Been tempting fate for 20 years, why stop now? Legally you are also incorrect, they would have a hard time proving to a judge that because someone used Pensoil over Castrol that the engine warranty is void. It is the reason that you have never seen it on this or any other forum. Hell, if it did happen it would likely make the news as well.

Oh, and by the way, my research was not based on this site but rather several articles and white papers done by a major oil group several years back. It is out there on the interwebs, so if you feel like doing a little research feel free to jump on out there and do it. I am not doing it for you.

I also love the way that you can use the forum as empirical data to prove your point but when I state that there have been no reported voids in a warranty based on oil type on this forum, it is an illogical fallacy. Nice try though...

 

Whatever, dude. You're clearly being deliberately obtuse and argumentative.

By all means, present your research; if you're correct, I'll admit it. But I'm not going to waste time playing the never-ending game where you claim there's some nebulous pile of research out there in cyberspace; guess about what you're referring to; then have you say "Sorry, that's not what I was talking about; try again" when I offer some counterpoint to it. Nice try yourself...

MINI wouldn't have to prove anything to deny a engine warranty claim due to 'unapproved' oil; they'd let the owner do it for them. The progression would go something like this:You don't even have to be a lawyer to see that one coming... Then MINI would sit back with their team of lawyers who are all on retainer, and wait for the owner to challenge them in court, if the owner should choose to do so... I'm thinking MINI is generally guessing that most owners won't go through the hassle, and the few that do will spend more in legal fees to challenge them than it would cost to just pay for the repairs... Either way, MINI probably won't be paying... I'm not singling out MINI for this kind of behavior; all of the manufacturers play this legalistic game. And they play it because they know they can win it in court. Don't confuse what's ethical with what's legal...

And the news media doesn't need to run down every warranty claim that's denied by every car manufacturer to stir up controversy -- they've got plenty of other things with which to do that, even on a slow news day...

 

*edited because I no longer want to argue*


Bottom line is that nobody I have heard of in either the USA, Germany or the UK (and yes, I am on many forums) in the last 7 + years have been denied by MINI or any other car forum that I am on for an engine claim because of the type of oil they use.

We clearly have a difference of opinion and because of this it is best if we just agree to disagree on this topic.

 

Adam Carolla Just had A great podcast (CarCast) about this. He had a guy on from Joe Gibb's Racing who spoke for an hour on Oil, changes, and different types and brands of oil. Very informative.

 

Fair enough.

Honestly, I wasn't interested in getting into an argument either; just trying to give the OP the benefit of my perspective, for whatever it's worth. And frankly, it wouldn't bother me a bit if MINI proved me wrong about 'unapproved' oil...

Happy motoring!

 

Great info from all on my oil question. Amsoil 0w30 soon to be in the engine! Took the car to Flow Mini in Winston-Salem NC today for the recall on the water pump. They are the closest dealer to me. That was a 158 mile one way trip no interstate to boring. Fancy Gap mountain was a hoot! I have to say the service I received at Flow Mini was great. I had them put new wiper blades on the rear while there. They washed and vacuumed the car at no charge, did a completecheck on everything, said it was time for an oil change and my brake fluid needs flushed. If your in that area I highly recommend them.

 

[QUOTE=daflake;3555774]Mollecular science... Polymers in new oil actually cause more engine wear than older oil. So a constant oil change can be just as bad. Does this mean go the 15? No, but changing too soon can also be bad.


I'm very interested in this too. Where did you hear about it, and what's the basic theory? Polymers not completely broken down, or NEW? How can an oil polymer be strong enough to wear engine parts? Its seems totally counterintuitive, but I'm definitely interested.

 

There were a few articles by the Nordic Oil Group and I believe Texaco had a paper or two on it as well. Not sure if they are free any longer, but if you Google it, you should be able to find them. I think that Bob The Oil Guy also had something but it has been a few years.