BMW M3: S58 oil consumption — and why topping up matters more here

Excessive oil consumption is among the most frequently reported S58 complaints, with owners needing to top up more often than they expected. On most cars that is an annoyance. On a high-output turbocharged engine it is worth more attention, for two reasons. The oil is doing more work — it cools the turbos and the pistons as well as lubricating — so running low costs more here than on an ordinary engine. And the oil that leaves the engine goes somewhere: it passes through the crankcase ventilation into the intake, which is what feeds the carbon build-up on the valves that this engine also suffers. The two faults are the same oil, seen at two ends. A car whose owner checks the level between services is genuinely better looked after than one whose owner has never opened the bonnet.

• Oil level noticeably down between services
• Low oil warning appearing before the next service is due
• Blue smoke from the exhaust, especially under hard acceleration or on lift-off
• Oil residue in the intake pipework
• Smell of burnt oil after a spirited drive

Check the oil level yourself rather than trusting a service sticker — on this engine it is the single most informative thing under the bonnet. Use the car's electronic oil measurement if fitted, following its instructions with the engine at the right temperature, or the dipstick if there is one, and note exactly where the level sits relative to the marks and how long it has been since the last service. Then ask the seller directly how much oil the car uses between services and how often they top it up. An owner who answers precisely — "about half a litre between changes" — is telling you they check, which matters more than the number itself. Look at the oil filler cap and the top of the engine for heavy residue. Have someone watch behind as you accelerate hard once and again as you lift off, looking for blue smoke. Ask what oil is used and whether it is the specified grade. If a workshop inspection is possible: ask for a consumption check and for the stored oil level history to be read.

Parts involved: PCV / oil separator, Turbocharger.

$200 to $5,500 at New Zealand independent workshop rates. That is for this job on its own, not for the car.

An estimate, in NZD, for the repair as normally carried out. What a specific car costs depends on which part has failed and what it damaged on the way — treat this as the floor for a negotiation, not a quote.

• “How much oil does it use between services, and how often do you check?”
• “Has a low oil warning ever appeared before a service was due?”
• “What oil is used, and is it the specified grade?”

The failure described above is documented in published sources — owner forums, technical service bulletins, recall notices and workshop write-ups — held in our fault database. The inspection instructions and the cost estimate are KickTyres’ own interpretation of them, and it is a starting point for an inspection rather than a manufacturer statement.