Recently started having more than normal oil consumption. Last time this happened there was a leak around the oil filter housing. Now I'm beginning to suspect there might be a leak around the oil pan seal. The car has 100k miles. Is this common to have oil pan gasket leaking or is there a leak somewhere else?

I've inclucded a pic..it's the area with the light shined on it that seems to have all the grease where you can the see the belt. Could also be the front crank seal???

 

You need to put the car on jackstands and remove the under-body panels. That will allow you to shine a light at the bottom of the engine and check for leaks.

I managed to change the pan gasket without dropping the subframe, but it was painful. If I have to do it again I will drop the subframe just to have more room. If you end up doing this work then you should replace the motor mounts at the same time.

 

What's the sign that the motor mounts are going bad? thanks

 

Today's top story: a BMW older than 5 years has developed an engine oil leak. In other breaking news, the sky is blue.

Yes, it is common. I have never seen a BMW that made it to the five year mark that hadn't started seeping oil from somewhere. BMW has perfected the fine art of the oil leak. I'm pretty sure they could figure out a way to make an i3 leak oil. Amazingly, Honda and Toyota have figured out how to get an engine to and sometimes beyond 100K without leaking oil. You would think BMW could have figured that out by now.

Oil pan gasket is a common source of oil leaks on all BMW engines. good luck.

 

yea i'm a bit jealous.. i was servicing my moms 2004 FX35.. not one drop of oil in the engine bay.. oh well at least i have 367hp..

 

Wrong thread...