Oil consumption and white froth under oil cap?

[FCBuff]

Could this be a sign that the CCV(oil separator) needs replaced? I have never noticed white froth before. Car is 2006 3.0 with 93K miles. I have been changing the oil myself and have never had any oil consumption prior to this interval. I am about 3200 miles into the oil and am about 1/2 qt low.

How else do you diagnose a bad CCV? Should I just assume and throw a new one on? That is the way I am leaning.

[TurnAround]

As its been explained to me, the white is a sign of burned off water and other contaminants in the oil. It eventually turns a burnt off white or amber color. All three of my M54 engines have that, as well as most of the other engines of BMW owner's I know here in town.

Some say its the result of short trips where the oil doesn't get hot enough to burn off the (normal amount of) water that has collected over night. Me for example; I drive to get lunch each day, which is only 2.3 miles each way. I try to let the engine idle a few extra minutes once I get there.. but still, that's <> 12 minutes of driving (Generally agreed upon avg minutes to warm your engine oil enough to start taking it over 4k rpm, and coincidentally burn off any water).

IOW, the white paste is normal. Any water eventually burns off, and the oil is fine, but you're seeing the by-product. So the question then becomes, for any given engine is there too much of the stuff and its starting to gum things up.

I switched from Castrol Synthetic to Mobil 1 Synthetic, and increased the frequency of oil changes from 6-7k down to 5-6k, and it made a difference. Less "new" white gunk (not yet burned up and amber) around the cap area. There are long discussion threads on the board about the Castol thing. I finally went to 'the other side' (Mobil 1) after my indi mechanic convinced me. I switched all the engines over.

On the oil sep part, my indi says mine is fine. Don't know how to check it yourself. Sorry.

On the oil burning: Only my X's M54 3.0i (89k) does that. Fair amount too. At least a half quart between changes. SOmetimes 3/4 quart if I do a lot of performance driving. It started around 50k, but was very minor then. It leveled off to the 1/2 to 3/4 quart thing at around 65k and has been there ever since. THe other two M54 Z3 3.0 engines don't burn a drop. Well.. maybe the Coupe is starting to a bit (56k).

I'm told its somewhat normal, and more importantly.. there's really nothing you can do about it. Unless you start burning two quarts between changes, and you feel like having the engine rebuilt... just keep feedin' it.

[weekend camper]

this Oil Separator and Intake Manifold DIY - E46Fanatics might be a place to start if you want to actually pull out the ccv and look at it. No idea if it applies to your specifics or not.

[JCL]

You need to separate cause and effect

If you have moisture in the oil then the CCV can freeze up in cold weather. However, the CCV doesn't cause moisture in the oil

A lot of water in the oil turns it milky white. If the level rises the crank can whip it up and make it frothy. Bad news. You would need to find the coolant leak in this case

A small amount of moisture from condensation (not a leak) is common. It creates a creamy coloured paste that collects under the valve cover. It is semi-solid. It happens because the engine doesn't get hot enough for long enough to boil off the condensation, as it is designed to do

First question: Do you have frothy liquid, or paste?

Is the coolant level low? Has the cooling system been checked for a leak?