— BMW N63 engine problems have caused an oil consumption class action lawsuit that alleges vehicles equipped with V8 twin-turbocharged engines consume a quart of oil every 750 miles.
The BMW class action was filed by two plaintiffs, one who purchased a used 2011 BMW 550i and the second owner who purchased a new 2013 BMW 750li.
Both vehicles are equipped with V8 twin-turbocharged N63 engines, and both which BMW recommended to have the oil changed at “the earlier of 15,000 miles or two years.”
The plaintiffs say they quickly noticed their vehicles consumed much more oil than typically required. One plaintiff claims his BMW used “two quarts of oil every 1,500 to 2,000 miles,” and the other plaintiff says his vehicle consumed “one quart of oil every 1,000 miles."
Both owners said they mentioned the subject to dealers while the vehicles were still covered by warranties, but one dealer allegedly said the oil “consumption was normal because of the engine” and made no repairs to the vehicle.
The other dealer allegedly offered no remedy at all, but both owners say they had to continue adding engine oil constantly between the recommended oil change intervals.
BMW knows about the alleged oil consumption problems because multiple actions have been implemented, including technical service bulletins (TSBs) issued to dealerships.
According to the lawsuit, a bulletin sent to dealers in 2013 issued a new oil consumption standard for N63 engines.
BMW said engines equipped with turbochargers consume more engine oil than normally aspirated [non-turbocharged] engines mainly due to the lubrication requirements.
BMW also said this is common and not a defect with the N63 engine, and all BMW engines (excluding Motorsport) can "consume up to 1 quart of engine oil per 750 miles at any time."
The lawsuit points out how the 2013 bulletin means a customer must add one quart of oil to the N63 engine 20 times before reaching the original recommended interval of 15,000 miles.
In addition to the bulletin, BMW created the N63 Customer Care Package in December 2014 informing dealers to check each vehicle’s timing chain, fuel injectors, mass air flow sensors, crankcase vent lines, battery, engine vacuum pump and low pressure fuel sensor.
Technicians were told to "replace these components for free, even if no longer covered by the manufacturer’s standard four-year/50,000 mile warranty.”
The customer care program also changed the oil change intervals from “the earlier of 15,000 [miles or] two years to the earlier of 10,000 miles or one year.”
The automaker also created the N63 Customer Loyalty Offer and the N63 Customer Appreciation Program due to N63 oil consumption complaints. The loyalty program gave affected N63 owners an opportunity to replace their vehicles.
Additionally, the customer appreciation program “authorized dealerships to provide purchasers with up to $50 of BMW merchandise or accessories.”
The BMW N63 oil consumption lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri - Loy, et al., v. BMW of North America, LLC, et al.