E36 change oil indicator - question

[cristimm]

Hello,

I have searched the forum and the internet for this but with no success.

So does anyone knows on what criteria the green lights go out? Is there a fixed number of km (miles) or some other things are taken into account.

http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/1373/induleiuo1.jpg

If nobody knows for sure maybe it's a good ideea to post practical results and draw some conclusions from them. I don't have the car for so long so I can only tell that one green light got off after about 2000km, most urban driving on short distances, moderate driving. Is this normal?

Thank you.

http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/1373/induleiuo1.jpg

[Nataliator]

This has been covered pretty extensively, Im surprised your search didn't yield results. In any event, the typical consensus on this is the BMW's oil interval on the dash is too long, and you should probably change your oil more regularly than what shows. It is not a fixed number, it analyzes your driving style/external temps/ etc. Everyone's will be different.

For example, my oil light indicator says I should not change my oil for about 10,000 miles, but since my car has 160k, I just can't in good conscience leave it for that long. I typically go about 5500 or 6000 miles on full synthetic. If your very curious about your engine health, you can take a quart of your used oil and send it to blackstone labs or someplace similar and they will analyze the oil, tell you how much life you had left in it, and tell you how healthy your engine is internally. Basically when I sent mine they said that my oil probably had about 1500 to 2000 more miles of life in it (6000 mile change) and that there was no substantial amount of metal in the oil. Could be a valuable resource for setting a baseline on your car.

[exodus454]

Mine has one green on after 7000mi of driving on one oil change. I usually try not to let it go that long, though, 3-5000mi is my ideal oil life. Usually I'll reset the service indicator at oil changes just so I don't have to look at the red lights.

[Big Empty]

I change my oil after a single green LED goes out. around 3,000kms.

[kevinqjhps]

Mine has one green on after 7000mi of driving on one oil change. I usually try not to let it go that long, though, 3-5000mi is my ideal oil life. Usually I'll reset the service indicator at oil changes just so I don't have to look at the red lights.


I got one green after 4000 miles. The light MAY be right, or it MAY be optimistic, in either case I do synthetic after 5000 miles.

[LuvMy328is]

I got one green after 4000 miles. The light MAY be right, or it MAY be optimistic, in either case I do synthetic after 5000 miles.
The whole point of Synthetic is to reduce intervals. If you are changing that frequently, go back to Dino Juice and save some $$$
~Phil

[kevinqjhps]

The whole point of Synthetic is to reduce intervals. If you are changing that frequently, go back to Dino Juice and save some $$$
~Phil



Actually synthetic is designed to reduce wear. When it starts to get dirty, 5-6K, I change it. Cheap insurance.

[LuvMy328is]

Actually synthetic is designed to reduce wear. When it starts to get dirty, 5-6K, I change it. Cheap insurance.
EDIT: That is a benefit too, we are both right :)


Anti-Wear

* Outstanding protection.
* Minimizing oil degradation.

All-Temperature

* Faster lubrication at start-up in low temperatures. Watch our tests.
* Excellent protection at high temperatures.
* Exceptional resistance to thermal breakdown.

Engine Cleanliness

* Outstanding protection against harmful deposits.
* Cleaner running engines.

Engine Efficiency

* Greater resistance to oil oxidation (thickening), which reduces engine drag.
* Lower oil consumption under high-speed conditions.
* More efficient engine operation over a wider temperature range.

[95325i]

I drive my car to 6-7K on an oil a synthetic change. 12,500 (BMW normal interval) is just to long in my eyes.

[jmo69]

I don't put on a lot of miles, 9k in the 2 years I've had it, so I'm on a one year interval. In the spring it gets fresh synthetic. I still haven't lost all my green lights yet, one to go. Changed it twice already, but the third is due next month.

[cristimm]

Thank you all for the answers.

Please let's stick to the green/red lights and do not made of this topic a general oil discussion.

[kevinqjhps]

Thank you all for the answers.

Please let's stick to the green/red lights and do not made of this topic a general oil discussion.





Gee going off topic on here? Now what are the odds of that?:rofl::rofl::rofl:

[cristimm]

Any new input to this topic?

[choffa]

http://www.unofficialbmw.com/all/electrical/all_service_interval_calculation.html

[cristimm]

Thanks a lot.

[BMWMPow3r]

This has been covered pretty extensively, Im surprised your search didn't yield results. In any event, the typical consensus on this is the BMW's oil interval on the dash is too long, and you should probably change your oil more regularly than what shows. It is not a fixed number, it analyzes your driving style/external temps/ etc. Everyone's will be different.

i never realized it was that complex, but just mileage. i never use it anyways. i just clock my miles.

[PoppaK]

I bought a 2000 Z3 2.3 20 months ago. It showed 3 green SI lights. Most of my driving is 15 mile trips. Nothing drastic. After 5000 miles it did not change and still showed 3 green lights. I just changed the oil to a full synthetic (Castrol Syntec 5W-40). I then tried to reset the indicator lights by shorting the 7 to 19 pins. The SI lights still show 3 green. Do you think that the SI function is broken? If I cannot resolve the problem, I will change the oil based on milage alone, 8 to 10 K miles.

[CSeanWatts]

Hello,
So does anyone knows on what criteria the green lights go out? Is there a fixed number of km (miles) or some other things are taken into account.


http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/1373/induleiuo1.jpg

The Primary factor (in the e36 programming) is fuel usage. On a trip to Muenchen I asked at the factory museum and in 10 minutes I had an answer from one of the engineers. There is nothing special about how it's done. It's done that way because if you don't have some kind of problem or failure, the main contaminant for these engines is soot, not km, not miles, not time. BUT it is programmed for synthetic oil. Since you are in Romania a good choice is Lubro Moly full synthetic with appropriate weight for the temperature you are in. You can also find Mobil 1 in most EU countries but make sure it's fully synthetic. For example 0W-40 is a good choice for winter in central Europe.

Using the oil lights in a BMW is like asking "Which religion is best?" You'll get any kind of answer. I drive until one or two green lights are left and change it. I also have MANY INDEPENDANT OIL ANALYSIS TESTS TO PROVE I am not doing anything bad by driving more than 10,000km before an oil change.

[cristimm]

I then tried to reset the indicator lights by shorting the 7 to 19 pins. The SI lights still show 3 green. Do you think that the SI function is broken? If I cannot resolve the problem, I will change the oil based on milage alone, 8 to 10 K miles.

I have the same "problem" with shorting pins but I am able to reset it with CARSOFT.


The Primary factor (in the e36 programming) is fuel usage. On a trip to Muenchen I asked at the factory museum and in 10 minutes I had an answer from one of the engineers. There is nothing special about how it's done. It's done that way because if you don't have some kind of problem or failure, the main contaminant for these engines is soot, not km, not miles, not time. BUT it is programmed for synthetic oil. Since you are in Romania a good choice is Lubro Moly full synthetic with appropriate weight for the temperature you are in. You can also find Mobil 1 in most EU countries but make sure it's fully synthetic. For example 0W-40 is a good choice for winter in central Europe.

Using the oil lights in a BMW is like asking "Which religion is best?" You'll get any kind of answer. I drive until one or two green lights are left and change it. I also have MANY INDEPENDANT OIL ANALYSIS TESTS TO PROVE I am not doing anything bad by driving more than 10,000km before an oil change.

Thank you for your answer. I do use 0W40 from not a popular brand because I got it preety cheap. I usualy make short trips (about 4 miles) and I change the oil when 3 green lights are gone.