I bought a 07 S about 4 months ago, it had 57k miles, now 59k. I checked the oil when I bought it and it was up to the top mark, now its at the bottom mark so I either need to add a quart or change it. I called the dealer to find out what brand of oil they used but got no where. I'm wondering if they even used synthetic, if they didn't perhaps thats why its burning so much. they are a legit dealer not some little place so not sure why they wouldn't.

 

It's perfectly normal for you to burn through a quart of oil every 1500 miles, mine burns half a quart more than yours in 2000 miles. Check your oil every other gas up because running low for even a short time is no good for the engine, these turbo Mini's run pretty hot! Mobil 1 full synthetic 5W-30 is recommended.

 

Not to be an *** but I find it unexceptable to have a modern car with low to mid range miles burning oil that fast. I have a truck with 270k, does not burn oil. Had a Dodge Magnum with 5.7, when I sold it at 134k it did not burn oil.

 

Not a performance vehicle though.

 

Not a direct injection motor. That 5.7 motor wasn't made by Peugeot

I hear what you are saying. But it is the reality of the car. And it is in the stated specs of MINI, so unless your consumption is outside that spec, I don't think there is much that can be done.

 

Well it sounds like I need to watch the oil rather closely. Just seems silly. This is not 1975 anymore. You would think tech today would good enough to burn a little less oil in such short time spans.

 

Any turbo models over an extended period of time(MINIs 50k miles), burn a bit more oil than usual.

I've experienced that with almost every turbo car I've owned.

Sadly enough, my '11 MCS burns now half a quart and I do oil changes at every 5k miles.

 

I also consider it unacceptable to burn a quart per 1K miles. My '07 S doesn't.
I also have a 5.7 LT4 in my 17 year old Vette that I consider a "high performance" motor that burns no oil. Granted, it's not made by Peugeot. :-)
And, what does direct injection have to do with burning oil? The only motors I've ever seen that were designed to burn oil were 2 strokes. I am admittedly new to Minis, but not to high performance vehicles, so if my reasoning is off, please enlighten me. I am trying to learn about these strange little cars.
The Mobil 1 that is recommended for our cars is 0W40, not 5W30.

 

thanks. which oil filter is recommended?

 

The oil burning seems pretty idiosyncratic - some cars burn more than others. I check my oil regularly, and have never needed to top up my 55k R56s between 5k changes.

 

I'm changing my oil every 5000 miles using Castrol Edge (Syntec) 5W-30 and a
Wix oil filter (57512). I go through about a quart during that time. If you look at the area around the dipstick, you'll see "Castrol" stamped in the metal.

The MINI branded oil and filter really aren't that expensive, but it seemed like the oil burned off quicker than the Castrol. And it's a long slog to the local MINI dealership. The nice thing about the Castrol that you can buy a five quart bottle on sale at O'Reillys, Autozone or Walmart. That's just enough for the oil change.

 

thanks, have you tried mobil 1? if so, does it burn more or less than castrol?

 

I use Mobil 1 for my truck and my wife's car. I've only ever used MINI brand or Castrol in my MINI. Plenty of NAM members use Mobil 1. It's dirt cheap at Costco and Walmart.

 

It's not a matter of having high performance engines as many cars with high performance engine don't burn nearly as much oil. It's just something I attribute to bring a mini "thing". Just keep an eye on it and have a spare quart on hand.

I've heard this happen on some BMWs too. The turbo and low tolerance requires a thin oil.... Thin oil finds places in the engine without low tolerance and seeps out or burns off. Ever notice how all turbo mini coopers have black soot on their tailpipes? That soot is not from gas.

 

Consult the OM for oil recommendations. Last I read the only Mobil 1 that was allowed is the 0-40 euro formula. My current manual for my '10 is different than that I recall for my '09 where it only stated 4 oils and the spec required (LL-01, If I recall correctly). So it appears as if my current manual now allows more oils to be used and doesn't list the LL-01, just the API SM or higher if adding 1 quart or less.

 

people need to stop spreading the "normal to burn oil" rumor for minis - unless you're running the car pretty damn hard (track, not 5s pull onto the highway) you should not be burning a significant amount of oil. that much oil that fast, something is wrong. i had a 420whp evo 9 with upgraded turbo, yada yada, i never burned a drop. don't listen to the manufacturer - any provision they put in is to cover their *** so they don't have to fix it

 

Do they burn that much oil on supercharged engines as well? MCS '05...

 

Depends....
I have owned my car since new...
Broke in the motor long and slow...
Has NEVER burned oil (have added maybe 2 quarts in 1/4 quart does with 7500 mile oil changes for a weeping cps gasket in the last 2 years or so..)..i do sense a common thread...many who broke in their engines like "they stole it" or "have a warrenty" seem to end up burning oil...
Some cars, and more mini's in general, Do use a bit of oil....
Important thing is...know YOUR CAR.

 

I think the most important thing is to check your oil regularly. Oil burning is a vicious cycle: The more you burn, the more you will burn (That's assuming that the burned oil is not replenished). For those of us who buy pre-owned MINIs, the previous service history will be a determining factor in the engine's oil usage. By which I mean that if the car has only had its oil changed when the OBC called for service, it's more likely to burn oil. In my experience, a car with more frequent oil changes will burn less oil. All in all, though, one quart in 2K miles isn't bad at all. As ZippyNH said above, the most important thing is to become familiar with your car's patterns.

 

I would really like to see some data that correlates oil change frequency with the likelihood of burning oil and the quantity of burned oil.

 

What I find confusing is that unlike most common problems on cars, no one has pin pointed the cause of the high oil consumption on Mini Coopers. Is it the piston seals? The Turbo? If so many of us are burning oil, why haven't we been able to find out from where?

 

It's not fair to compare non-like items. Doesn't matter that your EVO didn't burn oil. Nor does it matter that my Scion doesn't consume oil either.

The question at hand is whether or not a MINI "consumes" oil?

Answer: The manufacturer tells you it is normal for the car to consume a certain amount of oil in normal operation. So it is not a rumor.

My 09 fJCW is a stock, no tune, daily driver with 109k miles and a 60 mile commute daily. I don't track it, I don't drive it that hard, and yes it consumes oil within spec.

I had the carbon buildup cleaned at 100k miles and while I had buildup, it wasn't as bad as the tech had seen on cars with half the mileage. Is there a point to this? No. It is just that my usage, driving style, etc is perhaps different than others.

My turbo failed at about 104k. The turbo had coked the oil and the turbine shaft seal was sloppy from wear allowing oil to seep from the turbine chamber to both the cold air side, the intercooler, and the catalytic converter. The cat was clogged with oil as was the intercooler so they were also replaced. If your car runs rich, mine does, it also contributes to oil consumption.

The N14 motor is known for consuming oil. Can you mitigate it by driving differently, perhaps.

The best advice here is, Check your oil frequently and Know your Car and driving style. Top it off when needed. Change your oil more frequently than recommended and enjoy the car.

 

^ that doesn't mean that, by design, it consumes oil. it's not an rx7.

By design, it shouldn't consume oil. And like I said, manufacturer provisions are there to cover their asses. I bet most performance car manufacturers have a provision for oil consumption, just in case. For the turbo Minis, it's probably got a lot to do with owners letting carbon build up causing issues/wear/damage, I don't know. One of these days you guys with significant oil consumption should tear down the engine and see exactly what the issue is.

 

and just to be clear, we're not talking about nominal amounts of oil here - the guys that pop up are losing a solid quart every couple thousand miles.. that's different from half a qt or less every 5k+ miles

 

trying to figure out what oil to use. I guess it doesn't matter much cause mobil 1 says to use 0W-40. the mini manual says to use 5w-30 or 5w-40. the only 5w-40 oil i see on mobil 1 website is Mobil 1 ESP Formula M 5W-40

mini manual says to only use oils with the API SH specification but I don't see that spec on any of the mobil 1 oils.