Hello everyone!

New member and co-owner of my wife's 2012 R59 Roadster.

I hate to ask such a noob question but I searched and didn't find the answer:

Is there a low oil light on my Mini? (not that I don't check the oil often).

I went all through the owner's manual and checked every dash board light in the car and didn't see one!

Please tell me BMW didn't only supply a Washer Fluid warning light and not an Oil Level warning light.

Thanks!
=Dan

 

It would most likely be a warning light displayed on the small rectangular display which is used exactly for that purpose (to show various warning light)

If you check the manual, and as part of the warnings, there is an "engine oil pressure too low" warning which is likely to be triggered if the oil level is too low.

page 192
http://www.miniusa.com/content/dam/m...2_ue__2012.pdf

 

There's no oil level warning light. You need to check it yourself. There is a low oil pressure warning, but you really don't want to see that one.

 

Ya, its low pressure and when its that low , its very low.

You will have to check the dipstick.

 

Thanks for the link to the manual. I don't have a paper copy since this car is used.

I had looked up the manual online and I just realized I was using the wrong one! That's the correct manual for our car and I see the warning light.

 

Great , do you have the light ? I hope not.

 

A failed oil filter will also cause low oil pressure.

When was your last oil change, and did you use an OE filter?

Oil changes are highly recommended every 5k miles, not the dealer schedule of 10k miles.

 

Since our car was bought new, and it is on its last leg of the free maintenance program, I've been going by the car own service schedule (apparently adjusted based on how the car is driven). So far it has been around 8,000 miles, sometime a little more.

My other car I've owned for over 10 years now, and for which I've started to do my own oil change, has always been on a 5,000 miles schedule.

Once the free maintenance runs out I was planning to go back to a 5,000 miles schedule (out of habits, skepticism, wanting to make sure the car run well for a long time, as I did with my other car). But more and more I'm being told that the modern oils are engineered to last much longer and it is a bit wasteful to change the oil every 5,000 miles.

So I'd be happy to hear what the truce is in all this?

 

I always done the 5-7500K and I am 260K on the Gen 1 2005, with the old MINI OEM Castrol stuff, now the new MINI OEM shell Oil. Maybe i could have went longer on the oil. But shorter changes also helps you check things out sooner , more often , so It comes with more times to inspect the car in general. Which on gen 2 MINI in the N14 engine , which likes to consume oil. Its a oil check also and refill.

 

The oils aren't the problem, it's the size of the filter. The OE filter is the best on the market for the car, and almost every car that I see with an aftermarket filter it is starting to collapse and fail.

The OE filter has the best pleat design which provides you with the most surface area compared to all aftermarket options.

 

No, no oil light. Just wanted to be sure there was at least the usual low pressure light which there is.

These turbo engines seem to run hot!

I plugged in my Veepeak dongle and ran OBD fusion today and went out on the highway.

Engine temp hit 103 C.

Is that normal? My E46 never goes over 96 or so.

 

I can easily imagine 7° difference is quite negligible.

 

I follow the schedule maintenance ........10K. No need to do more as daily driver. I check once at 8K and I topped less than half a quart.

There is no drama with oil here.

I also believe it is a waste of money at less than OEM maintenance specs.