Burning Oil

[VAZX5]

[b]BURNING OIL EVERY 3-4K MILES, AT LEAST 1 QT. IS THIS NORMAL?
I'M TAKING THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP THIS WEEK TO HAVE THEM ANALIZE THE PROBLEM.

[BMW-X5]

That's not normal. Mine burns 1/2 a qt every 5-6K

[jcogardner]

Mine does the same thing. '01 X5 3.0i and it burns about a quart of oil every 3-4k miles. I took it to my dealer and they found a small oil leak in the head gasket, replaced that and it still loses oil at the same rate. I took it back and they told me it was within BMW spechs for it to use 1 qt every 3k miles. I bought a case of the BMW synthetic it takes and now check my oil level every month.

The really frustrating thing is that the service interval is only saying to change the oil about once a year for me. So if the spech is to use that much oil, wouldn't you think BMW would have the oil changed more often!! I first discovered the problem when my oil light came on about 2 months after an oil change. When I checked the level it didn't even register on the dipstick and I put 2 whole quarts in it.

I have read many forums with people having this problem, so I'm assuming it's normal, but certainly not what I would have expected on a $50k automobile from BMW...

[jternel]

Originally Posted by VAZX5

[b]BURNING OIL EVERY 3-4K MILES, AT LEAST 1 QT. IS THIS NORMAL?
I'M TAKING THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP THIS WEEK TO HAVE THEM ANALIZE THE PROBLEM.

I had the same problem several years ago with another car. I gave up listening to the dealers BS. I researched additive products; copper and teflon etc. and ended up trying the Slick 50 80,000 mile treatment.

I got some pretty good results with it. The oil problem was cured and the engine was more responsive. That would be because the compression increased. Any scoring in the cylinder walls would have been filled with teflon. I also noticed that the car took longer to warm up on a cold day, probably because of the friction reducing characteristics of Teflon.

What really annoys me about car manufacturers is that they say you can't use additional additives and it voids your warranty if it does. They are more worried about their future sales of parts $$$$$$.

In Aus we have another product called Nulon. They also have a similar product to Slick 50. It's supposed to be better from a bonding process. I've used the Nulon 80,000 mile treatment in my wife's 99 318i. I did an oil change and added the treatment. I'd always recommend an oil change when adding the product. Keeps everything nice and clean. Anyway, I did the treatment two years ago. Her BM has used no oil and runs perfectly.

I'll be treating my new X5 diesel when she's done 6,000 miles.

I've also used the Nulon in a 15 year old 4 stroke mower (Briggs and Stratton). She used to blow smoke every time it started. After a treatment with Nulon, she blew hardly any smoke. After about 6 weeks I did another oil change and gave it another Nulon treatment. Guess what; no smoke after the second treatment. The engine also ran cooler and the compression was definitely improved.

I now treat all four stroke engines (when run in) with Nulon 80,000 mile treatments. It's good preventative maintenance.

To do an oil change on your X5 is pretty easy. You'll need an 8 liter oil catch container and a 36mm socket to remove the oil filter housing. Warm engine to normal operating temperature, un-do the sump plug let all oil drain into container remove filter housing, discard filter and o rings, install new o rings and reinstall housing. Don't over tighten as it is plastic and install sump plug with the new supplied copper gasket. Then fill with new oil, yours takes around 7 liters, add 6.5 liters, start engine, ensure oil light goes out, let engine run to normal temperature, shake Teflon additive, stop engine add treatment, then go for a ½ h drive. You’re now done.

You'll need to wait for about 1000 - 3000 km’s and you'll start to se some real benefits.

Check out the following websites:-
http://www.nulon.com.au
http://www.slick50.com


Hope the advice helps

[uthayan]

Originally Posted by jternel

I had the same problem several years ago with another car. I gave up listening to the dealers BS. I researched additive products; copper and teflon etc. and ended up trying the Slick 50 80,000 mile treatment.

I got some pretty good results with it. The oil problem was cured and the engine was more responsive. That would be because the compression increased. Any scoring in the cylinder walls would have been filled with teflon. I also noticed that the car took longer to warm up on a cold day, probably because of the friction reducing characteristics of Teflon.

What really annoys me about car manufacturers is that they say you can't use additional additives and it voids your warranty if it does. They are more worried about their future sales of parts $$$$$$.

In Aus we have another product called Nulon. They also have a similar product to Slick 50. It's supposed to be better from a bonding process. I've used the Nulon 80,000 mile treatment in my wife's 99 318i. I did an oil change and added the treatment. I'd always recommend an oil change when adding the product. Keeps everything nice and clean. Anyway, I did the treatment two years ago. Her BM has used no oil and runs perfectly.

I'll be treating my new X5 diesel when she's done 6,000 miles.

I've also used the Nulon in a 15 year old 4 stroke mower (Briggs and Stratton). She used to blow smoke every time it started. After a treatment with Nulon, she blew hardly any smoke. After about 6 weeks I did another oil change and gave it another Nulon treatment. Guess what; no smoke after the second treatment. The engine also ran cooler and the compression was definitely improved.

I now treat all four stroke engines (when run in) with Nulon 80,000 mile treatments. It's good preventative maintenance.

To do an oil change on your X5 is pretty easy. You'll need an 8 liter oil catch container and a 36mm socket to remove the oil filter housing. Warm engine to normal operating temperature, un-do the sump plug let all oil drain into container remove filter housing, discard filter and o rings, install new o rings and reinstall housing. Don't over tighten as it is plastic and install sump plug with the new supplied copper gasket. Then fill with new oil, yours takes around 7 liters, add 6.5 liters, start engine, ensure oil light goes out, let engine run to normal temperature, shake Teflon additive, stop engine add treatment, then go for a ½ h drive. You’re now done.

You'll need to wait for about 1000 - 3000 km’s and you'll start to se some real benefits.

Check out the following websites:-
http://www.nulon.com.au
http://www.slick50.com


Hope the advice helps

I had the same problem with my x5 3.0. Thank you for your advise. I am going to try it.

[BAVARIANM]

Sounds like the oil seperator is faulty. They've had lots of problems with them

[TommyP]

I am happy to find this thread. I have a 2001 3.01 X5. We are burning a quart about every 1500 miles. I don't know where it is going. The dealer in Arlington VA is giving me the runaround. My rant is that a car this expensive ought not to have oil burning issues. None of my cars have ever had an issue like this except for an old Rambler station wagon that had a cracked block. The dealer is telling me that an acceptable level of oil burn is a quart 1000 miles. Do you BELIEVE THAT???

I am going to try the Slick 50 for synthetic oils and I hope this helps
Thanks for the help

[pbv]

my 04 X5 is the 4.4 but in 57K miles i haven't added a drop. it goes about 18K between changes (based on the service monitor) and i check it once a month or so. yes, i think 18K is too long between changes but it's a business car and will be traded in soon.

[ADSX501]

I Have the same problem on my truck 4.4 01
with tons of other problems
already changed the tranny, water pump, left axle and shit load of other stuff
i question BMW truck making.
dealer says its common for these trucks to burn oil
its bullshit ask any technician
i think theres a defect in the motor and BMW DOESNT WANT TO ACKNOWLEDGE IT.

[cannotoutrunme]

My oldest auto has never used any oil . None of my

vehicles

have. I use nothing but

syntec

oil , the oil is still clean at my 25,ooo oil changes I do and the oil is somewhat dark never blank. The

viscosity

is only 30 percent lower then when it was put in.