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BMW M5 F90 (2018+) General Forums Mechanical Maintenance: Break-in | Oil & Fluids | Servicing | TSB | Recalls    Anyone DIY spark plugs yet????

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      09-04-2021, 02:30 PM   #23
Aronis
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I was hoping by now there would be a good video on this....very odd.

You need to remove a ton of stuff. I had the diagrams somewhere. There are cooler lines to the two ECU's that you need to carefully move, there are TWO coolant tanks you have to empty and remove (or move), it's kind of a PITA, but that is how they fit all that 'stuff' under the hood. Engineering.....LOL....

Mike
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      09-08-2021, 08:38 PM   #24
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I just finished the driver’s side. Took me a little over 2 hours. No need to drain the coolant reservoir — it can be moved enough out of the way. But you do have to remove the ECU and a few harness connectors and release some harnesses and hoses from their holders.

Passenger side took a little over an hour. Had to remove the ECU and unplug the dozen harnesses attached to it, remove bolts from the intercooler reservoir so it could be shifted slightly to access the bolts for the wire harness tray that runs just above the coils (like on the driver’s side).

Anyone doing this, make sure you have the right spark plug socket. I did not so I had to grind down a 14mm deep socket so it was thinner walled and it took me a few tries to get it thin enough. The plugs are at the bottom of a shaft that narrows. Have a magnet tool to get the plugs out and to hold them when installing so they don’t drop onto the electrode and possibly reduce the gap. Be patient and careful. Spend time figuring out how to disconnect harnesses and to move wires.

I noticed several of my stock BMW Bosch plugs were loose - not really even hand tight. Those plugs also had some rust on the threads. Car has only 30k and is CPO so it was dealer serviced. Probably plugs are original and never touched. Gap seemed to be about 0.028. I installed colder NGK gapped to 0.022.

Don’t expect to notice any difference — car ran fine before. But this is one of those things that can make a difference in terms of knock limit and timing retard when pushing the car. Won’t be driving it until this afternoon. Update: noticed no driveability changes from the plug change, the tighter gap or the colder rating. Hopefully they help under high load conditions even if I can’t feel it.

Last edited by pbonsalb; 09-10-2021 at 11:49 AM..
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      09-13-2021, 05:55 PM   #25
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PHOTOS MAN WHERE ARE THE PHOTOS!!!!!

Nice work, but no photos C plus.

Mike
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      09-14-2021, 04:12 AM   #26
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Anyone that can post a step by step with pics will get an A* !!!
I also have been working on cars since my first at 17, that's too many years to mention haha
I like to do my own maintenance but lack of time prevents sometimes and I hate having such a time constraint as it puts undue pressure on a task that I should be finding rewarding.
And these modern cars are absolute pigs to work on due to complexity and packaging! Gone are the days I used to whip the plugs out in 15 mins!!!
It's not just that and the cost saving, but my distinct lack of faith in dealership skills. My F90C went in last year for inspection 1 at dealership, they took the time to send me a nice video of the underneath of the car and how all the exhaust, suspension and tyres were good, which was not surprising on a 12k mile car. They did NOT notice the huge screw on the edge of the rear tyre. Now that's the kind of thing I want to be told about.
My wife's car went in for inspection 1 this year. When it came back, I noticed they'd put the wiper blades on the wrong way i e. Drivers side on passenger side and vice versa thus the passenger one was hitting the trim.
Do I really trust them changing the plugs on my M5? Yes if the master tech did it and was given the time...NO if the gimp who cannot even put wipers on correctly was tasked with it.
Or I make sure I have the time and then know it's done right.

Btw, does anyone know whether anyone makes iridium plugs for the S63? I used to put NGK or Denso iridium plugs in my old cars and can leave them for 50-60k miles no probs
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      09-14-2021, 06:17 AM   #27
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The colder NGK that I installed are iridium. I don’t know the factory change interval for the BMW Bosch plugs. I change plugs more frequently.

Sorry about the lack of pictures. I was looking for some as well. Just do it. You will see what you need to remove and move. Patience and care are more important than skill. My thin wall spark plug socket arrived today. That would have saved me a little time.
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      09-14-2021, 08:10 AM   #28
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pbonsalb View Post
The colder NGK that I installed are iridium. I don’t know the factory change interval for the BMW Bosch plugs. I change plugs more frequently.

Sorry about the lack of pictures. I was looking for some as well. Just do it. You will see what you need to remove and move. Patience and care are more important than skill. My thin wall spark plug socket arrived today. That would have saved me a little time.
Thanks dude.
You've been lots of help already.
When it's time I will make sure to get a thin wall 14mm plug socket and iridium plugs.
I think the OE Bosch plugs are double platinum so decent.
I have service pack on my car but due to covid am doing zero business miles so I won't make it for the plug change included in the pack.
I will do it myself when it's due but make sure I give myself ample time and be in a good frame of mind
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      09-27-2021, 10:28 AM   #29
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Spark Plug change instructions

I converted the file from PDF to a JPG for the spark plug change. The process of looking at the pictures goes from left to right starting at the top and move down to the left and look to the right (look for the page breaks). Sorry I was hoping the pictures would post from top to bottom and not put two pictures side by side.
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Last edited by Egrunt; 09-27-2021 at 10:39 AM..
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      09-27-2021, 10:29 AM   #30
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Continue:
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      09-27-2021, 10:32 AM   #31
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Continue spark plug:
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      09-27-2021, 11:00 AM   #32
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The pdf is helpful; thanks for posting. The only tip I have to add is that you don’t have to remove the coolant tanks. There is enough play to move them out of the way.
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      09-27-2021, 11:07 AM   #33
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Egrunt,

You ROCK. Where did you get your hands on that? I want the WHOLE MANUAL!!!! I'm planning on keeping this M5 until it's DEAD so I need to service it myself. I'll get an electric car for my funeral.

Mike
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      09-27-2021, 11:20 AM   #34
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Aronis View Post
Egrunt,

You ROCK. Where did you get your hands on that? I want the WHOLE MANUAL!!!! I'm planning on keeping this M5 until it's DEAD so I need to service it myself. I'll get an electric car for my funeral.

Mike
I used this web site: https://aplusmanual.com/2227/bmw-m5-...anual-2017-now that I found earlier this year. The cost is $69 and the cost can be reduced by 10% if paying by credit card. At first I had difficulty accessing the engine folder but after moving the zip folder to another location (folder) on my hard drive I could now access the folder. I have attached pictures of the files and what the section for the brake system looks like. I purchased the manual yesterday because like you I plan to keep the M5. I paid the M5 off and I am waiting for the title from BMW financial and my last free service was completed in August. Like you I enjoy wrenching on my vehicles.
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      09-27-2021, 11:31 AM   #35
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I put them in a single PDF.

Sharing is Caring LOL.

Mike
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File Type: pdf BMW M5 Spark Plug.pdf (3.56 MB, 234 views)
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      09-27-2021, 11:32 AM   #36
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I had found some of those images somewhere, but don't recall if I had the complete set. That is a great find. Going to buy it.

Mike
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      09-27-2021, 11:54 AM   #37
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Downloading it now! That site is very good, but as expected Porsche is not included....LOL.....Thanks for the find.

Mike
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      09-27-2021, 03:52 PM   #38
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@egrunt, this is awesome.
Thank you.
Will look to buy the whole manual as I own my M5 outright also and are looking to keep it for a long time. It puts a huge grin on my face everytime I drive it even if I'm just chillin and pottering around in it
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      04-14-2022, 05:29 PM   #39
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Thanks for posting the detailed instructions. Makes me think it might not be worth it to try to do it myself, heh. Hoping to get a tune in a while and also coming up on the 30k service interval for spark plugs anyway so hope to just do that stuff at the same time and get the colder plugs put in.
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      04-14-2022, 06:33 PM   #40
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I've been using that manual for things. It's pretty helpful.

Mike
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      04-18-2022, 02:54 PM   #41
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Checkout this video. It's not a step by step and does not follow the manual procedures but it gives you a different insight as to what to expect.

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      04-19-2022, 08:41 AM   #42
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Screaming at the TV: TAKE THE AIR BOX OFF!

Mike
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      08-06-2022, 01:16 PM   #43
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Any reason why BMW chose to use platinum plugs? I thought it's been consensus for quite some time now that platinum was not the element of choice for high performance, turbo-charged engines due to increased chances of pre-ignition. Most turbo-charged cars these days call for iridium plugs. Iridium plugs are, of course, more expensive. Just curious as to why BMW chose not to use iridium plugs in a car that cost $130,000.
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      08-07-2022, 06:41 AM   #44
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Quote:
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Any reason why BMW chose to use platinum plugs? I thought it's been consensus for quite some time now that platinum was not the element of choice for high performance, turbo-charged engines due to increased chances of pre-ignition. Most turbo-charged cars these days call for iridium plugs. Iridium plugs are, of course, more expensive. Just curious as to why BMW chose not to use iridium plugs in a car that cost $130,000.
Same reason they chose the Lithium Ion Battery and the Plastic Overflow tank positioned over the coils and injectors. Save weight?

Are not the platinum plugs lighter than the iridium plugs? Who knows, I trust that at least they had a reason for that choice other than EPA fleet fuel economy numbers. You know no spare tire, no jack, save some weight.

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