Oil Use
 

2006 4.4 with 8000 mi. Has used two qts oil now. My 03' never
did this. Any comments? I know we continue to cover this.
Not sure if this new car blow by.:confused:

noncom,
If I had any brand performance car, and
used 2 qts in 8,000 miles, I wouldn't blink an eye.

GL,mD

PS: I love your avatar...that's how I feel these
days, standing over 4 footers...head's on fire!

dito that

We use to get our oil changed every 3K miles years ago, so checking to see if the oil is low, was never a big deal.

Now, with oil changes every 15K (crazy..) lots of folks are driving around town two quarts low just waiting for the light to come on.

Check the oil level every 2,500 miles and then change it every 5K...IMHO.

Picture of my new 2006 X5...
http://www.mcgovernmotors.com/images/X5_2.JPG

congrats on the new rides guys .

i change oil on my own at 7500 and go in every other to the dealer . the biggest problem in my mind is the the 15k on the filter ..yiiikes..

Interesting....my 4.4 was low on oil by 1 litre (don't know what that is in quarts, maybe 2 ??) my engine sounded very tappety..if that's a good word to use.

Best described as a tick tick tick noise. The noise then disappeared after about 15- 20 mins of driving. I checked the oil level last night and WOW it needed 1 litre added. This morning I started it, noise is gone and again tonight on the way home the noise is gone.

Cheers, Andy

One quart is .9461 litres

Thanks guys. I obviously never checked that much in my 2003.

It bums me out to think of all those nice new BMWs running around out there low on oil.

I keep hearing stories about oil lights coming on and having to add two quarts of oil.

Not good news for the buyers of used BMWs down the road.

***New Compaign***

Check your oil once a month, and change it at least ever 7,500 miles!

Yeah. Once a month seems about right. Is the filtering system in place good enough to qualify 15,000 mi by BMW?

Doubtful, imo, from cutting open filters I've pulled, DIY, at
7-8,000 miles. Maybe BMW "knows" something we don't.

From a common sense perspective, I doubt it even more.

OTHO, if it's a lease, it is the next guy's worry; if you
own it/plan on keeping it more than the payment length
I would rec'd a filter change sooner than 15K.
My 2Cts...
GL,mD

Proof that there are lots of different opinions (see MD's good post, above).

Yes, IMO, but a filter is going to fail on time, not just on mileage. If you have low annual miles, do it every year as the book says. Doing it at 7500 can't hurt, doing it more often than that is a waste IMO. If you can get 15,000 miles accumulated in a year or so, you are likely driving on the highway a fair bit, easy miles.

The 15000 mile limit refers to the ability to still filter the oil and not get clogged. The one year recommendation refers to a filter maintaining its structural integrity and not collapsing. It isn't going to collapse at a year, but I wouldn't leave it in there for several years.

As is noted above, the biggest problem with long oil changes is not the long change interval, but the tendency of owners to not check the oil regularly. Checking it and keeping it topped up is more important than the change interval, within reason.

Interesting post. I've done 42k km (approx. 26k miles) on my X and I drive my X HARD! I check oil every 3 months and does not need a drop. I've checked this at the dealers too. My 3.2 V6 Opel Vectra GTS needed a liter every 3 months:confused:
Oh well, I just LOVE my X;)

Good point. I also noticed with my 2003 that it turned out to be about every nine months.:thumbup:

I don't think so....not if you want the engine to last a long time. I would change it every 7,500 miles

Oil usage
 

Just returned from a 5005 mile trip across the mid west to and thru the front range of the Rockies. When I left, there were 1865 mi. on the clock, and I had carefully broken in the engine, as I have with all my cars. That consisted of no more than 3000 revs for the first 500 mi, then no more than 3500 up to 1000 mi. Then, an oil change to clean out the break-in oil.

My trip consisted of apx. 4200 miles at 70-75 actual mph on interstates and the balance in/up/down the Rocky mountains. Passing interstate traffic at up to 90 mph, and up to 90 on some of the high mountain passes . . ., so I ran the thing fairly hard. My engine used ONE QUART for the full 5005 mi. Personally, I think that's da-- good. I firmly believe the secret is in the break-in. I've followed the same break-in rules for 40 years, now, and have never had an oil burner.

Those who burn even a quart in 1000 have two problems: 1) poor break-in, and 2) running up to 5000-5500 rpm on every shift.

These engines are as good or better than any built, and if you're getting poor oil mileage, it's because of these two possible problems.

I change oil every 7500 mi., and have never had a problem with my Bride's 330 or my previous 3.0 X5, now totalled.

Good luck, all, with your rigs. My own opinion is that this is a phenomenal car!! and it meets all my expectations.

I took today my mom's X to the dealer to get 2 qts of oil added, cuz the X was super low on oil. They said that is because the x was purchased on february and to date it has done 11,750 miles and that the oil goes depending on gas consumption and the way you drive it.. they say it is just normal

Interesting. I bought mine in June 06' and have 8000mi now. Not really driving it that hard. Average 75mph on 20 min drive to work. Sometimes I high reve because of hesitation problem. Abought a 30min drive to work, mostly highway.:thumbup: