Assistance - coolant-oil issue

[Bonaparte]

Hello bimmerfans,

Running into a small little issue that I'm hoping one of you can assist with. I have a 2004 325i, great car - love it. However, i've been loosing coolant - with little traces of leak - over the last couple of weeks.. seems to just disappear

Somebody suggested I check my oil for traces of coolant - so I grabbed the stick and nothing really in there.. but, when I removed the cap.. there seemed to be a yellowish cream on the bottom of the cap and the edges - but nothing inside (or that I can see anyway).

Motor heat goes right in the middle when normal driving or idling but as soon as I turn on the heater for the cabin, motor heat goes down to a 1/4.

I've twice added coolant in the last week and half.. everything seems to be driving fine..except for the heat... and my coolant that is disapearing, with very little trace of it on my driveway (few little spots but nothing major)

Believe it's coolant leaking into the oil.. any advice on the reason for that (if it is that) - head gasket cracked? (got that changed like 3 years ago.. should still be good)?

Any advice would certainly be welcome. Much appreciated.

Cheers.

[Lord Vader]

Welcome to Bimmerwerkz.

Coolant loss with no noticable leaks is generally atribbuted to a head gasket leak. When checking your oil you want to look for a milky brown color. Like what coffee looks like with cream added. Other signs include white smoke and an odour of coolant coming out of the tailpipe.

Has the car overheated recenently? The engine temp can stay within normal range even though you are loosing coolant. The best test to tell if it actually is a blown HG is to have a compression test done.