[gerbs]

Hey everyone. I've been spending some of my spare time doing research on oil, I plan on changing my own in between each scheduled oil change. I'm leaning towards 5w-40 to provide good cold start protection as well as keeping the car cool under heavy operating conditions. For some reason, I couldn't find any posts referencing to Valvoline's SynPower 5w-40. Also, I'm not sure if it is or isn't BMW LL-01 or LL-04 approved. Perhaps their toll-free support number would know.


Product info: http://www.valvoline.com/pages/produ...asp?product=19

I'll try and find some more information about it. I'm not concerned if "it'll work" or if "it's good." I'm sure it's fantastic oil that will mesh just fine with the inline 6. Just confused on why it's not so popular. Maybe it's new? Perhaps Valvoline oil is considered "cheap?" I wouldn't know as I'm not an oil guru.

[BavarianMW]

Becasue they're just like any other oil, you want something really good, then get Motul 300v, royal purple xpr, shell helix, or castrol edge. And for get about your LL ratings, LL just means long life approved and just like me you are changing your oil alot more often so unless you plan on getting longevity out of your oil then forget about LL ratings.......you know all this stuff was literally just a few posts down......DO A SEARCH
"I've done extensive testing with motor oils in a lab. I can tell you this... Stay away form Castrol (North American ones at least) Castrol Edge in Europe is amazing.

Top 3 oils I'd recommend is Motul 300V or 8100, Shell Helix, Castrol Edge... Then Agip, Redline, AMS Oil and lastly Mobil 1

Motul 300V I've seen 15-25hp gain just by oil change alone (turbo charged rx-8) Motul is readily available and is affordable. Shell Helix... too expensive.... Castrol Edge... hard to find.

The base stocks used on the my top 3 picks are very very very good. They are all synthetic ester based a true 100% synthetic oil.

I used to be a fan of Mobil... But with recent formula changes... well you know how the story goes.

Oil formulations have (are) changed due to the new API SM rating and the EPA-mandated rules on cat life. This resulted in drastically reduced levels of ZDDP which is NOT a good thing.

The bottom line is that if the bottle has "API SM/SL" on it, its NOT the same good stuff as you've been using.

I went to a local auto store looking at various oils to see what was currently available. All of the Mobil 1 formulations were now the new SM, the Royal Purple was still SL (this may change). Look carefully at the bottles as that tells the tale.

if you can afford it go Motul 300V.... if not Motul 8100. never cheap out on oil and oil changes.... oil is cheaper than a new engine =O)"

[gerbs]

Originally Posted by BavarianMW

you know all this stuff was literally just a few posts down......DO A SEARCH

The topic was in regards to the Valvoline oil. I searched and didn't find anything about it, am I in error? I've probably read every oil post on here with more than 5 replies.

And yes, I know there's "better oil" such as Motul, Royal Purple, etc... I was curious about this Valvoline SynPower 5w-40. Thanks for your reply, though.

[derryck]

I'm going with Mobil 1 as it has never let me down...I run it in my E46 M3 and my turbo S2000 and both have been trouble free. Mobil 1 will be my oil of choice until I have something blow up.

[epiphone3]

Originally Posted by gerbs

The topic was in regards to the Valvoline oil. I searched and didn't find anything about it, am I in error? I've probably read every oil post on here with more than 5 replies.

And yes, I know there's "better oil" such as Motul, Royal Purple, etc... I was curious about this Valvoline SynPower 5w-40. Thanks for your reply, though.

I believe that Valvoline Synpower 5W40 is BMW LL01 rated.... it may only be BMW LL98 rated, though. Can't remember!

[TwinBoost]

Valvoline 5w40 is BMW LL01 and BMW LL04 rated, the Royal purple XPR will void your warrenty not sure about the rest but I wouldn't doubt that the other racing oils would also void your warrenty.