Maintenance Interval Opinions and DIY Log

I'm getting my maintenance schedule up to date and wanted to get some other's opinions on intervals. Two things surprised me when reading some of the BMW M3 new buyer literature that recommended changing the engine air filter at every oil change and also changing the spark plugs every 37k. Other than that most everything else was condition based service of which I simply do not trust. If a car company has "lifetime" fluids I simply will not trust any condition based servicing unless it happens to signal me before one of my own intervals is signaled.

The below is a mash up of Mike Miller's old school maintenance schedule, BavAuto's schedule, and a bit of my own. I lean on the side of being conservative with the intervals due to the cost of a fluid versus cost of a major repair. (I'm happy to share the Excel file with anyone as well, just PM me). The sheet has built if formulas so it will throw you a "!" in Column C whenever a service is due. Due date based on current date, mileage and the last date or mileage you did that service. All customizable to your own intervals.

Thoughts?

The engine air filter is massive and actually works a bit better with some particulates in it. I would not shorten that change interval unless you're perpetually driving through dust storms or something crazy like that.

I wouldn't replace the O2 sensors until they fail. The car won't have a catastrophic problem when they finally start going out...it will just run a bit rich and start throwing intermittent CELs. Hoses and such are the same -- just inspect periodically for leaks or damage and replace as needed.

The trans & diff fluid intervals can go beyond 30k unless you are really abusing them, IMO. My thinking on lifetime fill has always been "the day the warranty expires".

here's a thread i started a few years back to propose maintenance intervals and get input from others on them-

http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=778602

robbiedawg wrote

here's a thread i started a few years back to propose maintenance intervals and get input from others on them-

http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=778602

Nice, thanks. Those seem to generally line up with what I've got in my maintenance tracker (post #1) so good to see. I think there is always some room for tweaking intervals based on the driver and conditions, but as long as you're doing something at some time versus not at all, you're way ahead of 90% of the population.

delirium330 wrote

I'm getting my maintenance schedule up to date and wanted to get some other's opinions on intervals. Two things surprised me when reading some of the BMW M3 new buyer literature that recommended changing the engine air filter at every oil change and also changing the spark plugs every 37k. Other than that most everything else was condition based service of which I simply do not trust. If a car company has "lifetime" fluids I simply will not trust any condition based servicing unless it happens to signal me before one of my own intervals is signaled.

The below is a mash up of Mike Miller's old school maintenance schedule, BavAuto's schedule, and a bit of my own. I lean on the side of being conservative with the intervals due to the cost of a fluid versus cost of a major repair. (I'm happy to share the Excel file with anyone as well, just PM me). The sheet has built if formulas so it will throw you a "!" in Column C whenever a service is due. Due date based on current date, mileage and the last date or mileage you did that service. All customizable to your own intervals.

Thoughts?

Props for sharing your spreadsheet! Have some appreciation!

Props Indeed! Any chance you can PM me a copy of the spreadsheet and I'll convert it into KMs for use Downunder?

Ingenio wrote

Props Indeed! Any chance you can PM me a copy of the spreadsheet and I'll convert it into KMs for use Downunder?

PM me your email address and I'll send it over.

haha! I have a similar spread sheet as well. I like your date check though.

With regards to the date check, is your opinion that these would apply to very low annual mileage? I have a 2009 with 10500 miles on it; the original owner put about 1500 miles a year on it, and I'm hitting 5-6k. It's in its 7th year, and by the thinking in the spreadsheet, I would be looking to replace things as if it had 10x the mileage.

I suppose it also breaks out differently for fluids vs hardware? (Sorry if this is a threadjack, I was searching for a thread explicitly for this question, but since you had the time-based criteria, figured it was close enough.)

mrMTB wrote

With regards to the date check, is your opinion that these would apply to very low annual mileage? I have a 2009 with 10500 miles on it; the original owner put about 1500 miles a year on it, and I'm hitting 5-6k. It's in its 7th year, and by the thinking in the spreadsheet, I would be looking to replace things as if it had 10x the mileage.

I suppose it also breaks out differently for fluids vs hardware? (Sorry if this is a threadjack, I was searching for a thread explicitly for this question, but since you had the time-based criteria, figured it was close enough.)

Good questions. The mileage and date intervals are mostly my own preference based on my annual mileage, which is about 5k (pretty close to yours it sounds like).

Also worth noting again that many of these intervals and my developed preferences over time are taken from Mike Miller's Old School Maintenance schedule. For those who don't know Mike, he is arguably one of the most knowledgeable BMW mechanics in the industry and the author for all Roundel tech tips. If you've ever read Tech Tips, you'd be amazed at the wealth of knowledge this guy has. The theory is that intervals like these are cheap preventive maintenance that goes against BMW's trend (started in the 90s) to move away from logical intervals to lifetime fluids and long intervals to make maintenance seem carefree and easy. IF YOU PLAN TO OWN THIS CAR FOR 2-3 YEARS THEN I WOULDN'T BOTHER WITH ANY OF THIS STUFF. THIS APPROACH IS FOR THOSE THAT WANT TO OWN THESE CARS FOR 5-10+ YEARS. Also, if you take care of your car and sell it in pristine cosmetic condition you'll be able to command a much higher price if you can show a detailed maintenance log (ask me how I know...).

The is built for mileage or date, whichever comes first, BUT for some of these items one will usually always come before the other. Examples:

Belts, Brakes - if you drove the thing 1.5k miles per year and stored it in a garage with reasonable ambient temps, etc. etc. then you probably wouldn't need to change them at 48 months. Many would argue this is an inspection item as well... if the belts look great upon inspection, why replace them? This is why the spreadsheet isn't hard and fast, just general guidelines so when I get a "!" I can remember to take a look and decide to perform some maintenance.

Filters - these are cheap and easy so I never hesitate to change out at an earlier interval.

Fluids - I usually abide by the earliest interval here (miles or time) because I strongly believe in early preventive maintenance. It is cheap, usually easy and is a wise investment on a 70k race car.

Thanks for the followup; I'm certainly familiar with Mike and his maintenance schedule. While my mileage will be going up at a better rate now, I'm just trying to figure out if there is any pressing maintenance needs I need to address to ensure that I have lots of happy motoring miles with the new sled.

delirium330 wrote

Good questions. The mileage and date intervals are mostly my own preference based on my annual mileage, which is about 5k (pretty close to yours it sounds like).

Also worth noting again that many of these intervals and my developed preferences over time are taken from Mike Miller's Old School Maintenance schedule. For those who don't know Mike, he is arguably one of the most knowledgeable BMW mechanics in the industry and the author for all Roundel tech tips. If you've ever read Tech Tips, you'd be amazed at the wealth of knowledge this guy has. The theory is that intervals like these are cheap preventive maintenance that goes against BMW's trend (started in the 90s) to move away from logical intervals to lifetime fluids and long intervals to make maintenance seem carefree and easy. IF YOU PLAN TO OWN THIS CAR FOR 2-3 YEARS THEN I WOULDN'T BOTHER WITH ANY OF THIS STUFF. THIS APPROACH IS FOR THOSE THAT WANT TO OWN THESE CARS FOR 5-10+ YEARS. Also, if you take care of your car and sell it in pristine cosmetic condition you'll be able to command a much higher price if you can show a detailed maintenance log (ask me how I know...).

The is built for mileage or date, whichever comes first, BUT for some of these items one will usually always come before the other. Examples:

Belts, Brakes - if you drove the thing 1.5k miles per year and stored it in a garage with reasonable ambient temps, etc. etc. then you probably wouldn't need to change them at 48 months. Many would argue this is an inspection item as well... if the belts look great upon inspection, why replace them? This is why the spreadsheet isn't hard and fast, just general guidelines so when I get a "!" I can remember to take a look and decide to perform some maintenance.

Filters - these are cheap and easy so I never hesitate to change out at an earlier interval.

Fluids - I usually abide by the earliest interval here (miles or time) because I strongly believe in early preventive maintenance. It is cheap, usually easy and is a wise investment on a 70k race car.

delirium330's spreadsheet is pretty darn awesome.

Apex Everything wrote

delirium330's spreadsheet is pretty darn awesome.

+1

Car22 wrote

+1

They have a button for that

Woa awesome. do you have one made up for kms? What do i have to do to get a copy? :P

dab_of_oppo wrote

Woa awesome. do you have one made up for kms? What do i have to do to get a copy? :P

Not specifically for KMs, but the mileage intervals can be whatever you want them to be. For example, if you want to change an interval from 30k miles to 20k kilometers, just enter in "20,000". As long as you're consistent you can use whatever system of measurement you want.

You can PM me your email address if you want the tool.

delirium330 wrote

Not specifically for KMs, but the mileage intervals can be whatever you want them to be. For example, if you want to change an interval from 30k miles to 20k kilometers, just enter in "20,000". As long as you're consistent you can use whatever system of measurement you want.

You can PM me your email address if you want the tool.

delirium, your spreadsheet is so amazing. I made my own tweaks but its still 95% your own stuff. thanks again

Thanks again for the spreadsheet! Had a question though, im putting in all of my own values and noticed you had a 'perform inspection 1 and 2'. What are these inspections?!

Thanks again! awesome tool!

dab_of_oppo wrote

Thanks again for the spreadsheet! Had a question though, im putting in all of my own values and noticed you had a 'perform inspection 1 and 2'. What are these inspections?!

Thanks again! awesome tool!

They're the "vehicle check" you see in the CBS. Basically a multi-point inspection of crucial items.

I don't have my owner's manual nearby, but I Googled it and this is a summary:

http://www.bimmershops.com/bmw-inspection-1

dparm wrote

They're the "vehicle check" you see in the CBS. Basically a multi-point inspection of crucial items.

I don't have my owner's manual nearby, but I Googled it and this is a summary:

http://www.bimmershops.com/bmw-inspection-1

Correct and if you're a novice, BavAuto published a 2-3 page guide with pictures on what to look for when doing the standard "Inspection". Google should turn those up, they were several years ago in one of their quarterly newsletters.

It's a fairly expensive service at the dealer (couple hundred bucks), but since I'm under BMW's EVP warranty, I didn't want to risk a denial of coverage for not getting it. Most of the stuff is easily DIY if you have an hour or two and jack + jackstands.

delirium330 wrote

Correct and if you're a novice, BavAuto published a 2-3 page guide with pictures on what to look for when doing the standard "Inspection". Google should turn those up, they were several years ago in one of their quarterly newsletters.

awesome thanks for that!