Oil Consumption 2001 325i

Hi there.. first post, long time lurker..
I have an 01 325i from Canada, now lives in LA (3 years). Major oil consumption problem.. put in 4+ quarts between oil changes. No pool on the driveway. Valve cover gaskets done, oil separator done, no luck, keeps going dry. Lately have been smelling burning oil in the cabin, and I saw faint hint of smoke in the exhaust for the first time today. I -am- worried about possible engine damage as it was driven dry for a while before it was brought to my attention (my wife drives this car) but it seems to run fine and has no shortage of power. Oil light comes on (yellow) 10 or so seconds after engine starts, then goes off after 10 seconds or so. Sometimes will come on after a few minutes and go off again (always yellow, never red). Anyone have any suggestions? Much appreciated..

Originally Posted by bradfordadrian

Hi there.. first post, long time lurker..
I have an 01 325i from Canada, now lives in LA (3 years). Major oil consumption problem.. put in 4+ quarts between oil changes. No pool on the driveway. Valve cover gaskets done, oil separator done, no luck, keeps going dry. Lately have been smelling burning oil in the cabin, and I saw faint hint of smoke in the exhaust for the first time today. I -am- worried about possible engine damage as it was driven dry for a while before it was brought to my attention (my wife drives this car) but it seems to run fine and has no shortage of power. Oil light comes on (yellow) 10 or so seconds after engine starts, then goes off after 10 seconds or so. Sometimes will come on after a few minutes and go off again (always yellow, never red). Anyone have any suggestions? Much appreciated..

Any engine "burning" that much oil due to worn rings would leave a clearly-defined cloud in it`s wake. You said the CVV was done, but what about the oil return line back to the crankcase (it`s coaxial with the dipstick tube). If that wasn`t removed and cleaned out *thoroughly*, there`s a good chance it`s still clogged, and diverting all that oil back into the intake. Pull the plugs, and see what they look like....if they`re oily, you`re STILL having a CVV-related problem.

Mechanic did a leak-down test and said it is "leaking past the pistons". Not sure what that means but he is recommending installing a used engine or buying a new car. Is this really end of life for my 01 or might he be missing something? I will confess that the wifey ran it for at least a few days dry quite a long time ago (when I was out of town) but we had it working perfectly since then after doing the coil packs.

Originally Posted by bradfordadrian

Mechanic did a leak-down test and said it is "leaking past the pistons". Not sure what that means but he is recommending installing a used engine or buying a new car. Is this really end of life for my 01 or might he be missing something? I will confess that the wifey ran it for at least a few days dry quite a long time ago (when I was out of town) but we had it working perfectly since then after doing the coil packs.

What were the compression readings for each cylinder ? Any engine with rings that were *truly* THAT bad would exhibit a severe loss of compression, accompanied by clouds of smoke that would look like the County Mosquito Control truck going down the road....