Quote:
Originally Posted by JCL
For those that would like to read about three alternate ways of changing the fluid, this was a good write up. From my E46 days, but the concepts are all the same. Not surprisingly, the author has concerns about the turkey baster method.
|
I think you're the one who first mentioned a baster.
The OP used a pump- just as in the second method in the link you posted. He also does not say that the method started by the OP- and then taken a step further by the rest- is any more than 'theoretically' less effective than the ''optimal' method.
Quote:
|
The downside to this method is that the reservoir only holds about 1/4 of a quart of fluid. Mixing new fluid with old dramatically increases the number of flush cycles and the amount of fluid required to complete the task as the percentage of old fluid gradually approaches (but theoretically never reaches) zero.
|
Further, to insist that a second source that is also not affiliated with BMW lends any more credit than another is simply not up to task. If anything, the people who have made a business out of offering service and OEM BMW parts to BMW's customers since the 2002 was rolling off the line are inherently more trustworthy than some guy who writes a Bimmer blog- at least to me and thousands of others. They even closely follow the 'Old school maintenance' plan issued by a well known Roundel author- who is not out to sell anyone anything. Hard to argue with that lack of bias.
Besides, the very last people I would believe in ANY of this fluid exchange issue is BMW. In the name of saving a buck, these idiots have the world believing in "BMW lifetime fluids" and oil that can make it for 18K miles without needing a change.
I think the bottom line is that changing your PS fluid can be made easy or it can be made hard. The very likely scenario will be that the hoses will weaken enough over time that they will seep and you'll have to replace the reservoir anyway. You can choose either method to keep your pump better lubricated over doing nothing at all. And that's why so many of us have trouble with our second hand X5's. Because the original owners believe when BMW says they can survive by doing nothing.