BMW Z4 engine siezed need some advice please..

Bigmonty69

Thanks for the replies guys - very brutally honest ones in some cases

Think I'll tell the garage this morning to not do any further looking into the cause and I'll get it shipped to my BMW dealer asap.

taff007

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers! wrote: »

The first thing you should check is if the low oil warning system was working - were there no oil warning lights on the dash? Modern systems "TEND TO TELL YOU IN VERY LARGE TEXT THAT OIL IS LOW" - nothing like that?

My 2 1/2 year old 3-series gave me plenty of warning that the oil was low through the dashboard display (on the main display rather than a single light - similar to the low fuel warning). So if it was gradual reduction of oil I would expect the Z4 to do the same, unless of course the sensor was faulty.

Bigmonty69

vaio wrote: »

Sounds like the engine breather could have failed and allowed oil to be sucked in the inlet. There are a few reports of this happening on the forums.

If it has a full dealer history I’d be tempted to have a word with the dealer and see if they will give a good will contribution. Obviously your case is stronger if you’ve had it from new or weaker if it’s done lots of miles.

44k miles, full BMW service history and mot's all with BMW. I'm third owner, first was BMW as a demonstrator so technically second owner.

You think I'd be better taking it to another garage rather than my BMW dealer or straight to the dealer now?

nickcc

Does the Z4 have a turbo, if it does then the seals on the turbo may have failed allowing the sump to be emptied very quickly via the inlet manifold. You should have seen cllouds of smoke from the exhaust if this had been the case. Suggest you go onto the BMW forum as the members will give you some very good advice.

movilogo

an engine seizing without oil, would have been noisy and stopped your car almost dead, like slamming the brakes on hard

Not really - when engine runs out of oil, the sound changes a bit (difficult to judge without expert ears) and the car then coasts to halt. At this time, all warning lights on dashboards just come up like Xmas tree.

It's not natural for an engine to lose all oil in 4 months! Although checking engine oil every 30 days is strongly recommended, not having the low oil warning light makes the matter more complicated.

I'd definitely advice to have a chat with BMW dealership. Though they are not required to fix the problem, they should at least show some goodwill gesture.

Also, if you finally decide to put a 2nd engine in the car, consider what will be the value of car after that. If it is close to cost of fitting the engine, then it's better to scrap the car.

Next time please remember to check engine oil every 4 weeks. At least have a look under bonnet every month to see brake/coolant/washer etc. level. Also check tyre pressures every month (or sooner). It doesn't guarantee that you won't face any problem, but at least the severity of the problem will be less.

Not checking engine oil is a mistake and committing a mistake doesn't make oneself fool. However, making same mistake twice is considered foolish. So, please please remember to check engine oil frequently in future.

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

I'd like to know how you'd follow that advice on the latest MBs, where you don't even have ready access to the dipstick.

hewhoisnotintheknow

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers! wrote: »

I'd like to know how you'd follow that advice on the latest MBs, where you don't even have ready access to the dipstick.

whats MBs

cheers

tomstickland

I have sympathy for the OP. You would expect an oil warning light to come on in most instances. However, everyone should use the dip stick every week or so to check the real oil level.

markelock

hewhoisnotintheknow wrote: »

whats MBs

cheers

mercedes benz?

cyclonebri1

Just make sure they try to wind the engine over with all the spark plugs removed. I once came accross an engine that had been diagnosed as seized. In actual fact it was one pot hydraulicing(sp) due to a badly failed head gasket. Can still do major damage tho'