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Originally Posted by cocoabrova
MANN and MAHLE (and a few others) have been supplying Euro manufacturers, including BMW, with their filters (and more) for a very long time. The main differences between and aftermarket filter and one purchased form the stealership are price obviously, and packaging. Trust me, I see it everyday as I'm a parts consultant for another Euro brand dealer....
As for oil, Castrol has deals with a few different makers, so that's what you'll find at the dealerships. For me, I was using Lubro-Moly 5W40 religiously on all my Euros, due to the Castrol 5W30 would lose its viscosity after about 3000kms/1875 miles of my 'spirited' driving style, and the LM would last til even after the 5000kms/3000 miles. I have started using another brand though, Total Quartz Energy 9000 5W40 with the BMW LL-98 rating, which is actually made by Elf, and so far it's been holding up.....
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One more point, and I am not suggesting that anyone is retailing these knowingly or intentionally: If you get the filter from the dealer, you are pretty much assured that it is a genuine part. Buy it from an aftermarket outlet, and you have a chance of getting a counterfeit part that doesn't meet any spec, but which is packaged in a look-alike box. Often the retailer doesn't know that they are counterfeit, as they were sold by someone further up the distribution chain. We see it regularly, and consumers have no way of knowing what they are getting when it happens. First indication is that the filter disintegrates prior to being changed out. Mahle themselves address the problem on their web site, as they are one of the targets. See the link: http://www.mahle-aftermarket.com/C12...Y7DKE753STULEN Another article suggests that 50% of shop technicians were unable to spot the difference: http://www.asashop.org/autoinc/april2007/mech.htm
What is the value of the LL-98 rating in 2009, in your opinion? It has been obsolete for 8 years, since LL-01 came out, which was prior to LL-04, and any oil that has an eight year old formulation would be pretty suspect. Or is it a newer formulation that they haven't retested to the more recent standards? I just don't get why they would be using that spec and advertising it, unless they couldn't meet the newer ones. I don't look for the LL designation myself, since BMW isn't calling for it in any of my recent owner's manuals, and many oil manufacturers didn't bother to certify to it. That didn't mean that their oil couldn't meet the newer LL standard, just that they didn't see the point in paying for the test. When an oil company purposely advertises that they meet an outdated spec, I wonder about their motivation and thought processes.
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Last edited by JCL; 02-21-2009 at 12:19 AM.
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