I have had that same message appear on my display a few times since I owned the car, it is a simple issue, just add about one quart. The message just tells you that you need to add some oil but it doesn't have to be that urgent, you nedd to do it soon but not inmediately.

 

This is a very good question, your car is probably down only a quart. And the sensor went off by screaming bloody murder "Check oil at next refueling" and you got scared, that is normal for a new C63 owner. But you will see these warning multiple times, in your cars life, not worry. Just check your dipstick, and add oil as needed, typically a quart will do just fine. I'm glad you ask, this question. In most cases your local dealership will top it off for free. In the future, might I suggest that you carry a spare quart in your car, for those long trips.

 

I recommend only adding half a quart at a time in case you over fill.

Also, you can also use 5w40 (the only differences between 0 and 5 is the operating temperature, 0w40 performs better in sub zero temps.. not an issue during the summer months). In theory, it has to be Mobil 1 based on the MB specifications (I have not seen any other brands that mention it, although I am sure any correct 0w40 or 5w40 oil will work.. MB may pitch a fit if they find out and you went in for a warranty repair.

Dealers typically use 5w40, at least mine does. Up till my last oil change (I do them myself) I was using 0w40.. except a recent boneheaded incident by me not checking the part prior to draining out all my oil and removing the oil filter.... and then opening the box for the new filter only to find the parts guy at my dealer gave me regular C class filters... popped the old one back in, used my new oil.. went to dealer, he swapped out the filters, and gave me 8 quarts of 5w40 for about $40 (basically half price). I know, some of you would say they should have done it for free as it was their mistake on the filter.. but then again, you should always check your parts before starting the work on your vehicle.. so it was my fault too..

Okay.. this probably won't help you along the DIY process heh...

 

That depends on whether your last oil change used Mobil 1 0W-40 (229.5) or 5W-40 ESP Formula (229.51). I wouldn't want to mix them unless I had no other choice.

Keep a bag with a rag and a quart of oil in it. When you see that message, drop in a quart. Doesn't take but 2 minutes. Keep the rag to twist the cap so you don't get your hands dirty, and don't burn hands, it can be very hot if you've been driving.

And if you drive into an MB dealer they will usually top you up for free when they see what you're driving and what the issue is. Again, doesn't take but 2 minutes.

 

This made me cry. Not being mean, but it is a stereotypical (prof) engineer. Lack of common Sense.....*cry* makes us look bad. LOL

 

I don't understand what this poster is trying to say. But if the intention is to knock engineers, I have to point out that he's profoundly ignorant. Engineers (not hobbyists and amateurs) are the ones who designed the C63, along with almost every other major product and facility in the world.

 

I just checked my engine oil and found that it's near the low end of the range, or just a little below. That's consistent with my "check engine oil" light only sometimes coming on. But I don't want to wait until Monday to take care of this, so I'm going to go get a few quarts of Mobil 1 0W-40 synthetic and will add it myself, half a quart at a time (the manual says the oil needs to be siphoned out if you overfill).

Since I haven't done this before, could someone please confirm that the oil filler cap is the black cap with two AMG logos on it, located just right of the center of the engine (when facing the engine), towards the front of the car?

I was also surprised to read in the manual that the car (any C class, not just the C63) can use up to a quart of oil about every 600 miles! In my 2001 E320, I never had to add oil even once in 10 years (though I assume they added/changed oil during the regular servicing). Likewise for our other cars, which is why adding oil to a relatively new car is unexpected for me.

 

I'm just surprised that this has never happened before to a C63 driver on this board. Because if it had then you could use prior experience to help with a common problem.

 

Yes, the oil filler cap is the black cap with the AMG logo imprinted on it, add 1/2 qt at a time. Please enure that your car is warmed up first to get a true accurate reading.

 

The car has only about 3k miles on it and is only a couple of months old, so I haven't had an oil change yet. So it has the original oil, but I don't know what that is. The local MB service center is actually open today, so I'm going to take it over there, and will specifically ask them about which type of oil to add.

Thanks!

 

Thanks for confirming the cap. Don't want to put in oil where the washer fluid goes!

The manual (p. 239) seems more concerned to make sure the car has been sitting long enough before checking the oil level (at least 5 to 30 minutes, depending on how long the engine was running before being shut off)? I suspect the reason is that time is needed for the oil to drip down and settle, and more time is needed if the oil wasn't warmed up enough before starting to settle.

 

One more little twist to the story which I didn't mention before. When my "check engine oil" light first came on, I immediately went to the nearest auto shop. I explained the situation to the guy (who seemed to be the owner) and he said that he could add some oil, but didn't have the equipment to reset the car computer, so he referred me to the nearest MB dealer. This didn't make sense to me, since it seemed that you just add oil and then the warning light will turn off on it's own. But I figured that maybe he knows something I don't, so I better ask the forum before doing anything else. And I also figured that if he's wrong about the computer, I can't trust him to put in the correct oil either, so I decided not to have him add oil.

 

At least your asking the right questions, and that is a good thing. Okay, first off you do not need to reset the Flexible Service System (FSS) basically the oil service light, that tells you when your should change your oil, it will give you a count down in either miles, or days. All you need to do is acknowledge the "check oil at next refueling" message by pushing the OK button. The FSS only gets reset after an oil change Service A or B. Since your just adding a quart of oil, no need to do anything.

 

Yes, your right, I failed to mention that part.

 

So I decided to take the car to the dealer this morning to have them add some oil, and when I started the car the "check engine" light came on (for the first time). Meanwhile, the engine fan was also running even though there's no way the engine could have been hot, and the engine oil temp still just showed dashed lines (no temp).

I explained all this to the dealer, and it turns out that the fan belt is frayed, and the frayed strips have apparently cut some wires for sensors. The fraying could be due to a defective belt, or wobbling of the pulleys. They have to look into it further, but this does explain a lot of things:

- Engine fan running even when the car isn't hot, to protect the engine just in case.

- No reading on the engine oil temp.

- Transmission switching from M to C on it's own (again to protect the engine), despite the diagnostic showing that the transmission itself is fine.

The engine was about a quart low on oil, but I'm guessing that this is just a coincidence, and not related to the other problems (though it's still strange that these problems started appearing yesterday, before the check engine light came on).

Obviously, I had to leave the car in the shop and will hopefully either have it fixed or get an update by Tuesday.

I stayed in the garage with the mechanic while he checked all of this out, and it was cool to be able to see everything myself and discuss the problem with him. He had a lot of praise for the car and said all of the AMGs are generally reliable and don't have many problems.

I could be annoyed by having to deal with all of this, but I love the car too much to complain a lot. Plus I'm coming to terms with the idea that a performance car just needs more care than a regular car.

 

Tacoma Narrows bridge.

In any case, not knocking engineers, as I myself am an operating engineer, but rather the stereotypical lack of common sense. ie: overcomplicating the simple.

 

Yes engineers designs some great cars like British Leyland, Fiat, Yugo, Trebant, along with some other engineering marvels like Chernobyl, and Three Mile Island.

 

Alright guys let's take it easy on the op, I think he's gotten the point by now.

I'm glad you took it to the dealer and was able to find out that there were other issues more pressing than just low oil level. I'm glad you didn't allow that man to add oil as he probably might have added incorrect weight of oil.

Concerning the frayed belt, you didn't notice any bits of shredded belt in the engine bay when you first opened your hood?

 

Of course engineers have made mistakes, and will continue to do so. That's unavoidable in any human endeavor, including medicine, architecture, business, politics, sports, and pretty much everything else. And it's especially the case in a field like engineering where the actual "stereotype" is success and progress. The Tacoma Narrows bridge is an exception resulting from trying to advance the frontiers of the profession, not the norm; among the ~500,000 bridges in the US, the failure rate is very low.

As far as "overcomplication," engineered systems have generally become more complicated over time because that generally enables improved performance, even though it can also increase the risk of unanticipated problems. Cars are a perfect example. Compare current cars with those of say 30 years ago. Are they generally better? Yes. Are they more complicated? Absolutely (I'm old enough to remember the days of mechanical carburetors).

And what's an "operating engineer"? I've never heard that term.

 

See my reply to JaZepi. Also, keep in mind that some of these poor results are due to operational errors and marketing considerations, not solely engineering failures.

 

It's not frayed enough yet to produce a lot of debris. I didn't notice anything when I looked under the hood, and the mechanic didn't see it either until he ran his diagnostic and it gave some clues regarding where to look.

The mechanic also said that he doesn't see this problem often. Last time he saw it on a car (not an AMG), he just replaced the belt and couldn't find a cause of the fraying (unless the belt itself was defective). I'm hoping that will be the case with my car, since I'd prefer not having them mess with the engine more than necessary (the car is only 2 months old, though I've already logged over 3k miles due to some long business trips).

 

Please keep us posted on the results if they figure out the cause for the rapid wear on the belt, I'm curious to find out and compare the findings on my car. I only have a little over a thousand more miles than you.

 

While it would be great to just shoot over to the local dealer for an oil top off, the closest dealership for me is about an hour away and seeing as though I've added about 10 quarts of oil in 10000 miles its just not practical. This is my second c63 and the first one ate oil too. When the light comes on, I throw in 1/2 a quart and go about my day.

 

I might start adding oil myself also if it goes through oil fast, though my dealer is only 10 minutes away. Plus, going to the dealer is an excuse to check out the cars. And Porsche and BMW dealers are right next to my office, so these German cars are constantly beckoning to me.

 

Maybe have the dealer check the idler pulleys. It seems they are made of plastic material on the outer surfaces and prone to failure. This might be the cause of the frayed accessory drive belt.