That’s an even less expensive approach.
I like the idea.
My Lincoln has a sensor in the side of the oil pan and in the event of low oil will illuminate a message on the Message Center and start an annoying roadrunner beep.
Maybe the best route would be a sender that detects abnormally low, not zero, oil pressure and starts a regular beeping sound or maybe the use of an early 80s Nissan type of voice box that uses a robotic female voice to repeat incessantly, “STOP THE CAR NOW. OIL PRESSURE IS LOW”.
I can’t imagine continuing to drive and listening to that electronic wife going non-stop.
@the same mountainbike
Inexpensive Approach, A Replacement Oil Level Sensor, BWD With Lifetime Warranty, Is Less Than $30 At Advance Auto Parts.
CSA
The only Mercedes Benz on the list is the E550. The S550 isn’t on the list, even though it uses the same engine. Since the S550 is the bread and butter version of the large sedan, I suspect that the number sold is comparable with the E550. Anyway, the E550 is too expensive for me.
E sold more (70k vs. 13k), C sold the most (88k):
“The sporty C-Class took the top spot for the year at 88,251 units, rising 8.0% from 2012, followed by the E-Class with annual sales of 69,803, up 7.1%. The brand’s top-selling SUV, the M-Class, rounded out the top three at 41,326, up 8.5% over the previous year. Strong gains also were seen at the high end. The flagship S-Class, which reset the luxury benchmark with an all-new generation for model year 2014, posted an annual increase of 12.8% to 13,303 units. Total sales for the SL-Class roadster rose 43.0% at 7,007.”
@melott–I stand corrected on Consumer Reports test of refrigerators. They did test the common top freezer refrigerator. I read as far as the group B Four door French-Door Bottom Freezer and when I saw the first in the group sold for $5400 I quit reading the report.
They did test pickup trucks, but it seems to me that CR’s test isn’t as informative as the tests of pickup trucks some years ago. CR used to test the acceleration, braking, and handling of the pickup trucks both loaded and unloaded. This testing does not seem to have been done. CR did state the maximum load weight of the trucks apparently from the manufacturers’ ratings, but I would like to know how well the trucks drove with the load. The same is true with the towing capacity. I would be interested in how well these trucks tow a load. My first wife was interested in horses and we had a horse. We were thinking about getting a second horse until she became too ill to ride. The towing test would have been important to me because I would have purchased a pickup to pull a horse trailer. In other words, if I bought a truck, its purpose would be to perform truck duties. CR seems to test trucks as if they were cars.
The two cars tested this month were the Ford Mustang and Dodge Challenger. These cars are intended for those who have money to throw around and are hardly practical transportation. I admit, however, that I wouldn’t mind being a test driver for CR if I could wring these vehicles out on the test track.
CR does survey its subscribers to gain information such as was presented in its road report about the new cars that have oil consumption problems. However, as critical as the size of the sample is how representative CR subscribers are of the general population. CR subscribers who drive BMWs may be spirited in their driving habits. Fast acceleration when combined with rapid deceleration might tend to suck oil past the valve guides
I think there is valuable information in Consumer Reports publications and I have been a subscriber for over 40 years. I have answered the questionnaires that CR sends out. I buy a gift subscription for my brother and a gift subscription for my son. It just seems to me that many items tested are more upscale than what CR used to test. However, I am evaluating this from the standpoint of an almost 74 year old geezer.
I had a Lancia 1977 and you could check the engine oil level with one of the inside gauges. It was a simple suction system that would suck in engine oil inside the dipstick and then when the oil would settle, the gauge would show the level. It was very simple and decently accurate. Actually was also helpful if the oil was very fresh and you weren’t if you eyes were seeing right on the dipstick. This system did not involve touching the hood or getting greasy at all-perfect for the MB/BMW crowd.
@ok4450: When I was younger, a friend had a Plymouth Laser with a turbo that had washed out bearings. He drove it for a while with very little oil pressure. This car did have the electronic voice that would tell you things like: “Your door is ajar!” I rode in it with him before he got the turbo replaced and I remember the voice saying things like: “Oil pressure is critically low, engine damage will occur!” (if I remember it correctly) And yet he ignored it until he could get the turbo fixed. I think the engine actually survived the episode.
The point though is that it’s been done, and people still ignore it.
Having just read the CR article, I agree with the general tone but the author is obviously not an automotive engineer. There is no mention of oil consumption during the break-in period, when the rings are still in the process of seating properly.
The article is based on feedback from owners, and no personal observation by the author.
I agree that makers of high performance engines should spend more time focusing on oil consumption, but using 0W20 (dictated by EPA mileage standards) in a high performance turbo charged engine will likely result in some oil consumption.
My un-blown 1.8 liter Corolla engine after 8.5 year has yet needed any oil added between 5000 miles intervals, regardless of the oil used. Moreover the level never seems to drop from the “Full” mark.
CR typically over-reacts and would want a full blown government investigation, class action lawsuits, etc., to rectify the “problem”.
I wonder if these same people would demand a class-action suit because the tires lose air in between scheduled service intervals. It’s a lot more hassle to check and air up your tires than it is to check your oil.
I’ve often wondered why washer fluid reservoirs have become so large. Some cars hold up to a gallon of washer fluid. I haven’t used a gallon of washer fluid in my entire life. I suppose maybe they’re designed that way so the washer fluid doesn’t go low in between scheduled services so people don’t have to be bothered to top that up.
My 1975 Civic had a plastic pouch that held less than a quart of washer fluid.
“My 1975 Civic had a plastic pouch that held less than a quart of washer fluid.”
My father had a '66 Ford Galaxie 500, and I think that 1966 was the first year for federally-mandated windshield washers. Its reservoir was a plastic sack that hung from the inner fender underneath the hood, and it probably held only ~ 1 qt. During the winter, when there was a lot of salt residue on the roads, I can recall going through the entire supply within that sack w/in a few hours of highway driving.
The problem was actually two-fold. In addition to having a small reservoir, the ww nozzles back in those days tended to have a fire hose-like spray, instead of the finer mist that characterizes modern ww nozzles. The amount of waste when using those windshield washers was incredible.
I owned one car that would shut off the engine if you had low oil pressure, unfortunately it couldn’t tell if you were low on oil or negotiating a curve at a high rate of speed and you had plastered all the oil against the side of the oil pan. Having the engine (and the power steering) shut off in this situation is a little disconcerting. I would prefer to not have that feature again.
My 99 Camry, 09 Camry and 10 Corolla use no oil between oil changes at 5k miles each. Even my old 86 Chevy PU only uses 1/4 qt every 3k miles.
I do remember seeing that FOMOCO bag on one of our cars and it sure didn’t hold much washer fluid. I think it was the 61 Merc though. Gotta remember back in those days, you pumped what you needed on the windshield and used far less than the fire hose used now.
“I wonder if these same people would demand a class-action suit because the tires lose air in between scheduled service intervals. It’s a lot more hassle to check and air up your tires than it is to check your oil.”
It has to do with the oil consumption being much more than normal or average. It’s normal for tires to lose air, albeit a bit of a pain. Some day most tires will maintain set pressure and any that don’t will have consumption that is not normal. Then the complaints will fly.
“I’ve often wondered why washer fluid reservoirs have become so large. Some cars hold up to a gallon of washer fluid. I haven’t used a gallon of washer fluid in my entire life. I suppose maybe they’re designed that way so the washer fluid doesn’t go low in between scheduled services so people don’t have to be bothered to top that up.”
I believe this could be a matter of climate. Where I live, during the 6 month winter driving season, one has to practically drive with one hand on the washer switch. For our family cars I go through gallons of -40F juice each season. I buy a case in the spring when it goes on clearance. It’s not safe to venture out if low on fluid or the system is inoperative.
CSA
This is absolutely a climate issue, CSA. I used to live in the great white north and kept a jug of washer fluid in my trunk because I’d use up to a gallon a month. This was probably exacerbated by the fact that I was driving a little tiny Chevy Nova that caught a lot of spray from trucks.
I now live in the sunny south and because the oil change place always tops off my fluid, I’ve never added any to the reservoir.
Definitely climate. I have a huge reservoir, and I also carry a spare gallon in the late fall, winter, and spring. Things can get very, very messy around here. I’ve run the reservoir down a few times during my commuting days when the roads were full of slush and road salt and wet snow was still falling. It destroys wiper blades as well.
Yup!
Definitely climate-driven.
The forum member who said that he hasn’t used a gallon of washer fluid in…a long time…must not live in an area with subfreezing winter temps and heavy use of salt on the roads.
Love my large one gallon WW washer fluid reservoir. In the winter I go through a lot of it and don’t want to replenish on a long trip.