You will have to excuse me, I'm a BMW person. We don't know what a dipstick is. I have also experienced very little oil consumption in my 2006 325i E90, my 2007 x3 or my departed 2008 335i coupe. I think the 06 was a half quart down at 15000 miles since its last change.
So the new MINI owner checks his oil dipstick at 3500 miles and is amazed.
1) my dipstick ain't like the one in the manual. It ain't got the two little round marks meaning full or a quart down. WTF????
2) if i can see what's showing, I may be a half quart down or so. I don't see smoke out the back, but my nice exhaust tips stay sooty. Is this normal??
3) I do a bit of real 80 mph cruising at least twice a month(yes , an indicated 83 mph). Is this bad for my MINI??

Are MINIs oil burners? What is considered normal oil consumption?

 

I doubt you're any burning oil. I added a half quart when I checked it at around 3000 miles. I didn't check the level when I brought it home, but I suspect it was probably a little low even then. Bottom line, unless someone else chimes in with contrary advice, I wouldn't waste a moment worrying about it.

 

Based on posts, it seems "normal" oil consumption for MINIs is pretty much all over the place. Best advice is to just check it on a regular basis and top off if necessary.

If you think the usage is excessive, could always discuss with your SA, though I suspect the answer is going to be "normal" for a small, 4-cyl, turbocharged engine.

 

1. The dipstick is stupid... or at least on the '09 model. Good luck figuring yours out if different.
2. The black soot on the exhaust is normal, or a 'quirk' or some other cutesy trait that looks like crap and is difficult to clean off. You get used to it.
3. 80+ mph is no problem for the car, but may be for the authorities. I do (close to) that roughly 1200 miles a week on mine and it has 75,000 miles on it with no major issues. I am not condoning speeding (site rules) but VA and WV have 70 mph speed limits and I have found there is a reasonable tolerance.

As for oil usage, as someone else said, it can vary. Mine goes 6000 miles without any measurable usage, at which point I change it.

 

Oh, and does your manual state that the dipstick indicates a quart down at the bottom mark or just that it's low? I believe the marks just indicate the normal fill range. As long as the oil is between the marks it is normal. If above the top mark, too full... below the bottom mark... too low.

 

5.5K miles on my '11 with one oil change at 1400 miles. Just finished 1600 miles of spirited motoring over four days and have seen no appreciable oil usage since the change -- perhaps 1 mm down on the dipstick over those 4K miles but no more. Hope it stays that way.

The inside of the exhaust tips get a bit sooty but mine easily wipe clean with a wet cloth and chrome polish. Always look good as new after detailing.

The little "nubs" on the business end of your circa-2011 dipstick are the high and low marks (what 009 said...). It's a bit different design than the earlier 2nd Gen.

 

Im going to change my oil ever 5000 miles on my mini just to keep things fresh i also drive kind of heavy and take my baby on manny trips to the near mtns 8)

 

Changed mine at 5K and am now at 6k. Have not needed to add oil since then. I did have to add some before then, around 2.5k. Possibly not quite full from the factory, dealer gave me a quart on them.

 

Make it a habit to always check your oil. My car burns about a quart of oil every 1500 miles. My SA said that it's normal for these cars to burn 1 quart every 750 miles. At least in my case, the high consumption of oil has contributed to the timing chain rattle. Make sure you check it because I was denied the parts and labor warranty because I didn't check the oil which was about 3 quarts low after about 4 months of driving. My SA said that the engine ran hot which caused the timing chain to expand and now it rattles when it's cold. Now I don't have a warranty to fix this and it's about $1,600. I always reset my odometer when I change/refill my oil so I know when to look at it.

 

I have never heard of a relatively new car burning a quart of oil every 750 miles. My last car did not burn even a half quart in the 65K or so miles I owned it. I changed the oil as recommended and checked it pretty often and it was never low even one single time.

I'd expect something like a 1972 pinto to burn that much oil but a recent model car? No way.

 

We just got rid of a 2006 Chrysler T&C that was going through about a quart every 1,000 miles. Had three different mechanics check it and never could find any leaks. According to Chrysler, that was considered within the "normal" range.

 

Actually most cars burn the most oil during the first 2-3k miles during the break-in period and then they settle down until they reach the end of the engine life and start burning oil again. Mine burned about half a quart during break-in and it's been fine since.

 

Dont buy a E46 or E90/92/93 M3. Those suckers burn oil like its nothing. BMW states is normal to burn around 1q per 1k.

 

Dealer add 1/2 qrt when we were in for the chrome scoop fix at 5,000 miles. Seems to still be using the same as I added some myself at 10,000 miles.

I find it best to check the oil with a cold engine before driving it. Some on here swear by the roll-your-stick-on-a-napkin method when it's hot.

 

I have an '11 JCW and I just picked mine up from the dealer on a small repair. I asked about the dipstick too and it seems the 2011 dipsticks are different from the ones shown in the manual. (it shows the two ***** for measuring)

Basically, the depressed area between the top and bottom measures about 1 quart. I was 1/2 quart low and it lined up pretty much half way down within that area. The tech said to check often and not overfill.

 

To add oil to the fire here, My mechanic- who races an R53- says that synthetic oil doesn't smoke when it "burns". He says it leaves a sooty residue ala tailpipe soot. I'm just the messenger here.

 

Thanks Ords. You answered my dipstick question. I didn't add quite a half quart of 0-40W Castrol and it looked OK by the dipstick. If enough folks said the MCS were oil burners, I would switch to old school Castrol that smelled lovely when emitted from the exhaust by vintage machines. If you are going to burn it, you might as well enjoy it.

 

The dealer just changed the oil for my MINI's annual oil change/inspection. I had 6400 miles on it. At 5000 miles I added a quart, the dipstick showed full when I brought it in, so it probably used more oil when the engine was breaking in. I have an oil catch can on my MINI's engine and I have collected about 4 oz of oil in that, over the last year.

I bought an extra quart of oil while I was at the dealer, before I left. The Service Associate commented that a quart in 6400 miles was real good for an S.

Dave