[bimmer_girl89]

I don't know if this had already been discussed before (please link me to discussion if it had - thanks)

Is it normal to have to top up oil in between service? (For background, this car is my DD, I don't track the car and drive it pretty much on comfort 90% of the time, 70% highway driven). I had my last oil change done in April(Serviced at 41K on odometer) and before my service was due (2K KM left before service) the car is saying that I am running on minimum oil level and it needs top up. I used the oil reserve provided by dealer to top up the oil and had my oil change done week after. Odometer reading today is at 47K and the car is displaying the same message that I am running on minimum again. My next service is not til another 5K KM.

I am not familiar with B-series engines so I don't know if this dilemma is normal or not. I've owned 2 cars with N-series engines and I have never had to top up in the 5 yrs owning the 2 cars so this is something new to me. I know some people would say that the intervals are too long and that they do an oil change in between but I am not so concerned about going above and beyond what BMW recommends as I don't intend to keep my cars forever.

I took my car to my dealer today and they said that it is normal and nothing to worry about but I called another dealer and spoke to the service manager there and explained my situation, according to him, I shouldn't have to top up. Right now I don't know who to believe between the two.

I would appreciate it if someone could give me an insight on this.

[overcoil]

I hadn't read that 4-cylinder engine in your car has any history of excessive oil consumption, but I've only done a cursory check.

It is true the same engine in one car may consume oil while an identical engine in another car may not burn any oil. A figure of one quart every 6000 miles or 9600 km is often used as a acceptable rate - I think VW was using this rate for their engines that had a tendency to burn oil.

It would be interesting to use the iDrive oil level read-out to track if possible the level dropping and at what rate, for instance by checking weekly. And after the dealer does an oil change check the iDrive oil level to see if the minimum amount of oil is being replaced at oil changes.

You really ideally should not have to top off, but manufactures give themselves leeway by stating consumption of x-amoiunt of oil over x-amount of miles is acceptable.

Some say if you do a lot of idling you could possibly consume oil at a higher rate. If you have wet oily residue in your exhaust pipe or some emission ventilation devices are clogged it could cause oil loss. If your engine isn't showing any oil leakage, your exhaust has no oily blue puffs or smell on start-up and the correct viscosity oil is being used then a quart top-off between the cars iDrive service indicator is PROBABLY fine. It is important to have a clean air-filter and quality fuel that will minimize carbon build up.

[aerobod]

Depends on the car, of the 6 cylinder BMWs I have owned they have all been broken in with lots of varying revs and they have often been driven aggressively with some limited track time, the approximate oil consumption of them when broken in was/is:

E46 with M52 engine ~10,000km per litre
E90 with N52 engine ~ 8,000km per litre
E85 with S54 engine - no noticeable oil consumption
E82 with N54 engine ~ 6,000km per litre before Cobb tune, ~4,000km per litre after tune
F22 with B58 engine - no noticeable oil consumption, even from brand new.

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by bimmer_girl89

I don't know if this had already been discussed before (please link me to discussion if it had - thanks)

Is it normal to have to top up oil in between service? (For background, this car is my DD, I don't track the car and drive it pretty much on comfort 90% of the time, 70% highway driven). I had my last oil change done in April(Serviced at 41K on odometer) and before my service was due (2K KM left before service) the car is saying that I am running on minimum oil level and it needs top up. I used the oil reserve provided by dealer to top up the oil and had my oil change done week after. Odometer reading today is at 47K and the car is displaying the same message that I am running on minimum again. My next service is not til another 5K KM.

I am not familiar with B-series engines so I don't know if this dilemma is normal or not. I've owned 2 cars with N-series engines and I have never had to top up in the 5 yrs owning the 2 cars so this is something new to me. I know some people would say that the intervals are too long and that they do an oil change in between but I am not so concerned about going above and beyond what BMW recommends as I don't intend to keep my cars forever.

I took my car to my dealer today and they said that it is normal and nothing to worry about but I called another dealer and spoke to the service manager there and explained my situation, according to him, I shouldn't have to top up. Right now I don't know who to believe between the two.

I would appreciate it if someone could give me an insight on this.

I don't have anything meaningful in the way of an answer, I'm afraid. What does come to mind is that in terms of oil consumption there's a range into which a group of mass-produced engines is going to fall. So it's possible that your engine is behaving in a predictable way given how it came together during the manufacturing process.

What did the service manager at the second dealer offer you in the way of suggestions for both causes and solutions to this (potential) issue?

Because this issue is coming up only after you've put a fair number of miles on the engine, I would discount the possibility that it wasn't broken-in properly. If that was the case, you would have been burning excess amounts of oil all along.

My experience of turbocharged engines in other makes of cars is that they used unusual amounts of oil only when run at higher RPMs. For example, I ran a car from Thunder Bay to Edmonton at higher than normal highway speeds and burned a quart of oil doing it. If I'd been driving at the speed limit, that car wouldn't have burned any oil at all. Given your description of how you use your car, this doesn't sound like a possible cause of excess oil consumption.

I'm curious: in each case, has the car told you how much oil it wants you to add?

[Luftwaffe1O1]

I was burning about 1qt per 6000-7000 miles, but I increased the oil change intervals to about 6k miles now instead of the 10k recommended, so haven't had it as an issue.

[harma24]

2017 B58 engine and just passed 70k miles this morning. No measurable oil consumption (yet; I need to find some wood to knock on...)

[bimmer_girl89]

Originally Posted by dradernh

What did the service manager at the second dealer offer you in the way of suggestions for both causes and solutions to this (potential) issue?

I'm curious: in each case, has the car told you how much oil it wants you to add?

The Service Manager at the other dealer told me to speak to the Service Manager(currently on holidays) of my local dealer first and see what he says. He said that I could bring my car in at their shop and get it looked at there if I am not satisfied with the service at my local dealer.

It said to add 1 quart of engine oil.

Like I mentioned, the car only asked to have oil topped up after so many KM's (38K KM), the car was broken in properly. I don't normally engage in spirited driving so rpms are relatively low majority of the time. Since owning this car, I've only filled it up at Shell with 91 octane.

Dealer gave me back my car today and as per report they did not find evidence of oil leak and all they did was top up the oil. I have not checked the oil level on I drive yet but I will in the morning.

[mecodoug]

It may not have been 100% full when last changed, causing an early low level. These engines hold a lot (~7 quarts) of oil. I would be careful to fill it to 100% then see what happens over the next interval. Hopefully you'll find you are burning less than it now appears.

They all say this is normal, though in my experience since my 1988 Civic, none of the 12 vehicles we have owned has gone through more than a quart every 7500 miles. This includes both gas and diesel vehicles we often keep to 160K miles plus, as we have always had a long commutes or used our cars for business travel to the tune of 25K miles per year each.

Even if it is not normal what can you do about it assuming you don't want to tear your engine down to replace rings seals and gaskets?

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by bimmer_girl89

The Service Manager at the other dealer told me to speak to the Service Manager(currently on holidays) of my local dealer first and see what he says. He said that I could bring my car in at their shop and get it looked at there if I am not satisfied with the service at my local dealer.

Assuming your local service manager has nothing further to offer, what I would want to hear from the service manager at the second dealership is what he proposes to do about the car's oil use. It sounds like he has something in mind (otherwise, I imagine he would have told you the same thing your local service manager told you). My principal interest would be potential out-of-pocket cost, but with a 2017 model that probably isn't an issue. It's possible that his shop has some experience in this area that your local service department doesn't.

However it turns out, please keep us informed so that others can learn from your experience.

[bimmer_girl89]

Checked oil level on Idrive today and level is under max line. Nothing written on report how much oil was added during top up. I have emailed the service manager at my local dealer, waiting for response.

If this was normal occurrence, shouldn't it have started from the beginning? The very first time it asked me to top up was at 38K KM and now it asked for top up at 7K KM after service.

[overcoil]

Originally Posted by bimmer_girl89

Checked oil level on Idrive today and level is under max line. Nothing written on report how much oil was added during top up. I have emailed the service manager at my local dealer, waiting for response.

If this was normal occurrence, shouldn't it have started from the beginning? The very first time it asked me to top up was at 38K KM and now it asked for top up at 7K KM after service.

It’s very important not to overfill the oil. And to take iDrive oil reading a few different times and after the engine has hit operating temp.

It reads as though your oil level is perfect at this point. Keep measuring oil weekly over the next few months.

[aerobod]

Also discuss with the dealer the possibility that the oil level sensor is reading incorrectly or has failed, it has been known to happen on BMWs and may lead to overfilling.

[bimmer_girl89]

Originally Posted by ScottSinger

It’s very important not to overfill the oil. And to take iDrive oil reading a few different times and after the engine has hit operating temp.

It reads as though your oil level is perfect at this point. Keep measuring oil weekly over the next few months.

My drive to work is just a little over 45mins. I will try driving it for longer and measure again but I have set reminder now to check oil level every week.

[overcoil]

Originally Posted by bimmer_girl89

My drive to work is just a little over 45mins. I will try driving it for longer and measure again but I have set reminder now to check oil level every week.

45 minutes is perfect for getting to operation temp - that should give you a good reading on the iDrive.

[CP911]

Did you check the oil level immediately after the oil changes to confirm they are filling it properly? If not, start there.

I did my own oil change and filled my B58 with exactly 6.5L per the BMW factory recommendation and immediately checked the oil level afterwards. It showed the oil level was exactly on the MAX line in the iDrive display. It seems the oil level sensor is perfectly in sync with the recommended oil quantity. Again, my advice is to start by checking immediately after your next oil change to rule out the possibility of an under-fill situation.

[bimmer_girl89]

Originally Posted by CP911

Did you check the oil level immediately after the oil changes to confirm they are filling it properly? If not, start there.

I did not check it last time when they did service but will check that from now on.

[overcoil]

Consumer Reports (I believe) has an article on car (model) irregular oil consumption. Google, and I may need to buy a subscription ($25-) to read but you’ll have access for a year.

[XutvJet]

As noted in the service bulletin below, BMW considers a fairly high amount of oil consumption to be normal. My M235 consumed about 1 QT of oil during it's first 10K miles and has not required a top off since then, BUT I change my oil every 5K miles (i.e., between the free 10K/yearly change). The car is currently 3.5 years old and has 36K miles.

My M235 is the first car I've ever owned that doesn't consume oil after break in. All my prior cars (1986 Honda Accord, 1990 Honda CRX, 1994 Camaro Z28, 1996 Nissan Maxima, 2003 Infiniti G35, and 2012 Subaru WRX) consumed oil with my WRX consuming the most (about 1QT every 5K miles). My wife's 2015 3.6R Outback consumes about 1/2 QT every 3K miles.

Oil consumption is highly variable among engines. In the past 15 years, consumption has become higher, largely due to:

1) The use friction reducing piston rings to improve MPG
2) Turbocharging
3) Mileage enhancing oils

Consumption can also effected by driving style such as:

1) Lots of short trips which don't allow the oil to warm up thus the oil becomes saturated with fuel, the oil falls out of viscosity, and is thus more prone to consumption.

2) Lots of steady highway cruising which results in high vacuum and potentially more blow-by and thus consumption.

3) Hard performance driving which gets the oil very hot resulting in volatilization, breakdown, and blow-by.


Consuming a quart or so of oil every 5K+ miles is a none issue. It's worthwhile to monitor it to make sure that the consumption isn't starting to increase. Also, it's quite common for shops to underfill the oil during a change. For example, both my wife's Outback and my M235 say an oil change is 6.5 QTs but in reality, the true volume is right around 7 QTs.


Engine Oil Consumption
Technical Service SI B11 03 13

Oil Consumption specification:
- All BMW engines (excluding Motorsport) can consume up to 1 quart of engine oil per 750 miles at any time.
- Due to the increased engine power, all Motorsport engines can consume up to 2.5 quarts of engine oil per 1,000 miles at any time.

All turbocharged engines also require a complex crankcase ventilation system. The crankcase ventilation system needs to maintain a small vacuum on the crankcase and not allow the crankcase to be pressurized. Pressurizing the engine crankcase can lead to external engine oil leaks and increased engine oil consumption via the piston rings and valve seals. When the load and the boost level of a turbocharged engine is varied, the path of the crankcase pressure is changed. During the crankcase ventilation path transition, a small amount of engine oil will pass through the crankcase ventilation system and is additionally consumed. The additional engine oil consumption of a turbocharged engine, as compared to a normally aspirated engine, is normal and not a defect.

[Luftwaffe1O1]

I don't know, most BMWs I have owned consumed some oil. E36 M3 about 1qt every 5k miles, e30 325 1qt every 3-4k, Z3 doesn't consume much anymore, but I changed the oil every 4-5k because that car has a particularly hard life spending a lot of it at redline heh.

[MarcoZandrini]

The M54B30 engine, one of which I had in my 2001 330Ci, was notorious for eating oil. Adding a quart of oil after 500 miles was not unusual!! Part of the problem was the crappy crankcase ventilation system (CCV) which had been designed by an engineer who'd be fired by Audi! The other cause was the use of low tension oil control rings with smallish oil drain holes. Those holes became clogged (carbonized) and thus oil didn't drain back into the crankcase as designed. There are plenty of "solutions" out there:
- oil catch can (replacing the CCV)
- change brand and weight of oil
- 02pilot mod which uses an unused vacuum port on the CCV to increase crankcase vacuum (all modern BMW engines need a vacuum in the crankcase)
- Italian tune up

The only one that worked was changing to Shell Rotella T6 oil.

May I suggest you drive the car as it was designed to be driven-spirited driving. Let the engine rev to near the redline. If the transmission is an automatic, drive it on the highway in the manual or sport modes to prevent it from shifting into overdrive. Modern BMW engines sing in the 3000 to 4000 rpm range.

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by MarcoZandrini

- Italian tune up

I may be wrong, but I'm guessing many of today's drivers aren't familiar with this term. Of course, most are probably doing it without knowing what it's called!

[mcompact]

Originally Posted by Luftwaffe1O1

I don't know, most BMWs I have owned consumed some oil. E36 M3 about 1qt every 5k miles, e30 325 1qt every 3-4k, Z3 doesn't consume much anymore, but I changed the oil every 4-5k because that car has a particularly hard life spending a lot of it at redline heh.

That's been my experience as well. As long as my BMWs use less than a quart every 2.5k-3k miles I don't worry about it at all.