2002 BMW 525i Burning Oil - BMW Forum

Harlen'W · 10-11-2006, 05:27 PM

Hello,

I was wondering if maybe someone here can shed some light on this. My car has 80,000KM on it and i generally baby it. I do take it to red line on occasion but not often. The oil light comes on every 1,200km or so based on the above driving conditions, and .5L of oil must be added. This doesn't make sense to me although BMW said its within standard. I really don't want to have to invest 6,000 to tear down the motor and discover that there is no problem, and my warranty will not cover it. If some one can perhaps confirm that the 2.5L I6 burns more oil than any other motor except a rotary then i will believe its ok. Otherwise there must be something seriously wrong here.

Thanks,

Harlen

Halvard · 10-16-2006, 02:48 PM

seems a bit much to me. My 1998 528 hardly burn any oil at all. My mate got a 1998 520I and he refills oil now and then, but motor is running fine otherwise.

Harlen'W · 10-19-2006, 02:32 PM

thanks, but the problem has seemed to progress. the other day i had the heating on just slightly. I left the car running on the driveway for maybe 10 min and the car was over heating. I know its not a good idea to leave the car just ideling but 10 min is not that long, and it is rare when i do this.

jnstrcklnd · 10-19-2006, 02:36 PM

Head Gasket???

Harlen'W · 10-19-2006, 02:39 PM

I doubt it. I cannot be certain though. The car went through the regular dealer service and all the fluids were changed. One thing is they said i should change the engine coolant because it was not done. Could this be it?

sp0rky · 10-19-2006, 02:59 PM

Do you have an oil leak??
That is kind of unusual.

Harlen'W · 10-19-2006, 03:09 PM

Well BMW said that they need to inspect it. On my driveway there is never any oil on the floor and the car sits there all the time. So i dont understand where these issues are coming from.

sp0rky · 10-19-2006, 04:41 PM

How about in the morning when you start it? Does it blow smoke?
That would be an indicator of worn valve seals and would be a cause that isn't TOO serious.

If its losing enough oil to turn the light on between a standard oil change, something is VERY wrong. It typically takes many high mileage e39s 10 - 12k miles to burn enough oil off for the light to come on.

on the other side of things... maybe the sensor is bad, too.. because .5 qts low won't turn the oil light on. Thats typically 1 - 1.5 qts low.

Harlen'W · 10-19-2006, 05:50 PM

When i start the car in the morning there isnt any smoke, unless its cold out. It sometimes has a strange idle sound, almost like a diesel motor until the engine warms up. A BMW mechanic advised it was normal after listening to it so i can only hope he was correct. I do however know something IS wrong with this car and prey its not serious. I had a 01 Prelude SE 5SP and maintained that vehicle perfectly, just like this one. Difference is the Prelude saw 8K RPM frequently and how that car burned far less oil than the straight 6 2.5L is beyond me. When the oil light came on the vehicle was down maybe .5L, again BMW advised this is due to it being the mark, and the sensor is just picking up on it slightly. Thats why it goes on and off. (The light is yellow btw, and not red. It only comes on after turning the vehicle off and not during operation.)

I dont know, im dumbfounded.

used:

npnp · 11-17-2006, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harlen'W

I do however know something IS wrong with this car and prey its not serious.

trade it before it becomes serious and you have to spend a bundle to fix it !