# Motor oil: Red Line vs everything else



## LouT (Jun 11, 2003)

In all of the discussions about motor oil on this board that I've read, I have never seen Red Line motor oil discussed or recommended. So what's that all about; is it too expensive or what? Mobil 1 seems to be popular, as is BMW and Castrol. Opinions on Red Line, please...


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## Andy (Jul 16, 2003)

LouT said:


> In all of the discussions about motor oil on this board that I've read, I have never seen Red Line motor oil discussed or recommended. So what's that all about; is it too expensive or what? Mobil 1 seems to be popular, as is BMW and Castrol. Opinions on Red Line, please...


I like it...
http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/showthread.php?t=38583&highlight=redline


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## LmtdSlip (May 28, 2003)

I went to the dealer today to buy oil and filter in advance of my oil change next week. I have to buy in advance on a holiday as my dealer's parts dept. isn't open on Saturdays. WTF? But I digress.

Well I ask for 20-50 per the owners manual. The guy behind the counter gives me a puzzled look and says he will be right back.

Comes back and says we dont sell 20-50. They buy it in bulk in the service dept but don't sell in bulk. He says they use Castrol anyway so I can just go to K-Mart to buy it.

I did get the filter there...Asked for the CCA discount...the guy gives me another puzzled look and says, ohh yeah I can take 10% off anyway even if you werent a member. :tsk: 

So far my BMW dealer experiences have been less impressive than my Honda dealer ever was.

Sorry for the hijack...

Redline makes good products but I dont think I would pay the premium to run them in a street car. 
A lot of racers use it (or claim to)...and part of the reason is that Redline offers a pretty good contingency fund and provides a fair amount of free product to teams.


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## 31st330i (Jan 11, 2002)

I use RedLine in the differential of the bimmer (now with 3.15) and in the transmissions and differentials of my other cars as well. I use Mobil1 in the motors, though. maybe now that the 330 is more of a garage queen I may switch to RedLine for the motor. RedLine is in Benecia, CA which is about 45 minutes north of me. I'll eventually get around to swapping out the lifetime fluid in the transmission of the 330 to RedLine.


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## The Roadstergal (Sep 7, 2002)

Ditto, ditto, I use Redline in trannies and diffs but can't justify the $$ on using it as motor oil in a street car.

LmtdSlp, sounds like you need to find a better dealer... heck, if you're just needing parts, get them online, from a better dealer or from someone like Eurasian ($5 for an E46 filter kit).


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## DonB (Oct 29, 2003)

*Redline in transmission*

I just drained my manual tranny fluid and replaced it with Redline D4-ATF. Shifting from 1st to 2nd is noticably smoother and easier. Not sure if that's Redline specific, maybe just having new fluid in the tranny was the cause. BTW the original fluid was very dark, runny, and nasty. Don't believe what BMW says about lifetime fluid in the tranny, there's no such thing.


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## MikeW (Dec 20, 2001)

The problem with Redline (and Amsoil also, BTW), is that they have no third party certifications. Not even the standard API SL. They may be good oil. They may work as well, or better, than certified oils. But how do I know that other then the fact that they say so.

For a non-M Bimmer, I'd likely use M1 0w40, which has ACEA A3 and BMW LL01 certifications. I also believe that the German made Castrol Syntec 0w30 has the same certifications. And, of course, there's always the BMW label oil.

While Redline might nor might not be a superior oil, given the circumstances it would likely be an inferious choice.


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## F1Crazy (Dec 11, 2002)

You have to be very careful following recommendations given on the internet, especially when it comes to motor oil.

There are a few things to consider when choosing motor oil and the first one is manufacturer recommendation and warranty concerns. If your car is under warranty and you like the piece of mind then you better stick with BMW approved oils (very short list in US). Having said that the chance of engine failure due to wrong oil is minimal if you stick to recommended viscosity synthetic and reasonable intervals.

The next thing to consider is the type of driving you do. Oils of the same viscosity, meeting the same specs and even of the same brand may work different in your car and advise given by the fellow bimmer owners should be used as a guide only. 20-30 dollar used oil analysis is the best tool in determining your oil choice and drain interval.

I wouldn't be concerned with the lack of API or ACEA certification if there is a good history behind the brand and it is certainly the case with Red Line.

FYI this is the list of BMW approved motor oils:

BMW TIS -2003:

5.0 "Longlife-01" for all engines, except:
M43/CNG, S54, S62/E39 (till 02/2000)

BMW Quality Longlife-01 0W-40 (supposedly just showed up at US dealerships)
BMW Quality Longlife-01 5W-30

ACEA A3/B3

Agip Formula LL B 01 0W-30
BP Visco 7000 0W-40
BP Visco 7000 Special 0W-30
Castrol Formula SLX 0W-30
Castrol Syntec 0W-30 (new formula in US, imported from Germany)
Castrol Super Racing 0W-40
Castrol TXT Softec LL01 5W-30
Havoline Synthetic BM 0W-30
Mobil 1 0W-40
Motul Specific LL-01 0W-30

6.0 "Longlife-01 FE" for last generation engines only: N40, N42, N62, N73

BMW Quality Longlife-01 FE 0W-30
Castrol SLX 01 FE 0W-30

7.0 "Longlife-98" for all engines except:
M43/CNG, M54 (from 09/2001), N40, N42, S54, N62, N73, S62/E39 (till 02/2000)

BMW Super Power Plus 5W-30 is substituted by
BMW Quality longlife-01 5W-30
BMW Super Power Oil 5W-40

ACEA A3/B3

List of around 160 oil names and grades, some of them are:

76 Pure Synthetic Motor Oil 5W-40
Castrol Formula RS Power and Protection 0W-40
Castrol Formula RS Road and Track 5W-40
Castrol GTX7 Dynatec 5W-40
Castrol Performance 5W-40
Castrol Syntec 5W-40
Castrol TXT Softec 5W-40
Castrol Softec LL98 5W-30
Castrol Softec Plus 5W-30
Chevron Supreme Synthetic 5W-40
Mobil1 5W-30 (think it is not the same 5W-30 SS or Tri-Syn sold in N.A)
Mobil1 5W-40
Mobil1 Rally Formula 5W-30 and 5W-40
Mobil1 Turbo Diesel 0W-40
Mobil Super S 5W-40
Mobil Synt S 5W-40
Quaker State Full Synthetic European Formula 5W-40
Valvoline Durablend MXL 5W-40
Valvoline SynPower 5W-30 and 5W-40
Valvoline SynPower MXL 0W-30
Valvoline SynPro 5W-30 and 5W-40

_(Prepared by Sergei aka Primus)_


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