My friend who works in the same office said she had to come in late because her new 328 needed oil again and the dealer only adds oil to fix the problem. Is this safe or normal? Has anyone heard about this before? She said there is no black smoke coming out the back so where does it go?
2007-11-07 20:07:48 · 16 answers · asked by Anonymous in Cars & Transportation ➔ Car Makes ➔ BMW
I have been hearing a lot of chatter about this problem in all new BMWs especially 328i's. Since this seems to be a widespread problem and not a one time occurance, the problem may be poor quality controls due to cost cutting measures. I have heard all German factories are cutting back to hedge themselves against the high Euro.
This problem most likely is worn rings if there is no oil drippng out on the bottom. If the tailpipe is black and oily then it is indeed burning oil and your friend should take it to the dealer ASAP. She/he may need a new engine. It is not dangerous to you but will cause problems to the engine and it is not normal although a new car needs an extra 1qt of oil for the first 5000 miles.
2007-11-07 23:26:44 · answer #1 · answered by Sunumo Yaoban Lin 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well the official specification from a very old BMW bulletin is 1 qt. per 750 miles is acceptable, but that seems extreme. A good dealer will document repeat visits for the oil level complaints and create repair orders for every visit to be able to track the concern by time and miles driven to determine if there is a problem. Your friend should definately request this if she hasn't already. The engine in the 328 is a relatively new engine with complex new systems and materials. It could even be a false engine oil level warning. Water vapors can condense and contaminate the oil level sensor. There are new procedures out to fix that, if the car actually isn't low on oil. Too bad BMW eliminated the old reliable oil dipstick.
2007-11-08 11:10:10 · answer #2 · answered by BSJoker101 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This is a problem that is affecting ALL non-turbo 3.0 liter engines for the new 328i. Lots of other 328i owners are having the same complaint.
So far, BMW's solution is just to give customers free top-ups until they can figure out what is really wrong with it... and BMW says it's an "environmentally friendly company" by researching on hydrogen powered cars... and letting customers burn so much oil (and polluting the air) on the back end on a daily basis... LOL
I won't be surprised if BMW issues a TSB or even recall on this.... if it takes so much oil now (when it's new), what would happen 5-7 years down the road?
2007-11-08 08:29:20 · answer #3 · answered by Snowie 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If the car is only 9 months old this is not normal. I have a 2001 325 and it does burn a bit of oil, but I only have to add oil every 2 months or so. I researched this and found that it is very common for the e46 BMWs to loose some oil between changes, but I would not suspect that this would be the case for a new car.
2007-11-07 20:59:29 · answer #4 · answered by Tim H 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
This is a problem BMW started recently having. I have had some complaints about this and the dealers are just topping off the oil for their customers. Until BMW comes up with a fix, there is nothing your friend can do.
Be careful listening to the answers people are giving. BMW recommends and oil change at 12-13K miles. They use 100% synthetic oil, so it lasts longer.
Tell your friend to keep going to the dealer and hopefully BMW will find an answer to this.
Greg
2007-11-09 18:51:43 · answer #5 · answered by Greg K 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you had to ask, obviously something is not normal. Take it back to BMW and tell them to fix the problem. Demand a fix, not a band aid. A car with this problem will only continue to get worse and cause engine damage and power loss. If the simply add oil, go back and tell them that you demand a real engine repair at their cost. The car should be under warranty, as there is no way a 9 month old car should be doing this.
2007-11-08 05:21:12 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
For a car that new to be losing oil, I suspect a leak. I would have an independent garage check to make sure nothing is loose or backed off and in need of tightening. A friend's transmission pan was not tightened enough at the factory and the bolts backed out enough to let a minor leak turn into a major one.
2007-11-07 20:18:08 · answer #7 · answered by Mr. Vincent Van Jessup 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The car is burning oil, probably due to leakage through the valve stem seals or worn piston rings. Cars that burn oil in small amounts don't necessarily smoke. Look at the inside of the tailpipe tip and see if there's a LOT of carbon inside, that's usually a clue.
2007-11-07 20:12:00 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
The oil could leak into the transmission, the coolant, or just get burned up. There is definitely a major problem.
I guess they don't build them like they used to. My 22 year old Volvo doesn't use a single quart between changes.
2007-11-08 07:18:07 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
BMW can go through a quart of oil between changes, it's normal, oil is used to cool the valves and therefore some is lost and burned.
2007-11-08 02:38:30 · answer #10 · answered by jay 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋