Engine oil PENNZOIL or ELF
SP certified oils have better LSPI protection than SN, and SP is what Subaru requires for this generation.
I use PUP 0w20 in mine. Lots of tests and UOA show that Pennzoil Ultra Platinum is the best non-boutique oil you can buy. But honestly any top shelf oil will work. 5k km intervals are more important than brand with a turbo engine.
Do her a favor a change the oil, with Valvoline Restore and Protect or Pennzoil Ultra platinum, it will quite down a little and it would be great for the car.
Pennzoil Platinum Synthetic. My 1988 740 has near excellent compression at 245k og miles.
At the very least, make sure you're using quality oil like Mobil or Castrol or Pennzoil.
I use Pennzoil Platinum 5W-30 in my 2011 328ix (N51) I believe that is the recommended viscosity.
I use 5w-30 pennzoil ultra platinum full synthetic with the oem motor craft oil filter
I change my oil every 3k miles
Frankly, we ran 0W20 for the first 175k miles in our 2017 RAV4. I changed to 5W30 because my Turbocharged Mazda also calls for 5W30.
I've been using Penzoil ultra platinum full synthetic 0w-20, though it does burn sometimes a quart every oil change.
BMW switched from Castrol to Penzoil years ago...but both cause oil starvation in The S65 motor
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Which engine oil to choose — PENNZOIL or ELF?
If choosing engine oil across many manufacturers, check the part ranking. If your choice is down to two brands, the PartReview part comparisons help.
We compare engine oil across these categories:
- PR Score.
- Overall ranking.
- Vote balance.
- Average rating.
- Number of reviews.
- Feature ratings.
- Car owners’ choice.
Which engine oil are better — ELF or PENNZOIL?
In March 2026 on PartReview, engine oil PENNZOIL were overall better than ELF.
- PENNZOIL received a PR Score of 93 out of 100, and ELF scored 95 points.
- PENNZOIL ranked 8 in the overall ranking, and ELF ranked 23.
- The average rating is higher for PENNZOIL (4.5) than for ELF (4.4).
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Engine oil PENNZOIL have better feature ratings than ELF:
- Warning light - owners believe, that by this property PENNZOIL does not differ from ELF.
- Exhaust smoke - drivers claim, that this property for ELF is outperforms PENNZOIL.
- Engine noise - reviews suggest, that this property for ELF is preferred to PENNZOIL.
Which engine oil are more popular — PENNZOIL or ELF?
In March 2026 on PartReview, engine oil PENNZOIL were overall more popular than ELF.
By vote balance, engine oil PENNZOIL surpassed ELF:
- For PENNZOIL, the ratio of positive (648) to negative (45) votes is 603 votes.
- For ELF, the ratio of positive (38) to negative (2) votes is 36 votes.
By number of reviews, engine oil PENNZOIL surpassed ELF:
- For engine oil PENNZOIL there are 230 reviews: 214 positive, 3 neutral, 13 negative.
- For engine oil ELF there are 13 reviews: 12 positive, 1 neutral, 0 negative.
Which engine oil do car owners prefer — PENNZOIL or ELF?
In March 2026, according to PartReview, engine oil PENNZOIL and ELF have not taken top places in car-specific ratings. You can help by adding your review about these manufacturers.
Other comparisons of engine oil
If this comparison didn’t fully answer your question, there are many others on PartReview.
For example, comparisons of engine oil PENNZOIL with: Mobil, Castrol, LIQUI MOLY, MOTUL, Shell, AMSOIL, VALVOLINE, RED LINE, OEM Toyota, Mannol.
Also available: comparisons of engine oil ELF with: Mobil, Castrol, LIQUI MOLY, MOTUL, Shell, AMSOIL, VALVOLINE, RED LINE, OEM Toyota, Mannol.
You can also see who is better among other engine oil manufacturers: Mobil or Castrol, Mobil or LIQUI MOLY, Mobil or MOTUL, Mobil or Shell, LIQUI MOLY or Castrol.