Originally Posted By: Pesca
oil level indicator is a much trustworthy as a dipstick: How can you be sure the dipstick it the right length? Same trust has to be put in the oil level indicator.
Good point, assuming you change the dipstick from the (assumed right) OE one.
I suspect also that if the level gets too low, the system will warn you, which is probably a better thing for most than assuming any person will rigorously check their oil level...
Im sure a wire can fail or a sensor can go bad, but Id also guess that calibration drift or other things would flag the system such that the user could be warned... And if that's the case, the system is actually better than a dipstick.
Having a car with this setup, the one downside I can say is that the car has to be run a while and the oil pretty warm to get a reading. You cant start your car in the morning when embarking on a road trip and check the oil in the driveway (!). While I have no issue with the e-dipstick, for that reason I do wish there was a real one, or at least the option to add one.
That said, IME with BMW inline engines, they are more sensitive to air leaks than others. I can open the oil filler cap or remove a breather hose on my chevy 4.3L v6 and it will run no problem. Pull the dipstick or oil cap on my M42 (318, haven't tried it on my 135i) and it will stall right away. So there may be some sensitivities to leaks at the dipstick on these ever hotter and higher power dense engines...