I just bought a 2003 copperS yesterday and decided to check the oil today and guess what---I pull out the dip stick and voila the bottom half is not there. I have never in 55 years of being around vehicles have I ever heard let alone seen a broken oil dip stick, is this a mini problem???

 

Yes; get a Craven replacement.

 

Yup...
The fiberglass and plastic tends to fail (often at the joint where they meet)....new OEM or a cravenspeed is the fix.

 

You can get the OEM or the flexible model:

http://new.minimania.com/Search_Results/dip%20stick/All

http://new.minimania.com/part/NME7678/

http://new.minimania.com/part/NME730...2-R53-Cooper-S

Drive Hard. Drive Safe. Keep Grinning.

 

Don't get another oem, I did and it broke again. Cravenspeed now, it's weird but works.

 

I decided to "upgrade" but then got a defective CravenSpeed unit which I found intolerable at that price point (they did give a prompt refund).

I find the dipstick tube bends a lot and you can feel the handle twisting as it goes in and out. I let it twist as it goes and haven't broken one. New dealer units are around $20.

 

+1 on the twist, removing and inserting the dipstick seems to be a multi step process. If I remember correctly, it does a quarter twist at two different points. I also try to keep the o-rings lubed at the handle to keep the dipstick from sticking and requiring a lot of force to remove.