A conversation with a stranger today raised an interesting topic. He said that since 2006 an anti-wear additive has been phased out of engine oil and that only Mobil-1, Amsoil and some racing oils have this additive today.

I did some googling and found out that additive is ZDDP. It is an extended wear additive and it has been phased out of most oils since 2006. There are a few that still have it, racing oils in particular.

Should I be adding a ZDDP additive when I change oil now? Does Mobil 1 or the Castrol synthetic have this additive?

 

Apparently any oil with an API certification has a reduced ZDDP content. Mobil-1 and Castrol products are API cert'd. Amsoil makes some that are not, because of increased ZDDP content.

 

I wouldn't be concerned with additives as long as you're not going to ridiculous oil change intervals. Most have found on these forums (Tested the oil) that 8500 miles is a good interval. Push it to 10k if you drive like a grandma or just don't care about your car, or change it at 5-6k if you don't mind a little extra expense to make sure the car remains problem free.

Almost every oil analysis I've seen shows that the oil is pretty much shot past 10k miles (especially on the R56). I don't give a crap what MINI says, I'm not changing my oil at 15-20k miles.

 

One must consider that the OEM is balancing what they consider "acceptable service life" with the costs associated with providing a maintenance program. I am certain that 100% of Mini engines will make it to 100,000 miles with 15k oil change intervals, and if that means they only have to change your oil twice under warranty service (rather than 6 times), then Mini has saved ~$200 per car and not had to incorporate that cost into the original purchase price. (That was quite a sentence! My 9th grade English teacher would be disappointed...). Honestly the car will not last forever and *most* will not own them for more than a few years. Average car ownership of a new car in the USA is 7 years, so all Mini is looking to do is keep them on the road at minimal expense.

As usual, what works for the OEM doesn't necessarily work for the enthusiast, but I understand why they did it. The oil analyses have shown an 8500 mile service interval? Good, then I'll change at 7500-8000 and be on the safe side.

 

The concern is not that the recommended oil fails prematurely. Rather it is that the recommended oil (after 2006) does not provide the wear protection that it did previously, even when newly poured out of the container.

 

That additive I believe is found in diesel oil. In a recent Hot Rod magazine article, they discuss how flat tappet cams have been failing due to a lack of additives in oil among other things. Thats why a good engine builder will at least at first run diesel oil in a fresh motor.
http://www.hotrod.com/techarticles/e...ech/index.html

 

I think any modern synthetic motor oil is going to lubricate adequately in the MINI.

 

The ZDDP (zinc diphosphate) is an extreme-pressure additive that's being gradually phased out because it's harmful to catalytic converters. (That's why you can still find racing oils, diesel oils, or motorcycle oils with higher levels of it, since catalytic converters are less common for those applications).

But the ZDDP only comes into play as a last-ditch defense against metal-to-metal contact if your oil's viscosity has completely broken down and you're unable to maintain an oil film between moving parts.

If your oil hasn't broken down yet, it doesn't matter whether you have the ZDDP or not, which is the point Rusty was making - you'll be fine as long as you change your oil before it's worn out.

 

Our resident oil Guru to the rescue.

 

Mobil one 0-40

 

Mobil One oil doesn't meet BMW's oil specifications. Specifically it's not ACEA A3/B3 and BMW LL-01 certified...

 

What about Redline? I don't care about the LL rating as I'll change it at about 4k miles but the A3/B3 thing I'm curious about.

 

Redline doesn't test to ACEA. To my knowledge the only 5w30 oil that meets the ACEA A3/B3 standard is factory fill (BMW/MINI "Euro" Castrol)

 

Actually 0w-40 does. http://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/...l_1_0w-40.aspx I use it in my VW. I use German Castrol for my MCS.

 

The AMSOIL HDD (Heavy-Duty Diesel) 5W-30 is also A3/B3-rated. (Even though it's called a "diesel oil", they also recommend it for gasoline engines).

I've never used it - I just recalled someone else mentioning it before.

 

I know some people are using Biosyn with good results, any idea if that's compatible?

 

News to me, I had only previously checked their 5w30 viscosity.

 

So the 25,000 mile oil changes I do to my car (I have had 3 at @ 78K) wouldnt be okay with you?

 

You're out of your mind if you go 25k miles between oil changes...

 

Im dead serious....Mobil 1 0w-40 baby! No smoke...no nothing. No probs whatsoever. The motor is a little tired but I have never given it a tune up. It doesnt matter tho....S motor hopefully in the next week or so!

 

not to resurrect an old thread but a friend and i were talking about this topic today... i had the oil (5W-30 AMSOIL P/N ASLQT-EA) tested and these are the results below. you can see the zinc and phosphorous levels at 768 and 672.

i'm curious to see if anyone else has had their oil tested and what their levels were at. thanks.. oh and that oil had about 4-5k miles on it over 9 months.. with one track weekend for maybe 250 track miles. 66k miles on the stock R53 engine.

 

Mobil 1 0/40w Europeon formula and 6K intervals suits me just fine.