Best motor oil for MB Sprinter diesel engine

[Community Alumni]

I recently purchased a MB Sprinter-based moho with the diesel engine and would like to know from those of you that own one if you prefer a particular brand of motor oil and a particular viscosity. Most of my driving will be done in mild to hot weather.

Thanks in advance for your recommendations.

[CharlesinGA]

Edit, Road-runner has good info..............

Forget all the Cummins and large diesel owners saying to use Rotella or other oils. its in warranty and you have to use an oil that has a spec number, on the bottle or the specification sheet for the oil that has the word APPROVED in front of it. If it doesn't, it isn't approved. Saying it "meets" the specs is not good enough.

Here is the master list of specifications that will link you to each spec sheet with a list of approved fluids. For some reason, the master list of oils for MB engines 223.2 is bad and hasn't worked for several weeks now. This list is revised several times a year, as are all of the spec sheets.

https://bevo.mercedes-benz.com/bevolisten/bevo-sheets-sort1.html

Your best bet is Mobil 1 ESP x3 0W-40 or Mobil 1 ESP X1 0W-30

Or.. Valvoline SynPower MST C3 5W-30

You will not find these oils in WAL-MART!!!!!!!!

Generally NAPA has these oils and runs sales on them a couple of times a year (the Valvoline at least)

229.51 is a little easier to find, Mobil 1 ESP x3 0W-40 or Valvoline SynPower MST C3 5W-40 (and several others).

Again, for a V6 Sprinter, you won't find these oils just anywhere.

Get a good filter socket, that fits properly, well worth the money.

https://asttool.com/detail_page.php?from_search=y&tool_number=M0284&offset=0&stype=bymanf&manf=Merce...

Use a torque wrench and adhere to the torque molded into the oil filter cap. Make sure your o-rings are properly placed in the grooves, or they will blow out and destroy the engine.

Consider buying a Fumoto oil drain valve, no mess and you can stop the flow if your pan is not big enough.

https://www.amazon.com/Fumoto-F-106-LC-10-Lever-Engine/dp/B07D9FD27F/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3571TME3IAYZN&k...

The F106 series is the correct one for the V6 diesel.

Charles

[road-runner]

Cummins12V98 wrote:
AMZ/OIL offers a 5-30 and 5-40 European Car formula for the Diesel engines that come in the Sprinter. Also good for Gas engines.

Fixing earlier comment, I see that the 5w40 has 229.51 approval listed.

[Cummins12V98]

AMZ/OIL offers a 5-30 and 5-40 European Car formula for the Diesel engines that come in the Sprinter. Also good for Gas engines.

[valhalla360]

aruba5er wrote:
my friend has a MB and the book requires MB motor oil. Very expense but he does it for warrentee purposes. He says when warentee is over he will use mobil 1.

Are you sure on this?

I'm pretty sure consumer protection laws prohibit this. The manufacturers have to state the spec and if you use an oil meeting the spec, the warranty is still valid.

[road-runner]

Even though the list of MB approved oil for diesel Sprinters is impressively long, very few of the entries are easily available in the USA. I have never seen a Sprinter spec oil on the shelf at walmart. Until recently, MB dealers have stocked and sold Mobil 1 at their parts counter. Now MB has its own branded oil that they stock and use in their service departments. The two most widely available Sprinter spec oils in the USA are Mobil 1 ESP and Valvoline Syn Power MST. They are both available at NAPA, and sometimes on a promotion in the $5/quart ballpark. The Valvoline oil is also sold by Amazon, sometimes at a reasonable price. And of course the Mercedes brand oil is easily available if you have a dealer nearby.

The 229.51 5w40 Valvoline in quarts is their part number VV966. That's what I use. Looking at Valvoline's web site I see they've changed the name to "Advanced Full Synthetic Motor Oil". They have a 5w30 version that's 229.52 approved (5w40 can't meet 229.52 because of mpg issues). Info is at the web site below, then click on "PI SHEET" for more details. When shopping, it's easier to find what you're looking for using the part numbers instead of the names. Of the 11 "flavors" using the same name, only 3 of them are approved for Sprinter diesel use.
https://www.valvoline.com/our-products/motor-oil/advanced-full-synthetic-motor-oil

[aruba5er]

my friend has a MB and the book requires MB motor oil. Very expense but he does it for warrentee purposes. He says when warentee is over he will use mobil 1.

[Cummins12V98]

15k changes and I could go longer. AMZ/OIL Full synthetic 15-40. FleetGuard Stratapore filter.

Go to their site and see what they recommend.

[landyacht318]

All hail the list.

Seems like the Mobil 1 and Valvoline and Castrol offerings, might be in stock in many Wal-marts in 5 Qt jugs for under 30$ each.

Most of the oils on that list are 5w-30, but a few are 0w-40 and 0w-30.

The Motul and Ravenol offerings might use more group 4 and group 5 synthetic basestocks, than the others on the list that meet the spec.

A subjective 'best' might lie there in.

[EV2]

landyacht318 wrote:
Be awesome to see a list of all the oils available, which currently do meet the required Spec.

Like this.

[landyacht318]

Be awesome to see a list of all the oils available, which currently do meet the required Spec.

From that list I would try and find virgin oil analysis on Bitog, if available, and Manufacturer spec sheets, and if HTHS is supplied, likely choose the oil with highest HTHS for summer, or if in the far north, and if the OCi is to last through winter, find one with the better pour point or higher viscosity index.

But finding any one oil that meet specs is actually better protecting the engine than any other oil, would be impossible to ever prove. Go then by price or brand name or availability.

Perhaps some oil filter options for that specific engine, would be a better area to research.

Some say that some brands of oil make their engine quieter than others. I've found Pennzoil platinum 10w-30 to be much quieter than Mobil1 0w-40 FS and any other synthetic of conventional oil, in my 30 year old gas v8. Recently dropped than PP10w-30HM and added PP10w-30 High mileage which is a bit thicker than the non HM, but not as thick as M1 0w-40FS, and it is even quieter.

I left the Fram Ultra filter on for a second helping since they are rated for 15k+ miles and I only went 8 on it so far.

[valhalla360]

road-runner wrote:

It's incredibly rare for modern engines to die due to oil issues (obviously not leaks or obvious abuse). Any oil that meets manufacturers spec is perfectly fine and you can expect the engine to last longer than the rig.

The engine dying isn't the issue. Using incorrect oil results in clogging of the DPF, which costs a thousand or two to replace.

If it meets manufactures spec...it isn't going to clog the DPF.

[loggenrock]

Funny how many of these comments come from those who DON'T drive a Sprinter... For my 2015 I have been using Mobil 1 that meets the 229.52 spec. Road-runner's comments are correct re: DPF. Just sayin'...

[road-runner]

EV2 wrote:
As a practical matter on current model MB Sprinter specs that meet/exceed manufacturer warranty requirements purchase Mobil 1 #120760 5-quart jugs of European Car Formula 0W40.

The 120760 oil does not meet any of the specs listed for the V6 diesel Sprinter. Mobil specifically says it's for engines without a DPF.
https://www.mobil1racingstore.com/Content/Images/uploaded/GLXXMobil-1-FS-0W-40.pdf

[EV2]

As a practical matter on current model MB Sprinter specs that meet/exceed manufacturer warranty requirements purchase Mobil 1 #120760 5-quart jugs of European Car Formula 0W40. It is available at Walmart for approx $4.50 per quart in the 5-quart jugs. Keep your receipt and the two quarts left in your third jug for the unlikely event that you must provide backup for warranty claim.

Hard to find a better price/solution but, of course, there will be one hundred other opinions and non-relevant comments. I simply want to provide one simple, relevant reply to your request.