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Thread: How many quarts of oil??

  1. #1
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    How many quarts of oil??

    Curious, I just changed the oil in my 00 540i. At 8 quarts the dip stick was reading almost full. I put another half quart in there to top it off for a total of 8.5 quarts. I've read anywhere from 7.9 quarts to 9 quarts being the proper amount. How much do you guys use in yours?

  2. #2
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    I round up from 7.9 quarts (per the owners manual) to EIGHT quarts. Anything more is overfill (for the V8).

    Do you pour straight into the engine...or do you adhere to the procedure like some...that pour a little bit into the oil filter reservoir..."priming" is what I think they call it?

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  3. #3
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    I just poured right into the engine. I guess I'm a little over filled though since I put 8.5 in.

  4. #4
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    Since Amsoil comes in quarts, I just pour in a full 8 quarts.
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  5. #5
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    Ok, so I just changed the oil in my 540. Last time I did I put in 8 quarts as recommended, and the fill indicator showed it as being overfilled slightly. So, this time I put in 7 quarts and then checked it after running the engine for a few minutes. It was above the low oil indication level with 7 quarts. I decided to run it a little and see how it felt, and was surprised to find the engine feeling more responsive, more free-revving, and generally better than it had felt before.

    So what gives here? I don't want to risk any damage to the engine, but I also much prefer how the car behaves now than before.

  6. #6
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    I usually hit the very bottom of the fill indicator at 7 quarts and read full at 8. You don't want to be overfilled as full is usually at the bottom of the crank - overfilled can cause the crank to drag in the oil and put additional stress on bottom end seals.
    Last edited by Cyrix2k; 09-28-2011 at 01:31 PM.
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  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by feeshta View Post
    ...I put in 7 quarts and then checked it after running the engine for a few minutes...
    If you were to pour 1 cup of oil into a beaker with a lid on it...then shook it up...would the oil be at the same level? Or would it take a few minutes for the oil that has clung to the sides of the beaker to find its way back to the oil at the bottom?

    Starting your car and turning it off...then checking your oil immediately (without waiting)...the oil on the dipstick can register higher right after shutting the engine off. If you wait a few minutes after turning the engine off..you get a better reading...best yet, check the oil dip stick when the engine is cold to take a reading. I think the BMW engineers know how much oil the designed the various crankcases to hold.

    Back in the days before self service gas stations...checking your oil was a common courtesy provided by the gas station attendant. But they usually waited a few minutes before checking your oil...they would start pumping your gas, then raise the hood to check the oil...giving the oil a chance to "settle" before reading the dip stick.
    Last edited by Qsilver7; 09-28-2011 at 02:24 PM.
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  8. #8
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    When it has 8 quarts of oil in it, the indicator always shows overfilled by about a quarter inch, With 7 quarts, it always shows just above the lower fill indicator. I have checked cold and warm in the past, and checked the cold level a few minutes ago. The reason I ran the engine for a few minutes was to make sure the oil filter canister was properly filled and I was not getting an artificially high reading.

    The car isn't burning any oil or anything like that, the level stays contant through a cycle. I generally go 5,000 miles, as I drive virtually all highway. The difference in the engines character is very easy to notice. It really feels like the engine had high windage losses with 8 quarts as opposed to 7.

    I should also mention that I did just switch from a K&N oiled air filter to a BMW factory spec air filter as well. I made that switch a couple days before the oil change, and didn't notice a huge difference in the mean-time.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Qsilver7 View Post
    I round up from 7.9 quarts (per the owners manual) to EIGHT quarts. Anything more is overfill (for the V8).

    Do you pour straight into the engine...or do you adhere to the procedure like some...that pour a little bit into the oil filter reservoir..."priming" is what I think they call it?

    Are you sure these are right? I've always heard 6 liters for I6s and 8 liters for the V8. The V12s also take ~8-9 liters, I can't remember the V12s. This works out to be ~6.5 Quarts for the I6 and the ~8.5 Quarts for the V8s.



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  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by Xeniczone View Post
    Are you sure these are right? I've always heard 6 liters for I6s and 8 liters for the V8. The V12s also take ~8-9 liters, I can't remember the V12s. This works out to be ~6.5 Quarts for the I6 and the ~8.5 Quarts for the V8s.
    Its as right as much as the BMW e39 & e38 owners manuals are right.

    From the owners manual for the 1997-2000 528i/iT/540i/iT (in the USA):


    From the owners manual for the 2001-2003 525i/iT/530i/540i/iT:


    And I think you have the quarts/liter amounts reversed...note the info in the manual lists the quarts first...and the amount for (liters) is in parenthesis.

    And below is the oil capacity amounts for the e38 V8 & V12...the 750iL takes 8.5 quarts or 8 liters:

    Last edited by Qsilver7; 09-07-2012 at 11:14 AM.
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  12. #12
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    edit

    sry wrong thead
    Last edited by Firefighter3244; 09-06-2012 at 11:08 PM.

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