N42 Valvetronic Oil Use
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darkchild
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Just a quick query - are these known to use oil? I know the M54 6 cylinders have a bit of a thirst but what about the valvetronic lumps? The only reason I ask is that I've found myself regularly topping up my 318ci. Its had two litres of Castrol Edge in 6000 miles. I expect this is well within BMW's tolerances but none of the other BMWs I've owned have ever needed a top up.
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BMracing
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So the car has only done 6000 miles? If so then that's normal, it's still running in. And that 0W/30 or 5W/30 stuff burns off pretty easily.
You'll probably find it'll use less after the first service.
You'll probably find it'll use less after the first service.
Max
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darkchild
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Sorry - my original post isn't very clear - I got the car on 59K and its now done 65K. I expect the amount of oil burnt is within BMW's tolerances, I was just wondering if the valvetronic engines had form for this. Agree with the comment about the 0W/30 burning quickly - the lower the mark on the dipstick, the quicker it seems to disappear!
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stuartgallafant
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BMW's acceptable oil usage is 1litre to every 1000 miles! Which is mad! Valvetronic engines tend to use the oil harder to make the engine run easier, allowing for the decrease in engine power loss, so a compromise has to be made somewhere!
The oil that was designed by Castrol for use in the Valvetronic engines is actually LL04 FE, which stands for Fuel Efficient, and when hot, it was litteraly like water! If you put FE into an engine that needed standard fully synthetic 0w30, it was bye bye engine, just too thin!!
The oil that was designed by Castrol for use in the Valvetronic engines is actually LL04 FE, which stands for Fuel Efficient, and when hot, it was litteraly like water! If you put FE into an engine that needed standard fully synthetic 0w30, it was bye bye engine, just too thin!!
