Unreliable German Car on a Silly Journey

[JumpingFrog]

Final jobs from this repair-a-thon were a new thermostat and replacing the worn out rear shocks and springs (MOT is soon, and one spring looked pretty bad):

After that, drove a fair way across England, car behaved well and estimated range was over 700 miles at 52mpg, so new thermostat is helping. Checked the oil level on arrival, computer showed it was suddenly quite low so added 500ml. But the level didn't change at all... The difference between min and max is meant to be a litre. I definitely filled it with the right amount after its surgery. Best hunch is a bad level sensor, no way it could have burned 0.8L~ in <250 miles, and there's no signs of oil pooling on the undertray.


I'm also wondering if using graphogen on the big ends could be responsible for this as the sensor is apparently capacitive, but I would have expected most of that to have ended up straight in the filter, plus I only used a small amount... Remind me what is wrong with a dipstick again?

Edited July 9, 2024 by JumpingFrog

[Nick Jones]

1 hour ago, JumpingFrog said:

Remind me what is wrong with a dipstick again?

Too simple and 98% reliable. Double fail as viewed by German car designers (and JLR)….