W124 300TE-24 oil level light.

[BlueQuinn]

Another issue with my car, possibly.
Had a new head gasket before I bought it, and a full service in January at which time the oil sensor at the bottom right of the engine, the cam cover and timing cover gaskets were replaced. I have (or had) a gloriously oil tight M104 motor, and sufficient litres of new castrol.

So it was with some surprise that shortly after leaving work yesterday and zipping down the M4 the oil level light came on? Scared the hell out of me!
It went off a bit later.

I came off the motorway and pulled the dipstick. With a warm engine the level was just over the plastic of the min mark. I haven't checked it cold, but I can at the weekend.

I continued on my way, and it happened again a few times at motorway speeds, but never when I got to London and into 12 miles of 40, 30 and 20 limits.

At no point did the oil pressure waver, or the engine temperature, for that matter.

I've not noticed any leaks on the driveway, nor smoke from the exhaust, and the engine is still quiet, smooth and pulls like a train.

So, where did the oil go? Did it go anywhere? Is the sensor dodgy? Is it about to blow up?

 

[merc85]

So you hadnt checked the oil since January? ive had 2 6cyl petrols one was a 1989 260e with172k, and the other a 92 2.6 190e with 70k. both cars used a little oil.

BUt seeing as i changed the oil every 3k it didnt really matter, i put it down to Worn valve stem seals tbh nether car smoked or leaked oil

 

[BlueQuinn]

Nope, but the car only does 3k a year or so.

 

[hotrodder]

On all the 124s i've owned the oil level light has been on the pessimistic side and occasionally flashed up a warning when there's plenty of oil in the engine. This is how it's supposed work http://www.w124performance.com/service/w124CD1/Program/Engine/104/18-3100.pdf My current 320 will often warn me when i know the oil level is about 1/6 of the way between min and max on the dipstick

I came off the motorway and pulled the dipstick. With a warm engine the level was just over the plastic of the min mark. I haven't checked it cold, but I can at the weekend.

Unless you left it for a good few mins after shutting off the engine it's likely you got a false reading from the dipstick as it takes a little time for the oil to drain back to the sump. Another possability if the car is still wearing it's engine undertray is that you have an oil leak but the tray is preventing the car from marking it's territory on your drive

Don't worry about it, you won't have damaged anything... the oil level was still over the min mark (possibly more so than it appeared) and oil pressure was normal

http://www.w124performance.com/service/Index/Resources/00.57EngineOilLevelSI.pdf this is more about overfilling with oil just in case your tempted to 'properly' top the oil up.

 

[BlueQuinn]

Checked today at cold, on level ground, and it's less than the min - about halfway towards it.

Not noticing any major puddles, and my undertray is long gone.
Do these things burn oil? It does have 210,000 miles on it, but I've not noticed smoke from the exhaust. I accept a bit of oil consumption, but a litre every 1000 miles seems a bit much.

 

[BlueQuinn]

Stuck 2 litres in which has brought it over the min bit of plastic. It could probably stand to have another litre in it but I'll be cautious.

And I am not convinced that the timing cover is not leaking again despite the new seal. It is a crappy design on an otherwise excellent engine.

 

[hotrodder]

If you flick through your owners manual you should find it says something like oil consumption will vary with the way the thing is driven* and can be upto 1L / 1000Km. It'll probably also tell you that the difference between min and max marks on the dipstick is 2 litres. Personallly i'd just start dipping the oil regularly, once a week when checking tyre pressures or whatever... soon get an idea of how much it's drinking/losing

If it's burning excess amounts rather than leaking it's more likely to be the valve guides/stem seals than the bottom end which typically shows itself up as a puff of smoke on the overrun
A gummed up crankcase breather can also increase oil consumption as it won't do as good a job of seperating oil from crankcase fumes which are then fed into the inlet

The upper timing case seal dumps more oil onto the alternator than floor, at least it did on my 320

* FWIW i was pounding up and down the M20 at *cough* mph once a week over the course of a month earlier this year and noticed a slight increase in oil consumption compared to usual- less miles at a sustained high speed

 

[BlueQuinn]

It's a real leak. Gah!
I think this time it's the oil/coolant heat exchanger.