the dealer stressed to me to "always keep the oil at the FULL mark" ie top of the dipstick

but coming from an aviation background, i was skeptical

example:

a continental IO-520 (520 cubic inches, 285 HP) engine holds 12 quarts of oil

if it is filled to 12 quarts, it will consume 2-3 quarts in an hour of running

if then refilled to 12 quarts, it will again consume 2-3 quarts in an hour

HOWEVER, if left at 9 to 10 quarts (where ever it settles after an hour or so of running) most will not burn any more than 1 quart in 10 to 25 hours, i have seen them go 50 hours without adding oil! (50 hours is the standard oil change interval if equipped with an oil filter)

on my mini, i did not add oil, just monitored the level carefully

the level dropped from full to slightly over half (say 5/8) in the first 100 miles and has remained there since

i now have 1500 miles and am going to change the oil and filter

i will fill to the full mark, but am pretty sure it will rapidly fall to the same place, 5/8 up from low to full, and stay there

in aviation, every engine series seems to have it's own natural level for the oil, and anything over that level quickly gets consumed

i have found the same to be true in cars and motorcycles

my 1974 bmw r60/6 (120K miles of experience) runs 3/4 qt down from full

my 1987 BMW k75s (also 120K miles of experience) (bored to 852, with many mods, 125 wheel hp, up from 55 wheel hp stock) runs 1/2 quart down from full

my 1997 GMC sonoma 4.3 V6 4x4 (287K miles experience) runs 1 quart low, right at the add mark

i seldom, if ever, add oil between changes on any of the above, the exception being the k75s will burn oil at a track day, but then it is running continuously above 8000 rpm with the throttle mostly WFO

i expect i will find the same on my countryman s all4, that it's level is 5/8 of the way up from the low mark on the dipstick and it will not consume oil if left at that level

NOW THE MAIN POINT:

MOST OF THE OIL OVER THE "NATURAL LEVEL" IS NOT BURNED, BUT IS VENTED OUT THE PVC SYSTEM WHERE IT LANDS ON THE INTAKE VALVE IN OUR MINIS, LEADING TO THE CRUDE BUILDUP

Scott

 

You know, I never heard or thought of this before, but it seems logical. Thank you for the great post!

 

+1!

 

Good post. If oil level is too high, it will be whipped up into a froth of fine particles, and ingested via the ventilation system.

My car was delivered with oil level at about 2/3 between marks (really hard to see with new oil). It has stabilized at about 1/2 after 1800 miles. There is no reason to add oil unless it gets below the LOW mark on dipstick. There is a safety margin even at this low level.

 

I would actually keep an eye on the oi. level. I was casually checking my S All4 the other day @4.5K miles and my oil level was well below minimum.

 

update:

i changed oil at 1500 miles, carfully filled to the full mark

within 150 miles, the level was back to just over 1/2, now at 4500 miles, the oil level is still at just over 1/2 and this oil/filter change (at 4500 miles) i will be filling to 1/2, not full

next oil change will be on mini, and i am going to ask them to only fill to 1/2 instead of full

my dad also bought an all4 after 3 rides in mine, and his also has settled at 1/2 qt low

scott

 

I'm not sure how much this experience in oil level vs. oil burn noted in the GA piston engines carries over to cars. GA engines are entirely different beasts.

I suspect there might be some correlation between higher oil level and higher oil consumption in our Mini engines, but I doubt it is a strong correlation. I've not noted any change in how much oil mine consumes over the period between oil changes - it moves more/less linearily from full to the add mark over the change interval. If you note huge drops from full after an oil change, I'd tend to attribute this more to having to run the car a while for it to "settle" and get an accurate read. (Of course, you always are going to note a drop in level if you measure it before you run the engine with a new filter.)

So I'd say this is something worth playing with, but I wouldn't have high expectations that you can magically reduce your oil consumption dramatically simply by running the level lower.

- Mark

 

I checked my oil level at 100mi. (its not even a wk old), it was 1/2 way up the red dipstick area. I checked it like 10x to be sure. (follwed the manual instructions too) checked level aprox 5 mins after shutting down a fully warmed engine(after driving).
it was the same 1/2 way which equals to about 1/2 a Litre.
I topped off to the full mark(adding slowly & rechecking). Rewarming/drive & rechecking levels after a few mins.

So, this week I went on a 600mi road trip. I checked the levels after a 30 mins drive this morning & its right where I topped off.
This only leads me to think the factory/dealer did not top off, or it burned a 1/2 a qt/L in 100mi?

* I also noticed my average trip MPG went from 25 to 27mpg.

 

i went to my mini dealer today for "free carwash saturday" and it was very slow in the service dept

so i had a chance to talk to a mechanic, not a Service Advisor

i told him my theory about oil level and my experience with my vehicles and in aviation

he said "the lower and upper marks on the dipstick show the acceptable and normal oil levels ... we do not recommend adding oil until the level drops to or below the lower mark"

he also recommended that if the oil level is stable at half, to only fill it to that level at oil/filter changes and that i should state to fill to half when i bring it in for my "free" oil/filter service

the last thing he said was "if you fill it to full and it quickly returns to half and stays there, THE HALF QUART IS GOING THRU THE PVC SYSTEM AND WILL CARBON UP THE INTAKE VALVES"

so don't listen to your Salesperson or Service Advisor, go talk to a mechanic

scott

on a side note, my first oil change per the OBC is now due at 8,300 miles, down from 9,000 miles when the car was new

i mentioned that to the mechanic and his reply was to smile and say "i see you are enjoying the turbo" and went on to say that was normal, nothing to be alarmed about, it is just the computer responding to how i drive the car

 

Also, a nice even 4 quarts after an oil/filter change will take you to the halfway mark. More efficient that way I think.

 

If I am topping off my oil between oil changes, what oil should I pick up from the gas station or auto store? Also, I have 4500 miles on my 2012 CMA4 and am wondering if I should pay for an oil change as I am not due for my 1st Mini covered oil change until October. Thoughts?

 

Your manual lists the oils approved (other than MINI oil):
Long-life rating LL-01 Approved Synthetic Oils for the US Market
- Castrol Syntec European Formula SAE 0W-30
- Mobil 1 SAE 0W-40
- Pennzoil Platinum European Formula Ultra SAE 5W-30
- Valvoline SynPower SAE 5W-30

I will be having my CM's oil changed at about 1/2 of the official interval for my car, or 1 year.

 

Just fyi, Pennzoil has changed their formula. The 5w30 is no longer LL01 certified, but the 5w40 is.

 

Lubro Moly 5/30 is also LL-01 BMW approved. I topped off mine with this...@ 100mi :(

 

An early oil change is good, specially after the break-in period. For topping off just buy an extra quart of whatever oil they will use at the service center and keep it in your garage. It isn't advisable to mix oils.

 

The dealer gave me a quart free to top off between changes, might be worth asking.

My car lost ~1/2 quart in the first couple thousand miles. I topped off and it was still full when I got my yearly service at ~9000 miles.

My intervals are 15,000 miles per the computer, so I guess I'm not driving it as hard as some of you.

 

Where'd you hear this? Almost without exception, all oils are completely compatible with one another and you can mix as you like, with quality and viscosity being more/less the average of the mix.

- Mark

 

at 100mi I topped off w/ aprox 1/2L.
Not sure if it was delivered this way)low) or it consumed it in 100mi.
Today at just over 1000mi I checked it again. it was at the same 3/4 mark/area on the dip stick (which is really difficult to read BTW) (*maybe when it gets a tad dirtier it will be easier to gauge?)
I did not top off again.
So, I will chk again in 500mi to see if its lower or the same. If its the same @2000mi, then I may top off again to see what happenes, or I may just check every 500mi to see if this is the 'natural' level or if its a new turbo motor just consuming some oil. I know the vw 1.8T engines no matter what the milage tend to consume 1L every ~2K. its the nature of the beast.

 

i have now changed my oil twice

first time, i filled to the "full" mark, after running the engine to fill the filter, within 300 miles, oil level was at "half" and stayed there until the second oil change, 3500 miles later

second change i filled to "half" after running the engine to fill the filter and so far the oil level has not changed in 1500 miles, it is still at "half"

next change, at 8100 miles per the OBC, will be done at the dealer ... the OBC started at 9000 miles and is now saying 8100 miles ...

at this rate, the extended maintenance program will be a real bargin ... 12 oil chanes @ $90.88 = $1090 against the cost of the plan, plus the OBC says front pads at 21,000 miles and rear at 25,000, brake fluid at 2 years (so i'll get 3 of them)

btw, i got a craven dipstick, best bang/$ i have spent on a motor vehicle ...

to check oil level, remove dipstick, wipe dipstick, reinsert dipstick, remove dipstick and read it, no guessing, no squinting, no getting the angle just right ... just like a "normal" car

scott

 

Hi Scott

I'm also a pilot and was Wondering about oil level. Thanks for bringing it up. I have also noted that breakin has a lot to do with oil consumption in aviation engines. Do you have an opinion on the right way to break in a mini. I have the base engine.

Thanks.

Jon

 

hi Jon

i broke mine in using a lot of full throttle acceleration but kept the rpm under 4500 per the manual

i varied the rpm every few minutes either by changing speed or changing gear ... no cruise control during breakin

after 1200 miles i went for a couple hundred mile drive on back roads and over the first 50 miles kept bumping max rpm in small steps til finally hitting the 6500 max rpm ... the rest of the drive was mostly 1st thru 3rd gear and mostly above 4000 rpm again varing the engine speed between 4000 and 6500 and lots of full throttle

then at 1500 miles i changed oil and filter

i now have almost 5500 miles on the mini and am getting excellant gas mileage, over 32 overall with a high of 41+ on a 411 mile interstate run on cruise at 55 mph and another 200 mile interstate run at 65 mph yielded 38+ mpg

also no oil consumption noted as long as the oil level is at half

scott