Add quart of oil every 800 miles?

[smittyM3]

hey everyone, I just discovered this forum and there seems to be some pretty knowledgable people here hah, so i have a question..
I have a '98 M3 with about 124K miles on it. I just recently was told that every 800 miles i should add a quart or so oil to my car because due to the performance engine, oil tends to burn a lot quicker than other cars. is this accurate? i just went over the 800 mile mark and checked my oil and it looked about right, no problems or anything. what do yall think?

and btw, im using synthetic 5W-30 oil. is that my best bet for oil? what blend/viscocity rating does everyone else use? thanks!

[Teh Prof]

Just check the oil and add as needed. Some of these cars do have a reputation for burning oil, but it is a car-to-car thing. If yours doesn't, then great. None of my 3 bimmers have, and they've all been in your mileage range.

If you've always used synth, keep using it. Synth isn't mandatory on '98 cars, but lots of people run it. It does last longer--5K miles is like 3K miles with dinosaur oil.

Welcome to Bimmerwerkz.

[smittyM3]

sweet. thanks a lot, yeah i guess ill just keep checking it, but i dont think it burns any oil which is a good thing. but what about 5w-30 oil? i know its okay to use but i just want to see what everyone else uses and see if its my best bet. thanks again

[nam328i]

5w-30 is the ticket. i have a 328i and i use castrol syntec, black container with a green label...for the m3 however, royal purple might be a bit better

[drz]

pizza

[smittyM3]

hm. yeah, ive been using mobil. its all oil to me... but ill take a look into syntech since ive heard a good thing about it. but thanks a lot you guys!

btw. i work in a resteraunt and make pizzas. what a coincidence?

[paco1076]

Albequerqe - see I can do it too...

[thooper41]

i havw nwvwe seen 5-w30 recomended for bimmers and the only thing i know about the stuff is from a guy at the parts store is that honda was trying to get 35 mpg with all their cars and they tried everything they could do to then engine and came up just short so they came out with 5-w30 to meet this goal and its actualy to thin of an oil. but that was just a parts guy so what does he know? just my 2 cents

[fastshivy]

I have had better success with 10w 30, but I am in Florida. You could run this in the warmer months esp with the mileage you have. You would never want to just add oil and risk over filling it...you can blow seals, cause foaming and all sorts of other yucky stuff. Just check it like M3 says and add as necessary. Castrol Syntec is a good choice. I use this or Red Line on my 99 540i.

That Honda thing sounds a little weird. Manufacturers went to lower weights due to tighter bearing, valve stem, and ring clearances. The tighter the clearances the better the emmissions....because they burn less oil.