When I purchased my 05' MCS about three weeks ago I discovered that the dipstick was broken. I then went to Autozone and put a new OEM dipstick on order. Today (Less than two weeks after I bought the part) I discovered that the dipstick was broken in three places, and that the bottom third was stuck in the tube. Keep in mind that I put oil on the dipstick and tip and the O-rings before I installed it, and that I was very gentle. My question is, is it safe to drive? I was planning on doing a bunch of front end maintenance (SC Oil Change, Pulley Swap, Ect.) and upgrades within about two weeks but I could have the parts here for next weekend. My question is, is it safe to drive the car for the next week before I can take off the dipstick tube and take out the broken off piece?

 

You are a taking a chance.

I've had the pan off - it's not a bad job. Remove lower motor mount and the AC compressor mounts, the big bolts going into the tranny then the mess of little bolts. You would need a new gasket.

Anyway, the tube ends 2-3 inches above the bottom of the pan. If you think the broken piece is 6 inches than it should stay put. If it's more like 4 inches, then I'd guess it could wiggle free and could get into something.

The oil pump pickup has a fine screen on it, so don't worry about that.

But, it could get tangled or jammed into the crank somehow.

 

I will measure how it broke off tomorrow, maybe I need to put an oil pan gasket on order depending in the results.

 

Sorry to hear about that. Hopefully it broke because the previous owner checked the oil as frequently as they should have been.

 

Oh I should have made it more clear in my original post, the dipstick that broke again was the one I just bought two weeks ago.

 

The new one breaking alarms me. Was it a new dealer part? Maybe the dipstick tube has been damaged or crimped. Worth checking carefully. Probably used ones are available for a reasonable price from a wrecker or Way Motor works (he stocks some used parts).

 

The OEM stick isn't a good design. Found mine cracked last month and while expensive, bought a Cravenspeed dip stick. Don't have to deal with that issue anymore.

 

I understand a bad design causing a dipstick to break after 5 or 10 years - still entirely unacceptable - but 2 weeks? It seems like something else is going on - maybe a cheap aftermarket unit or a damaged guide tube or ??

 

I will take a closer look at the guide tube, but it was smooth going in and doesn't appear to be bent. The replacement from autozone wasn't OEM BMW, of course I found that out after I had paid for it. The person on the phone said it would be OEM, and the one I got was from some no name brand.

 

 

Hope you can appreciate a little humor.

Wanted to point out this guy had a method to get his out with a modified grabber tool.

http://www.mini2.com/forum/first-generation-faults-fixes/172232-how-can-i-get-my-broken-dip-stick-out-no-rude-comments.html#/forumsite/20499/topics/172232

 

I tried the grabber tool method at first but it was too far in there. Managed to get it out without dropping the oil pan since I was already doing supercharger service and took the dipstick tube out. There was just enough snapped off to rest on the bottom of the oil pan and not have it poke out of the hole, just ended up grabbing it with some needle nose. I have the cravenspeed dipstick waiting to go in so that this won't be an issue in the future.

 

Glad it all worked out.