[keithbd]

iv had my e93 serviced today at the local franchised dealer, the service was a vehicle check service. over the last week or so when iv been turning the car off the amber oil can light was showing on the dash so i presumed i needed some oil. iv now got the car back & it still shows now & again (not every time). i checked the oil on the onboard gauge & that says it is on the minimum line yet on the service report the mechanic said there was enough oil in, is it possible he didn't really check it or is the minimum line fine?

the car does not need an oil service for another 8k miles.

[onebadmofo]

Very possible, car needs to idle for 5-10 minutes before it shows oil level and I doubt they spent time waiting for it.
Also you really should add a quart of oil, the oil change service interval is completely different thing.

[keithbd]

Originally Posted by onebadmofo

Very possible, car needs to idle for 5-10 minutes before it shows oil level and I doubt they spent time waiting for it.
Also you really should add a quart of oil, the oil change service interval is completely different thing.

Thanks for your reply, which oil would you recommend & how many litres?

[onebadmofo]

One liter and I usually use BMW oil. Doesn't say what car you have, but the dealership should have the oil you need.

[keithbd]

Originally Posted by onebadmofo

One liter and I usually use BMW oil. Doesn't say what car you have, but the dealership should have the oil you need.

Thanks for your help, I put 1 litre of castrol edge 5w30 in this afternoon & that's put the gauge nearly up to the max line so it seems they never even checked it on the service & just ticked that it had enough in.

[doughboy]

Woaah! 1 litre is a lot to top up. ideally just half a litre should have got you to middle mark. Best to put a little in, you can always add more, but you can't take it out easily.

But as long as you're not over the max that should be ok.

Minimum is just that, minimum. Best to never get near it.

Intermediate Top ups are owners responsibility, not a service item, for a vehicle check if the low oil light wasn't on they would say oil level is OK.

[keithbd]

Originally Posted by doughboy

Woaah! 1 litre is a lot to top up. ideally just half a litre should have got you to middle mark. Best to put a little in, you can always add more, but you can't take it out easily.

But as long as you're not over the max that should be ok.

Minimum is just that, minimum. Best to never get near it.

Intermediate Top ups are owners responsibility, not a service item, for a vehicle check if the low oil light wasn't on they would say oil level is OK.

I just presumed a service would include an oil level check (& top up if needed) & with it being ticked on the service report I thought it must have been checked.
Not to worry, I'll keep a closer eye on it myself from now on & not rely on them for stuff like that

[Ilyas]

Hi guys,
I got similar problem. Dealer says, that I might have faulty oil sensor, but I suspect that they just didn't add oil when I asked.
It seems to me, that my oil sensor doesn't work (clocks are keep spinning) until temperature reaches 210F (right in the middle region). After it reaches that temperature, it starts showing "Add oil" error. Especially when it's cold like right now, this temperature can never be reached and computer doesn't show any error on the short trips.
I don't know which oil actually dealer service put into my car (I don't trust them anymore). Could you tell me, is it ok if I pour synthetic Castrol or Mobil? (I've heard before that it's not good to mix different brand/sorts of oil).

[Ilyas]

After a while, gauge showed oil level in the middle and OK. "+1 quart" and "OK" story happened couple more times and I stopped by other dealership - they've added oil and now everything works normal. Service guy said, that oil sensors are pretty reliable and probably my dealership didn't add enough oil. It seems to me, that oil readings can be different for about 1/3 of min-max range, so it's better to fill up oil closer to max mark.