[oma3710]

My car isnt leaking oil but the digital guage is saying that I'm at MIN. I'm wondering if its normal for car to burn that much oil. I bought the oil today to do an oil change. How many of you guys use oil additives like seafoam???

[JamesM3M5]

How many miles since you last topped off? Break-in on any of the BMW aluminum block motors is critical to ensure good ring seal in the long run. BMW states 1 liter per 1000 miles is still OK, but most people have to add one liter/quart about every 2500-5000 miles. My engine consumes about 1 liter every 8-10k miles using Motul 5W40 X-cess. Other oils, especially the incorrect class of oil, will have faster consumption. Make sure you use a BMW approved oil. The specific spec is ACEA A3 which is for extended drain interval, high performance. Most other 5W30 oils are ACEA A1/A5 which is a fuel economy oil, not approved for use by BMW.

Most people don't bother with Seafoam - it's been used to help clean out carbon deposits in the intake with only anecdotal evidence (no before/after pics), but in the crankcase? I'd avoid it unless you know what you're doing. If your engine is sludged up (unlikely, but possible), you need to run an engine cleaner in the oil for 15 minutes then change the oil. I'd do it once a week for a month if your engine is severely sludged, but loosening up lots of heavy deposits all at once can clog the VANOS system or other critical components, so that's why I say don't do it unless you know what you're doing.

[oma3710]

Originally Posted by JamesM3M5

How many miles since you last topped off? Break-in on any of the BMW aluminum block motors is critical to ensure good ring seal in the long run. BMW states 1 liter per 1000 miles is still OK, but most people have to add one liter/quart about every 2500-5000 miles. My engine consumes about 1 liter every 8-10k miles using Motul 5W40 X-cess. Other oils, especially the incorrect class of oil, will have faster consumption. Make sure you use a BMW approved oil. The specific spec is ACEA A3 which is for extended drain interval, high performance. Most other 5W30 oils are ACEA A1/A5 which is a fuel economy oil, not approved for use by BMW..

4500 miles.

[JamesM3M5]

That's good - 1 quart/liter in 4500 miles is just fine, completely normal, better than many. What oil are you using?

[oma3710]

Castrol 5w30 for bmw LL01

[Gugs]

Scan the car and read the codes- your level sensor might be failing. It will show exactly that if it is. Oil sensor malfunction. Apparently there were a few revisions since 07. I had mine replaced recently. Car would tell me it's low on oil one day then fine then next. Then low again. I got an oil change because I didn't want to start over filling and ruining my engine and it still said low.

[VNeBLOB42]

Originally Posted by JamesM3M5

That's good - 1 quart/liter in 4500 miles is just fine, completely normal, better than many. What oil are you using?

+1

be sure to track you mileage every time you need to top it off. Mine is around 4k miles for a new quart.

[hoopvillian]

I had that tiny leak on the oil filter housing, maybe you do too?

It's only been about 500 miles since I've replaced the gasket but it should make some difference I would imagine.


http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=476419