Oil Change Advice

[rocksonrocks]

I did a search on "oil change" and I think it listed every post in the forum? Anyway. E46 2004 325i sedan. Last oil change was 20,000km ago (am I crazy?). My oil level light (yellow one) was coming on intermittently so I checked and it was just less than half a liter below full. I should add that I had my oil level sensor changed this spring but it was coming on intermittently with the dipstick showing full. Added half a liter and it seems fine for a week now. My questions are 1) Is a half a liter consumption in 20,000km alot? I'm not familiar with synthetic oils. 2) Should I do an oil change between the standard interval (about 25,000 km)? I did one track day this summer but I'm hoping to do more next year. Does this hurt oil consumption more than regular street use?

Thanks for any help.

[Gregster]

WTF! half a liter over 20 000kms is very good. Most cars consume 1l per 6500 kms. I wouldn't worry about that at all.

Yeah higher RPMS hurt oil consumption because the engine is under more load/stress.

[bmwqc]

Unless you took an actual dipstick measurement right after your last oil change, you may be assuming the starting oil level was at the top mark then, but many mechanics pour in enough oil into the engine for the dipstick to show past the top mark, so your actual oil consumption may very well be more than the "indicated" 1/2 litre.

Synthetic oil or not, and notwithstanding the factory recommendation for extended oil changes, I personally would never stretch an oil change interval to 20,000 km. 5000 km is my max no matter what car I drive and what oil I use. Oil is the lifeline of an engine. The fresher (cleaner) the oil, the longer the engine will last.





I did a search on "oil change" and I think it listed every post in the forum? Anyway. E46 2004 325i sedan. Last oil change was 20,000km ago (am I crazy?). My oil level light (yellow one) was coming on intermittently so I checked and it was just less than half a liter below full. I should add that I had my oil level sensor changed this spring but it was coming on intermittently with the dipstick showing full. Added half a liter and it seems fine for a week now. My questions are 1) Is a half a liter consumption in 20,000km alot? I'm not familiar with synthetic oils. 2) Should I do an oil change between the standard interval (about 25,000 km)? I did one track day this summer but I'm hoping to do more next year. Does this hurt oil consumption more than regular street use?

Thanks for any help.

[FrankyGoes]

If it was not so late at night I would go on forever. Consider yourself lucky...

Honestly there are as many solutions here as there is driver-car-use (abuse) combinations.

If you want to read to your heart's content here is the link : http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/ (http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/)

You want hard facts about your oil in your car. Test it... http://www.blackstone-labs.com/ (http://www.blackstone-labs.com/)

My opinion.
If you use truly synthetic oil (LL-01 BMW standard) you can run it for about 10 000 km under normal use. No track, towing or small trips especially in the winter. 5 000 for regular oil.

I don't know about the other bad things. But track will increase trace metals in the oil. Not good in the long run if you accumulate a lot of track time. I run Mobil 1. It has a tendency to run high metals in the first 1000 km. I try to 'season' the oil before a track day. It makes no sense it just is...

Careful about checking levels between cold vs hot engine. On my car (E36) I have to wait a good 10 minutes on a hot engine for the oil to return to the pan. Always check under the same condition.

For comparison, my engine has 270 000 km on it. At least 5 hours of track time - I'm the third owner...
I never use a drop of oil between oil changes. Again it does not make sense but it just is. German engineering I guess !

You will get a lot of opinions. Piece together what makes sense for you.

Have fun at the track !

[rocksonrocks]

Way to much info in that first thread. If I really get bored I'll read it. But thanks anyway. As for checking oil level. I'm going by my low oil sensor. Since I topped it up with half a liter, no more light. I think I will plan on doing an oil change between my scheduled intervals (~25k).

So what can you tell me about "lifetime" oil in my transmission (5 speed manual)?

[sebdavid]

I change the oil every 5,000km or every 2-3 track days, depending on how hard of a workout it was for the car. After 2-3 track days the oil already doesn't smell the same and doesn't feel the same. That tells me fresh oil can't hurt. Cheaper than engine wear. The "scheduled intervals" are waaaay too long for even normal everyday use.

You should check your oil level manually as often as possible, ideally every month, then maybe more sporadically if you see the level doesn't change at all. My car doesn't burn ANY oil, but I still check once in a while and of course before, during, and after a track day. Still no oil consumption at all for me but again, better safe than sorry.

No what oil to use, that's another story altogether, and might depend on your engine. Lots of people swear by Liqui Moly 10w-40, for example, and I don't doubt its quality, but that's the ONLY oil my engine has ever burned (although at a very slow rate), whereas Castrol and Elf 5w-50 or 10w-50 are ok.

http://www.bmwquebec.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=2445

About 'lifetime' oil: I was told to change it by some here, and several other sources on the Net, so I did. It did make a slight improvement, although not earth-shattering. Use automatic transmission fluid. The oil in the diff should also be changed once in a while, according to common wisdom.

http://www.bmwquebec.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=2740

I'm no expert, just relating what I found when I spent some time researching and askin questions.

[FrankyGoes]

No such thing as lifetime when you track your car.

Good info on Seb's links.

You can change all the fluids yourself. It's an expense you can't afford not to make.