Expert: Don Berlan - 7/13/2009

Question
I actually have a few questions about my car. We just moved here to Germany from the states and bought my BMW off of a fellow soldier. He had the oil changed just before we received it from him which was about 6 months ago and now all of the oil has leaked out of it. We were wanting to check and see if the oil plug might not be tightened all the way but we can't locate it. Another question, when we got the car there was already an idling problem with it. The previous owner had taken in to a mechanic and "fixed" 3 times, and yet it still occasionally idles very low and dies out. Any ideas on what could be causing it? Lastly, any idea where the fuse is for the cigarette lighter is? I've located the fuse box under the hood, but everything is in German because it is a Euro spec car. So I have no clue which one to replace. Thanks! Looking forward to hearing from you.

Answer
The drain plug is on the passenger side of the oil pan,a 17mm wrench to remove the oil plug.The idling problem probably has to do with it loosing oil.BMW's don't like oil leaks they are a sealed system which by that I mean they do no have a PCV valve so any oilo leak causes an unmeasured air leak and would cause the problem you stated.So look around for oil leaks.As for the fuse use a test light to see what does and does not have power.I was in Romania this spring and saw may Euro Bmw's and yes it is a challenge to figure out the fuse box.But a test light will tell you if there is power or not.