[Paul.004]

Hello, firstly I hope I’m post in the the right section, if not pls lmk and I’ll repost in the correct thread.

Ok so I bought my 528i just 3 months ago and about 5 days after I got it I realized it had an oil leak. I was playing around with the iDrive system getting used to it and learning how to use it, I measured the oil and to my surprise IT WAS AT MINIMUM. I was a little scared (I almost shit my pants) because I had no idea for how long it had been low and I had been driving everyday since I got it, it’s my daily. This is my first BMW btw. The first thing I did the next day was an oil change! Well I knew I had to take care of that ASAP but since I didn’t know how bad it was and my only car at the moment I thought I could keep driving it and periodically check the oil and add more. Bad... I know... I had just moved, was about to be laid off and needed a new job, on top of that, I just got the car (duh) So I needed some time to get my money right because I knew this wasn’t a cheap fix. But I did but a new oil pan and had it in the trunk for when I was able to get it done.

Long story short.... I checked the oil yesterday, it was at half so I added some (only did this twice) Today afternoon pulling out of the driveway I definitely shit my pants this time. 1qt of oil was sitting on floor, as you know, not where oil is supposed to be. So I pulled right back in cleaned up and started working on it myself. I had always worked on my car so it’s not like I’m completely clueless.

Anyways, can someone that has done this before shine a light on this for me? Any tips for dropping the subframe, getting the oil pan out or any secret tools to male the job as smooth as possible?
Any info is appreciated!! Thanks for reading this long boring post lol.

Edit: Could the oil be coming from somewhere else and not the oil pan?

Edit: Pls ignore all my nonsense, check out my last post (#14) I found out the oil is not coming from the oil pan or oil pan gasket.

[Surly73]

How much oil did you add when it was "at minimum"?

[Paul.004]

Originally Posted by Surly73

How much oil did you add when it was "at minimum"?

Probably about 2qts.

[F10Dan]

What year? XDrive? Are you familiar with newtis? If not, take a look, enter your VIN and you will see what you are in for. Depending on your abilities, you may be able to do this job.

[Paul.004]

Originally Posted by F10Dan

What year? XDrive? Are you familiar with newtis? If not, take a look, enter your VIN and you will see what you are in for. Depending on your abilities, you may be able to do this job.

Hey man thanks for that website, didn’t know about it.
It’s a 2014 528i no xDrive. Any ideas on why or how it went from an oil leak to an oil tsunami over night? I can’t post vids here but when I removed the skit plate there was quite a nice puddle of oil accumulated there.

[e4603]

I’m confused. Why did you buy an oil pan? If it’s leaking, shouldn’t you replace the gasket instead of the pan?
You mentioned you changed the oil. Maybe the drain bolt was not tightened? Or you didn’t replace the crush washer?

[Paul.004]

Originally Posted by e4603

I’m confused. Why did you buy an oil pan? If it’s leaking, shouldn’t you replace the gasket instead of the pan?
You mentioned you changed the oil. Maybe the drain bolt was not tightened? Or you didn’t replace the crush washer?

Hey sorry for the confusion!
I bought a new one because I was told the oil pan was bad and that’s why it was leaking. I changed the oil because it showed it was at minimum. The drain bolt was tight when I did that and I made sure to tighten it when I finished. It was leaking before and kept leaking after. I personally didn’t see anything wrong with the oil pan the other day when I got under there, but there is oil around the edge of the pan. So my problem is more likely to be the gasket?

[BigKutta]

I have a 2012 528 and I know my oil pan gasket is leaking slightly and needs to be replaced at next service. Maybe same for you?

[Encendido3]

Did you check to make sure you don't have oil leaking from any other areas? It's not a hard job to do, just takes some time as there are a TON of bolts to take out/replace. You'll want to check to make sure you have the right tools before starting. If not, and you can't get them from a friend, the costs of buying tools may not be worth trying to DIY. Just depends on how much DIY you plan to do

[e4603]

I would say it’s a lot more common to replace the oil pan gasket than the oil pan itself. Also check other common leaks like valve cover gasket and oil filter housing gaskets. The amount of oil leaking seems excessive so you should be able to identify the source.

[Paul.004]

Originally Posted by BigKutta

I have a 2012 528 and I know my oil pan gasket is leaking slightly and needs to be replaced at next service. Maybe same for you?

Yep I’m thinking that’s the problem I’m having too unfortunately. I add 2.5qt last night and haven’t started it since. No leak at all. So I think it’s only puking it after when pressure builds up? What you think?

Originally Posted by Encendido3

Did you check to make sure you don't have oil leaking from any other areas? It's not a hard job to do, just takes some time as there are a TON of bolts to take out/replace. You'll want to check to make sure you have the right tools before starting. If not, and you can't get them from a friend, the costs of buying tools may not be worth trying to DIY. Just depends on how much DIY you plan to do

I’ve already spent $100 on tools and haven’t removed a single bolt. Not counting the ones that hold the under tray lol. I got quoted $800 from a local shop to replace it. Would you say it’s worth it to D.I.Y it?

Originally Posted by e4603

I would say it’s a lot more common to replace the oil pan gasket than the oil pan itself. Also check other common leaks like valve cover gasket and oil filter housing gaskets. The amount of oil leaking seems excessive so you should be able to identify the source.

Yep I’ve done that. It’s not coming from the filter or the valve cover. Only visible accumulation of oil it’s around where the pan bolts to the block. Do you think starting it with 2.5qt of oil will damage the engine? Just want it to build some pressure to see if I can spot where it’s coming from.

Thanks for the help guys!

[Encendido3]

Originally Posted by Paul.004

I've already spent $100 on tools and haven't removed a single bolt. Not counting the ones that hold the under tray lol. I got quoted $800 from a local shop to replace it. Would you say it's worth it to D.I.Y?

I mean, I felt it was worth it because I always planned on working on my car as much as I could. If this is only DIY 1 in your planned ownership, I say go for it. It really isn't too hard to do. Just time consuming without a lift. I think I spent about 9 hours, give or take, doing it on my garage floor. Make sure you buy the gasket and bolts from FCPEURO. If you ever need to do it again, you can warranty all of the items you purchased. Just make sure to stick with OEM

[Surly73]

I would not expect oil pan gaskets don't "leak under pressure" when the engine is running.

As someone else said, I would URGENTLY look higher up to see if it's an oil filter housing or other problem. Particularly one that could be affecting your serpentine belt. If the belt breaks or slips off the pulleys, it will probably get pulled in through the main front seal and you're looking at $THOUSANDS in repairs after that.

[Paul.004]

Well you guys were right!! Sorry to waste every bodies time but it’s actually coming from up top. Valve cover gasket??

Ok so I started the car and let it run for less than 4 minutes and oil started literally dripping out of the oil filter cap. Not the house gasket, the oil filter cap.. wtf! I swear I didn’t see any oil coming from there before. So what is causing this mess? O ring or the filter cap it self?

[Surly73]

Originally Posted by Paul.004

Well you guys were right!! Sorry to waste every bodies time but it’s actually coming from up top. Valve cover gasket??

Ok so I started the car and let it run for less than 4 minutes and oil started literally dripping out of the oil filter cap. Not the house gasket, the oil filter cap.. wtf! I swear I didn’t see any oil coming from there before. So what is causing this mess? O ring or the filter cap it self?

Missing or misaligned O-ring on the filter cap would be my first guess. Easy to check. How/when was oil filter last changed?

[Encendido3]

If you think it's the oil filter cap, take a look at the cap to make sure it isn't cracked. It may have been cracked due to overtightening during the last oil change. If you don't see anything, check the o ring. Have some rags handy for oil clean up

[partymartyy]

Last time I changed my oil I was driving down the highway and I literally saw oil spraying onto my windshield. My stomach dropped.. immediately pulled over, popped the hood...the engine was completely covered in oil (and everything else under the hood). Turns out the oil filter O ring was bad.. spraying everywhere.

[philipm785]

Originally Posted by partymartyy

Last time I changed my oil I was driving down the highway and I literally saw oil spraying onto my windshield. My stomach dropped.. immediately pulled over, popped the hood...the engine was completely covered in oil (and everything else under the hood). Turns out the oil filter O ring was bad.. spraying everywhere.

Oh man .. cleaning that up doesn't sound like any fun at all!

[F10Dan]

Remove the black plastic oil filter housing or cap... not sure how to refer to the plastic part. Inspect the rubber “O” ring for twists or incorrect installation. Inspect the plastic part for cracks.

[chipguy]

By looking at the picture of the oil filter housing cap. Seems like there are marks that indicate someone over torqued the cap. I would inspect the threads very carefully to make sure it is still intact.