Can this Void my Warranty

[Ash83]

If i did my 5k/10k Oil Change at Indi shop, Can BMW void my warranty or use it as excuse if i had future issues with my Engine?

Usually the Synth Oil after 5K will not look as close to a 15K oil.. so when i take the care for the 15K service i am sure they will notice that the oil in not 15K miles old?

I know the dealer charges $125 per oil change but I prefer to support my local BMW indi shop that i used for 5 years before i got my new E82.

Thanks

[Dackelone]

I would not worry about this. Just as long as your indi shop uses a BMW oil filter and not some el' cheapo filter. I would bring them a BMW oil filter and make sure they use the correct LL-1 synthetic BMW oil.

[1SerieStud]

Originally Posted by Ash83

If i did my 5k/10k Oil Change at Indi shop, Can BMW void my warranty or use it as excuse if i had future issues with my Engine?

Usually the Synth Oil after 5K will not look as close to a 15K oil.. so when i take the care for the 15K service i am sure they will notice that the oil in not 15K miles old?

I know the dealer charges $125 per oil change but I prefer to support my local BMW indi shop that i used for 5 years before i got my new E82.

Thanks

A dealer cannot force you to service your car with them - it's actually illegal. As long as you keep paperwork of all maintenance performed in case they ever claimed you skipped it, you will be good to go!

[Ash83]

I am planning to do all BMW repairs that they recommend at the dealer because it will be Free.. I am just worried about the extra Oil changes that i will do between the regular BMW oil changes..

Good point about the Oil filter i will make sure they are BMW OEM.

[1SerieStud]

I do the same, no worries...waiting 15k miles should be considered a crime lol. I did a break in oil change at 2000 miles, and from 2000 to 15000 the median happens to be 8500 miles, so that's when my in-between oil change will take place.

[RPM90]

Originally Posted by 1SerieStud

A dealer cannot force you to service your car with them - it's actually illegal. As long as you keep paperwork of all maintenance performed in case they ever claimed you skipped it, you will be good to go!

And OP:

It is true that manufacturers can not force customers to have service done at a manufacturers service center. Also, they can not force customers to use certain brands of maintenance products. They can require certain oil types, but not brands.

HOWEVER, if the manufacturer does supply the oil and filter, or any maintenance item, free of charge, then they can deny warranty depending on that condition within the warranty.
IOW, if BMW does supply the oil and filter free of charge in parts and labor, then the warranty is maintained by the customer having to do as the warranty states.

As we know BMW does indeed supply the oil and filter free of charge, and provides the labor as well.
So, if BMW really wanted to push the issue, they could deny warranty to someone who did their own service and did not use a BMW filter.
And, even if they used the correct oil type, if they didn't use the specifically stated, by BMW, brand, they that too could result in warranty denial.

All that said, it is very very unlikely that BMW would deny a warranty claim for anyone who has done proper maintenance using approved oil specs and filters. What I stated above is simpy what the law allows manufacturers who do provide the maintenance items and service free of charge.
Since nearly the whole industry doesn't provide these things for free, the law then excludes "tie in" wording requiring a customer to purchase and use brand specific supplies.

[Brandon26pdx]

It's fine. Wouldn't be a horrible idea to have them state on the invoice what kind of oil and filter they used though. The BMW 5W30, Castrol 0W30 ("German Castrol"), and Mobil 1 0W40 are all LL-01 approved. I would just stick with OEM for the filter.

And I don't think you'd be able to easily tell the difference between 5k and 15k oil anyway. 5k miles is long enough for it to look "dirty"

[Thaddy]

Just purchase a few oil change kits from Dan at United BMW and you'll never have to worry.

[JimD]

There is a federal law that controls what a manufacturer can do relative to a warranty. It is called Magnuson Moss and was passed in 1975. Here is a link to an article talking about the inability of a manufacturer to "void" a warranty based upon installation of a supercharger:

http://www.magnacharger.com/magnusonmoss.htm

Under Magnuson Moss the manufacturer must be able to prove that what you did caused the problem with a car. Obviously changing the oil more often does not harm the car. If you used the wrong filter and it stopped oil flow, that could create damage to the car and the manufacturer would not be responsible.

I do not like the term "void the warranty" becuase I think it is confusing. The law says that the manufacturer is not responsible for damage to the car that you cause. That makes sense to me. I guess you can say that the warranty is void if the damage is due to what you did but that seems convuluted to me.

Perhaps more importantly, there are no "gotchas" or arbitrary rules the manufacturer can create to cause them to loose responsibiltiy to repair damage. It is pretty simple. If you caused the damage, they are not responsible. If you did not cause it, they are responsible. If you use aftermarket parts, the manufacturer is only relieved of responsibility if they can show those parts caused the problem.

I use oil change kits from Dan or Tisher and change the oil myself. My dealer said nothing. I am doing them a favor. Their risk is reduced by my increased cost. I will take a free oil change but I will do additional ones because I don't think they change it often enough. That is completely my right and there is no way that BMW can claim I damaged the car with my extra oil changes. Now if I strip the threads of the oil filter cap or the drain plug - that would not be their responsibility. But I've done this enough I am willing to take that risk. (I did 10 cars last Saturday, a charity thing at our church).

Jim

[Mindgame]

I have 8 gazillion dollars on them not even noticing/caring.

[Brandon26pdx]

Originally Posted by maxnix

Unless there is a problem, no one will care. If there is a problem and there is no BMW oil filter or non LL-01 oil (M1 0W-40 is LL-01), or the minimum wage pit monkey from the lube shop damaged or didn't replace a part, then you may well have a problem. RTFOM for sure.

Many of those quicky-change oil places wont even touch late-late model euro cars if you asked. I know a guy who's worked at one for while and that's their stance on it. I'd much rather support a good independent shop anyway.

[JimD]

If I owned a quickie oil change place I wouldn't let my near minimum wage workers do BMWs either. The cross thread or otherwise strip a few drain plugs. On a US car and a not demanding customer, they have a pretty good chance of just using a kit to tap oversize threads - if they even get caught. On a bimmer, the owner is probably more likely to demand a new oil pan. Real OEM says list is $431.25 for a 128i (N52). Quite a risk to take to get ~$30 in business.

Jim

[Colpitts]

I don't recommend bringing any BMW to a quickie place... But an indie shop specializing in bmw's... What the hell

[dreamingat30fps]

For my in between I buy my oil and filter from Tischer (OEM BMW oil and filter) and have my local BMW shop do the change with the supplied oil and filter.