OMG Diesel Air Filter

[vsx05]

Hi All
Just want to share some info regarding the diesel air filter on our E53. I recently change my exhaut to a custom 3" exhaust. For some reason after changing exhaust, the black smoke became very evidant even at idle.

I then did some research and found that one of the common cause of black smoke is insufficent air supply hence the there is more fuel to air ratio causing smoke. I then read the service manual and found out that my X5 has never had a air filter service and it has now done 90,000 (2004 model).

Anyway, i thought i gave it a shot and get a local mechanic to change a new pipecross air filter in just to see if that helps to reduce smoke. After the mechanic took apart the air filter componet, he found out that the filter was in a very bad shape. The foam outside had pretty much turned black and the paper filter was all covered in dust. He actually showed me the filter and gave it a few gentle taps and a lot of crap actually just fell out in front of my eyes.

WTF... What were BMW thinking leaving such a important service item so far inside the engine? And why the hell don't they service it.. The mechanic also mention the the whole air way and the air box itself was filled with crap too.

Service ur filters at least every 30,000ks guys even BMW said you dont have to. Buy your own filter and get a mechanic to change it. It is worth it. The engine now revs more freely and i think i economy will also be much better too plus the black smoke is also gone now.

[powers1]

Bmw dealers should always change the air-filter everytime car goes in for a service.However,from experience I also know that some are not doing it !
Why????Apart from bloody incompetence ,its because they know if they dont change it,99% of clients will never know!
Why?Because 99% of clients have no idea how to get to the air-filter in order to check it!
Vsx05 is spot on!Replace air filter everytime you do oil-change or earlier ,depending on your enviroment conditions!

[Laurence]

And I would also guess that the main reason they don't do it is becuase it is a PIA to get to - it can take a good 30min + just to replace the air filter! I'm sure the average BMW garage can service 3 cars in that time

I did mine a while back and once you finally get to it, it looks like you have half the engine bay on the drive!
As Powers said, why change something the customer has no way of checking.

[vsx05]

The interesting thing is that i have check over all the service invoices, the car has never had a air filter service before for almost 5 years. You would think that it would be in their inspection 1 service to get air filter done.

IDIOTS. No wonder it was smoking all the time. The filter was clogged up so air to fuel ratio was incorrect coz engine can not get enough air.

BTW, when should inspection II service be carried out? The stupidship has never done it before and the car is almost 5 years old. And does anyone know what is done in Inspection II service?

[vsx05]

Another thing, has any of u change the transmission oil before? I read in last year edition of BMW car that it is a good idea to change transmission oil. Apparently there are quite a few transmission failures on our E53s. Changing the transmission oil will definitely help increase the life of the tranny.

I actually had to convince my dealship to change the tranny oil last time I was there. They keep on telling me that the oil in the transmission is a Long Life oil and never need to be replace. They said if the transmission fails, u get a new one. LOL. What great attitude!!! Tell u not to service and when if fail, pay for a new one. I guess that is why we call them stealerships

After changing the oil i found the transmission seems to rev up/down quicker and more freely. Good idea to get it done also with air filter guys.

[digiteye]

Hi there, today I got a revealing experience about the level of service of the guys with BMW.
I was aware that my air filter has been replaced at my previous service visits.
Since I found their hourly rate ridiculously high, I decided on doing as many things as possible on my own.
So first I have ordered parts from eBay (savings at least 40% if not more). These included oil filter, air filter and diesel filter (MAHLE, made in Austria, official supplier for BMW)

I have a friend who is a mechanic and I know him as being very detail oriented and precise in his work. Moreover he does not mind if I hang around while he is working on my car. BMW would never let me see whats going on the workshop.

I was still a little concerned as he is not a BMW specialist, he told me also that he had never dealt with an E70 before.

So today we had the "surgery"...

The engine oil was not a biggie, but the air filter was a hard bitch nut to crack.
Finally he figured how to access, and he dug out my old air filter to my horror...

It looked 2x as black as this one on the photo... He told me that definitely this was the original from the factory, so at my earlier expensive service visits BMW guys never even touched it, only charged.
Apparently because it is a big hassle to replace.
So its a warning guys... somehow make sure your air filter has been replaced, don't just pay for it like I did.

After the procedure the car accelerated faster and the whole running experience was different, no kidding.

We had no time to figure the diesel filter replacement, so he promised me that next week end we will take care of that.

Lesson learned: I will buy parts on eBay and only go to BMW for resetting my computer (now the amber car shape warning is still on).

Btw, I also bought my Castrol Longlife LL04 online at 1/3rd of the BMW price....
Even after paying my friend my balance is positive with a few hundred dollars.

PS staying in Europe, so your prices and gains might be different but I bet anyone would save quite some in the US, too.

[atregent]

Originally Posted by vsx05

BTW, when should inspection II service be carried out? The stupidship has never done it before and the car is almost 5 years old. And does anyone know what is done in Inspection II service?

Inspection II only has two things listed in my service book, and neither of them apply to the diesel.

1. Air intake silencer (which is listed in Inspection I to be done every 3rd engine oil change, and
2. Renew spark plugs (which we don't have)

So I think it's just alternating between Oil Service and Inspection I. At least that's what the previous owner of mine seems to have done.

[fullmetaljacket]

sorry to resurrect an old thread but, does anyone have a DIY on how to change the air filter of an X5 Diesel? I'd like to change my filter as well as the mass air filter / sensor. TIA!