Oil Pressure Light

[mikedrose]

I bought a 330CI three months ago. 53,000 miles. Car is in great shape. This morning I was setting out on a trip and the oil pressure light went on. Returned home, checked the oil, and it was a little below the minimum. Two questions. One, I am guessing that if I add oil, things will be okay. Second, should I expect this particular engine to burn some oil, and if so, how often should one check oil between recommended 15,000 mile oil changes? (The monitor on the dash indicated that I had 9,000 miles to go before an oil change, although it had been a year since the previous owner had changed the oil.) Thanks. This is a great site that offers a lot of help to a lot of BMW owners.

 

[plyubich]

Oil Light

The 3-series models are know to burn some oil. You must understand that you bmw has a high performance engine, even though it might not be an M series. The car will burn some oil eventually, sometimes faster if driving more rough. I get the light the first week i bought the car and freaked out, and after talking to a mechanic at the bmw dealership, I found out that this condition is very normal for the 3-series. I usually check to oil level every 2-3k miles. Nothing to worry here, just buy some oil and at most you might have to fill 1 quart between oil changes.