image courtesy of dandtwise.co.uk
Starting soon new BMW owners will start to receive more frequent oil and filter changes as part of the new car “free maintenance” program. According to the Service Information Bulletin 00 01 13, BMW now approves oil changes every 10K miles or 12 months, rather than the previous 15K miles or 24 months on cars produced as of July 2013. Here’s all the details courtesy of E90post.com, and a link straight to the relevant section, Attachment 5.
For BMW M cars only, differential oil changes at 50K miles will be covered. And a 60K miles automatic transmission fluid change is covered for Active Hybrid 3, 5 and 7 Series vehicles, although this service is outside the 4 year, 50K miles new car maintenance plan.
For BMW enthusiasts this is a step in the right direction. Prior to BMW’s introduction of new car maintenance coverage, many service intervals were much shorter than today. Some would say that oil and fluid technology has improved to the point where the longer intervals are warranted. Others question whether BMW starting to pay for services was the main reason the intervals were extended.
BMW moving so aggressively into turbocharging could be part of the reason to shorten intervals. Turbocharged engines run hotter and put more stress on the engine’s oil.
It’s good that BMW is covering transmission fluid changes for M cars and the Active Hybrids, but all BMWs should have it covered within the extended year, 100K miles warranty package. Until recently, BMW maintained that transmission fluid was “lifetime fill” — as in never needed to be replaced.
They’ve since backed away from that, replacing with the term “extended service” without specifying any time period or mileage. Respected parts supplier BavAuto gives a good explanation here along with detailed DIY instructions.
Owners who are planning to keep their BMWs long term can of course augment BMW specified maintenance. Most leased vehicles however will never get any more service than that included free of charge. So any reduction in the lengthy maintenance intervals is good news for those who may be interested in purchasing a used BMW.