Oil for High Mileage First Gen. MINIs

**k-huevo** · 12-26-2009, 12:58 AM

An automotive engineer put a bug in my ear about Mobile 1 High Mileage 10W30 synthetic. A closer look revealed this is a very unique formula and well suited for a 100k + MINI. Because it is not rated for mileage efficiency it can have much higher levels of Zinc than Government mandates for most oils. Zinc is a protective ingredient that has become severely limited and some motors suffer from its absence, especially pre-2004 designed engines. Zinc levels are not the only positive attributes of this oil; its seal conditioning properties interest me because my rocker’s hydraulic lash adjusters have nylon retainer caps, pesky O-ring weeping from the crank postion sensor is getting worse, and I want to keep the rear main seal healthy as long as possible. My motor never had sludge nor has it been neglected, but recently I encountered a MINI that had been neglected with a severe case of sludge, so I know it can happen; this oil has extra cleaning additives to prevent and correct sludge build up. Another big plus is the price, only $22 for a five-liter jug at Wal-Mart (if you can find it because the jugs don’t stay on the shelf long).

mini_racer · 12-26-2009, 10:22 AM

That is certainly a decent option for a high mileage car, and good point about Walmart, they do have some good prices for oil and that is where I buy now.

BTW, speaking of prices, sometimes you can get the local Advance or Autozone to price-match Walmart, just talk to them and ask for a discount.

Ofioliti · 12-26-2009, 10:30 PM

Wouldn't it be just as beneficial for <100K MINIs?

Gonna try to find it. Thanks for the tip!

Aeromax · 01-01-2010, 06:39 PM

I'd be interested in alternative oils for my car, because my car has always been a high oil consumer. It has a small leak somewhere, and as far as I know it's the pan gasket, but I can't be sure as I haven't looked into it at any length. At my last change, I put in some leak stopper, but that doesn't seem to be helping my consumption. If anything, it seems to be worse. Anything think stepping up to 10w30 from 5w30 help? I'd give this high mileage stuff a try if I thought it would help. I have 102k on my car.

R50 Paul · 01-02-2010, 05:16 AM

I'm gonna give this a shot next oil change. I'm changing every 3k now that I'm over 100k, so that said, at 106k, time to put the "senior" oil on my Cooper.

**k-huevo** · 01-02-2010, 12:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aeromax

...At my last change, I put in some leak stopper, but that doesn't seem to be helping my consumption. If anything, it seems to be worse. Anything think stepping up to 10w30 from 5w30 help?...

There are possible compatibility issues with any oil additive; cancellation of properties the original oil manufacturer formulated for (like anti-wear) is likely. To be on the safe side, I perform a short OCI after changing from one brand/type of oil to another, and after I’ve used assembly lube (head swap, cam change, oil pump, etc).

The difference between 5W30 and 10W30 viscosity is very small and are both interchangeable (not including direct injection motors) if manufacturer’s guideline recommends one or the other.

**ScottinBend** · 01-02-2010, 12:48 PM

Would this be a benefit to an older low mileage car (6yr old 40K)?

I have been using the 0W-40 for the last few changes.

Bimmer Lite · 01-02-2010, 05:32 PM

I should probably know this, but I haven't read my manual in a while:

Do MINIs require BMW's LL-01 approval for their engine oil? If so, does this M1 meet it? I understand that this doesn't always make the oil, per se (as is the case with the 5-30 RL I use), but I'm still curious since I thought the M1 0-40 ("euro") was the only oil that's "okay" for BMW engines.

Thanks.

- Marc

**k-huevo** · 01-03-2010, 04:27 PM

Mobile 1 10W30 High Mileage is not on the official short list of approved oils for the MINI. Mobile 1 0W40 (Lonlife-01 approval) is a great formulation, its Zinc (and Phosphorus) is 100 PPM higher than High Mileage, sulfated ash percentage is lower, plus it has an energy conservation rating, but it does not have additional “boosted” protective additives of the High Mileage formula.

A word about frequent short OCIs, our motors have a mixture of metals, some react to base conditions (alkaline) and some react to acids. Ideally the oil should remain close to neutral, but with continual new oil it will stay closer to base and affect those base sensitive metals the most. There may very well be a greater beneficial trade-off for this practice depending on use and environment.

A word about frequent long OCIs, from my oil analysis reports and other public MINI reports, viscosity declines more from fuel dilute than shear. Having a higher viscosity to begin with means viscosity will decline to a higher level at an equal point in time; a good thing. However, more energy is consumed moving high viscosity oil, and it takes longer for a high viscosity oil to squeeze through narrow spaces before it reaches optimal operating temp. Changing the oil before it becomes sufficiently diluted renders the need for high viscosity less critical as a “hedge” mechanism.

Mike · 01-03-2010, 05:15 PM

I've been running Mobil 1 for a long time now in all of my cars (except for the occasional beatermobile). Thanks for the additional info on the newer formulations, k-huevo. It's good to be well-informed.

I tend to change the oil in the MINI at about 5000 mile intervals (that's the average showing in my spreadsheet, anyway). I suppose this may be midway between "short" and "long".

Oh, and I totally believe that, for many engines, fuel dilution is the leading cause of viscosity drop. I used to work in a place that worked with Ford on engine remanufacturing programs for their 4.6L and 5.4L engines, among other things. Reading through dyno test reports, it was common for engines to "make" oil during the tests (some tests were as long as 1200 hours), as fuel made its way down into the sump.