m3alpine

Greetings, this is my first post. I am a BMW enuthisiasts(1999 M3) I work on BMWs and build BMWs at my shop in Atlanta. I KNOW CARS.

Back Story.

Family moved from Atlanta to Chicago and started getting our 1989 260E serviced at Autohaus on Edens(MB Dealer)

I was driving car and old person from florida ran redlight and totaled the car.(Sad day because that car was bullet proof, 250K on it and ran like a DREAM)

Mom purchased an E320 demo. The car caught FIRE driving back from getting groceries. Car was returned and we STILL purchased another car. 2000 e430 Sport. This is the car in question.

I live in Atlanta, parents still in Chicago. I came home for my mom's birthday and go to drive the car and notice engine noise, clicking... Valve tick.

I turn off the car and check the oil. There is MAYBE 1/4 inch of oil on the stick. MAYBE. I get mad at my mom, the light is on you need to check it. Oh wait, she is RIGHT! THERE IS NO DAMN LIGHT ON!!!! I go to parts store and purchase 3 quarts(that has to be enough to fill it up) Pour all 3 quarts in, it is STILL 1 quart low! Start the vehicle up and it is STILL loud as hell! I tell her this is ridicolous take it to dealership.

I wrote out the whole thing for my mom, I called and talked to service and made appointment, I left MY number for whatever moron from the dealership tries to rip off my mom. I talked to John. Here is the conversation.

John: No oil was added, we tested the sensor and it works fine. The lowest point it ever got to was 5.7 quarts.

Me: 5.7 quarts!!! it is an 8 quart system!!! I added 3 quarts and it is STILL low. I don't care about the sensor, sensors can go bad. Did you check the dipstick?

John: It's current level is within specs.

Me: That is because I added 3 quarts.

John: The computer says you didn't.

Me: Are you calling me a liar?

At this point he is getting angry

John: Your mom needs all the lifters on the left bank. Labor included that is 1300 dollars.

Me: Does that include the plastic rail that feeds the lifters that goes bad in these cars?

John: I am not aware of that problem.

At this point I know he is a moron because he does NOT even know the high failure rate parts in HIS OWN CARS!!! WTF

Me: Couldn't low oil pressure due to LOW oil levels cause these to go bad

John: That is possible.

This goes on and on. We have spent THOUSANDS of dollars at this dealership servicing two cars, we still bought a car from them after one CAUGHT ON FIRE! And we are 1500 miles out of warranty and he won't goodwill the fix? I explained to him Hydraulic lifters don't just FAIL. I have 111K on my M3, 20K of those miles are HARD track miles at various driving schools, and my lifters are FINE!

My mom is getting his name, and numbers for GM and owner of dealership and MB customer Service, this is BS.

Anyone else experienced this. I would love to have a long list of other people who this same crap is happening too.

lkchris

So you're looking for warranty coverage because the oil level was permitted to get too low?

I guess the world is moving toward "entitlement."

m3alpine

You are joking right?

IT HAD 4 QUARTS OF OIL IN THE CAR! AND NO LIGHT WAS ON LETTING MY MOTHER KNOW THIS.(its not a honda you know, it holds 8qts. Thus is was 1/2 EMPTY!) Do you find this acceptable?

Warning for your two that you seem to own. Make sure to always check your oil because it can be OVER 1/2 empty and you won't even know!

Musikmann

Ask somebody "in the know" about the class action lawsuit brought, and won, by someone regarding his MB 430. It sounds like to me your mother might qualify for a new (free) engine, compliments of Daimler-Chrysler.

You obviously know a lot more about engines than I do, but I know a guy who went through this with his ML430 (puchased used). There is probably some kind of year/mileage limitation, so I'd get right on it.

It involves the owner paying for an oil change, and then taking it back after a specified number of miles (couple of thousand). They drain the oil, and measure how much is left. IF the engine used over a certain amount of oil, you're in the money! So, I think you'll pay for the 2 oil changes, but that's not a bad wager when you're looking at a ~$10,000 engine.

Hope this helps, and welcome to the forum!

m3alpine

Thank you sir for the help. Well I know that it is burning the oil that is for sure. My mom was due for her oil change in 700 miles(it is set for 9500 by MB) and it had 4qts of oil in the system.

Do you know a website? Or a place to get more information on this so I can call my mom and send her link?

Thank you for the welcome. I do like MB but only the older ones. I want a 190e 16V with a 5 speed

Musikmann

Sorry, no I don't. However, the service writers at my dealership knew all about it. They even called the suit by the man's name - if I could remember that, it should be pretty easy to Google it.

I see that I didn't mention that the guy here with the ML430 GOT a new engine! Unfortunately, I don't know what model year it was, or how many miles he had on it.

Do you have any idea why your mother's FSS didn't tell her about the oil level? I had a '98 E430 that also used oil, but have since traded it. When I was about 1-1.5 quarts low, I saw a "minimum oil level" error message on my message center. Another thing, after highway driving, I could smell burned oil if I turned off the car to take a break. I think it was after I opened the door, but I'm not sure - it's been several months.

If I still had the car, I might have gone through those oil changes, but other things started to fail (A/C compressor leak was the main thing) plus I had 125,000 miles on it. I felt it was no longer worth putting any more money into it, so I traded for my '01 E320.

m3alpine

I do not know why it was not on. He said I didn't add any oil because the sensor said I didn't. He also said they "tested" the oil level sensor to see if it works. I do not know how you would go about doing that but whatever. The guy is a jerk and he better be glad I was trying to debate with him over the phone.

My mom got them to fix the lifter problem after she pays for parts. So that will fix the engine noise. However We are going to monitor the oil from now on. And because of this we will work on getting that new engine!

Thanks Musik.

Was the guys name O'Keiffe
I did find some information through google. But it was all on forums and could all be BS. No actually documents.

ProV1

my lifter noise went away after switching from 20W-50 dino to 10W-40 dino. simplest repair EVER