M4 Oil Issue

[Crispy0001]

Hi everyone,

New to the forum and to owning an M car in general.

Apologies for the long read in advance..

I picked up 2014 M4 this Friday and I am having an issue with the digital engine oil reading that is making me paranoid.

The car had an oil change the day before I picked it up from an authorised dealer.

This weekend I went on a road trip and just before I left I measured the oil at operating temp on a flat surface, it was just under MAX.

After driving around 60Miles and getting to the first destination I measured it again and it was just above MIN, I found this very strange but thought it may just be down to spirited driving etc so I let it sit for around 45mins and then measured again, I was a bit shocked when the reading came back just above MIN again.

I didn't know what to think and I got really paranoid and topped up with around 300ml. After doing the reading again it was exactly on MAX point.

We then drove another 60miles roughly and again I checked the oil. This time it came back midway between MIN AND MAX. At this point alarm bells starting ringing.

After this we went to our next destination another 40miles away roughly, read the oil, was between MIN and MAX again.

Then drove another 60miles back home and the reading was on MAX.

At this point it was loosing my mind, so I left the car until today.

Today I let the car warm up for a good 20mins, done an oil reading and it was on MAX.

I drove the car around 10miles and done another reading at the petrol station, it was a bit below the MAX point.

At this stage I do not know what to think, I'm also getting paranoid thinking it's a faulty sensor and the 300ml of oil I added is too much if im getting dodgey readings.

I also read that it could be a valve cover gasket, had the hood open for a good 20mins but could not spot any leaks or funny smells.
Also did not notice any white smoke or anything.

I spoke to the dealer also and he said it could be after the oil change and I shouldn't be worried unless the low oil light comes on.

Any ideas or am I just being paranoid?

[Slowphiveo]

Could be the sensor. After a good drive, put some cardboard under the engine when you park it and see if you get any drips on the cardboard after a few hours sitting.

[bsmf8x]

I had a slight valve cover gasket leak/weep
that the dealer saw during maintenance that didn't throw any codes or lights. Might be that. This is a picture of what the dealer sent me. Part was $600 + labor I didn't pAy for it though this was on dealer receipt via warranty

[Crispy0001]

Thanks for the responses.

Any tips that I can check in the engine bay for oil leaks also?

[hC1001]

Originally Posted by Crispy0001

Thanks for the responses.

Any tips that I can check in the engine bay for oil leaks also?

Your better off taking off the belly pan to check for leaks or collected oil dripping down.

[Crispy0001]

Bit of an update..

So i checked the obvious place for oil leaks such as the gasket around the oil filter and also the valve cover gasket and there was no signs of any oil seeping out.

I did however find some oil around a small tube that connects to the air hose filter. What can that be? Pic below..

[uncle ben]

Maybe a leaking turbo?

[Kilabyte]

I miss the dipstick. All of those fluctuations and you're reading Max at the end? Easiest thing is to drain the oil and see what you get.

[Crispy0001]

Originally Posted by Kilabyte

I miss the dipstick. All of those fluctuations and you're reading Max at the end? Easiest thing is to drain the oil and see what you get.

Tell me about it.

So frustrating relying on a electronic sensor that could be faulty.

I think you're right, best idea is to drain the oil and see how much is in there.

[FatHulk]

Originally Posted by Kilabyte

I miss the dipstick. All of those fluctuations and you're reading Max at the end? Easiest thing is to drain the oil and see what you get.

Miss the dipstick as well!

[Tacoma]

OK, so you filled up to MAX, drove 100 miles and it went to midway between MAX and MIN and then you drove another 60 miles and it went back up to MAX. Is this correct?

If so, then my amateur 2 cents is it looks like some kind of a sensor problem or an issue with the oil check function. If you were leaking or excessively burning oil, then the oil level would keep going down, not go back up again.

[Bunnny]

Perhaps you're losing oil pressure?
It sounds like the sensor is reading but maybe its getting splash back instead of suction.
Could be a bad oil pump, or they might not have put enough oil in. I too would drain it & see how much. There needs to be a bit more usually put in to account for the oil filter housing.

[Crispy0001]

UPDATE:
Took the car in today, they drained all the oil out, luckily the car just had an oil change before I picked it up so they knew how much oil was in the engine. After draining the oil they told me that it has not lost any oil.

They also ran a diagnostic on the sensor but nothing showed up.

They said to me that it might just be a case of the sensor not reading correctly at times.

They assured me there is nothing to worry about and if i get any low oil pressure or low oil codes then to bring it straight back.

At this point I do not know how to feel about this, on the one hand I am glad it is not loosing any oil but there is no clear answer as to why the oil sensor is coming back with random readings..

[forgemarco]

Originally Posted by Crispy0001

UPDATE:
Took the car in today, they drained all the oil out, luckily the car just had an oil change before I picked it up so they knew how much oil was in the engine. After draining the oil they told me that it has not lost any oil.

They also ran a diagnostic on the sensor but nothing showed up.

They said to me that it might just be a case of the sensor not reading correctly at times.

They assured me there is nothing to worry about and if i get any low oil pressure or low oil codes then to bring it straight back.

At this point I do not know how to feel about this, on the one hand I am glad it is not loosing any oil but there is no clear answer as to why the oil sensor is coming back with random readings..

You did say you added 300 though so has that burnt off already?

[Crispy0001]

Originally Posted by forgemarco

You did say you added 300 though so has that burnt off already?

No, we also considered that when draining the oil

[F82///M]

The only suggestion I have is not to check oil level that frequently, you're stressing yourself with all those readings. If it ends up at minimum it'll let you know to add 1 liter which is quantity required to get from min to max. It'll happen during the drive, without manually starting the level check. If it happens don't add full liter, sometimes 0.5L is good enough to reach max.

In the end sounds like a sensor having bad moments. Vehicle doesn't have to sit perfectly level, I did it sitting on sidehill just for fun and it still had the same reading as it was on the level ground, probably because it keeps reading the level while it's driving as well.

[Poiseuille]

Dipstick: "miss me yet?"