how often does everyone change their synthetic oil?????

[tim s]

i am switching over to castrol in my 1995 540i/a, my mech. recommended 10w40 @ 7500mi intervals. should i change it more often than that??? should i change it @ 3000mi. for the first change only??? should i change the filter half way between changes??? this is the first time i am using synthetics.
thanks
tim s.

[ryan roopnarine]

why not the mobil 1 0w40 ? which brand of 10w40 synthetic are you thinking of using? (are you changing it yourself?). I notice that i can't go more than 6900 or 7k miles in my m50 before i notice a marked breakdown (IE unexplainable improvement in fuel economy). As a result, i try to stay under 7k.


i am switching over to castrol in my 1995 540i/a, my mech. recommended 10w40 @ 7500mi intervals. should i change it more often than that??? should i change it @ 3000mi. for the first change only??? should i change the filter half way between changes??? this is the first time i am using synthetics.
thanks
tim s.

[tim s]

my mech. lets me use his lift to service my car.
thanks
tim s.

[Russell]

I switched to Mobil 1 15w50/filter and drove about 4,500 miles. The oil seemed very dirty. Changed with Mobil 1 15w50/filter and now have almost 3,000 miles this time. The oil seems much cleaner this time. I suspect a lot of varnish etc is being flushed out of the engine wit first time use of synthetic oil. I wish I did the first change earlier. I think gunk it is still being flushed out.

I plan to change to Mobil 1 0w40/filter next week or so. I think I will drive about 4,000 or so before I change again. Even then I am not sure if I am wasting money by changing it so soon. BTW, I do my own oil change.

My experience to date.


i am switching over to castrol, my mech. recommended 10w40 @ 7500mi intervals. should i change it more often than that??? should i change it @ 3000mi. for the first change only??? should i change the filter half way between changes??? this is the first time i am using synthetics.
thanks
tim s.

[kuly 95 540]

i am switching over to castrol in my 1995 540i/a, my mech. recommended 10w40 @ 7500mi intervals. should i change it more often than that??? should i change it @ 3000mi. for the first change only??? should i change the filter half way between changes??? this is the first time i am using synthetics.
thanks
tim s.

[ryan roopnarine]

if you are going to use a castrol product to service your car, make sure that it says "made in germany" on the back, as the US/canad/mex version are less synthetic by content than the german...do you live somewhere warm? I've wanted to try the castrol 0w30 as its kinematic viscosity is very close to making it a 40 weight, but i have to economize right now and am using conventional 10-40. you may be able to get grades other than 0w30 in the german version, but this is likely the one you'd be able to walk into autozone and (find) as the other grades seem to usually be american stuff. the mobil 1 5w40 (or mobil1 suv) or 0w40 would be good choices too.

ps. i don't know if bmw's oil is made by castrol any more, bill r would. SOME oil was discontinued for implementation by bmw a short time ago.

my mech. lets me use his lift to service my car.
thanks
tim s.

[scott540]

mOBIL 1 0w40. Every April and October which comes out to about every 3-4000 miles

[ryan roopnarine]

that's kinda early to be changing it. if you go over to www.bobistheoilguy.com, in their used oil analysis section, you'll see that 7000-8000 miles is where most synthetics in gas engines start to irreperably break down unless somebody changes the oil filter or tops the oil off. at about 68-6900 my m50 would start to get 33 mpg at 65-70, whereas before it would be only about 31.5-32 or so, so my experience seems to concur with their analysis results.


I switched to Mobil 1 15w50/filter and drove about 4,500 miles. The oil seemed very dirty. Changed with Mobil 1 15w50/filter and now have almost 3,000 miles this time. The oil seems much cleaner this time. I suspect a lot of varnish etc is being flushed out of the engine wit first time use of synthetic oil. I wish I did the first change earlier. I think gunk it is still being flushed out.

I plan to change to Mobil 1 0w40/filter next week or so. I think I will drive about 4,000 or so before I change again. Even then I am not sure if I am wasting money by changing it so soon. BTW, I do my own oil change.

My experience to date.

[Russell]

I want to flush as much gunk out as possible then go to longer oil/filter change . Also, I want to see if the 0w40 is as good a people say.




that's kinda early to be changing it. if you go over to www.bobistheoilguy.com, in their used oil analysis section, you'll see that 7000-8000 miles is where most synthetics in gas engines start to irreperably break down unless somebody changes the oil filter or tops the oil off. at about 68-6900 my m50 would start to get 33 mpg at 65-70, whereas before it would be only about 31.5-32 or so, so my experience seems to concur with their analysis results.

[Dick Schneiders]

Twice a year, without regard to mileage, seems much easier for me to keep track of. Our mileage is about 10,000 miles a year for both of the cars, so that works out to around 5,000 miles per oil change.

I also am, now, using the Mobil One 0w40 in my cars.


mOBIL 1 0w40. Every April and October which comes out to about every 3-4000 miles

[Johntee540]

I have Used Mobil 1 in my 99 Mercedes 320e Wagon since day 1.

I have used it in my 99 BMW M Roadster since day one.

I have used it in my 98 Landcruiser - day one.
And I use the 0W-40 Mobil 1 in my 94 BMW 540ia daily driver.

I usually change the 540 out at 5000 mile intervals. The Landcruiser the same intervals.

The Mercedes and M Roadsters are done on a time interval of 6 months as we dont drive them much. Hope this helps. - JT

[ryan roopnarine]

if you're interested in "cleaning", i believe that amsoil has a "drivable" engine flush, requiring the flush be left in suspension whilst you drive it for 500 miles or so, which is a lot more gradual than the bottles of diesel fuel they sell at autozone for the same purpose. also, message boards over there say that if you are interested in cleaning, to use the mobil delvac 1300 15w40 oil from wal mart for 3000 miles, as it seems to them that it is very effective at cleanup, and is more aggressive than mobil 1, apparently.


I want to flush as much gunk out as possible then go to longer oil/filter change . Also, I want to see if the 0w40 is as good a people say.

[Warren N.CA]

Mobile 1 0W40. This oil is the only one to offer maximum protection at the time of greatest engine wear- a cold start. This is because it flows like water when cold. I think that if you switched to this oil you might see that your engine runs better, especially just after cold startup.




i am switching over to castrol in my 1995 540i/a, my mech. recommended 10w40 @ 7500mi intervals. should i change it more often than that??? should i change it @ 3000mi. for the first change only??? should i change the filter half way between changes??? this is the first time i am using synthetics.
thanks
tim s.

[Russell]

Thanks, but I think I am beyond the flush now. I will just change the oil/filter regularly. It will continue to clean.

By the way, I asked my indy about a flush before using synthetics. They did not recomend as they thought most chemical flushes were very harsh. They state the synthetic would clean the engine over time.

With that said, they do use flushes where the csutomer had not changed their oil for a zillion miles and it would not even drain. Do not know what brand of flush, but they use a lot of BG products.

Also, they only recomend mobil 0w40 on newer cars!! Something about clearances. Even so, I want to try 0w40 next.



if you're interested in "cleaning", i believe that amsoil has a "drivable" engine flush, requiring the flush be left in suspension whilst you drive it for 500 miles or so, which is a lot more gradual than the bottles of diesel fuel they sell at autozone for the same purpose. also, message boards over there say that if you are interested in cleaning, to use the mobil delvac 1300 15w40 oil from wal mart for 3000 miles, as it seems to them that it is very effective at cleanup, and is more aggressive than mobil 1, apparently.

[zmuff]

I just switched to Mobil 1 0W40 yesterday. Since the engine has never had synthetics (159,000 mi), I was planning on a filter change every 2000 miles and changing out the oil at 6000 miles. Then I'll go to 7500 miles each time. I'm hoping that should catch most of the impurities that wash out. The engine is still very clean inside, there are no leaks at all, and I don't have to add any oil between oil changes. I did put in a new rear seal (not leaking) when the clutch was replaced so I think all will work out well (fingers crossed).

[George M]

change it once a year with Mobil 1 but the car isn't driven much.
George

[Paul in NZ]

at intervals suggested by service lights with new filter too.On dino i would change at half that,prolly with filter every second time

[mike wong]

says you need coupon, but clerks will write one in for you.

[shragon]

mobil 1, about every 7k miles.

[Derek A.]

I know on the older m30 motors there is a recomendation for thicker oil in the summer months. I would be somewhat leary about running 0w40 when its 95 degrees out, with the air on and the motor humming along. I run 15w50 April to November then 0w40 for the rest of the year.

[Unregistered]

Man, you guys are all over it. If you want a good laugh, go to e46fanatics where every other post is pratically, "why does my need oil light keep coming on?", or "if BMW says change every 15,000 miles it must be best for the engine."

I change according to the service indicators with Mobil 1 0w-40 (A good Group IV synth v. Castrol's Group III crap). Normally, I agree with 7500 miles as a reasonable limit, but for a few reasons feel confortable pushing it out to 8500 or whenever the lights come on. BMW's (and most german cars) have large oil sumps compared to domestic and Japanese cars, which allows for longer intervals. Second, synthetics maintain their additive package longer than mineral oils and are suited for longer change intervals.

As another poster said, check out bobistheoilguy.com There is a wealth of information, including Used Oil Analysis.

Cary

[Dick Schneiders]

That is certainly thick enough for the hottest months. We used to run 10w-30 year round with non-synthetic for many years.

Certainly there is nothing wrong with 15w 50 in the summer, but the 40 weight oil is quite thick enough.




I know on the older m30 motors there is a recomendation for thicker oil in the summer months. I would be somewhat leary about running 0w40 when its 95 degrees out, with the air on and the motor humming along. I run 15w50 April to November then 0w40 for the rest of the year.

[Unregistered]

That is certainly thick enough for the hottest months. We used to run 10w-30 year round with non-synthetic for many years.

Certainly there is nothing wrong with 15w 50 in the summer, but the 40 weight oil is quite thick enough.

I agree. The 0w-40 is approved for all temps and what I would use year around in all climates. There is no problem with using the 15w-50 in the warm months as the poster above said he does, but no benifit either. The only time I would consider 15w-50 necessary is in a track car or street car that is seeing extended high speed operation in 100f+ weather (by high speed I mean 100mph+ for more than 10-20 minutes at a time).

Cary