X5M Oil Choice and Oil Burn
 

I just bought my first BMW, finally. Its a 6 year-old X5M with 99k kilometers. Looks and runs great. This is supposed to be an all in one vehicle replacing for now the idea of VW Atlas and an M3 convertible Having lots of fun given low end torque) As expected also had to buy a litre of oil... within the first 1k! Dealer said he had full synthetic 5-40 in there so thats what I poured in. Is it the best oil? As you know manual allows a choice of many...

Didnt think the manual allows any choice. ONE oil specified, with many allowed "for top off"

Welcome to the miserable world of BMW V8 ownership...brand new owner and it is at a liter or more per 1000km. Not good.

Yes, it was a funny feeling yesterday as I was paying for a liter of oil at a store..as I havent bought oil in 10 or so years.) This bmw is my upgrade from Acura TSX that I bought new and is now 8 years old and for sale. Acura burns 0 oil. I never check it anymore. I only put gas. Back to auto hobby - hello BMW! Dream come true) price for fun.

Dont be so cavalier. It isnt 'just the way BMWs are'....

It is potentially a very bad sign.




you should read and actually UNDERSTAND how oils are specified and how they should be used. "synthetic 5-40' is not a full specification. mixing differnt oils is not a great idea.

In every car forum, forever- the oldest and most frequent topic is "oil threads". BMW, MB, Audi, Ford, mopar...ALL of them.

No need to reinvent the wheel- your issue has been covered 1000 times, easy

Buying a german car I was ready to look into repairs, oil burn, etc. It was expected and happened. Thats why i confirmed with the dealer what oil he put in at change. I bought the same Castrol 5w-40 full synthetic. May be there is a better option when the time comes to change it.

master1917,
Not to understate that kind of oil consumption in ~ 700 miles, but were you poz that the oil was full, on the stick, when you got the car?

Dlr oil changes range from pricey & OK to lame, in my experience...some to many techs have no memory and don't check the crankcase quantity.

Just an idea, before you go crazy chasing oil issues, and GL with that V8 M. ;)
GL, mD

Thanks motordavid. You are right and when i look at my original post I think I overstated a couple of things. First, I did add a litre, but only because the manual says add a litre when oil indicator (itz electronic)at a min level, while when I bought it, the level (at indicator) was half way, so the car burned half a litre or a bit less, and not the whole litre as I added so I am by 100% off there on the quantity consumed. Second, I checked the bill of sale and the mileage is more like 1400km, even though its still approximately 1k, its 40% off. So its about a liter per almost 3000km. I am also flooring it rather often, not to redline, but often which I believe makes a difference. I thought this consumption is ok for this motor. No? I wasnt actually panicking but just bought a second bottle). I find it entertaining - certainly not ladies car as it needs care.

Also I bought it at a small used car dealer, not bmw si he out in Castrol. I am going to use a local shop that specializes in germans, not bmw dealer as I knkw visits will be frequent and I am not paying $200 per hour unless there is no other way.

Its just the reality how different it is from a japanese car that is a couple of levels below in performance.

Find an oil with “BMW LL-01” certification. This certification is extremely important for high output BMW engines. I believe you can get Castrol EDGE 0W-40 for a decent price in Canada. That oil will also serve you well during the winter.

Your X is a 2011? Did you manage to see service records?

Thank you. Re Castrol, yes prices are not bad and not a concern given how much gas it consumes. I now need to figure out the LL cerifivation for all the non-BMW labeled oils. I read the manual that the oils with certain numbers i.e 5-40, etc. qualify as LL, but I think it may be my misinterpretation.