Quote:
Originally Posted by Aronis
Yes, BMW has paid for three oil changes in the first 8800 miles....the third was probably not necessary and I don't think they reset the timer at the 5k service. The light was not on at that time, and before having service I noted that all the items were green. Anyway it was done at the 1200 mile service, again at 5000 miles and then again at 8800 miles. I had been back and forth for a few minor issues with the car rebuilding. The service guy really should have told me they were planning on doing the oil service and I could have nipped that in the bud. They ate that.
Now I have 16,000 miles and the light was on since 15,000. So if 1200 was scheduled and 5000 was schedule then the next should have been 15000. So I guess I could have waited until 20k by my calculation. At first I thought the car called for the service because of driving style, but I don't really drive this car that hard. I put about 7000 miles on the car in what three months? WOW, 2500 was going to NC twice to visit my brother (long sad story).
The real issue with going in for just an oil change is where the dealer that I use is located. They are 2 hours 20 minutes away.. So about 5 hours driving and a few hours at the dealer for an oil change? Part of my return to BMW from Audi was for local service. I had heard many complaints about the local place but it was owned by the same company that owned the local Audi dealer when they still had the franchise. In fact the service manager used to be the guy at Audi. And I know several of the mechanics. etc.
I also have been weary about going to my local dealer since the service was an issue with my crash and they did not disclose to me that they are not a BMW certified crash repair shop. This caused issues and delays. So my relationship with that dealership is strained. They did the 1200 mile service but I was very concerned over the proper oil being used in the differentials. They were going to use the same stuff from the prior M5, which is not the correct oil for the rear differential. I actually bought the correct oil when I was at a shop in Nashua New Hampshire and had them with me. I made them SHOW me their bottles before letting them do the service. Had I not been on top of that they would have put the wrong differential fluid in and I would not have known until a failure. I may end up going back there but I still am on the fence. I suppose if the car shit the bed for some reason, I would take it there.
Anyway I can DIY in under an hour, first time was slower as you can imagine, but on the next I'll have the proper Socket to open and re-torque the filter housing, as well as the proper 8mm Allen in socket form, again so I can use a torque wrench to reseal it.
And it's fun.
This car is so much easier to do an oil change on than my RS6. I did oil changes on that car every 5000 miles (so about ?25 times in 14 years). It required removing the undershield, PITA, had to drop the roll bar, little pITA, and removing a filter that was on the side of the engine and had to be tipped open end down to get out of its hiding space, PITA, MESSY, PITA. I did not own the M2 long enough to do an oil change. LOL. The '97 M3 was a snap to do the oil service, as the filter was on the top of the engine and the oil drain plug was about 18 inches from the very front of the car, no lift or ramps needed.
Mike
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Hi!
If you bought the oil change kit from ECS, did it come with 5w30 or 0w30 oil grade? The car clearly shows 0w30 grade in the sticker under the hood. The ECS kit that I bought came with 5w30 grade. For the summer months, I would not worry, but for the winter months I want the extra protection offered by the 0w30 grade during cold starts...
I was not able to get ECS to change their kit contents to the 0w30 grade.