'98 540i6

Hi all

Have a '98 non Vanos 540i6. Car has 270k km (168k miles) and runs very good; passes emission tests and still gives factory near performance, no strange or ticking noises.

Engine was running on Shell 5w30 until I got it, now I put in Mobil1 5w30. After 13k km (8k miles) car used 1 - 1,5 liter of that oil. I did some search and found out that most E39's do run 5w30 mobil1, but can't find exact is BMW specification for that (M62) engine. Anyone knows?

Car is driven softly when cold, and frequently very fast when warm. Weather is mostly 20 or more °c (68+F). What would be other owner's and/or some engineers advice; to continue with Mobil15w30 or maybe switch to thicker oils like Mobil1 5w50 or even 15W50?

Reply to
Tomislav Buric
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If by "very fast" you mean ground high speed, 100mph or more, then your oil consumption should be lower than you report. But if "very fast" means high engine speeds with frequent forays to Red Line or near, then your oil consumption is probably about right.

POINT OF ORDER Isn't the 540i an 8, or does 540i6 not mean 6-cylinder?

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

Very fast means everyday commute at ~110mph and more. I redline it only every once in a while, and also for short time. At 110rpm car runs under

3500rpm in 6th, and most mileage is done under that rpm. Also, the engine is dry (no leaks beside AC condensate)
540i always was and is V8 :-). 540i6 is the way americans like to emphasize it's an 6 speed manual "stick", not automatic. As I noticed, quite a big deal for them as they in large number "don't know" how to handle manual transmition :-))
Reply to
Tomislav Buric

"Tomislav Buric" wrote

Maybe at least they know how to spell transmission. :)

As for the oil, you should be using an oil that at least meets the BMW LL-98 spec. LL-01 and LL-04 is good too, as these are even better than LL-98. I don't believe M1 5w-30 meets any of these specs. M1 0w-40 does.

As for your oil consumption, if you do a lot of high speed hwy driving (which it sounds like you are), then this consumption may be normal.

How often do you change oil? I use GC 0w-30 and change it every 7.5k miles in my 530i.

Cheers, Pete

Reply to
Pete

"Tomislav Buric" wrote

That is *ABSOLUTELY NOT* the way we designate manual vs. auto. A 540i is a Manual-equipped car, a 540iA is an automatic. Unfortunately, almost all (85% or so) BMWs in the US have autos, and the nomenclature has fallen on hard times.

FloydR E34 525i5 and 330xi5 ;->

Reply to
Floyd Rogers

Doh, F7 did that!! :-))

So I checked the M1 site for my region; this oil (Mobil1 ESP formula 5w30) I put in my car meets criteria for; API SM/SL/CF, ACEA C3, A3/B3/B4, MB

229.31, BMW LL 04, VW 504.00/507.00 M1 0w40 meets BMW LL-01, and I'm thinking of trying that now. Specification says it lowers oil consuption due (lower vaporizing)

I change oil according to board comp. Now it will be on ~8k miles. Car hasn't got many cold starts and is not often in city rush so I think there is no need to change it sooner. + I do 25k miles per year (3 changes in 12 months).

Thnx for those oil spec's, it helped me to decide!

BR t.

Reply to
burke

I picked it from bimmerforum. So if I'm wrong, my bad, did't mean no harm :-)

:-p

Reply to
burke

"burke" wrote

Oh, I didn't realize you were using the "ESP" variety. The regular M1 5w-30 which we get here in the US does not meet that spec. The ESP 5w-30 seems to be a good oil, at least on paper. :)

Yeah, that sounds fine. Good luck with the new oil.

Cheers, Pete

Reply to
Pete

Picky, picky, picky..

If you know your bimmers and I believe you do, you would not mistake

540i6 to be anything else but a 6 speed. You would not mistake a 540 to be a 6 cylinder car either.
Reply to
yaofeng

I'll take the heat for the 6 cylinder part of the discussion, but in my defense I knew the 540 was an 8, I've never seen anybody include the transmission configuration as part of the model designation. I would not have questioned "540i, 6-spd" but the 540i6 left me scratching my head.

I was a bit confused by the inclusion of the transmission because I don't get how the transmission would affect oil consumption, so knowing he has a

6-spd or an automatic doesn't really change anything.
Reply to
Jeff Strickland

The OP mistook 540iS for 540i6. Jim

Reply to
Jim

A 540i 6 speed is something the owner of the car want to show off I would think as compared to an auto. If he has converted one to a 6 speed like I have (an E34, not E39), he'd wear it like a badge of honor like I do.

Reply to
yaofeng

Thanks, I get all of that. I just missed the nomenclature. I would not have been confused by "540i, 6-spd".

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

540iS mark never existed in Europe where the car is from.
Reply to
burke

Having driven lots of manual transmission cars myself, I find such remarks humerous to say the least. Just a recap:

I learned how to drive using a 1940 Ford. I suppose I put about 10000 miles on that thing. It had three on the tree. In those days, only second and third were synchronised.

Manual transmission cars that I have also owned were a 1952 Ford, a 1958 MGA, a 1960 MB 220SB, a 1960 Ford Falcon, and a 1969 Porsche 912.

Now, if you really want to impress someone, tell us how you can use the trailing throttle oversteer of an early 911 to get around a corner very fast without crashing the car. Even the 912 had that type of oversteer.

Jim

Reply to
Jim

That would only impress you, not anyone else. My wife would not be impressed with anything I do on my fleet. She will be, however, if I take her to see a show more often. I am struggling to find a motivation to impress you. Perhaps you can help me out?

Reply to
yaofeng

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