Oil change recomndations?

[Rookie88]

Accidentally posted this in FAQ/DIY originally because of my fat fingers on my phone. Anyway, about a week ago I became the lucky owner of a 87' 325es and I'm wanting to do an oil change. I've done some digging as well as asking a friend for recommendations for viscosity to which he said 20w50. (He found it to be the best for our SoCal climate) He also said to not use Shell/Pennzoil. I was wondering if anyone has had bad experiences with Shell or just a reason as to why not to use it. I've also seen the Mahle OC 49 is the go to filter and wanted opinions on that as well.
Thanks,
Trevor

[dmb62]

Im running 5w40 in mine that's what majority of people locally were running


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[ELVA164]

There's about 100 threads on this, and you'll never find a consensus. The most important factor is ZDDP; you want to make sure the oil you use has at least 800ppm. 20W-50 is fine in SoCal; so is 15W-40. If it were me, I'd use Mobil 1 15w-50.

[UlrichFennec]

I usually rock Valvoline 20w50 in the summer and 10w40 in the late fall/winter months and change at around 2500-3000 miles.

Don't use Pennzoil or Quaker State. Garbage oil.

I've never had problems with Castrol or Mobil 1, though.

[Das Delfin]

I've used Castrol 20w50 in the past but on a recommendation of a friend I'm going to try Valvoline VR1 for its higher zinc content..

[jeffnhiscars]

I've used Castrol 20w50 in the past but on a recommendation of a friend I'm going to try Valvoline VR1 for its higher zinc content..

VR1 is a racing oil so while it has high zddp is lacks the detergents necessary for extended use. I'm also a fan of M1 15-50 which is not only a quality oil, it has plenty of zddp and is cheap.

[agent]

Mobil 1 15w-50.

[estoguy]

I use the Castrol Edge 5w50... good zinc package in that one. Goes on sale regularly up here at Canadian Tire - good bang for the buck when it is.

Been running it about 3 years with no problems. I use the same filter, Mahle OC49 as well.

[fresh_TD]

Mobil 1 15w-50

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[Rookie88]

Thanks for the input guys! Looks like Castrol is a safe bet. I also saw a Bosch filter @ AutoZone that fits and think that is gonna be my go to because of availability.

[ParksMyCar]

Anyone ever go synthetic?

[roguetoaster]

Most of the oils mentioned above are likely synthetics, and there is no reason, other than cost, to not go with synthetic.

[ParksMyCar]

So would a 20 50 synthetic be totally fine. I really don't care about cost. Just want the best for my engine only has 67,000 on the clock


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[digger]

a 20W-50 doesn't flow well through the engine at room temp compared to other oils. id look for something 10W-50 or 15W-50 if you can

[roguetoaster]

The 15w-50 Mobil1 is readily available, cheap, and a (supposedly) good oil for M10/20/30/42s.