Kendall Synthetic Motor Oils

Maintenance/Repairs
1

Dear Readers,

Do Kendall synthetic motor oils meet the 2011 535i BMW requirements?

Thanks!!

2

The best sources of this information include the following:

The packaging of the Kendall motor oil.
The Kendall website
The BMW Owner’s Manual

Copy down the motor oil specification from the manual, and compare that to the info on the oil container and/or the Kendall website. If Kendall does not list the same specification, then–no–it does not meet the mfr’s requirements.

3

I would think it probably does…but check with BMW or Kendal. Kendal has made excellent motor oil for years. Although they were pretty late getting to the mufti-viscosity table.

4

As somebody previously said, the BMW web site says:
BMW Long-life rating LL-01 Approved Synthetic Oils for the US Market:
•Castrol Syntec European Formula SAE 0W-30
•Mobil 1 SAE 0W-40
•Pennzoil Platinum European Formula Ultra SAE 5W-30
•Valvoline SynPower SAE 5W-30

5

Amsoil does |

Performance Synthetic 5W-30 European Oil (AELQT) Synthetic 5W-30 European Oil (AELQT)

Drain Interval Information
Performance AMSOIL European Car Formula 100% Synthetic 5W-40 Motor Oil (AFLQT)

6

Kendall has a European synthetic motor oil that meets BMWs requirements. Not sure where to get this.

I am not driving at autobahn speeds, so I wonder if their standard full synthetic with titanium is sufficient?

7

“I am not driving at autoband speeds, so I wonder if their standard full synthetic with titanium is sufficient?”

I think that you are just not getting the concept here.

The correct-spec oil is necessary in order to keep the warranty in effect.
You can use whatever cheaper oil you want to, but then, if and when you have a breakdown, you will be paying the very high tab for engine repairs.

And, since the major difference in the Euro-spec oil is its ability to withstand those ridiculously long European oil change intervals, I would advise you to use much shorter time and mileage intervals for your oil changes if you decide to cheap-out on the oil.

By the way, which tune is the Autoband playing currently?
;-))
I’m sorry, but I just couldn’t resist that “gimmee”!

8

I’m just full of typos! 

10

Shilander:
Please be careful with your replies advocating Amsoil.

Here’s a snipit from the forum’s discussion rules:

Feel free to share your ideas and experiences about relevant products or services
you’ve discovered. But the Car Talk Community is not a place for advertising,
promotion, recruiting, campaigning, lobbying, soliciting or proselytizing.

11

Yep, sounds like an Amsoil distributor. Any time someone drags out the Magnuson Moss act I start to wonder.

12

I agree that Shilander sounds like an Amsoil distributor making a sales pitch.

As to what BMW can and can’t require owners to do under the terms of the Magnuson-Moss Act, what Shilander has failed to take into account is the fact that BMW includes free maintenance during the warranty period. Thus, the company is supplying the required oil when it provides those 15k oil changes, and is not in violation of the statute.

Of course, that presumes that the car will not burn any oil between changes, but as we know, fine German machinery never burns oil between changes.
;-))

13

Quoting Wikipedia is no way to establish your credibility. Yes, we have an Amsoil shill in our midst. They all say the same things.