Add 1 Quart of oil or change oil completely?

[AMG_LAWL]

Hey! Checkin in! So I went down to my local bavarian auto shop and they checked my oil, they said its in decent condition and all I need is a quart.. But I told them I need an oil change so he quoted me 180 bucks with the filter.. smh. Im not going through BMW because they said they won't change my oil because its "not time yet".. so ya!

Thanks for all the help dudes!

[Ashley Schaeffer BMW]

I would go off what your oil indicator says and not what most ppl on here say. You'll be swapping your rod bearings every other oil change if you listen to 90% of this forum.

[Edward]

Originally Posted by Ashley Schaeffer BMW

I would go off what your oil indicator says and not what most ppl on here say. You'll be swapping your rod bearings every other oil change if you listen to 90% of this forum.

Better than a rod through the block.

[jester17]

RELATED ISSUE: So I had an oil change about 1,500 mi ago. I take the car away from the shop and the oil sensor registers at the FULL mark. I drive for awhile, recheck just for peace of mind... and it's down about 1/10th of an inch; "No big deal, that's the oil moving through engine, getting spread out," say to myself. But being a bit obsessive about this kind of thing, I buy a L of 10W-60, and when I get home I put in about a cup's worth. Next day, no change in the oil level. I call the tech. who tells me that as long as it's between the two lines, it's fine. But again, being obsessive -- and wanting it to read at the FULL level -- I add another cup. Nothing changes. Over the next two weeks I do this every so often until I've added 1/2 L. No changes in the sensor reading... but I stop adding, as I don't want to over-add, and hey -- it's just a half-litre, and the sensor is still reading about 1/10th below full... so I get over my anal retentiveness, and enjoy the car.

Then this afternoon, all of the sudden the oil sensor tells me it's overfilled. Interestingly, in the 'Vehicle System' indicator of the iDrive system, it isn't giving me the "Oil is overfilled... do not drive!" warning, but the oil sensor is registering that the level is higher than max.

So what's your opinion: I say it's not a big enough deal to worry about, and that after a few good, hard drives it'll even out.

Your thoughts?

[serranot]

Originally Posted by jester17

RELATED ISSUE: So I had an oil change about 1,500 mi ago. I take the car away from the shop and the oil sensor registers at the FULL mark. I drive for awhile, recheck just for peace of mind... and it's down about 1/10th of an inch; "No big deal, that's the oil moving through engine, getting spread out," say to myself. But being a bit obsessive about this kind of thing, I buy a L of 10W-60, and when I get home I put in about a cup's worth. Next day, no change in the oil level. I call the tech. who tells me that as long as it's between the two lines, it's fine. But again, being obsessive -- and wanting it to read at the FULL level -- I add another cup. Nothing changes. Over the next two weeks I do this every so often until I've added 1/2 L. No changes in the sensor reading... but I stop adding, as I don't want to over-add, and hey -- it's just a half-litre, and the sensor is still reading about 1/10th below full... so I get over my anal retentiveness, and enjoy the car.

Then this afternoon, all of the sudden the oil sensor tells me it's overfilled. Interestingly, in the 'Vehicle System' indicator of the iDrive system, it isn't giving me the "Oil is overfilled... do not drive!" warning, but the oil sensor is registering that the level is higher than max.

So what's your opinion: I say it's not a big enough deal to worry about, and that after a few good, hard drives it'll even out.

Your thoughts?

You overfilled it. Drain a bit and recheck. And then see someone about the OCD. If it's between full and fill its fine.

[jester17]

What's weird, though, is I haven't added anything in about a week, and have been checking the level each time I drive -- then all of the sudden, today, it reads overfilled. Never read as if it registered any addition, then boom -- all of the sudden, it's overfilled. And, when the dealer changed the oil some time ago, and overfilled it, I got the "Oil Overfilled -- Do Not Drive!" warning, but this time, no warning...?

[DSilk]

If the oil is at the proper level the reading should say "OK". If it says "FULL" don't add any more. There is already too much (albeit generally not enough to cause damage).

[Z K]

Originally Posted by jester17

What's weird, though, is I haven't added anything in about a week, and have been checking the level each time I drive -- then all of the sudden, today, it reads overfilled. Never read as if it registered any addition, then boom -- all of the sudden, it's overfilled. And, when the dealer changed the oil some time ago, and overfilled it, I got the "Oil Overfilled -- Do Not Drive!" warning, but this time, no warning...?

The oil reading is not accurate. It takes many miles and many reads to get an accurate reading. The best thing is if you've added oil, don't add any more until you read it many times. The sensor seems to do a "average" level so it is never accurate on the first couple of reads.

Dealer has some tool that resets the reading and does a new read. When you normally read it, it doesn't do that.

[Thik]

Add 8.8L of oil after draining it and call it a day. It's impossible to over or under fill no matter what the computer says.

As your topping up, only add oil when the computer indicates +1L. Then you add 0.5L. Otherwise you are going to over fill it.

[Flying Ace]

Put down the bottle down.

Stop adding oil, if you're just 1 or 2 notches below max, you're at danger of overfilling if you keep adding at the rate you were doing.

Remember, that level indicator tells you the level at the final bottle level, not the overall oil system level. Given the time it takes for the indicator to re-adjust, your method is likely going to result in an overfill, which will cause damage and is a headache to correct. Plus, at your current level and anywhere in between the min and max line, the system is not "low on oil".

[jester17]

Put the bottle down... indeed!

Just drained about 3-4 cups.

Thanks, all!

[ResoKP]

Originally Posted by jester17

-- and wanting it to read at the FULL level

Right there is your problem. You're not understanding the concept. There's no such thing as a perfect oil level. It's supposed to be a range between the fill & full mark.

Think back to the traditional dip stick. There's two holes, lower and higher one to indicate minimum and maximum. Did you always fill your oil until it reaches to top hole? I bet you didn't. It's the same indicators in the M3, except that it's digital..