Engine Light - Oil at minimum, add 1 quart of oil immediately... anyone else?

scott135i · 07-20-2009, 03:57 PM

Driving my car earlier and got this message: Engine Light - Oil at minimum, add 1 quart of oil immediately...

Checked the owners manual, and it said to add a quart of oil in the next 125 miles to avoid damage to the engine.. (DUH)....

My car has 7000 miles on it. I drive it hard from time to time. I used to have the SSTT installed, and just 50 miles ago I installed the JB3 and a DCI.

My mother's 335i with 8000 miles had this same message a few months back.

But.. I added the oil, the message went away, and it said engine oil level normal. Then, about 10 miles later, the message came back.

Should I add more?

I've done some reading on a bunch of the forums and saw that getting an oil change earlier than the 15,000 mile mark (as suggested by BMW) is a good thing to do...

IDEAS? Thanks in advance.

ronnyek · 07-20-2009, 03:59 PM

I'd say add oil.
In all seriousness though, turbo cars are simply more prone to oil blowby than naturally aspirated cars.... I try to do 5k oil changes anyway and just have every3rd change paid for.

My135 · 07-20-2009, 04:05 PM

"But.. I added the oil, the message went away, and it said engine oil level normal. Then, about 10 miles later, the message came back."

Based on what you said, it sounds like your oil sensor is defective (which is a common problem on our car). You should let the dealer to check for you and not kept adding oil.

ar design · 07-20-2009, 04:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ronnyek

I'd say add oil.
In all seriousness though, turbo cars are simply more prone to oil blowby than naturally aspirated cars.... I try to do 5k oil changes anyway and just have every3rd change paid for.

Agreed - 15k is SUCH a bad idea.

SpeedballTrix · 07-20-2009, 04:36 PM

I actually got that message, thought it was just a loose oil fill cap, and then drove around like that for a week.
I finally decided to look up the warning on the manual and decided to put some oil in it.
Cleared up the warning light and I haven't had any problems since.

It seems pretty dumb to me that the display has yellow icons for low priority alerts and red icons for high priority alerts (and then flashing red icons for "WTF FIX NOW") alerts yet low oil level is only a solid yellow.
That's really the only reason I didn't take it too seriously.
Had it been a red icon (flashing or not) I would have dealt with it immediately.

Lester · 07-20-2009, 05:04 PM

Do you guys ever use the electronic dipstick? How does it read?

mad chemist · 07-21-2009, 02:57 PM

Scott135i,

These cars do like a drink of the black stuff. I had the same thing happen on mine at 8000 (and with SSTT, no coincidence, I hope).

However, the problem came back a few thousand miles later. This time it was the oil level sensor -you'll get an obvious code which you can see using the BT cable. This can happen when your oil starts to get contaminated at higher milages and also, believe it or not, when you just start the car and then stop on an incline!

Whatever you do though, DO NOT KEEP ADDING OIL. Run the car on level ground for 20 minutes and the sensor will re-set. Re-check your oil level as described above and it should be back to normal. If not then the oil sensor needs replacing or you have a serious oil leak!!

Mad.

jeremyc74 · 07-21-2009, 03:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SpeedballTrix

I actually got that message, thought it was just a loose oil fill cap, and then drove around like that for a week.
I finally decided to look up the warning on the manual and decided to put some oil in it.
Cleared up the warning light and I haven't had any problems since.

It seems pretty dumb to me that the display has yellow icons for low priority alerts and red icons for high priority alerts (and then flashing red icons for "WTF FIX NOW") alerts yet low oil level is only a solid yellow.
That's really the only reason I didn't take it too seriously.
Had it been a red icon (flashing or not) I would have dealt with it immediately.

An engine being a quart low on oil isn't something that needs immediate attention. Low oil pressure is, but you're no where close to that when you're a quart down.

Maybe you should pay more attention to the yellow warnings. Why the hell would the car know if the oil cap is loose?

adrean8j · 07-21-2009, 04:39 PM

Wow...I just had this same thing happen to me last week at around 8k miles....maybe it is something BMW programmed into the ECU to alert us to do?

jeremyc74 · 07-21-2009, 05:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adrean8j

Wow...I just had this same thing happen to me last week at around 8k miles....maybe it is something BMW programmed into the ECU to alert us to do?

More likely that under similar break-in conditions these engines consistantly use a quart of oil. Oil has to be added based on level, not mileage, so I'm not sure how they could program it in.

I had to add to mine with about 12k on it, but I also did a considerable amount of highway driving (low boost) during that period.

adrean8j · 07-21-2009, 09:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeremyc74

More likely that under similar break-in conditions these engines consistantly use a quart of oil. Oil has to be added based on level, not mileage, so I'm not sure how they could program it in.

I had to add to mine with about 12k on it, but I also did a considerable amount of highway driving (low boost) during that period.

Ok that makes sense...I have done a LOOOT of highway driving over the last two months.

CAMike · 07-23-2009, 07:57 AM

Just went over 8200 miles and had the add oil light...did and all seems fine. The longer I have this thing, the more "quirky" it becomes...HPFP, third brake lens, seat heat came on by itself, adaptive headlights stopped working, headlight washers stopped working, 2x needed reprogramming (now I have the dreaded lag!!!)....What I find interesting is that my service tech says even on n54 engined Euro versions, they don't have these issues. It's only the US Spec cars. Something to do with emissions and other US DOT requirements...maybe it's time to admit defeat and look elsewhere...maybe an 06 M3?? I do love my car but I've never had a car in the shop more than this one.

Tom K. · 07-23-2009, 11:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lester

Do you guys ever use the electronic dipstick? How does it read?

I check it often and was somewhat worried that it always read exactly full. So on my last change (about 10k miles on the oil), I asked my dealer to check the amout of oil drained and the level was not down at all. So 80% highway driving + a non-turbo motor = no consumption. Now as long as the sensors hold out ...

Tom

Robert · 07-23-2009, 01:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CAMike

Just went over 8200 miles and had the add oil light...did and all seems fine. The longer I have this thing, the more "quirky" it becomes...HPFP, third brake lens, seat heat came on by itself, adaptive headlights stopped working, headlight washers stopped working, 2x needed reprogramming (now I have the dreaded lag!!!)....What I find interesting is that my service tech says even on n54 engined Euro versions, they don't have these issues. It's only the US Spec cars. Something to do with emissions and other US DOT requirements...maybe it's time to admit defeat and look elsewhere...maybe an 06 M3?? I do love my car but I've never had a car in the shop more than this one.

+1, seriously what the heck. On top of everything, the other day the shadow trim on my window popped up....

jeremyc74 · 07-23-2009, 02:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tom K.

I check it often and was somewhat worried that it always read exactly full. So on my last change (about 10k miles on the oil), I asked my dealer to check the amout of oil drained and the level was not down at all. So 80% highway driving + a non-turbo motor = no consumption. Now as long as the sensors hold out ...

Tom

My 318ti would do that. It would go the entire oil change interval (sometimes over 10k miles if I was doing a lot of highway driving) without ever coming off the full mark on the dipstick, and it did that right up until I sold it, with nearly 140k on the clock. It always impressed me that BMW was able to build an engine that stayed that tight after so many miles.

RPM90 · 07-23-2009, 10:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CAMike

Just went over 8200 miles and had the add oil light...did and all seems fine. The longer I have this thing, the more "quirky" it becomes...HPFP, third brake lens, seat heat came on by itself, adaptive headlights stopped working, headlight washers stopped working, 2x needed reprogramming (now I have the dreaded lag!!!)....What I find interesting is that my service tech says even on n54 engined Euro versions, they don't have these issues. It's only the US Spec cars. Something to do with emissions and other US DOT requirements...maybe it's time to admit defeat and look elsewhere...maybe an 06 M3?? I do love my car but I've never had a car in the shop more than this one.

What does emissions have to do with adding oil, third brake light, seat heaters coming on, adaptive hdlights not working, or washers not working?

There are many more people on these forums that havent' had these issues compared to those who have.
People tend to post when they have something to complain about vs. those people who aren't having problems and simply have a great running car. I know, because I'm like that too. I'll post when I have issues with the car. It's rare for people to post nothing going wrong.
It skews greatly, how people perceive the reliability of these cars.

CAMike · 07-24-2009, 12:51 AM

I also do not understand how those things make a difference on US vs Euro spec cars but that is what my service guy told me (I live in Italy and our service dept handles 98% Euro spec cars and 2% US spec due to the many on our base that have various models). I do know from our population of Americans on base that have BMWs that more than half have had issues with their cars (those with N54s). Though I do understand that the people that post are usually those with the problems and is actually a minority of owners but the fact that there are many of us who have had similar issues on our cars does not speak well for BMW. The electical glitches may be due to it being a first model year car as I know those cars are more likely to have such issues but the N54 was not a new engine when it was put in our cars and yet we still have issues (as does the 3 series) in large enough numbers to cause concern.

As for BMW needing to build lag into my car to get it to run without problems, that I have a HUGE problem with. I bought the car because of the way it drove and the way the engine pulled so hard from so low an RPM. This was even a big selling point by BMW for this engine but to change that to now needing almost twice the RPM before it kicks in essentially is a different driving experience. I'm unsure why BMW has needed to do these things and has these issue but to keep first time BMW buyers coming back for more, they really need to step it up.

Robert, sorry to hear about your trim! That really sucks! I'm at the point now, having just gotten my car back from the shop 2 days ago, that I expect something else (like the trim) to break soon. I'll be in the States for 3 weeks and my car won't be driven so hopefully nothing will break while I'm gone but with my car, I've come to expect it to fail in some way. Sad to be at that point in a little over 8000 miles!!

ru55 · 07-24-2009, 04:21 AM

I agree with what MAD CHEMIST says!

Yesterday I stared my car on a incline, and it flashed up
"Oil below minimum level, add 1lt of oil"

This had a red image of the oil tank next to it.

Any way after a bit of driving i did the oil test on the computer stick (as mentioned above) and it now says Oil Full - OK in green!!!!

My cars stupid! (i didnt and wont add any oil - till i am sure it needs it)

jeremyc74 · 07-24-2009, 09:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RPM90

What does emissions have to do with adding oil, third brake light, seat heaters coming on, adaptive hdlights not working, or washers not working?

There are many more people on these forums that havent' had these issues compared to those who have.
People tend to post when they have something to complain about vs. those people who aren't having problems and simply have a great running car. I know, because I'm like that too. I'll post when I have issues with the car. It's rare for people to post nothing going wrong.
It skews greatly, how people perceive the reliability of these cars.

You're wrong about why people are posting. If you pay attention to the people who are having problems, a good number of them have been members here for a LONG time. A lot of us joined this site before we ever even ordered our cars, and the fact that there are so many members have so many issues is a VERY good indicator that BMW has serious quality control issues on these cars. The reliability perception isn't skewed, it's actually that bad. We're seeing a failure rate of about 33% on the HPFP, which is TOTALLY unacceptable for a modern vehicle, expecially when it's a major part that makes the car inoperable.

mad chemist · 07-24-2009, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ru55

I agree with what MAD CHEMIST says!

Yesterday I stared my car on a incline, and it flashed up
"Oil below minimum level, add 1lt of oil"

This had a red image of the oil tank next to it.

Any way after a bit of driving i did the oil test on the computer stick (as mentioned above) and it now says Oil Full - OK in green!!!!

My cars stupid! (i didnt and wont add any oil - till i am sure it needs it)

This car is trying to be too clever for its own good!

Typical German engineering.

scott135i · 07-24-2009, 09:52 PM

In addition to the whole oil thing, I just went to open my trunk and the 3rd brake light cover is non-existent. The entire thing must've broke off and disappeared. More fun...

But, every car is quirky. Too many things to love about the 135i to say that it is 'problematic'....

adrean8j · 07-25-2009, 07:40 AM

Yeah I just made an appointment for Monday to get my 3rd brake light replaced...at least it is a TSB and warrantied.

07-20-2009, 03:57 PM	#1
scott135i Colonel 355 Rep 2,080 Posts Drives: 2020 X5 M50i Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: NYC Metro iTrader: (12)	Engine Light - Oil at minimum, add 1 quart of oil immediately... anyone else? Driving my car earlier and got this message: Engine Light - Oil at minimum, add 1 quart of oil immediately... Checked the owners manual, and it said to add a quart of oil in the next 125 miles to avoid damage to the engine.. (DUH).... My car has 7000 miles on it. I drive it hard from time to time. I used to have the SSTT installed, and just 50 miles ago I installed the JB3 and a DCI. My mother's 335i with 8000 miles had this same message a few months back. But.. I added the oil, the message went away, and it said engine oil level normal. Then, about 10 miles later, the message came back. Should I add more? I've done some reading on a bunch of the forums and saw that getting an oil change earlier than the 15,000 mile mark (as suggested by BMW) is a good thing to do... IDEAS? Thanks in advance.
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07-20-2009, 03:59 PM	#2
ronnyek Captain 23 Rep 682 Posts Drives: 2010 Evo MR Touring Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: space iTrader: (1)	I'd say add oil. In all seriousness though, turbo cars are simply more prone to oil blowby than naturally aspirated cars.... I try to do 5k oil changes anyway and just have every3rd change paid for.
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07-20-2009, 04:05 PM	#3
My135 Lieutenant Colonel 85 Rep 1,609 Posts Drives: Join Date: Mar 2008 iTrader: (0)	"But.. I added the oil, the message went away, and it said engine oil level normal. Then, about 10 miles later, the message came back." Based on what you said, it sounds like your oil sensor is defective (which is a common problem on our car). You should let the dealer to check for you and not kept adding oil. __________________ 7/08 135 Coupe, Crimson Red, 6 SP, Sport, Taupe Lette/Aluminum. Performance Mods: JB4 on Map 5, BMS DP Fix V3, Injen polished intake, AR Catless DP, Maddad resonated mid-pipes, aFe exhaust polished tips, ST Suspension Coil Over and Hotchkis front sway bar. Others: BMS OCC, BT Scanner, Mud Flap. Next Mods: AA Front Strut Brace.
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07-20-2009, 04:36 PM	#5
SpeedballTrix Second Lieutenant 3 Rep 242 Posts Drives: 2009 135i 6MT SBM/CBL; 2022 X5 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Long Island, NY iTrader: (0)	I actually got that message, thought it was just a loose oil fill cap, and then drove around like that for a week. I finally decided to look up the warning on the manual and decided to put some oil in it. Cleared up the warning light and I haven't had any problems since. It seems pretty dumb to me that the display has yellow icons for low priority alerts and red icons for high priority alerts (and then flashing red icons for "WTF FIX NOW") alerts yet low oil level is only a solid yellow. That's really the only reason I didn't take it too seriously. Had it been a red icon (flashing or not) I would have dealt with it immediately.
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07-20-2009, 05:04 PM	#6
Lester Brigadier General 295 Rep 3,350 Posts Drives: Join Date: Oct 2007 iTrader: (0)	Do you guys ever use the electronic dipstick? How does it read? Attached Images
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07-21-2009, 02:57 PM	#7
mad chemist Lieutenant 59 Rep 416 Posts Drives: F82 M4 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: South East iTrader: (0)	Scott135i, These cars do like a drink of the black stuff. I had the same thing happen on mine at 8000 (and with SSTT, no coincidence, I hope). However, the problem came back a few thousand miles later. This time it was the oil level sensor -you'll get an obvious code which you can see using the BT cable. This can happen when your oil starts to get contaminated at higher milages and also, believe it or not, when you just start the car and then stop on an incline! Whatever you do though, DO NOT KEEP ADDING OIL. Run the car on level ground for 20 minutes and the sensor will re-set. Re-check your oil level as described above and it should be back to normal. If not then the oil sensor needs replacing or you have a serious oil leak!! Mad.
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07-23-2009, 07:57 AM	#12
CAMike Second Lieutenant 6 Rep 237 Posts Drives: 2008 135i Join Date: May 2008 Location: Aviano, Italy (San Diego is home though) iTrader: (0)	Just went over 8200 miles and had the add oil light...did and all seems fine. The longer I have this thing, the more "quirky" it becomes...HPFP, third brake lens, seat heat came on by itself, adaptive headlights stopped working, headlight washers stopped working, 2x needed reprogramming (now I have the dreaded lag!!!)....What I find interesting is that my service tech says even on n54 engined Euro versions, they don't have these issues. It's only the US Spec cars. Something to do with emissions and other US DOT requirements...maybe it's time to admit defeat and look elsewhere...maybe an 06 M3?? I do love my car but I've never had a car in the shop more than this one. __________________ Mike
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07-24-2009, 12:51 AM	#17
CAMike Second Lieutenant 6 Rep 237 Posts Drives: 2008 135i Join Date: May 2008 Location: Aviano, Italy (San Diego is home though) iTrader: (0)	I also do not understand how those things make a difference on US vs Euro spec cars but that is what my service guy told me (I live in Italy and our service dept handles 98% Euro spec cars and 2% US spec due to the many on our base that have various models). I do know from our population of Americans on base that have BMWs that more than half have had issues with their cars (those with N54s). Though I do understand that the people that post are usually those with the problems and is actually a minority of owners but the fact that there are many of us who have had similar issues on our cars does not speak well for BMW. The electical glitches may be due to it being a first model year car as I know those cars are more likely to have such issues but the N54 was not a new engine when it was put in our cars and yet we still have issues (as does the 3 series) in large enough numbers to cause concern. As for BMW needing to build lag into my car to get it to run without problems, that I have a HUGE problem with. I bought the car because of the way it drove and the way the engine pulled so hard from so low an RPM. This was even a big selling point by BMW for this engine but to change that to now needing almost twice the RPM before it kicks in essentially is a different driving experience. I'm unsure why BMW has needed to do these things and has these issue but to keep first time BMW buyers coming back for more, they really need to step it up. Robert, sorry to hear about your trim! That really sucks! I'm at the point now, having just gotten my car back from the shop 2 days ago, that I expect something else (like the trim) to break soon. I'll be in the States for 3 weeks and my car won't be driven so hopefully nothing will break while I'm gone but with my car, I've come to expect it to fail in some way. Sad to be at that point in a little over 8000 miles!! __________________ Mike
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07-24-2009, 04:21 AM	#18
ru55 Private 7 Rep 82 Posts Drives: 135 Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Worcestershire. UK iTrader: (0)	I agree with what MAD CHEMIST says! Yesterday I stared my car on a incline, and it flashed up "Oil below minimum level, add 1lt of oil" This had a red image of the oil tank next to it. Any way after a bit of driving i did the oil test on the computer stick (as mentioned above) and it now says Oil Full - OK in green!!!! My cars stupid! (i didnt and wont add any oil - till i am sure it needs it)
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07-24-2009, 09:52 PM	#21
scott135i Colonel 355 Rep 2,080 Posts Drives: 2020 X5 M50i Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: NYC Metro iTrader: (12)	In addition to the whole oil thing, I just went to open my trunk and the 3rd brake light cover is non-existent. The entire thing must've broke off and disappeared. More fun... But, every car is quirky. Too many things to love about the 135i to say that it is 'problematic'....
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