Originally Posted By: d00df00d
Originally Posted By: HTSS_TR
Engine without oil dipstick tube !!! What the heck are those BMW engineers/marketing was thinking ???
They know their customer base.
The cars without dipsticks have electronic oil level sensors. The onboard computer flashes a warning at the driver if the oil is low. For the vast majority of people who buy BMWs these days, that system is a LOT more effective than a dipstick.
Yes, I recall that when Porsche went to electronic dipstick they used the instrument cluster to display a fairly high resolution (more than 10 display segments between "ADD" and "FULL" IIRC) oil level indicator at EVERY START. For all the posts here where we hear about how friends drove cars 4.5qt low on oil and the like, putting the exact reading and warnings in your face every time you start the car could be seen as progress. If it was sold at stores, how many BITOGers do you think would add a precision "oil level" gauge alongside their aftermarket mechanical oil pressure gauge and oil temp gauge? Probably quite a few.
Sure, I might like to have a dipstick in addition, but this must have been talked about a hundred times now and there's always a crowd that reacts with shock and outrage. It's been 10 years since this movement started at multiple brands...
On the other hand, if you're offered a high resolution bar graph of the oil reading on the cluster, the dipstick isn't that big a deal. If the battery is dead or the control computers are fried, I have bigger problems at that moment than determining if I'm 0.1qt low on oil.
Now, if there's no way to bring up a level even using cluster diag/field test mode and all you get is an "oil low" light - that would frustrate me - but I highly doubt that's the way any of the dipstick-less systems are designed. I should investigate.
BTW, oil changes on BMWs with cartridge oil filters are a snap. If you've got any DIY ability at all it can be a 5 minute job. It would take me more time to drive to an oil change place (let alone wait) to have it done for me. I've never once been the slightest bit tempted to use a top-sider.