How much oil does your BMW 3.0i (M54) use?

mr tommo

mr tommo

mr tommo

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Just wondering how much fuel mine 'should' be using.

Im currently on my second bottle of Castrol Edge ( Used 1.5L so far) In around 2500 miles since having the car.

Just curious as to how much people have put in theirs as I know there is a few on here?

Can't remember using that much in my Z4. Although a lot of my driving does seem to be around town now that I don't randomly go out for long drives with the roof down like I did in the Z4.
 
Anyone got any links as to why they actually use the oil?
I remember reading about this before but I can't find the things I read!
 
Nobody really knows. It's one of lifes mysteries. There are many theories including how they've been run in, the theory being the more thrashed to death they were at run in period the less oil they use which is why the 2.2's, usually bought by women, tend to suffer the worst from high oil consumption.

Neither the M52TU nor the M54's replaced, the N52, use oil.
 
I found that oil consumption per mile was high when I did mostly shorter journeys (and I had the contrast of both very long and very short journeys during my ownership of the car). It seems to drink the most when it hasn't warmed up sufficiently and you are driving it swiftly. On my lazy 100 miles driving to and from work, oil consumption seemed to literally halve.
 
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used about 2mil on the dip stick in 7000 miles, i do change my oil every 7000 and only do short trips, mine also done around 120,000
 
Six6siX said:
Anyone got any links as to why they actually use the oil?
I remember reading about this before but I can't find the things I read!
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It a very thin oil (0/40w or 0/30w) most BMW owners use in there engine..

which you most likely find a lot of other car engines would use a lot of oil if there owners used the same type of thin oil instead of the normal 10/40w weight oil..
 
Funny i spotted this thread a couple of weeks ago my oil warning light came on whilst driving back from Doncaster on the A1,

Mines a 320i but i believe its the same M54 design? 2.2l 170bhp

pulled over and checked the oil level, was slightly low but above the bottom level, anyway i bought a one litre bottle used about half of it and the light went off, all well :)

the last couple of days when im coming to a stop and turn the engine off the oil warning light comes on???

ive not actually checked the level yet, but its not leaking at all but if its low then surely the light would be on all the time and not just when i turn it off?
 
Bradmax57 said:
ive not actually checked the level yet, but its not leaking at all but if its low then surely the light would be on all the time and not just when i turn it off?
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No, this is not how the light works. It is explained in your user manual - have you read it?

Essentially, there are three different stages to the oil light.

Once the oil reaches near the minimum marker on the dipstick, the oil light should illuminate once the engine is switched off, for a period of about 10-15 seconds. This is telling you that your engine oil level is low, and that you should top it up to max reasonably soon, perhaps at your next fuel stop. This light is orange.

The next stage, if you ignore this, is that the orange light will come on when the car is being driven. This means that the car is now very low on oil and you should top it up as soon as possible, ideally within 50 miles.

If you still do nothing, eventually the red oil warning light will come on. This means you must stop the car immediatly as the level is dangerously low and you risk damage to the engine. Top the oil up right away, and trade the car in for something like a Honda Jazz.

If the light flashes after you start the car, or never comes on at all, then the oil level sensor is broken.
 
[TW]Fox;16551818 said:
No, this is not how the light works. It is explained in your user manual - have you read it?

Essentially, there are three different stages to the oil light.

Once the oil reaches near the minimum marker on the dipstick, the oil light should illuminate once the engine is switched off, for a period of about 10-15 seconds. This is telling you that your engine oil level is low, and that you should top it up to max reasonably soon, perhaps at your next fuel stop. This light is orange.

The next stage, if you ignore this, is that the orange light will come on when the car is being driven. This means that the car is now very low on oil and you should top it up as soon as possible, ideally within 50 miles.

If you still do nothing, eventually the red oil warning light will come on. This means you must stop the car immediatly as the level is dangerously low and you risk damage to the engine. Top the oil up right away, and trade the car in for something like a Honda Jazz.

If the light flashes after you start the car, or never comes on at all, then the oil level sensor is broken.
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No mate i aint read the 100 pages or so that i has, but i knew id get a quciker answer on her than me reading it, especially from yourself! ;)

anyway its the first stage for me, and ive got about 6.5k before the next service is due so ill just top it up
 
I would just use a thicker grade oil.

Oil is either burnt or leaked.

If it is burning it when cold try a thicker grade at the bottom, if it burns it at full temp while havign a spirited drive go thicker at the top end.
 
Or we could just stick with whatever the manufacturer recommends. It's not as if a tenner on oil every 2000 miles is a big deal.
 
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