135i Oil Change Interval

[thunder135]

I just took my 135i Coupe into the dealer for a scheduled (free service - corporate program) brake fluid change and oil/oil filter change at approx. 18,000 kms (almost 2 years from new).

The service indicator now shows that the next oil change is due at 23,000 kms (5,000 kms) !

Is this correct ? - Have BMW updated the oil change interval on the N54 engines or was the initial oil change lengthened due to the free service under the corporate EPP program ?

Thunder135
Melbourne Australia

['fatboy']

Originally Posted by thunder135

I just took my 135i Coupe into the dealer for a scheduled (free service - corporate program) brake fluid change and oil/oil filter change at approx. 18,000 kms (almost 2 years from new).

The service indicator now shows that the next oil change is due at 23,000 kms (5,000 kms) !

Is this correct ? - Have BMW updated the oil change interval on the N54 engines or was the initial oil change lengthened due to the free service under the corporate EPP program ?

Thunder135
Melbourne Australia

I believe the service intervals for oil and filter changes have always remained at 25k. There is (not sure if it was previously) an interim inspection at 15k - nothing is changed and frankly a waste of time.

I've been changing my oil and filter at 7k intervals.

[takahashi]

Did once at 1000km and once at 7000km. That is once every 6 months. I am doing it as frequently as I could.

I go Andrew for it. BMW charges too much for non scheudle pit stops (compare with scheudled ones ...)

[05C4R]

did they change your oil or just check it

[sparoz]

The indicator only reflects the type of service. The first service is an inspection, the second is an oil service.

I changed mine at 2000km, and didn't get to change it again at 13k, was a bit busy these days. Every 5000 is good .

[MikeVictor]

Changed mine at 10 million meters, have just clicked over 18 million this morning, so I reckon I'll be keeping an eye out for when Supercheap is selling Castrol 0W-30 Edge for a good price again soon.

[Guran]

The oil level on my 135i was a bit low and I've been meaning to top it up. Then the other day I got a warning that it was at the low level and needed 1L of oil. So I just spoke with my local SA about what oil I should use (yes I know there's a thread here about that, but wanted to get their opinion too). Apparently they use Mobil 1 0W40 full synthetic. He also checked my records and strongly recommended that I get an oil/filter change even though I've only done 13,000km in 17 months since new (the car computer still shows another 15,000km before the first scheduled service). I can't recall hearing of BMW SAs actually recommending an intermediate oil change! Most tend to poo-poo the idea. He also strongly recommended having the brake fluid flushed and changed every two years ... again well before the scheduled interval. Interesting!

I've now got myself booked in for next week to get the oil/filter changed. They're also going to replace my cracked third brake light at the same time.

[Bimmerle]

I'm going on an extended road trip - currently nearly 8000km on the clock, so I
thought I'd check with BNE BMW service department. They confirmed that the first scheduled oil change is 2 years after build date, and the 15k km service is just fluid check.

I thought I should take a litre of oil on the trip, so I checked the recommended BMW spec in the service book and cross referenced it against oils fro Mobil and Shell. It turns out that Mobil 1 Gold 0W-40 full synthetic is a match to the BMW spec. They didn't have any 1 litre bottles of either the Mobil or the Shell equivalent at SuperCheap, so I was forced to pay $4 more at a Mobil service station. Still, peace of mind....

I'll probably get the oil changed on my return.

[x5mad]

I have had my cars serviced exclusively from Brisbane and Westside BMW for the last 7 years. I think it was prior to 2006 they used Mobil 1 0-40. But from 2006 on for whatever reason they are now using Shell Helix Ultra 5-40.

[Jeef Beef]

Originally Posted by Guran

The oil level on my 135i was a bit low and I've been meaning to top it up. Then the other day I got a warning that it was at the low level and needed 1L of oil. So I just spoke with my local SA about what oil I should use (yes I know there's a thread here about that, but wanted to get their opinion too). Apparently they use Mobil 1 0W40 full synthetic. He also checked my records and strongly recommended that I get an oil/filter change even though I've only done 13,000km in 17 months since new (the car computer still shows another 15,000km before the first scheduled service). I can't recall hearing of BMW SAs actually recommending an intermediate oil change! Most tend to poo-poo the idea. He also strongly recommended having the brake fluid flushed and changed every two years ... again well before the scheduled interval. Interesting!

I've now got myself booked in for next week to get the oil/filter changed. They're also going to replace my cracked third brake light at the same time.

To add further to the confusion... I spoke to Trivett Parramatta and North Shore BMW Atarmon.

Trivett - Mobil 1 0W-40
North Shore - Castrol 5W-35: my SA was very adamant that all BMWs used this grade of oil for cars built from 2006 onwards.

I still have 3L left in my 5L bottle of Mobil 1, mum's X3 tends to burn a lot of oil. Now I'm not sure whether I should add it into my car.