Oil Question????

[Kenny V2]

Today my change oil light came on today and the light indicator turned yellow, how much longer can I can until its time to put Royal Purple into it. And is 20W30 ok. And where is a good place to get a BMW filter for my car. 97 328i 129,000 miles... No problems, running tip top shape

[rexzilla_03]

as for the oil, ive ran mobil one fully synthetic 10w30, had no problems, and for summer i run 15w45 mobil one fully synthetic, it should specify in your bmw handbook, it may require different weight oil than my 318i, but i recommend fully synthetic, run a good quility oil though, mobil one or royal purple. as for the oil filter, try www.pelicanparts.com or www.turnermotorsports.com i do my business with them...

[whosyadadie01]

just did a oil change yesterday with the royal purple 10w-30 i think it was and thats all i use and trust. the only place i could find that sold the oil was pep boys.

[E36 Phantom]

Dude, do it NOW!

DON'T go by the service lights. Keep track of it yourself. The service lights specify WAY too high of an interval. If your yellow light is on, and you haven't changed it since you reset it last, you're way overdue.

Are you using dino oil or synthetic?

-If you're on dino, you're so far overdue its not even funny. Also, when switching to synth, do an oil change soon after. Change to RP, 2500 miles, change again w/ RP.
-If you're on synth, you're overdue, but not *terribly*. Still overdue though. Switch to RP and change at regular synth intervals (55-6500 max). RP degrades quickly, and I would not treat it like a regular synth where some people say you can go 10 or 12k miles on an oil change. Then again, even with a long life synth I don't think I'd go over 8500.

And Pelican Parts has them cheap, but I'd say in your position just go to BMW and get a filter. They aren't expensive, so if Pelican charges shipping I doubt you'll save any money. I paid about 11 bucks for my BMW filter. I think BMW uses MANN and Mehre (or something like that) filters.

[Chris S]

i use 10w-40 (WACO and BP) all year round... no ticking or anything so im assuming that its fine... oil changes every 6mths for me which is about 4-500KMs

[Xeek]

I'm new to the BMW, used to older Fords, Toyotas, Hondas. I bought the car from a dealership and do not know what oil is in my car.

What do u guys recommend? Go synth in any case? If I shouldn't change the type of oil then how do I go about figuring out if its dino in the car?

[ColumbusBMW]

Full synthetic.

[E36 Phantom]

How many miles are on the car? If it has high mileage, switching to a full synthetic oil can actually cause your seals to degrade and leaks to appear. If you're under 100k, I'd switch immediately to RP. If you don't know whats in your car, and you're within a safe mileage to switch, then go synthetic and change @ 2500 next time.

[E36_droptop]

I wouldnt run anything but Mobil 1 5-30 Full Synthetic for my 328i convertible.

Excellent mechanical rep. Doesnt need replacement for 6,000 miles.

[ISMLM]

I just picked up a 328 and I'm looking to do an oil change because I have no idea what kind of oil could be in there. I read the manual and it specifically mentioned to stay away from additives. I've been doing some research on my own but now I've gotten myself confused. Can anyone recommend a good oil brand and weight?? Thanks!!

1997
328i
134,000 miles

Also - does anyone know if this information is legit? http://www.synthetic-direct.ca/testimonials/case_study_bmw.htm

[Corey Milne]

E36 phantom knows what hes talking about, look to his advice for the truth

[NYe36er]

Buy your filter from the dealer, BMW makes good filters and its only like $6 for the kit (filter + O-rings).

[ISMLM]

I will do just that. Thanks! :thumbup:

[E36 Phantom]

I just picked up a 328 and I'm looking to do an oil change because I have no idea what kind of oil could be in there. I read the manual and it specifically mentioned to stay away from additives. I've been doing some research on my own but now I've gotten myself confused. Can anyone recommend a good oil brand and weight?? Thanks!!

1997
328i
134,000 miles

Also - does anyone know if this information is legit? http://www.synthetic-direct.ca/testimonials/case_study_bmw.htm

What is your climate like? For summer, I'd recommend 20W-50. Personally, I like Royal Purple. At that mileage, though, if it has had dino oil all it's life you may or may not have problems with the seals switching to synthetic. For winter, I don't know what your climate is like. I'm in CA, so I run 20W50 all year round. But if you get below about 40*, I'd recommed something thinner, especially the starting weight. Something mire like 10W-40 or so. You said you were reading the manual. Somewhere in the page 80-somethings if I remember right it has a chart showing the recommended weight. For summer, go by it or a little above. For winter, stick pretty much right with it. Never go thinner than it specifies.

No additives.

Amsoil may or may not increase mileage, but that study is critically flawed. Gas blends change seasonally. Typically, they have more oxygenates in winter, so you'll get worse mileage anyway. Not to mention your car is sucking in colder air, which means it's more dense, which means it has to use more fuel to maintain a constant AFR. That study would need to be run on the same type of gas, in identical weather conditions, with identical throttle position, etc. There are WAY too many variables in that "test." By the time late March rolled around, I'm sure they were using a different blend.

If you stick with dino oil THREE THOUSAND MILE INTERVALS. NOT MORE.
If you go with synthetic, do 2500 miles for the first one, and appx 6500 mile intervals thereafter.

Edit, yes, the dealer actually has some of the best filters, and they are priced very well, too.

[ISMLM]

I live on Long Island; it's humid in the summers and the daily highs range from high 70's to low 90's. During the winter, the daily lows average at about 20-30 if I had to guess.

Thanks so much Phantom! :)

[E36 Phantom]

Ok, well as it starts to get to the warmer climate (whenever that is for you), then you'll want to run the 20W50. As the temperatures start to dip into the 40s, you'll want to run 10W40.