[kiwi29]

Originally Posted by Socom

It is but in response to emissions demands. LL04 won't poison new emissions systems. Non

I found rotella and it says LL04(or I think it did?) In 5w40, what are your thoughts on that?

[jzchen]

Originally Posted by kiwi29

Really? Ill definitely need to grab the deal the next time it pops up!
I use to have the bmw oil when I was under warranty but it didn't seem to cool fast enough or wasn't good enough on cold starts. I usually only let my car warm for a minute before driving again from a cold and mobil 1 0w40 seemed to do it for me. I'm curious though, why is castrol edge not LL approved? Gtx doesn't exist anymore so does that mean we only use the bmw oil from the stealerships? People seem to say mobil is better and cheaper than bmw oil and you have more variations and choices with it also. The last time I checked, 0w-40 was sold in walmart, it's just you'd have to find out which one. They do sell singles though and I have a guy who sells mobil 1. 6 qts for 35 bucks for any weigh and its about a block away from home. I also see other oils that are "contenders" but they don't have the LL approval and I'm skeptical to try it. What would happen if I do? I hear a lot of people using motul and royal purple even though its not LL approved but they say it runs like a champ. What are your thoughts on that?

We are really off topic, (sorry OP,) but I don't know if dealers' always use BMW oil. Anyways. Go to Castrol's website. Use the "Which Oil to Buy" link. None are listed...

Valvoline's MST part number, if you are interested in ordering from places like NAPA: 787301. Since they say HST is formally approved and MST is not, I'm still going to stick with BMW oil because I'm not buying a 55 gallon drum of oil. Only 5w-40 HST as listed here:

http://www.valvoline.com/pdf/synpower.pdf

shows a Total Base Number (TBN) of 10, which like I said before is an indicator for longevity.

BTW- My wife's oil looked pretty thick when it had 120 or so miles until red/due. She last had the oil changed at the dealer, so I'll see next time I do a change how it looks, now that I know for sure I put BMW oil in...

[F32Fleet]

Originally Posted by kiwi29

I found rotella and it says LL04(or I think it did?) In 5w40, what are your thoughts on that?

won't last the factory interval for US gassers. Probably ok for 7k mile OCI.

M1 0w40
Castrol 0w30 & 5w400


Easiest to get other than dealer oil

[kiwi29]

Originally Posted by jzchen

We are really off topic, (sorry OP,) but I don't know if dealers' always use BMW oil. Anyways. Go to Castrol's website. Use the "Which Oil to Buy" link. None are listed...

Valvoline's MST part number, if you are interested in ordering from places like NAPA: 787301. Since they say HST is formally approved and MST is not, I'm still going to stick with BMW oil because I'm not buying a 55 gallon drum of oil. Only 5w-40 HST as listed here:

http://www.valvoline.com/pdf/synpower.pdf

shows a Total Base Number (TBN) of 10, which like I said before is an indicator for longevity.

BTW- My wife's oil looked pretty thick when it had 120 or so miles until red/due. She last had the oil changed at the dealer, so I'll see next time I do a change how it looks, now that I know for sure I put BMW oil in...

I tried to look it up on the castrol website when I first got the car and I was extremely confused also, I didn't know why it didn't have a number on the website but the cap says "castrol."

Originally Posted by Socom

won't last the factory interval for US gassers. Probably ok for 7k mile OCI.

M1 0w40
Castrol 0w30 & 5w400


Easiest to get other than dealer oil

So should I stick with mobil1 0w-40?

[F32Fleet]

Originally Posted by kiwi29

I tried to look it up on the castrol website when I first got the car and I was extremely confused also, I didn't know why it didn't have a number on the website but the cap says "castrol."



So should I stick with mobil1 0w-40?

All will perform essentially the same in the end. Go with whichever is cheapest.

On side not I was told that in the past former Benz engineers collaborate with BMW on engine design and they use Castrol oils in that design process. Don't confuse this to mean the engines are designed to run on Castrol.

[kiwi29]

Originally Posted by Socom

All will perform essentially the same in the end. Go with whichever is cheapest.

On side not I was told that in the past former Benz engineers collaborate with BMW on engine design and they use Castrol oils in that design process. Don't confuse this to mean the engines are designed to run on Castrol.

Ohhhhh I get it now, I was gonna use castrol edge syntec but it doesn't have the LL stamp of approval. I was reading on ecstuning and it said LL98 on the motul oil, what does that mean?

[F32Fleet]

Originally Posted by kiwi29

Ohhhhh I get it now, I was gonna use castrol edge syntec but it doesn't have the LL stamp of approval. I was reading on ecstuning and it said LL98 on the motul oil, what does that mean?

LL98 is old (1998) spec. LL01 supersedes it.

[jzchen]

Originally Posted by kiwi29

I tried to look it up on the castrol website when I first got the car and I was extremely confused also, I didn't know why it didn't have a number on the website but the cap says "castrol."



So should I stick with mobil1 0w-40?

It's on the BMW website as approved oil, so I would think it's okay.

[kiwi29]

Originally Posted by Socom

LL98 is old (1998) spec. LL01 supersedes it.

Would it still be okay to use? I just read it closer and it says LL98 and LL01?

Originally Posted by jzchen

It's on the BMW website as approved oil, so I would think it's okay.

Do a lot of members use mobil1 oil or just the OEM castrol oil?

[jzchen]

Originally Posted by kiwi29

Would it still be okay to use? I just read it closer and it says LL98 and LL01?

Do a lot of members use mobil1 oil or just the OEM castrol oil?

I honestly don't know what others are using as a majority. (Maybe someone could create a poll?) I just know I would stick with LL-01. In a year's time I'll probably change my wife's oil again, and I'll be sure to report if it looked as thick as the stuff that came out this time.

I just checked the TBN numbers of Mobil 1 0w-40 and Motul 8100 X-cess 5W40. Mobil is at 11.8 and Motul is 10.1. It seems anything lower than 10 doesn't make the cut...

[kiwi29]

Originally Posted by jzchen

I honestly don't know what others are using as a majority. (Maybe someone could create a poll?) I just know I would stick with LL-01. In a year's time I'll probably change my wife's oil again, and I'll be sure to report if it looked as thick as the stuff that came out this time.

I just checked the TBN numbers of Mobil 1 0w-40 and Motul 8100 X-cess 5W40. Mobil is at 11.8 and Motul is 10.1. It seems anything lower than 10 doesn't make the cut...

Ouch, Think ill just stick with the mobil lol thanks for looking it up. What about personally, do you stick to only oem oil?

[jzchen]

Originally Posted by Gunners_Mate

Can I do this? What will it do, performance wise? It sounds like a fun project.

I'm pretty sure you can. Let me know if you have any questions and really want to pursue this. This was my first major work with the N54/E90...

Originally Posted by kiwi29

Ouch, Think ill just stick with the mobil lol thanks for looking it up. What about personally, do you stick to only oem oil?

So far. I've only done one oil change myself since our '08s just came out of the 4 yr free service. Will probably do another in Feb when the other is due but because it is low mileage I don't think it will be thick at all...

[cuco]

Can we get back to the main subject of this thread? Has anyone tried retrofitting a N54/335 oil cooler into a N52?

[e90pilot]

Yes I have one in fact.

[cuco]

Originally Posted by e90pilot

Yes I have one in fact.

But you have a stett right? I was wondering if anyone had succcesfully retrofitted the oem 335 oil cooler kit into a N52. Not sure if the oil filter housing is the same.

[e90pilot]

Mine uses mostly factory parts and I know for a fact the factory parts fit.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by cuco

But you have a stett right? I was wondering if anyone had succcesfully retrofitted the oem 335 oil cooler kit into a N52. Not sure if the oil filter housing is the same.

It looks doable. I researched realOEM.com. You need a whole bunch of parts starting with the N54 oil filter housing that is used for the oil cooler in the 335i (you have to get this anyway to use the Stett kit too). Not all 335i's came with an oil cooler, but the cylinder heads are the same. So I checked the 325i (N52) oil filter housing gasket (that mates the oil filter housing to the head) and it is the same part number for the N54 oil filter housing used for the N54 with an oil cooler. That means that the N54 oil filter housing (used for the oil cooler) will fit to the N52 cylinder head. From there you need to buy all the OEM oil cooler parts - hoses, mounts, heat exchanger, etc. It looks to be well over $1K in parts. You should look at both models of cars to make sure the 325i (N52) has the same clearances for the hoses and mounting brackets for the oil cooler.

Search on realoem.com on the oil filter housing gasket P/N 11427537293 and that will lead you to all the other part numbers you need. You will also need to look at the "radiator" section for the oil cooler (heat exchanger) parts. I did not look for the actual mounting bracket parts, but they are probably somewhere in the body section near the right fender well (where the oil cooler mounts).

The only other questions are, does adding an oil cooler change the oil level quantity requirements for the N52? I would think it would add a bit more oil capacity. Also, does adding an oil cooler to the N52, which never had one, affect the algorithm BMW uses to determine the CBS OCI? If it does I, doubt it means anything since the oil will be a bit less temperature cycled than the algorithm expects.

[e90pilot]

Oil quantity remains the same for oil changes but yes there is more oil in the system because you fill the oil cooler when you install it. Whatever oil is in the cooler during oil changes stays there since there's no drain on the cooler. The oil cooler shouldn't change the OCI on the CBS since there's no change even for the 335.

[cuco]

Originally Posted by e90pilot

Mine uses mostly factory parts and I know for a fact the factory parts fit.

I assume that for the sake of cost and simplicity the best idea would be to have the OEM oil filter housing and hoses matched with an aftermarket oil cooler such as STETT or AR. Is this similar to your current setup?

Thanks for sharing

[e90pilot]

Originally Posted by cuco

I assume that for the sake of cost and simplicity the best idea would be to have the OEM oil filter housing and hoses matched with an aftermarket oil cooler such as STETT or AR. Is this similar to your current setup?

Thanks for sharing

I got the kit used from a four member. They sell one for cars without a factory cooler. It has all the parts you need. There are 2 small issues. Your fender lining has no vent for the oil cooler and there's not really any place to mount the thermostat. If you get the OEM cooler, there is no thermostat.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by e90pilot

I got the kit used from a four member. They sell one for cars without a factory cooler. It has all the parts you need. There are 2 small issues. Your fender lining has no vent for the oil cooler and there's not really any place to mount the thermostat. If you get the OEM cooler, there is no thermostat.

From the research I did, the OEM oil filter housing for the cars with a factory oil cooler do have a thermostat. It is the unit that bolts onto the oil filter housing which the heat exchanger cooling lines connect to. Part 9 in the drawing. Thermostat housing with thermostat P/N 11427573212. I'd bet there is a OEM fender liner with vents available or you could cut vents into the one on the car.

[e90pilot]

Oh I get it now. The stett oil cooler has a separate thermostat which is probably why they only use half of factory oil filter housing.