35d Oil Leak and recall

[ard]

So heres the "big picture"...

I've been around car forums since they were email lists... and this is the typical evolution:

1. Car introduced, discussion is "what did you pay", "when are you getting it" "what color"

2. Over time, discussion becomes "what did you mod"

3. Then you get "car failed, this is what happened"

4. Finally, you get to what I call 'diagnostic maturity'... people can post a code, symptom and the forum and participants can- on the basis of very little data- identifiy and point them to a solution.


OK, so why is this important here?

We seem to be collecting CELs with virtually no diagnostic detail... 'My cel came on, they fixed it' leaves out a very important point for future owners... A cel can be caused by 200 things... what links a SOLUTION to a CEL is the CODE that caused the CEL!

In Alex's case, it is likely some air/fuel ration issue, charge air something, etc, etc..but I suspect this HIS code is entirely different from the one ID'd in this thread title ("oil leak") and also entirely different from the "recall codes" that we see.

So three distinct issues with these diesels, but all lumped into "My cel came on too".

Hope this explains what I am trying to do....

A


Ps If spyder is a doc, he knows exactly what I am talking about.

[spyderdoc]

Originally Posted by ard

Ps If spyder is a doc, he knows exactly what I am talking about.

I can't help but think how much easier my job would be if people came into my ER with a fault code stored on their on-board computer!

But yes, I do thing your "big picture" points are spot on! I've been on this and Bimmerfest forums since I was researching the x535d, and I sure have noticed that evolution occur, and repeat itself with the 2010 iDrive update and now the 2011 LCI....

That being said, the OP and 2 more of us are reporting the same problem as noticing some oil on ground with no CEL or other issues....As part of our service visit, they happened to include some other non-related recall repairs (sensors, reprogram computer, etc)....

Alex's issue seems completely different. He had CEL come on, but did not have any other performance issues or oil leaking. His issue seems to have been an air leak and presumed pressure loss on a different charge air hose than the one causing my problem........Interestingly, the info in the articles that I posted in the link above say that the car should go into limp mode if significant pressure is lost on the charge/pressure side of the system....

Thanks again to Alex for posting his issue and solution