So this was annoying...

Was driving to a friends yesterday who lives about 60 miles away. As I am about 5 miles from his house a warning light came on and through the iDrive it tells me that my oil level is at the minimum and I should add a quart. I find this strange as it reported it was close to the max level the other day and the oil was changed when I bought the car 2 weeks ago.

Regardless, I figured I should play it safe and find a autoparts store and a grab a quart. Unfortunately, I come to find out no one carries the Castrol 10W60 they require.

I get the car to my friends and I call BMW roadside assistance and they said I could use Castrol 5W40 if I am in a bind. I called around and found a autoparts store that had that nearby. When I fire the car up and drive there I figure I would check to see if the oil level changed again. Low and behold, car has no warning and it says the oil level is close to the max, just like the other day...

I decided to grab the 5W40 just in case, but car was fine on the drive home. Gonna take it into the dealer tomorrow. Thinking it might be a glitchy sensor.

Best is that this whole ordeal could have been circumvented with a damn dip stick.

It also seems like I should keep a quart of the "hard to find" 10W60 in the trunk...

 

Theres no dipstick on these cars?

 

Yep, special oil on M cars. I always had 2 liters of the Castrol 10w60 in my trunk when I had the M5 (burned a liter about every three months); picked them up at the dealer's parts department.

Nope. Electronic only.

 

Careful though, if it says you need a quart then do not put a quart in. You will overfill.

Pour in little at a time and drive around for awhile before putting more in.

Shit sucks.

 

Good to know... Thanks guys!

It's just weird that after letting the car sit for about a hour last night and driving again the oil level was fine. Engine was still a little warm and after driving a few miles, it recalculated and claimed the level was close to the Max. Maybe it got a bad reading and latched a fault?

I haven't driven it today, I am going to run a quick errand nearby and see if it still reads fine. Taking it to the dealer tomorrow morning regardless.

 

I dont think it can do a correct reading till the car is up to temp, think that takes 10-15miles.

I forget, its in the manual.

 

Really thinking about a Cinnamon interior for the M3. The black leather is going to need refinished pretty soon anyway, so I may just change it.

 

Dealer checked it out and ran the 1200 mile service, as they weren't sure if it was performed. They think the sensor is fine, oil levels were good. They claimed it could have been a bit of condensation which would mess up the reading.

Glad to have it checked out regardless. I took ttribes advice and grabbed two extra bottles of 10W60 to keep in the trunk for emergencies...

 

Cinnamon looks great on the E46. Very nice contrast.

 

The mechanical stuff is FINALLY done!

Just some cosmetic stuff to do and then it is finally done for a while.

Glad that is over

 

Its never over if you own an E36.

 

 

Didnt want to get his hopes up..

 

Haha, I hear you man. But for the first time in the 18 months I've had it, the car doesn't need anything mechanically. It runs great, drives great ...

But I know that at some point it's going to need something but it's got a recently replaced clutch, all new suspension, new cooling system, all new pullies, new A/C, new alternator, new battery, valve cover, new exhaust ...

My guess would be if something were to go up that's painful it's the heater core.

That said, I'm going to enjoy the fact it's not fleecing my bank account for as long as I can

 

I just test drove a new x1. Starting to look at potential replacements for the Prius when the lease is up next year.

I went with the base engine the TT 4 cyl x28 model. It is nice enough. solid. feel good. Its not very high off the ground, feels very sedan-ish.

It drives well enough, much like any bimmer. With all the new tech and nanny systems I dont think I'll ever get that magical bimmer feeling about the way it drives that I did with my old e28 or even the e39 I'd driven a couple times. Steering is tight, suspension is tight, etc. Its a nice drive.

The engine/trans set up is decent. In D mode its probably like driving the Prius but a little "jerky" due to feeling the gears shift...once you're at speed its much quicker. Put the car in DS mode and the car is much more aggressive and nicer to drive...though worse on gas. Push the ECO PRO button and the car is worse than the Prius...like scary worse.

Space wise....for a car that is a little larger than the Prius it has less internal room/storage through out the entire car. Which is what I was afraid of...and kind of a bummer. The hatch is even more narrow.

I entertained this one because I know my wife has always wanted a bimmer...but even she was kinda meh on it.

Its a nice car...but the x28 form is meh...and I wouldn't want to shell out what the upgrade to the x35 would cost.

There was a new black M5 sitting in the showroom

 

I think the 328 wagon has more room than the x1 maybe??? What about the X3?

 

X3 is more than I want to spend on a lease and honestly isnt much larger. Didn't think to check the wagon...we were looking at things with higher ride height...of which the x1 really doesn't.

I'm going to wait for the diesel jeep grand cherokee next jan and see how the price that. Hopefully, I can get the wife excited on that...right now, the idea of looking at cars irritates her which annoys the shit out of me. And the car is really for her as she drives the Prius.

 

Take a look at the new X1. It was spacious and looked pretty nice.

 

for real newbie....read....

 

 

Window came off the guide and got jammed. Have to take the door apart.

Got one perfect day with it.

Why?! Whyyyyyyyiiiieeee!!!!

 

I hate to say it, but I think that car hates you.

 

Feels like it. Rubber seal is bad on the window, got hung up, window jumped, blammo.

Just complaining and I'm sure that is annoying for everyone else. My bad :/

 

It's a car enthusiast site; we all praise, and complain about, our cars. No big deal.

 

Thats what I call one smart car!

 

That was too soon even for me.

Im painting the baby room in BMW's Interlagos Blue, yep i have issues.

 

The repair from the fender bender wasn't done right I guess. Well and truly borked right now.

Interlagos is awesome

If I have a son he is getting 80s supercar and Heather Thomas posters on his walls from the day he gets home

 

No, THIS is a Smart car:

 

Thats a bad ass idea!!

 

Hmm

X1: cargo volume with seats up - 14.7 or 14.8 cubic ft
X1: seats down - 47.7 ft^3

X3: cargo with seats up - 27.6 ft^3
X3: seats down - 63.3 ft^3

To me, the X3 feels like a much bigger car all around compared to the X1. New F31 wagon isn't out yet, but should be closer in size to the X3 since they share the same platform. Current E91 wagon shares the same platform as the X1, but is a little bigger (16.2 ft^3 cargo).

If you can swing it, I would go for the X3 personally (or wait for the F31, but since it's coming from Germany vs the US-built X3, it will be more expensive).

 

Thank for the numbers ...the X3 is more than I want to spend at this time. But I still have til Next July so things might change.

 

M3 + tunnel + 8400 rpm = awesome

 

Wait till you get an exhaust.

 

I love hearing that sound every time I drive!!!!

Oh wait...

 

I love how my M3 sounds in tunnels! Still can't believe a inline 6 sounds that good.

 

So what do you guys run for winter tires?

I am looking at a setup with Dunlop Wintersport 3D tires. Any experience with these? I considered Blizzaks, but I am concerned they might be a bit too soft and would be overkill for New England winter. I don't plan on driving the M3 in any extreme weather, but I also don't want to get stuck/stranded anywhere.

 

I would check out the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus. Great ratings all season and decent for snow and ice.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....ort+A%2FS+Plus

 

If anyone is going with all-season for winter, Continental ExtremeContact DWS is a lot better.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....emeContact+DWS

But for a M3, I would go with Wintersport 3D over Blizzaks, especially if you're not going in anything more than a couple inches and by then you're gonna have a problem with ground clearance.

 

Good call on the Contis. They are far better rated than the Michelins in the snow. Seem like an outstanding A/S tire.

Boston doesn't get enough snow for an outright snow tire does it?

 

Thanks! I ran the DWS on my TSX and they were honestly the best A/S tires by far in the winter. Night and day versus the OEM Michelins and then the Yokohama's I ran after them. They definitely have a softer sidewall, which you notice while corning, but it was worth the improved traction in bad weather.

It honestly depends on the year. Last year was pretty mild and A/S would probably have been fine, but the year before we got walloped and snows would have been best.

Personally I don't want to risk it and I don't mind dropping down to 18" with snows to protect my 19" wheels. The Dunlops sound best for New England weather without sacrificing too much performance.

Thanks for the feedback!