Regarding the "best" oil for our Audis...
11-02-2002, 06:27 AM
#1
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Regarding the "best" oil for our Audis...
After following the threads here on brands, grades, API, ACEA, etc., I did a little investigation of my own. Here's what I turned up. Mostly a repeat of previous information but #4 below is unique, I think!
1) There IS a performance difference between API SL (SJ) and ACEA A3, but it is slight. Can be ignored for the most part but it does exist (ACEA is more stringent).
2) Shell Rotella T Synthetic 5W40 (API SL but not ILSAC GF3) is NOT recommended for late model gasoline engines. It contains too much phosphorus which will harm the catalytic converter. Instead the Shell engineer that I contacted recommended the new FormulaShell Synthetic 5W40 (API SL & ILSAC GF3), but I have not been able to find it locally (Houston area) anywhere. (He also recommended the Shell Helix Ultra 5W40 (ACEA A3), but did point out that this latter oil is sold in the US only in 55-gallon drum quantities. He suggested I might find it in European dealership departments, but that doesn't help me as I am looking for a DIY oil.)
3) Just a note to point out I am familiar with Mobil-1 0W40 meeting both API SL and ACEA A3 specs, but I am a bit leery of the 0W weight for Houston application. I'll use it but only if I have to.
4) Finally found the oil I've been looking for right under my nose, i.e. in my garage. BMW "High Performance Synthetic Oil", 5W30 weight and marked as API SJ/CF *and* ACEA A3/B3, BMW part number 07_51_0_017_866, available at my BMW dealer for $3.50/qt with my BMWCCA discount. (This is the stuff I buy for my 330i.)
So....I have no qualms about using the BMW "blood" in my Audi, but does anybody want to make any predictions about the Audi service department's reaction if I walk in clutching BMW oil!
1) There IS a performance difference between API SL (SJ) and ACEA A3, but it is slight. Can be ignored for the most part but it does exist (ACEA is more stringent).
2) Shell Rotella T Synthetic 5W40 (API SL but not ILSAC GF3) is NOT recommended for late model gasoline engines. It contains too much phosphorus which will harm the catalytic converter. Instead the Shell engineer that I contacted recommended the new FormulaShell Synthetic 5W40 (API SL & ILSAC GF3), but I have not been able to find it locally (Houston area) anywhere. (He also recommended the Shell Helix Ultra 5W40 (ACEA A3), but did point out that this latter oil is sold in the US only in 55-gallon drum quantities. He suggested I might find it in European dealership departments, but that doesn't help me as I am looking for a DIY oil.)
3) Just a note to point out I am familiar with Mobil-1 0W40 meeting both API SL and ACEA A3 specs, but I am a bit leery of the 0W weight for Houston application. I'll use it but only if I have to.
4) Finally found the oil I've been looking for right under my nose, i.e. in my garage. BMW "High Performance Synthetic Oil", 5W30 weight and marked as API SJ/CF *and* ACEA A3/B3, BMW part number 07_51_0_017_866, available at my BMW dealer for $3.50/qt with my BMWCCA discount. (This is the stuff I buy for my 330i.)
So....I have no qualms about using the BMW "blood" in my Audi, but does anybody want to make any predictions about the Audi service department's reaction if I walk in clutching BMW oil!
11-02-2002, 07:13 AM
#3
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No problem at my dealership, it is a BMW, Audi, VW, Porsche dealer.
Thanks for the info. By the way, I stopped at my dealer yesterday to top off on my first fill oil (2500 miles). They said they just add their normal 5W oil.
11-02-2002, 07:18 AM
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So, BMWs own synthetic oil meets ALL these requirements as noted in our manual?
I sense that your comment #1 is a way of saying that there is no API starburst symbol on the container,
<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/43918/oil_specs_001a.jpg">
<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/43918/oil_specs_002b.jpg">
<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/43918/oil_specs_003c.jpg">
<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/43918/oil_specs_001a.jpg">
<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/43918/oil_specs_002b.jpg">
<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/43918/oil_specs_003c.jpg">
11-02-2002, 07:52 AM
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Hmmm...interesting question
I hadn't intended to convey that the API starburst symbol did not appear, but indeed, upon closer examination, it does not. Neither does the round older symbol. The container says in big capital letters "Meets API Service SJ/CF" and in smaller letters "Meets all requirements of ACEA A3/B3 for maximum gasoline and diesel passenger car protection". The cardboard 12-quart carton in which this came also does not have the API symbols but has API SJ/CF and ACEA A3/B3 labelling and adds "Guaranteed Legal Standards - Lubricating Motor Oils" - whatever that is supposed to mean.
It might be that companies need to pay API to certify their oils and BMW doesn't go to the trouble as it serves mostly a captive market.
It might be that companies need to pay API to certify their oils and BMW doesn't go to the trouble as it serves mostly a captive market.
11-02-2002, 08:11 AM
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Still love my bimmer but I'm most impressed with the Audi (more)
I drive the '01 330i (stick, sports package). We acquired the '02 A4 (1.8T, CVT) recently for the wife.
When I bought my car in September '00 I didn't seriously consider Audi (can't really remember why - I was trying to decide between the 330i and a Lexus IS300). This time we didn't want to get a second 3-series (would indicate serious lack of imagination!) so we tested the A4, G35, 3.2TL, and Passat before deciding on the A4. Since the wife is not a speed-demon the 1.8T with CVT seemed perfectly logical.
Now that we've had the A4 for 3 months, I am even more impressed than I was when we drove it off the lot. As is often commented on, the interior is simply miles ahead of my BMW. The 1.8T is (surprisingly, to me) no slouch. There is none of the torque steer I've grown to expect in FWD cars. The CVT is hands down the best automatic I've ever driven. If they ever get the power handling capability up to where it could handle an S4 with quattro, that would be simply unbeatable.
So the bottom line is when it comes time in a few years to replace my car, I will certainly see what Audi has to offer at the time before springing for a replacement BMW. For us consumers, this competition is just terrific.
When I bought my car in September '00 I didn't seriously consider Audi (can't really remember why - I was trying to decide between the 330i and a Lexus IS300). This time we didn't want to get a second 3-series (would indicate serious lack of imagination!) so we tested the A4, G35, 3.2TL, and Passat before deciding on the A4. Since the wife is not a speed-demon the 1.8T with CVT seemed perfectly logical.
Now that we've had the A4 for 3 months, I am even more impressed than I was when we drove it off the lot. As is often commented on, the interior is simply miles ahead of my BMW. The 1.8T is (surprisingly, to me) no slouch. There is none of the torque steer I've grown to expect in FWD cars. The CVT is hands down the best automatic I've ever driven. If they ever get the power handling capability up to where it could handle an S4 with quattro, that would be simply unbeatable.
So the bottom line is when it comes time in a few years to replace my car, I will certainly see what Audi has to offer at the time before springing for a replacement BMW. For us consumers, this competition is just terrific.
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11-02-2002, 08:19 AM
#8
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another tidbit about Rotella T Synthetic...
It is a Group III base stock oil (hydrocracked), which some people do not consider a "true" synthetic, unlike Mobil 1 or Amsoil which are made of Group IV base stocks (PAO). Valvoline Synpower is also Group III. Neverheless, in many tests, Synpower came out practically on par with Mobil 1, thanks to a very good additive package, so group III does not ALWAYS mean bad.
We must keep in mind, the word "synthetic" is just a marketing term nowadays, and does not really say anything about the ingredients used (Mobil tried to sue Castrol over the incorrect use of this term in the past, and failed).
More info on the classification and properties of different base stocks can be found here:<ul><li><a href="http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=000673">http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=000673</a</li></ul>
We must keep in mind, the word "synthetic" is just a marketing term nowadays, and does not really say anything about the ingredients used (Mobil tried to sue Castrol over the incorrect use of this term in the past, and failed).
More info on the classification and properties of different base stocks can be found here:<ul><li><a href="http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=000673">http://theoildrop.server101.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=000673</a</li></ul>