[Gecko123]

If oil meets LL04, it's safe to assume it meets LL01, correct?


Thanks

[juld0zer]

In short, no. General rule is LL01 for petrol engines and LL04 for diesels.
It gets a bit more technical than that but there are already loads of threads for those discussions.

[Welcome to NBA Jam]

No. This has been known for 16 years.

[The Nightman]

LL01 and LL04 are now interchangeable since the sulphur level in our gasoline was reduced to 15 ppm.

[Tambohamilton]

Originally Posted by Welcome to NBA Jam

No. This has been known for 16 years.

Condescending and incorrect, a potent combination!


freedomfries has it right.

[Diawal91]

Originally Posted by freedomfries

LL01 and LL04 are now interchangeable since the sulphur level in our gasoline was reduced to 15 ppm.

+1

[Gecko123]

Thank you Freedomfries.

formulation changes and doesn't hurt to check and sometimes searching for old threads is not a good idea.

[Welcome to NBA Jam]

Originally Posted by Tambohamilton

Condescending and incorrect, a potent combination!


freedomfries has it right.

They've always been backwards compatible, but saying that LL04 meets the same specs as LL01 is incorrect. They're different specifications.

Originally Posted by Gecko123

Thank you Freedomfries.

formulation changes and doesn't hurt to check and sometimes searching for old threads is not a good idea.

When the formulation changes they make a new specification. They don't change what LL01 means. LL01 is always LL01. If they update it they call it something new, such as LL01FE.

[The Nightman]

Correct, LL01 and LL04 are different specifications. LL04 meets and/or exceeds LL01 and is now interchangeable with LL01. This was not always the case due to the higher sulphur content in North American gasoline.

Use whatever is cheapest that meets either LL01 or LL04 and follow reasonable oil change intervals

[Gecko123]

Originally Posted by Welcome to NBA Jam

They've always been backwards compatible, but saying that LL04 meets the same specs as LL01 is incorrect. They're different specifications.



When the formulation changes they make a new specification. They don't change what LL01 means. LL01 is always LL01. If they update it they call it something new, such as LL01FE.

Ok. Bottom line if oil says LL04 and my car takes LL01, I’m safe to buy LL04 oil. That’s it. Let’s not overthink it. Your first reply was very vague too without explanation .

[Gecko123]

Watch form 7:45

[Moisture]

Lets' not overthink this guys. Using LL04 oil occasionally isn't going to hurt anything. Using an oil with neither LL certification isn't necessarily going to cause you problems either. There are bad oils with LL certification out there (Mobil 1 used to be certified) and vice versa. The additive blend used in your specific oil and how often you change it (less than every 5000 miles) is far more important here IMO.

[MyCar]

Originally Posted by Gecko123

Ok. Bottom line if oil says LL04 and my car takes LL01, I’m safe to buy LL04 oil. That’s it. Let’s not overthink it. Your first reply was very vague too without explanation .

Wait NO! If your car says LL01, then buy LL01 oil. Not LL04!

For example PP Euro 5w40 is LL01, that’s the one you want.
While the PP Euro-L 5w30 is LL04, this is not the one you want.

[Tambohamilton]

LL01 and LL04 are basically the same spec, except LL01 can handle the acid formation caused by high sulphur content in fuel (presumably a higher TBN) where LL04 can't. So if you don't have low sulphur gasoline, don't use LL04 (or change it on a very short schedule). If you do have low sulphur gasoline, you can use LL01 and 04 interchangeably.

There is a tiny fuel efficiency gain by using LL04 over LL01, but it's minor. There is no reason to use LL04 over LL01FE. Diesels with a DPF need to run LL04, of course.

If in doubt, stick with the recommended oil.

[jt335i]

I used Castrol EDGE 5W-40 Advanced Full Synthetic which is BMW LL-01 approved. This is specified in their website as well.

https://www.castrol.com/en_us/united...html#tab_5w-40




Pennzoil Platinum Euro (Not Euro L) 5W-30 and 5W40 are also BMW LL-01 approved according to the Pennzoil website.
Pennzoil Platinum Euro L 5W-30 BMW is LL-04 approved and is not LL-01 according to the Pennzoil website so don’t get Euro and Euro L confused.

https://www.pennzoil.com/en_us/produ...inum-euro.html

I couldn’t find Pennzoil Platinum Euro (Not Euro L) 5W-30 anywhere so I went with the Castrol Edge 5W-40 LL-01 which I got at my local Walmart.

I don’t use 0W-40 oil since I live in FL since it doesn’t get arctic cold much here.

But to be sure you're getting the right oil, just to go your local BMW parts and get the oil from there.