The 25 000km BMW Oil Change Myth: The Real Damage Done To Your BMW’s Engine

[DINODENASH]

Sure this has probably been discussed before , ...looking at these pics, I need to do an oil change :fencelook:
:ty:

https://blog.modbargains.com/15000-mile-oil-change-myth/

 

[Jeremy.d]

Thanks for sharing. I was thinking of doing the service on my 330i after 20 000kmraise::thumbdo:

 

[peanut125i]

BMW service ppl told me they will not do a oil service if it's not asked for by the car unless it has reached its maximum km or 2 years. In my case the car was quite happy to go 40k km between oil changes. Turns out some fool service employee at a previous service/check reset the oil indicator even though that particular service wasn't for oil. So what does the service indicator mean for us as the owners..... far as I can tell, nothing good or useful.

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[BeemerFanatic]

I was actually thinking about sending my car in for an oil service and just paying myself. Glad one was done a month go.

 

[Jerry_112]

Was told by the head mac of the old Umdloti BMW that the rule of thumb for an oil change interval in any car is every 10 000km / 12 months, whichever comes first, despite service intervals as set by the manufacturer.

 

[husaindindar]

This is a great post...

BMW really got the whole oil change interval wrong. I think the blame went to Castrol for that.

I still think max is 15000km on oil change.

 

[kili1]

Was told by the head mac of the old Umdloti BMW that the rule of thumb for an oil change interval in any car is every 10 000km / 12 months, whichever comes first, despite service intervals as set by the manufacturer.

Couldn't agree more.

 

[DINODENASH]

Was told by the head mac of the old Umdloti BMW that the rule of thumb for an oil change interval in any car is every 10 000km / 12 months, whichever comes first, despite service intervals as set by the manufacturer.

:thumbs:

another good read

It is not without reason that we call engine oil the lifeblood of the engine. And it is not necessarily for just the reason that oil runs through the engine. It is called so because the engine oil performs several critical functions that assist in maintaining optimum engine performance and maximizing engine life as well as cooling the engine. And it is necessary to follow oil service intervals as recommended by the respective manufacturers of your brand. To ignore or extend the oil service intervals will lead to several risks and we list some major ones.

1. Increased sludge and oil soot levels.

One of the main duties of engine oil is to keep the engine parts running smoothly by collecting and suspending the dirt particles. By extending the oil change interval, you also increase the amount of soot (mass of impure carbon particles resulting from the incomplete combustion of hydrocarbons) in the oil that will inadvertently cause sludge, thus decreasing the engine’s ability to work efficiently.

2. Reduced crankshaft bearing life.

The reduction of bearings’ life will be reduced through many factors including fuel dilution, coolant leaks, abrasive wear and corrosion. With extended oil change intervals, the levels of abrasives, fuel and coolant increase in the oil thus leading to removal of the bearing overlay and cause damage to the bearing linings.

3. Damage to engine.

Missing the oil change interval will lead to engine damages, resulting in minimizing engine durability and safety. Extended oil change interval will also lead oil contamination eventually leading to loss of engine power.

4. Cam shaft failure.

To lower emissions, manufacturers have been continuously improving cam metals, hardness, surface finishes etc to increase fuel injection pressures. If the soot in the engine oil goes overboard, the abrasive wear between rocker shaft and rocker bearing will increase leading to rocker arm failure.

5. Increased metal particles in oil.

When you extend your oil drain interval, the metal particles suspended in the oil also increase along with the kilometres your engine does.

Source :
https://www.titiloyeblog.com/2016/10/5-problems-due-to-longer-engine-oil.html

 

[r-hart]

BMW service ppl told me they will not do a oil service if it's not asked for by the car unless it has reached its maximum km or 2 years. In my case the car was quite happy to go 40k km between oil changes. Turns out some fool service employee at a previous service/check reset the oil indicator even though that particular service wasn't for oil. So what does the service indicator mean for us as the owners..... far as I can tell, nothing good or useful.

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Is your car still in motor plan or not?

My car is out of motor plan, but i went for oil change, while the indicator stated 7000km left to oil change, and they changed the oil for me, and reset the car, as well as for some other parts as well. (At BMW)

 

[peanut125i]

BMW service ppl told me they will not do a oil service if it's not asked for by the car unless it has reached its maximum km or 2 years. In my case the car was quite happy to go 40k km between oil changes. Turns out some fool service employee at a previous service/check reset the oil indicator even though that particular service wasn't for oil. So what does the service indicator mean for us as the owners..... far as I can tell, nothing good or useful.

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Is your car still in motor plan or not?

My car is out of motor plan, but i went for oil change, while the indicator stated 7000km left to oil change, and they changed the oil for me, and reset the car, as well as for some other parts as well. (At BMW)

It is still on plan yes. I had to stand there with paperwork in my hands to show them when the last oil service was done before they agreed the oil can be changed 15k km before the indicator said it was due.

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[Peter@AEW]

The frequency of oil changes is a subject that has been debated at length.

When a car carries a 60000km guarantee doing changes every 25000Kms has little bearing on claims against the manufacturers guarantee.

Damage to engine parts is slow and hardly visible at first.

The headache comes later on when the car is out of guarantee for the new owner when things start coming to the "end of life" which has been accelerated by infrequent oil changes as well as incomplete maintenance.

Oil changes unless you driving long distances every 10000Kms
Coolant changes every 12 months
Brake fluid changes every 12 months
Air filter every 10000kms

Your pocket will thank you.

The above is not mandatory however it is prudent.

 

[Tinuva]

The frequency of oil changes is a subject that has been debated at length.

When a car carries a 60000km guarantee doing changes every 25000Kms has little bearing on claims against the manufacturers guarantee.

Damage to engine parts is slow and hardly visible at first.

The headache comes later on when the car is out of guarantee for the new owner when things start coming to the "end of life" which has been accelerated by infrequent oil changes as well as incomplete maintenance.

Oil changes unless you driving long distances every 10000Kms
Coolant changes every 12 months
Brake fluid changes every 12 months
Air filter every 10000kms

Your pocket will thank you.

The above is not mandatory however it is prudent.

Yeah I might actually believe you on the coolant changes...

Had intermittent coolant level sensor issues on my 318i n42 engine. Every post on the internet says the bleeding is not correct. Tried 100s of times to bleed the coolant without success.

Ended up replacing a 18 month old expansion tank and original coolant level sensor and drained all the coolant and flushed the cooling system before filling up again. At least the issue is sorted now.

 

[corp]

The question is now, if you get horrible sludge build up as seen in the articles, how do you fix it?

 

[Peter@AEW]

The question is now, if you get horrible sludge build up as seen in the articles, how do you fix it?

Strip,clean,replace,assemble.

 

[ChefDJ]

Oil changes unless you driving long distances every 10000Kms
Coolant changes every 12 months
Brake fluid changes every 12 months
Air filter every 10000kms

As overkill as it may be, I would add the fuel filter to this list. We all know how some garages don't maintain their tanks or they mix-in things to the fuel to maximise profits etc. For this reason I changed my fuel filter on every oil service - adds peace of mind for those few hundred Mandela monies it costs.

 

[corp]

Oil changes unless you driving long distances every 10000Kms
Coolant changes every 12 months
Brake fluid changes every 12 months
Air filter every 10000kms

As overkill as it may be, I would add the fuel filter to this list. We all know how some garages don't maintain their tanks or they mix-in things to the fuel to maximise profits etc. For this reason I changed my fuel filter on every oil service - adds peace of mind for those few hundred Mandela monies it costs.

But isn’t this in the fuel tank on most BMWs?


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The question is now, if you get horrible sludge build up as seen in the articles, how do you fix it?

Strip,clean,replace,assemble.

I thought as much. Here is to hoping the service history on oil changes before under my ownership was adequate enough to mitigate such build up.


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[ChefDJ]

Oil changes unless you driving long distances every 10000Kms
Coolant changes every 12 months
Brake fluid changes every 12 months
Air filter every 10000kms

As overkill as it may be, I would add the fuel filter to this list. We all know how some garages don't maintain their tanks or they mix-in things to the fuel to maximise profits etc. For this reason I changed my fuel filter on every oil service - adds peace of mind for those few hundred Mandela monies it costs.

But isn’t this in the fuel tank on most BMWs?


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I'm not sure on most BMW's. A lot of them are under the car somewhere. Some of them are in the engine bay.

 

[corp]

Ah yes, I remember there is a cylindrical filter at the bottom of the E90. I remember see this when looking on my previous 320i. I am sure the 335 will be the same. Will look more into it.


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