IS-SV

Agreed, IMHO adding oil every 1K is not acceptable, regardless of the boilerplate crap written in the manual.

But aren't we talking about OP's oil usage of 1 quart in 6K miles on a brand new BMW?

TCM55

Since you asked in particular about the IS-F, neither my F or CL-S (105,000 mi) burns any noticeable oil between changes.

I will ask my cousin about his M3 next time I talk to him, but I don't recall him mentioning any oil being consumed.

mmarshall

What kind of suspension noises are you talking about? Thumping over bumps? Squeaks? Rattles? A rattling noise in motion or over bumps often means a strut/shock tower not bolted down enough (I've actually seen that on brand-new cars). Sometimes "suspension" noises actually originate in the steering rack, not the suspension itself (many older GM cars had that problem). And, especially wth stiffly-sprung vehicles like the M3 with low-profile tires, tire harshness over bumps can also sometimes be mistaken for suspension noise. Last, it is is normal for some cars to have suspension noises, such as with Hyundais and Kias (that's just thw way they work over bumps)....though I can't necesssarliy say that that's the case with an M3. The brand-new M3 I reviewed in the spring of 2008 did not, to my memory, have any significant suspension noises outside of some tire thump/harshness.

I8ABMR

some lil consumption is normal but I am not comfortable with the fact that its at the point where the light on the dash is coming on. My worked G35 with 120 K on it used to use oil at the same rate. I would check on a BMW forum to see what other BMW drivers are getting with their 7k mile intervals

mmarshall

If your engine has 120K miles on it, try using the special high-mileage oil. If you use the same factory-recommend viscosity in an old engine as you do in a fairly new one, you are likely to get low oil pressure....and the dash light flickering on and off, especially at idle with the engine warm. That is because the worn piston rings, bearings, and valve-seals in an old engine allow some of the oil pressure to leak past the worn clearances (particularly when the engine is warm), lowering oil pressure and causing some of the oil to get used or burned up. The high-mileage oil has a higher (thicker) viscosity, a slower rate of flow, and different addititives than regular oil....this helps to lessen the rates of leaking/oil consumption, and to increase oil pressure.

spwolf

if the engine spends oil, it spends oil. It might spend 1.3l qt per 5000 miles for him, at the same time, for heavier drivers that drive their cars faster and use them in harder manner, it will spend more oil. It will also spend more oil as time goes by.

As I said before, we had situation in Europe with diesel engines - basically the engine was designed as such, and there was no malfunctioning there. Low friction engine designed for minimal fuel consumption together with low friction oil. We would take it apart, and engine that spends 3qt per 5000 miles would look like brand new inside even after 50,000 miles. Out of >250 people with similar powertrain, we had less than 10 people that complained about oil light turning blinking before their 10k service interval. It turned out to be an issue when someone drives hard, in lover gears, either on hwy or city. It was completly unacceptable, and Toyota spent a lot of money to fix the issue (some people had 3 engines replaced). 3rd revision is now not spending enough oil to turn on the oil lamp even for heaviest/sportiest/craziest of drivers for 10k miles. New engines coming out of factory are not spending any at all anymore.

So honestly, despite the experience that hurt the Toyota dealers, and the fact that it would be easier for me to say otherwise, i feel that unless you are racing your car on the track, there is no way you should be adding oil to your engine on regular basis and accepting this as normal. I call that lazy, bad, horrible design.

Just think of it in this way - would you purchase the vehicle where your car salesman tells you that you need to check your oil level and add more if needed, after every 1000 miles? I would not, even if it is Toyota/Lexus.

toy4two

oil consumption in new cars is typical, give it at least 10,000 miles.

Och

iTrader: (3)

The engine's cylinders are probably out of round, quite typical for M cars.

TJW98LS

iTrader: (1)

80 grand for that? Wow, and here I thought about buying an M. I guess I'll just keep with the AMG.

lexusscturbo

iTrader: (12)

When I drove an s2k and GSR they did burn a bit of oil if I was driving them in VTEC, the rear bumper would usually have oil overspray on it as well. My friends who owned white ones the bumpers would be stained yellow .

splitfire

iTrader: (6)

my old 996TT burn oil, about 1-1.5 quart every couple thousand miles.. it is common with Porsche..

xHartawann

iTrader: (2)

I had to fill up 1Q in the past 10k on the X5 4.8

STIG

Really? My 4.8 did not burn any. That's why I was surprised to see this on the M3.

STIG

I also read about that too. GT3 is also known to drink oil like a fat girl too.

STIG

To be honest, I can live with filling up a qt every 6k miles if this is within the manufacturing spec. I love my M, and I guess all the high performance cars have their fair share of problems. I really don't think AMGs are any better when it comes to reliability records.