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BMW Synthetic vs. Mobil 1 Oil

S

siman00

New member
I'm new to the BMW community and this forum, but have a basic question.

Recognizing that the engine oil is used only for the engine (no clutches), is there any reason why I should use the BMW synthetic oil vs. another synthetic such as Mobile 1?

I've used Mobil 1 for years in my car, have had good success in those engines, and it seems that there should be no difference in the bike engine (05 1200 RT with 21K miles).

I don't want to start another oil war, but need to see some advice from long-term BMW owners.
 
Ohh no... no... not this! Anything but this!

You've opened up a can of worms!!!!!

Bet this thread is going to be 50 pages long!
 
YELLOW_S said:
Ohh no... no... not this! Anything but this!
Click to expand...
It's his first post, fer chrissake!

Rida: Just do a quick search on oil and those brands in this and the oilhead forums, and you'll see why Yellow cringes. But we are here to share our knowledge (and lack thereof), so welcome to the forum!

Fred
'07 R1200R (uses dino for now @ 11,800 miles)
 
Worms or oil

I have experience with both oils. I used Mobil 1 V-Twin oil on a sportster with good results. I have seen some of the test results on these two brands of oil and I wouldn't hesitate to use either one.
 
Ok Noob :stick :rofl :rofl :rofl , you opened up the infernal oil thread thingy but in the spirit of getting along well :hug I'll tell you that there will be many opinions about this without ever resolving this issue satisfactory for everyone.
Having said that IMHO you and your bike will be fine using any oil as long as the specs are within what the owners manual says you can use. FWIW Mobil1 is an excellent oil for the oilheads and many have used this oil including me...
Have fun riding and welcome to the asylum....:dance
 
ridea1200rt said:
I'm new to the BMW community and this forum, but have a basic question.

Recognizing that the engine oil is used only for the engine (no clutches), is there any reason why I should use the BMW synthetic oil vs. another synthetic such as Mobile 1?

I've used Mobil 1 for years in my car, have had good success in those engines, and it seems that there should be no difference in the bike engine (05 1200 RT with 21K miles).

I don't want to start another oil war, but need to see some advice from long-term BMW owners.
Click to expand...

Fresh clean oil is better than old dirty oil. Some oil is better than no oil. Beyond that you will not get much agreement - and some folks don't even agree with this!
 
PGlaves said:
Fresh clean oil is better than old dirty oil. Some oil is better than no oil. Beyond that you will not get much agreement - and some folks don't even agree with this!
Click to expand...

"If you need oil...put some in." Mr. Underwood, circa 1974
 
Just Ponder This For A Moment

I wouldn't take oil specifically formulated for a motorcycle and put it into my Dodge Ram pickup; therefore, why would I ......................?
 
Greenwald said:
I wouldn't take oil specifically formulated for a motorcycle and put it into my Dodge Ram pickup; therefore, why would I ......................?
Click to expand...

Mobil 1 does have an oil specifically formulated for motorcycles, that is what I use. Sometimes it is a little hard to find though.
 
Here we go again.....

How many threads have there been about oil?
 
No reason, and no gain in using the BMW synthetic oil over Mobil 1. It is simply a marketing tool, nothing less.

I have run Mobil 1 in my 76 R100RS and 94 R1100RS for a combined total of 191,000 miles, and will continue to do so. No reason to change.
 
Unless you are trying to keep up with Nate Kern ...

Fresh clean oil is better than old dirty oil. Some oil is better than no oil. Beyond that you will not get much agreement - and some folks don't even agree with this!
Click to expand...
Good Advice

I doubt if most of us get the engine oil so hot on a continual basis that synthetic oil is justified. Change the oil as scheduled by MOM (Motorcycle Owners Manual) and you should be just fine.
 
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This thread just isn't long enough yet so I have to reply. :whistle

Never tried M 1 in my bike, just my cars. I will say I like synth oils, but with the BMW bikes, make sure you have lots of miles on them before using synth oils. I have been told 15K to 25K miles.....

Personally, I like Amsoil better than M1.
 
drummer said:
This thread just isn't long enough yet so I have to reply. :whistle

Never tried M 1 in my bike, just my cars. I will say I like synth oils, but with the BMW bikes, make sure you have lots of miles on them before using synth oils. I have been told 15K to 25K miles.....

Personally, I like Amsoil better than M1.
Click to expand...
That rule went out with Hexheads.. I switched at 6,000 miles since it stopped using any oil at 3,000.
 
Mobil 1

First, the disclaimer . . . I work for ExxonMobil (although I don't make Mobil 1!).

For my BMW Oilhead, the BMW manual specifies both 20w-50 and 15w-50 as approved oils with no upper temperature limit. I suspect it is the same for the later Hexheads.

I think the significant blend/formulation difference between the Mobil 1 20w-50 V-Twin "motorcycle" oil and the Mobil 1 15w-50 "automobile" oil is the friction modifiers for use with wet clutches. Depending on what clutch your bike has, this may be important or irrelevant.

You can do your own comparison of the myriad of Mobil 1 oil blends by going here:

http://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Home/Homepage.aspx

In the Houston area Mobil 1 15w-50 retails for around $5.80 in the local auto parts stores, and Mobil 1 20w-50 V-Twin retails for around $8.80. Hmmmm . . . those Harley V-Twins must really have hot rear cylinders! ;)

Only you can decide if it's worth it (or necessary) to spend the extra $3.00 per quart, or if the extra cost for some other "motorcycle oil" is really needed for your BMW bike.
 
BeemerMike said:
First, the disclaimer . . . I work for ExxonMobil (although I don't make Mobil 1!).

For my BMW Oilhead, the BMW manual specifies both 20w-50 and 15w-50 as approved oils with no upper temperature limit. I suspect it is the same for the later Hexheads.

I think the significant blend/formulation difference between the Mobil 1 20w-50 V-Twin "motorcycle" oil and the Mobil 1 15w-50 "automobile" oil is the friction modifiers for use with wet clutches. Depending on what clutch your bike has, this may be important or irrelevant.

You can do your own comparison of the myriad of Mobil 1 oil blends by going here:

http://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Home/Homepage.aspx

In the Houston area Mobil 1 15w-50 retails for around $5.80 in the local auto parts stores, and Mobil 1 20w-50 V-Twin retails for around $8.80. Hmmmm . . . those Harley V-Twins must really have hot rear cylinders! ;)

Only you can decide if it's worth it (or necessary) to spend the extra $3.00 per quart, or if the extra cost for some other "motorcycle oil" is really needed for your BMW bike.
Click to expand...

The salient point I noted from the chart is that the Mobil1 V Twin and 4T Racing oils contain twice as much ZDDP (anti-wear additive) as their lower viscosity oils, and 33% more than the "regular" 15w50. AND - they are the only two Mobil1 oils that technically meet the SG or SH spec from BMW. The rest are SM rated oils.

Do the anti-wear additives really matter? How much is enough? My answer is "How good do you want your parachute to be?" The anti-wear additives don't matter much unless the oil film breaks down, which is an abnormal condition. But if it happens, how much protection from metal to metal do you want? How good should your parachute be? Only your engine knows for sure. But BMW specifies a rating which requires more anti-wear additives than allowed by the current API SM rating.
 
Actually the cost differential is even more. The BMW synthetic sells for about $11 per quart in my part of the world, whereas Mobile 1 is somewhere in the $5-6 per quart. A 50% savings when you ride as much as I do makes a significant difference.

Since the BMW has a dry clutch, the oil is only for the engine, so the "V-Twin" is not necessary (no oil-bathed clutches to deal with).

I've probably seen enough to decide to use a synthetic other than BMW, unless someone has a great reason not to.

Thanks for the responses and I apologize for starting an oil war!
 
PGlaves said:
The salient point I noted from the chart is that the Mobil1 V Twin and 4T Racing oils contain twice as much ZDDP (anti-wear additive) as their lower viscosity oils, and 33% more than the "regular" 15w50. AND - they are the only two Mobil1 oils that technically meet the SG or SH spec from BMW. The rest are SM rated oils.
Click to expand...

Paul raises a good point regarding the API specs and anti-wear additives (ZDDP) that I skipped over. I believe that the Mobil 1 15w-50 Extended Performance blend does meet the API SH spec in addition to the SM spec (more ZDDP), while the regular 15w-50 only meets the SJ spec in addition to the SM spec. However, both 15w-50's are formulated for more extreme service than the lower viscosity Mobil 1's. I have not checked the price difference between 15w-50 EP and the regular 15w-50.

If your BMW bike is still under warranty, it is probably a good idea to stay with an official SG/SH-rated oil just to avoid the risk of any "lubrication issues" being raised by the fatherland in the unfortunate event that you have a premature engine failure. However, after the warranty expires, then you'll have to decide whether or not paying a big premium for a "motorcycle" synthetic oil (BMW, Amsoil, Mobil 1 V-Twin, etc.) over a mere 15w-50 "automobile" synthetic oil is like paying extra just to carry a BIGGER gun to a knife fight.
 
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