Oil Changes
 

Will BMW allow you to change the oil more frequently than the 15k miles they suggest under the free service?

Sure, if you pay for it.

Yes, I understand that....what I meant was free oil changes.
I guess the anwser is NO.

I would guess they probably charge $100 or more....I'll just take it to the closest speedy oil change.

Is it a synthetic?

No, I've tried to worm my way in for an appointment before all my bars are gone, the most I've gotten away with is one bar left.

It is synthetic, don't remember the number off hand.

Yes, it is synthetic oil, probably 5W-30 but read your owner's manual to be sure.

Stay away from Jiffy Lube! Try and do it yourself before heading off to a reputable indy shop. Provided your stealership charges about $80-100, its not too unreasonable considering that buying the motor oil yourself will set you back $35-40 anyway, plus filter.

BMW can't require you to use their oil, or use them for service, but having said that they can require you to meet their oil spec for continued warranty coverage of the powertrain. 8 quarts of synthetic long life oil that meets their rather detailed spec is just as cheap at the dealer as anywhere else, from my experience. Add an OEM oil filter, and you may as well just get the dealer to change it, it isn't much more than the cost of the oil and filter. Watch out for the difference between an oil change and an oil service at the dealer, as an "oil service" includes a lot of additional checks and has a higher price tag. Whether or not those checks are worthwhile at the 15,000 mile point, they definitely aren't worth it at a mid-way oil change.

I wouldn't go anywhere near a quicky/speedy/jiffy lube type place with a new vehicle under warranty. Spend the $80 or so at the dealer.

There is another point, that years back BMW used to recommend an annual oil change for low mileage vehicles. They then moved that to every two years in some owner's manuals. Not sure what yours says. There is an inconsistency between the recommended change interval, and what is covered by the maintenance plan. The maintenance plan specifically states that it only includes oil changes when the lights call for them. In years past, BMW had covered annual oil changes for low mileage vehicles, but only if the customer insisted, ie on an exception basis. Even then, some dealers wouldn't do it. My dealer will do a 14 month oil change, or at least they did on my current fleet of low-mileage vehicles. Some here have exploited the difference between the maintenance plan and the owner's manual, others have not been successful. It is worth asking your dealer if they will do a 12 month oil change if you haven't reached 15,000 miles or the green lights all out.

how often are you changing the oil?

Not sure who the question is to, but I'll take a shot.

I am changing the oil evey 15 -18 months or so. At that point I have up to 16,000 km (10,000 miles) on the X5, and far less on the other two vehicles (My almost three year old Z4 has less than 15,000 km).

I am not worried about the BMW oil change interval being too long in miles or kilometers. I think it is fine, but that is just my opinion. Yes, it seems long compared to the good old days. I also think that 7500 miles is too frequent as an automatic rule. You have an 8 quart sump (which doubles the life of a 4 quart sump), you have modern synthetic lubes, and you have extremely low exhaust emissions (which means less byproducts of combustion to contaminate the oil).

I avoid the question by ensuring that I change the oil regularly based on the amount of time the cars sit, which is harder on them than driving them IMO. If I did 15,000 miles of highway driving, without any ambient temperature extremes, I would run the oil that long. For towing, dusty conditions, or lots of city use I would shorten it up.

I also think that the filter can last that long, but I would ensure that I only used an OEM filter as I would worry about an aftermarket filter disintegrating if left too long.

Get ready for lots of opinions, it is an oft-debated subject here and on other BMW boards.

Jeff

My dealer will do 12 month oil changes if it comes up before the indicator triggers as long as there are 2 or more bars left. If there's only 1 bar left they'll make you wait. Quite reasonable policy IMO.

At 8,000 miles I had to add a quart of oil.

Mine just reached 11,034 and the Service Due message appeared. When I go into the Service area under Information in Idrive, it has a Yellow Caution Symbol stating Service Due. It still states 4,900 miles left though.

why?

not sure of quicksilver's reasons but here are a few of why to avoid them:

-do not wrap your seat so it won't get dirty
-they don't really wash their hands...and they touch everywhere in your car
-although the service is fast...there are reasons why (quality)
-may use generic oil
-may steal from you (happens more frequently than you may think)

more technical things here http://www.jiffylubeproblems.com/
although i'm not sure how reliable it is...

...it's always safer to go to the dealer :thumbup:

Along with the WABBIT's comments, if they mess up something, put in the wrong oil, or commit some other kind of felenious assault on your BMW do you think BMW is going to cover those repairs under warranty? I don't think so. I know your saying Jiffey lube will fix their screw up's right? I don't believe they are qualified to make repairs on your ride correct. Then when you take it in to get it fixed at the dealer and they ask who's been screwing around with the engine.................? Well you get the idea.......right? :thumbup:

Oh I almost forgot. I use an independant BMW shop for oil changes. They are factory trained and the oil service is done every 7500 miles. Cost about $100.00

I don't know about the E70, but for the E53 and E46 BMW also has a "low mileage" oil change recommendation of 12 months. That is, you change the oil when indicated or every 12 months, whichever comes first. If you get a low mileage oil change then the dealer does not reset the service lights, so you get another change when indicated by the computer. The low mileage oil change is included under the free maintenance but is not well advertised. Check with your dealer to see if this recommendation holds for the E70.

See Post #6 :thumbup:

My Oil Change Thoughts - GC every 7 1/2K
 

If you plan on getting a new car every 3 or 4 years - I guess it really dosen't matter - other than following the owners manual.
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Regardless - I just can't follow this guide - even with the 8qt sump.
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I will make the first change at 5k, 10k, 15k then every 71/2K there after.
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Plan on using GC 0W-30.
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Call me crazy - but, I just wouldn't be able to sleep at night following the once every 15k rule.
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I use GC in my 1.8T and change every 4k - to give you some idea how
religious I am about oil changes.