Recent letter to Car&Driver magazine:

Your readers should be aware that the refinement of BMW now includes only speedo, tach, gas, and mpg gauges for instruments. All other [calculations aren't shown]. During my time with a 328i, an oil can dripping into what looked like water flashed on the screen several times. I learned this was the "add oil" indication. Unable to find the dipstick to check, I went to the dealer. They advised me there is NO LONGER ANY DIPSTICK in the BMW 3-series except the M3 and that the transition started in 2006. There have been a few hiccups with this new engineering breakthrough. The sensors occasionally malfunction, and customers have added oil when they shouldn't have. I was told the proper way to check the oil is to return to the car to your BMW dealership and it will put the vehicle on a rack, drain the oil, measure it, and then install the oil in the car. Two dealers have told me BMW doesn't want customers monkeying around under the hood. In my judgement, this new technology paradigm by BMW electrical engineers surpasses iDrive for idiocy.

Richard A. Wittenburg
N.Syracuse, New York
What was wrong with the dipstick in the first place? I wonder what's gonna go next, the oil filler cap?