My 3rd JCW but the first one without a dip stick. Still a little confused about reading this. I see this as a little low. Am I right?

 

You're perfect! Spot on.

 

three are two notches. One right after the low and one right before the high which it appears your level is at. If the level is before the low notch the level is low. If it is above the high notch it is over filled. Anywhere in between you are good. Your level is perfect.

 

Thank you both. Think I got it now. Modern improvments just keep coming. Actually not a bad way to go. JCW...The only way to go!

 

Any idea what that distance between low and high represents, quantity-wise? Are you, say, a quart low overall when at the low line? That was what used to be the standard low mark on a dipstick. I'd now have to add a couple ounces at a time and see where things moved to. I haven't found anything in the manual than defines this. They tell you not to add too much or run with too little. It alludes to the fact that the low indicator may mean you're down a quart when they tell you "never to add more than a quart", but never say specifically that's what the low mark defines.

Give me back my dipstick!!!!

 

+1
Another in the long line of 'Just because you can doesn't really mean you should' items. How reliable is the oil level sensor and how will the owner know when it crapps out?

 

I suppose you can say that you should keep your eye on the "low oil indicator when it comes up in front of you. Never thought about the computer display going south on you. Sure miss that dip stick though. Seemed to work for Mini for years before. Maybe a Mini tech could weigh in.

 

I think it's a great idea. I know, it get it, many older car people check their oil. I rarely ever do because the car didn't burn oil so I wasn't in the habit of checking it, and my 2007 MCS wouldn't warn me when it was low. One time I added about 2 quarts and there was no warning. I'm sure the F56 will warn you right away, which is a good thing IMO. Same with the tire thing. Sure it's a PIA to put air in it if it's 4-5 lbs low, but it's better than driving on the freeway in Phoenix at 115 degrees at 90 mph with a low tire. I never check my stinking tires unless the light goes on. And it does go on every month or so, same tire every time, it's at about 31 lbs.

 

Treat it like a percentage meter, closer you are to 100% the better. Once you get to around 40% time to start thinking of an oil change. My GMC fullsize had this type of meter as well. Makes timing your oil change maintenance easier as you can just take a peek and not bother with the dipstick.

 

That is not an oil life meter. You should never purposely run your car low on oil. If it ever gets below 100% full, then oil should be added immediately.

 

My guess would be the difference between the two lines is a liter, which was how BMW measured it on my last car. Prior to that, I had an AMG, also without dipstick, but there was a mode you could trick it into that showed you the oil level in liters. Since that car burned a bit of oil, i was always topping it off.

 

All you have to do is read car forums for a leisure activity and count on your fingers and toes the number of things that 'go south' on man made machines. I swear this stroke of genius will come back to haunt 'em eventually.

 

When a red low oil light illuminates in your MINI, it really doesn't mean your oil level is low, it means your bank account is about to become very low. It takes less than a minute to pop the bonnet and check the oil and coolant and not more than two minutes to check tire pressures. It's a small price to pay weekly to ensure your $30K plus MINI doesn't put your net worth in the minus column.

 

Good one Buzzsaw...very true. Never overlook it..

 

You can't pop the bonnet to check thei oil level on the F56.

 

Whether one pops the bonnet and visually observes the oil on the dip stick or pushes a button in the cockpit and relies on an electronic sensor, frequent validation of the engine oil level by any means is not a bad plan to preclude a sudden drain on the one's checking account. In this case an ounce of prevention is worth more than ten pounds of cure.

 

What he said. And like I said before my R56 was 2 quarts low on oil one time and there was no warning of any kind on the display. It just started burning oil after I'd had it for 4-5 years. I got lazy because it had never needed oil before and I got it changed every year.

 

And that is the crux of my entire objection to this idiocy. Had your engine seized up what recourse would be available? The manufacturer more than likely would disclaim any responsibility. They really need to re-think this 'no dipstick' bidness. It might be worth your time to let them, at least your local dealer, know how close you came to engine failure.

 

A similar thing happened to me on my 2008 MINI Cooper S...at around 35,000 miles it started drinking oil. The first indication (of a problem) was a Check Engine Light due to low oil. Prior to that I never needed to add any oil...i just did the oil changes as required. I got lazy as well.

By the time I offloaded my 2008 S model at 75,000 miles it was a heavy oil drinker. And the stock dipstick was junk.

I'm very happy that my 2015 MINI doesn't have a dipstick.

 

But I say...give me a dipstick that actually works. The stock dipstick the on N14 was junk...I could not trust it. That is why the dipstick is gone.

 

To add some perspective to what you've said here, I changed my oil this weekend. In the twenty or so minutes it took me to drain the crankcase, replace the filter and put oil back in, the engine had cooled sufficiently for it to take roughly 8 minutes to come back up to a temperature where it WOULD run the test. Given that just pulling and checking a dipstick would take far less than the two minutes even you're allowing, it's going to take somewhere in the neighborhood of 7 minutes for you to now find out if you did or didn't put enough oil in your crankcase!

I know I'm an old fart, but if that's progress - I can live without it.

 

If I said it once, I've said it dozens of times bring back the dip stick so we don"t have to go through conversation. If it ain't broke...don't fix it.


2015 JCW
2015 Audi Q7.

 

Anyone remember the uproar when cars starting coming with fuel gauges instead of a wooden stick?

Ok, I'll admit the process for checking the oil level on the F56 is seemingly arbitrary and inconvenient. Chances are this is an evolving technology and future designs will be quicker or instant.

For now, the "utter inconvenience" of having to click a button every thousand miles or so after parking the car will have to suffice. Complaining about it isn't going to fix anything.

 

Thinking about the way you put it you're probably right. Improvement is always on the move..Good and bad I guess. Just wish it showed high and low in simpler terms. I'm 65 and a hard core car guy from the beginning. Guess guys like me don't like change. I would just like to look aty display and see a line or whatever that indicates I'm a little low or too high. Also let me know how low or hogh. To me the dispatcher is a little confusing. Then again it will take more than this way of checking oil to get me to change my car choice. I guess we've beat this horse to death. Just going to look for the "low oil" warning on the console. If I didn't love my Mini I wouldn't be on my 3rd JCW. Thanks

 

Thinking about the way you put it you're probably right. Improvement is always on the move..Good and bad I guess. Just wish it showed high and low in simpler terms. I'm 65 and a hard core car guy from the beginning. Guess guys like me don't like change. I would just like to look aty display and see a line or whatever that indicates I'm a little low or too high. Also let me know how low or hogh. To me the display is a little confusing. Then again it will take more than this way of checking oil to get me to change my car choice. I guess we've beat this horse to death. Just going to look for the "low oil" warning on the console. If I didn't love my Mini I wouldn't be on my 3rd JCW. Thanks