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Heavy Oil loss in my e90
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05-29-2019, 11:57 PM | #1 |
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Heavy Oil loss in my e90
Two weeks back I did an oil change for my 06 bmw which has 118K miles at MY bmw dealer. After the oil change, when I checked the oil level indicator, it was a little short of the full mark. When I casually checked today (after around 250 miles), I was shocked to find it is at the half way mark. I am suspecting the oil pan leak . The car has a history of oil pan leak for the last three years but it wasn't this severe as I examine the oil level every few days.
Is replacing the oil pan the only way to resolve? The dealer is asking $1100 . I spoke to two reputed Indy's in the NY/NJ area and both were quoting around $800 plus alignment (plus replacement of corroded parts if any). |
05-30-2019, 03:28 AM | #3 |
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Did you run the engine at all before the first check? Bear in mind that the new filter will be filled when you first run the engine after a change - that will cause the oil level to drop significantly.
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05-30-2019, 09:10 AM | #7 |
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Yes I did. But at that time it was a little more than 3/4th . Planning to top off with another quart.
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05-30-2019, 09:11 AM | #8 |
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05-30-2019, 09:19 AM | #9 |
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I write this with some hesitancy since you said a BMW dealer performed the oil change. It sounds like the mechanic did not properly refill the engine with 7 quarts (6.9) of oil. If it was my car, I'd just wait until the CBS reports the engine is a quart low, then top off the engine with 1 quart of oil. Or, if you go back to the dealer, they will probably tell you the engine is in the safe range of oil level and probably not adjust the level (top it off full) because there is a risk of overfilling the engine with oil. You'll then complain to them about things you do not fully understand about how the e-dipstick actually works. Then you will get a headache and both you and the dealership department will have a bad day.
Now, you need to understand that the engine does not need a full 7 quarts of oil to safely operate, so if the e-dipstick is reporting 1/2 quart low, it is completely safe to drive the car. Second, while the oil pan gasket may have leak, it can not leak 1/4 of a quart in just 250 miles. What you experienced was a 1/4 quart adjustment of the e-dipstick as the engine gained miles after the oil change. You need to understand the oil level measuring system is "accurate" but not "precise". I posted a thread on how the oil level sensor works and how to interprate readings and change in readings of the e-dipstick. I recommend you find the thread, it's in the maintenance section, and educate yourself on how the system works. Once you understand how it works, you will be more relaxed about oil levels. https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1533444 It could be the dealership is just fucking with you by short-filling the engine with oil knowing you know the pan gasket is leaking so to entice you into getting the gasket repaired by their shop. If you are concerned about the engine oil consumption, then wait for the "+1qt" notification to show up, then top off the engine with one quart of oil, record the mileage at which you added the quart, then drive the car for the thousands of miles it will take until the next "+1qt" notifaction appears, then you will truly know the oil consumption rate of the engine. You need to understand it takes over 20 minutes of driving for the e-dipstick to re-establish a new oil level after you top off the engine. If you top off the engine and immediately check the oil level you will get a false reading. Last edited by Efthreeoh; 05-30-2019 at 10:01 AM.. |
05-30-2019, 09:27 AM | #10 |
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05-30-2019, 09:28 AM | #11 |
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05-30-2019, 11:49 AM | #12 |
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Those long metally strips we used to stick down in the engine to check the oil are just too complicated. Thank you BMW for coming up with a much simpler ::cough:: solution.
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05-30-2019, 12:41 PM | #13 | |
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BMW did a very poor job at explaining how the e-dipstick works, but it does say how to use it, which means top off the oil in full 1-quart increments when notified by the CBS. |
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05-30-2019, 01:29 PM | #14 | |
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I think I've shared this story before but I once got a call from a friend who said his car (a Nissan) wouldn't start, just a clicking sound, and he needed help. I went to his house initially thinking it was a dead battery, but quickly learned that the engine was siezed, starved of oil. I asked him if he had an oil light come on recently and he said "Yeah I had the red oil light, I just thought that was letting me know it was time for an oil change." As for the original post here, tomgwuyn what you describe sounds exactly like what everyone is saying, that the dealer who did the oil change didn't completely fill it. This is nothing to worry about; it's still filled to an appropriate level, just not to the maximum capacity. What likely happened is that the level was just barely at the threshold of the 3/4 indicator, so initially it read 3/4 but then seemingly dropped to 1/2 after those two weeks. Do you have any history of oil consumption on your car? I'm losing approximately one quart every 1500-2000 miles. I have a leaky oil pan gasket but it's not dripping at all, confirmed with plastic covers removed from under the car for the past year and there are no drips on my garage floor or my parking space at work. With the engine running there is strong suction when removing my oil fill cap on the valve cover, so I suspect a faulty oil separator, also called a PCV valve or CCV on these cars. Being an 06 with a magnesium valve cover, the oil separator is external whereas the 07 and later cars have it integrated in the plastic valve cover. I have a new replacement on hand, awaiting installation. |
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05-30-2019, 02:26 PM | #15 | |
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If I can learn to accept an e-dipstick, then it's not that big of a leap for people 20 and 30 years younger than me. I'll admit at first the no dipstick almost kept me from buying my car back in 2006, but I trusted BMW wouldn't be so stupid as to switch to a faulty oil monitoring system. I've driven this car for 120,000 miles more than my E30 with a mechanical dipstick. It works. BMW should better explain the operation of it. Last edited by Efthreeoh; 05-30-2019 at 02:35 PM.. |
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05-30-2019, 02:38 PM | #16 | |
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05-30-2019, 11:14 PM | #17 |
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The e-dipstick is nice, but not as an exclusive way to read the oil level. Just because I set my alarm on the house before I leave doesn't mean I don't lock my damn doors.
It's stupid.
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05-31-2019, 01:45 AM | #18 |
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05-31-2019, 05:37 AM | #19 | |
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Second, you are thinking backwards. On engines with mechanical dipsticks, after an oil change if you add the manufacturers specified amount of engine oil upon refilling the engine block and not starting it, the mechanical dipstick can show a higher level of engine oil because the oil has not yet flowed through the system and filled the oil filter and oil pump (dependent on engine design of course). That is what causes the confusion with mechanics who have experience with just a mechanical dipstick engine. The oil refill procedure for most mechanical dipstick engines mechanics use is drain the oil and change the filter, then refill the engine short of its full compliment of new oil, run the engine for a few minutes to get the new oil flowed through the block, then top off the oil level. If you follow that procedure with an N52/N54, you can risk over-filling the engine with oil because the system takes at least 20 minutes of driving (i.e. not just idling) to establish the new oil level. The correct procedure for the N52/54 is to open the oil filter housing cap, drain the oil with the car level, remove the residual oil from the OFH, change the filter, then refill with 6.9 quarts of oil. That's it, no short-fill and then top off. I've done 41 oil changes on the N52 engine. I suggest you read the link I posted it goes into detail as how the N52/N54 oil level system (sensor), it's called OZS, works.
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A manual transmission can be set to "comfort", "sport", and "track" modes simply by the technique and speed at which you shift it; it doesn't need "modes", modes are for manumatics that try to behave like a real 3-pedal manual transmission. If you can money-shift it, it's a manual transmission. "Yeah, but NO ONE puts an automatic trans shift knob on a manual transmission."
Last edited by Efthreeoh; 05-31-2019 at 05:45 AM.. |
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05-31-2019, 05:48 AM | #20 | |
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A mechanical dipstick is not an exclusive way to read the oil level either.
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A manual transmission can be set to "comfort", "sport", and "track" modes simply by the technique and speed at which you shift it; it doesn't need "modes", modes are for manumatics that try to behave like a real 3-pedal manual transmission. If you can money-shift it, it's a manual transmission. "Yeah, but NO ONE puts an automatic trans shift knob on a manual transmission."
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05-31-2019, 05:55 AM | #21 |
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05-31-2019, 06:14 AM | #22 | |
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