on a cold start

[falwakeel]

I got the pictures from the store

[TheMidnightNarwhal]

Originally Posted by falwakeel

I went to the store today and checked it, it is clearly the right one for bmw as it has bmw ll-01 and these go on sale for $22.29 each. I have tried Pennzoil and have no issue with it. But I was reading through the reviews on Canadian tire website, most of the customers who used it agreed on how much the oil consumption improved. I do change my oil every 3500km

Oh okok, even cheaper LL01 oil... interesting might try it.

But yeah your oil consumption and change is crazy. Something is wrong.

[falwakeel]

Originally Posted by TheMidnightNarwhal

Oh okok, even cheaper LL01 oil... interesting might try it.

But yeah your oil consumption and change is crazy. Something is wrong.

Thanks. I have changed everything
Valve cover with gaskets
Pcv hoses
Oil filter housing gasket
Oil pan gasket
Engine flush - liqui moly
Thicker oil
I have tried different oil brands (liqui moly, castrol, pennzoil)


No luck ((((

[Nick.B]

Originally Posted by falwakeel

Thanks. I have changed everything

Does the 323 have an oil separator in the vacuum/PCV system? It'll be tucked under the intake manifold.

On my ex 2006 330i, oil consumption was good, maybe +1L every 5k or so. Then it suddenly jumped to +1L about every 1-2k. No leaks. Best cause I could identify was the oil separator.

Given the cost of adding oil for a few years or replacing the parts, I chose the cheaper option: add the oil.

[falwakeel]

Originally Posted by Nick.B

Does the 323 have an oil separator in the vacuum/PCV system? It'll be tucked under the intake manifold.

On my ex 2006 330i, oil consumption was good, maybe +1L every 5k or so. Then it suddenly jumped to +1L about every 1-2k. No leaks. Best cause I could identify was the oil separator.

Given the cost of adding oil for a few years or replacing the parts, I chose the cheaper option: add the oil.

Hi Nick,
That would be for the 2006 year model. The 2007+ The pcv came on the plastic valve cover. Thanks though

[mecheng77]

Didn't the 323i have the 2.5l engine known to burn oil?

[falwakeel]

Originally Posted by mecheng77

Didn't the 323i have the 2.5l engine known to burn oil?

I think so, n52b25 know to burn oil

[Wolf 335]

Since you’re putting in a fresh litre of oil every 500km (which is crazy and clearly there’s something seriously wrong there) why are you doing a full oil change every 3500km?

You’re putting in 6 litres of oil in top ups between your oil changes and then you do additional 6.5L for your actual oil change. This is unreal. If you’re not going to fix the issue just keep topping up and change the filter only.

Where are you located? If you’re around GTA go see Ivo at Columbus Automotive and sort this out. He will fix you up.

[mecheng77]

Originally Posted by falwakeel

I think so, n52b25 know to burn oil

Originally Posted by falwakeel

I think so, n52b25 know to burn oil

There is your answer, nothing short of a rebuild will fix it. I would sell it and get a 328i, my 3.0l doesn't burn a drop

[kenmar]

Interesting finding; it's likely Shell Helix Ultra, but there aren't too many UOA results posted on it compared to Pennzoil. The regular price is $10 cheaper than the Pennzoil (which I use), but sounds like the sale price of Motomaster looks pretty hard to beat. Motomaster is now on my radar.

[falwakeel]

Originally Posted by Wolf 335

Since you’re putting in a fresh litre of oil every 500km (which is crazy and clearly there’s something seriously wrong there) why are you doing a full oil change every 3500km?

You’re putting in 6 litres of oil in top ups between your oil changes and then you do additional 6.5L for your actual oil change. This is unreal. If you’re not going to fix the issue just keep topping up and change the filter only.

Where are you located? If you’re around GTA go see Ivo at Columbus Automotive and sort this out. He will fix you up.

I think what you are saying makes so much sense and might actually start doing that, keep topping it up and not to do an oil change. I am on the west end in BC

Thank you

[kenmar]

3500km between oil changes is for engines from the previous century. Clean burning N5x engines go 20k+ km between changes, although I personally do not follow that recommendation. My changes are at 10k km and UOA proves my oil is still perfectly good (even though it comes out pretty black). But considering your rate of top-ups, 20k km might be ok with filter changes at 10k km intervals.

The most I would do for high oil consumption is visual checks for oil leaks + UOA + compression test + leakdown test. If everything is ok, switch to the cheaper MotoMaster Synthetic 5w30/5w40 (i.e. Shell Helix Ultra)