XSeries-forum

When i had my Range Rover the guys at Opie recommended oils which are Ester based, Motul, Silkolene etc these being better than Castrol, Shell Helix and so on, i opted for Motul in the RR and was very happy with it, would BMW have an issued with a "better oil"?

Depends upon whether it meets the required minimum spec I would guess. If it does then they can't really argue with it..

Just to resurrect this topic, i am going to go down the route of taking my own oil with me but have found that the Shell site says 5w-30, Mobil says 0w-30 and Castrol says either Edge 0w-30 or Magnatec 5w-30.

I assume Castrol Edge is the better of the two on the Castrol range so i now wonder if 0w-30 is the best bet?

That said, i was thinking of buying Shell Helix Ultra Extra in 5w-30 even though BMW recommend Castrol  )

Edge is the better of the two (IMHO).  Surprised at the 0W30 though.  Perhaps they changed it at the 40d introduction to 5W 30 as mine now is.

The key bits are to make sure you meet BMW LL04 and ACEA B3 & C3 with whichever you choose to buy in the end.  Someone in the Nembership is an oil tech and flagged those two in earlier oil threads.  Don't forget to check this site for a current Eurocaparts discount code on the oil too....

Richard

One of my local dealers said 0w-30 grade when I asked them to quote today, seems like there's more choice on flee bay in 5w-30 though.

They quoted £98 to change the oil which isn't bad since they say its 1.5 hours labour and I supply the oil and filter.

Still confused about the grade

I think some dealers buy in just one grade of oil for all cars.  £98 sounds like about what I paid (minus a filter) considering they did a safety inspection at the same time.  I had mine changed at 1,200 miles to clear the swarf (if there was any) from the newly run in engine.  Not really necessary, but old school 'good engineering practice' in my view.