Anyway...lol I just got the new dipstick from Craven Speed yesterday. I'll put it in and report back.

Just for reference, with my 2010 MCS. It doesn't matter what I do, or when I check, or how many times I pull and clean it. It's impossible to get any kind of accurate reading.
It is a crappy design.

My E36 M3 is a straight shot into the pan. The wife's old Mazda 3, same thing, her new KIA Sportage SX AWD turbo, same thing. Straight into the pan, no convoluted torture path... The Mini is a complete failure.

 

^ Yes...please post about the Craven Dipstick. I have an 09 MCS and they don't have a dipstick available for it yet. As soon as it's available, though, I'm jumping on it. This business with not knowing the oil level is garbage.

 

@OceanMini2 - Thank you for the detailed illustrations in your 1-10-12 posting. However, the necessity for this level of detail to check the oil justgoes to prove the insanity of the whole thing. There are at least a couple of threads on here talking about class action suits for various things, but this may be a situation in which damages can be proven. I've read many postings from people with blown engines and destroyed turbos due to lack of oil and most of them talk about how they checked the oil and according to the Mickey Mouse dipstick, it looked fine. I see on this thread where someone got the Craven after market dipstick, so apparently it's now available. I'm going to get one, but it's gonna frost my butt that I have to spend $75 to correct a serious design flaw that MINI refuses to address.

@richardsperry - Please let us know how the Craven dipstick works and whether it's worth buying. Thanks!

 

Yes, it is nuts.

 

After I posted earlier, I found that Craven only has the new dipstick for Gen 1's. Website says Gen 2 is coming.

 

I've got no idea what engine the new dipstick is for, all I do know is it doesn't fit in the N14 tube.

I went out yesterday to try it, and the think will not do in the tube. Ok... I says to meself, Hummm Self...... I look at the old stick, compare to new, the new one is twice as thick on the pointy end. SO I send a email to Craven and asked for clarification.

I does look nicely made. Oh and I made it very clear that I had a 2010 MCS with the N14 before I placed my preorder, plus they should know what car I have from my previous orders and my profile on the account.

 

The first time I checked my oil the dipstick made perfect sense to me, which is hopefully not because I am a 'dipstick'. The graduated middle part with the texture is designed to make synthetic oil easier to see. Seemed logical to me.

While our Mini's usually tell us when to change it, you should check it once a week.

 

It is not all that easy to see clean oil on the stick but I get that the oil is supposed sit someplace between the bumps in the textured part of the dipstick. The tricky part is the upper ball and how it fails the reading because of the tube design. When you pull the dipstick out the oil on the tip transfers to the inner walls of tube over the entire length. The oil in the tube sticks to the inside curved shaft walls. When you reinsert the stick the oil covers the dipstick. When you look at the dipstick, after removing it the second time, the top part (ball) of the dipstick tip has oil on it even if the oil is low. The reading gets very strange when the motor is .4 quarts low. It is possible to see the stick with full coverage and even make you believe the motor is over full.

 

The traditional location for the oil dipstick is in the center of the motor. The Mini S has a turbo located in the center and they found it necessary to move the dipstick to the "front" (looks like the passenger side) of the motor. This makes it necessary to check your oil on very level ground to avoid miss readings. Note how the traditional motor's dipstick (located in the center) has very consistent readings but the Mini R56 motor has a large swing when the motor is not level.

 

I'm another one. I can change heads, clutchs, swap motors and rear gears in cars, but I am unable to read the oil dipstick in my wifes new 2011 MINI Cooper S. I came here searching and found the threads. What a load of bull. How do you screw up designing AN OIL DIPSTICK?

What burns me is, I've read all the threads where MINI has denied warranty coverage because at some point the car was brought in for service, and a note was made in the file saying, "Car was low on oil". Well....when you can't CHECK the oil level because of your poorly designed dipstick, that can happen! OH, and showing one dipstick in the owners manual and using a different one in the car helps too. Wow. Anyway, thanks for all the photos and info guys.

 

I got the CravenSpeed dipstick for my 2009 MCS. It's very flexible--springy, actually. I'll let you know how it works out. Fits nicely, though, although my original was yellow and this one's red. *shrug* Typically good communication and shipping from Craven, though. I have a Flexpod GPS mount from them and I like it a lot.

 

Excellent. I will probably get an aftermarket dipstick, and then follow your suggestions. Many thanks.

 

Guys, don't waste your money on an aftermarket dipstick.

To get an accurate reading of oil the level try this:
1. Level ground
2. Warm engine.
3. Shut down.
4. Wait 5 minutes.
5. Dipstick out & wipe.
6. Reinsert dipstick.
7. Dipstick out.
8. On your workbench you will have laid out a clean lint-free white terrycloth. Lay the dipstick down horizontally on the cloth. Lightly press down on the dipstick an inch or two above the 'oil full' nub. The oil that has gathered on the ribs of the dipstick (it will be a substantial amount) will absorb readily into the cloth. From that, you will be able to easily determine the oil level.

 

Charlie Brown, it isn't a waste of money if you use it all the time, and it works easier for you. It's fine to suggest other methods, but saying that we are 'wasting our money' is just an opinion.

After all, anything that we buy for our cars that isn't strictly functional could be considered a waste of money by someone. Like, you know... stripes and seat covers and good looking shift *****.

If the aftermarket dipstick saves you time and hassle, can be read anywhere (like, in a gas station while pumping gas, on a long trip) and won't break off inside of your channel and fall into your oil pan (yes, it happens... search the forum) then it is a worthwhile purchase if that is what the buyer wants.

Not sure if your method works, considering that it is the dragging of oil through the channel by the lower bulb, that confuses the reading... but if people want to use it, great! If people want to buy the aftermarket dipstick and not have to mess with it, they can do that. If people want to file down their dipstick and put indents into it, go for it. We all get to do our own thing.

 

I've had two MINIs (an '11 and a '13) and dealt with the OEM dipstick just fine on both of them, but I finally broke down recently and gave the CravenSpeed solution a go.

Their dipstick really does make life a whole lot easier...and like all of the other items I've ordered from Kellen and the boys in Portland, the quality is top shelf. I'm happy with the investment.

 

Seems to be a number of endorsements of the CravenSpeed dipstick solution. Perhaps MINI should have contracted them to supply the dipsticks - would have saved MINI owners a lot of consternation. Eventually, I might even order one . . . once I get the cold start issue solved!