[No_curebimmer]

I'm looking for some advice fellow Bimmer petrol heads!

I bought my 2019 M2C pre-owned from a Porsche dealer a few months back, thus the maintenance is no longer included, but the warranty is still valid.

My car has < 5,000 mi, and the CBS is telling me I need to change the oil this month (still has 8,000mi to go though, but the time lapsed). I'm pretty sure that I won't void any warranty if I change it my own using BMW Longlife-01 FE approved oil (planning on using LiquiMoly SPECIAL TEC B FE SAE 5W-30) and keep all of the receipts and records.

Given this low mileage, chances are that nothing really should be wrong w/ the car or need any other services besides filter and oil. However, something tells me to take it to the BMW dealer to not only do the oil change, but do a complete system check as well? I'm pretty sure that the Porsche dealer I bought it from did nothing to it (except maybe safety inspection), so unsure if there could be an underlying issue that it should be addressed ASAP that only the dealer can find.

Having a record that BMW inspected and completed an oil change is certainly helpful from a traceability perspective, but I would like to learn to work on my car, and changing the oil couldn't be any simpler (just acquired QuickJack 5000SLX, so need to put it to good use).

What would you guys recommend?

Tack så mycket!

P.S. as I'm DFW TX area, and if I end up not doing it myself, I plan on taking it to either BMW of Grapevine (heard great things about this dealer), or a very reputable BMW indy shop, Ultimate Bimmer Service in Carrolton, which probably will be more cost effective.

[No_curebimmer]

Good one, responding to myself...

Since I didn't have a pre-purchase inspection done before I bought it (I took a gamble given the low mileage), the wise choice might be for the dealer to inspect it now to ensure everything is 100% kosher. Then I'll just do a mid-cycle oil service myself in about 5k miles.

I might be the odd duck here, but I've noticed that most M2C owners on this forum bought theirs brand new, so the maintenance was already included.

[MikeD9]

Not sure about others, but I rather have BMW do it just to avoid any future issues when it comes to warranty work related to the engine and BMW trying to say it was caused by non-BMW maintenance service.

[No_curebimmer]

Originally Posted by MikeD9

Not sure about others, but I rather have BMW do it just to avoid any future issues when it comes to warranty work related to the engine and BMW trying to say it was caused by non-BMW maintenance service.

I believe that is a true statement. For those BMW owners that still have their cars in warranty and with an active included maintenance programme, they simply have their trusty BMW dealers perform the free yearly service. No sense in paying out of pocket if BMW will cover it. However, for those who are more keen and practical about long term ownership goals, I do see a trend of mid-cycle oil service on their own dime (either DIY or an indy shop), and that's quite prevalent for the F80/F82 platforms...

I was just curious to see:

"what do most 2nd hand owners do regarding simple maintenance like oil changes when such services are no longer covered, but warranty is still in effect (especially at the yearly scheduled service time)?" Is the consensus on this forum that most take their cars to the dealer, use an indy shop, or DIY?

I don't think DIY mid-cycle oil changes are an issue, especially since the CBS computer data does not require resetting, you use BMW Longlife-01 FE approved oil/the Mann oil filter + keep all the receipts.

[CalAcacian]

Note: This is not legal advice and I am not your lawyer.

I do a decent amount of lemon law work in CA, it is a very good idea to have this kind of maintenance work done by an authorized dealer.

Could you do it just fine yourself? Absolutely.

Would doing it yourself save you some money up front? Yup

Is it worth potentially losing a lemon law fight down the line over? Nope.

As annoying as the upfront cost might be, it is much safer to get engine related work done by an authorized dealer. Even if you do everything right, you're leaving an opening for a defense by BMWNA if something in your motor lets go etc.

As far as the inspection goes, you don't necessarily need to go to a dealership for that. In fact, a dealership is less likely to do a thorough inspection that most other qualified shops. Dealership training is all about efficiency and cost savings, not about giving techs the best skillset possible. An experienced, independent BMW shop is where I would suggest going for the inspection.

[No_curebimmer]

Originally Posted by CalAcacian

Note: This is not legal advice and I am not your lawyer.

I do a decent amount of lemon law work in CA, it is a very good idea to have this kind of maintenance work done by an authorized dealer.

Could you do it just fine yourself? Absolutely.

Would doing it yourself save you some money up front? Yup

Is it worth potentially losing a lemon law fight down the line over? Nope.

As annoying as the upfront cost might be, it is much safer to get engine related work done by an authorized dealer. Even if you do everything right, you're leaving an opening for a defense by BMWNA if something in your motor lets go etc.

As far as the inspection goes, you don't necessarily need to go to a dealership for that. In fact, a dealership is less likely to do a thorough inspection that most other qualified shops. Dealership training is all about efficiency and cost savings, not about giving techs the best skillset possible. An experienced, independent BMW shop is where I would suggest going for the inspection.

Good proper post mate, thanks for that!

It's settled then, since my car is due for its yearly service, it's always a sharp idea to log it in their system as being performed at one of their dealerships. Likely anything obviously wrong will be caught by the dealer...

But, for a complete piece of mind, at some point later, I'll take it to the Indy BMW shop do a thorough test & check...

Interesting, I was hoping though that someone who bought an M2C 2nd hand would have chimed in. Lots of DIY lurk this forum.

Skål

[CalAcacian]

Originally Posted by No_curebimmer

Good proper post mate, thanks for that!

It's settled then, since my car is due for its yearly service, it's always a sharp idea to log it in their system as being performed at one of their dealerships. Likely anything obviously wrong will be caught by the dealer...

But, for a complete piece of mind, at some point later, I'll take it to the Indy BMW shop do a thorough test & check...

Interesting, I was hoping though that someone who bought an M2C 2nd hand would have chimed in. Lots of DIY lurk this forum.

Skål

Thanks.

I bought my 2018 OG M2 second hand and had a PPI (pre-purchase inspection) done at a nearby independent BMW shop. Anytime I buy a used car I do that, can't trust a seller.

Their interests just don't align with yours.

[cpow99]

I was in a similar situation. I ended up going to BMW of Austin for the oil change and they did a complimentary 40 point inspection. You can see what was included below.

[omasou]

Oil changes are a "BMW Value" service and not much more than the cost of the oil and filter.

[PackPride85]

Originally Posted by omasou

Oil changes are a "BMW Value" service and not much more than the cost of the oil and filter.

It's great when all you need is an oil change and something like a state inspection. That's what I brought mine in for recently. Problem is next year when I need to also add brake fluid change and diff fluid change. They want $340 to change the diff fluid which is actually easier than an oil change.

[No_curebimmer]

Thanks to all to responded...I appreciate your input.

Ended up going to a dealer for oil service and air cabin filter. They also did a 40pt inspection - and all seemed to pass.

I was pleased to find out that, despite being a 2nd owner, the maintenance was still active...I thought that years back BMW NA killed the maintenance programme if you purchase your bimmer pre-owned.

Guess I lucked out, no?

Skål y'all!

PS I will definitely do a DIY mid-cycle oil service w/ Liqui Molly Super Tec 0W-30