well... he does have a valid point whether you like his tone or not....
I find it refreshing but I have an odd sense of humor

 

Oh I agree........I just didn't want to let you down.

Had to keep the NAM rep going!

 

I'll agree with your second post. Though I find it an interesting juxtaposition from the first one.

You state that the OBS is BS - what mileage do YOU feel is appropriate for a changing interval?
I go with ~7500 myself, unless it goes on the track.

Don't forget that the OBC reads ~10% high on MPG calculations.

Hey Nate, pass the .

 

Back down the slope we go....
Since we don't know you, one bit of information we can glean (aside from abrasiveness) is the post count.. and yes that's not a great indicator. Some folks have few posts, but expound knowledge amongst the collective, and others....well...
No we are not all Lemmings that worship the owners manual as you are implying. There are a significant number of folks here that do go against the grain in terms of the oil indicator. A simple search would reveal post after post of "how do I reset my oil light since my service department won't because I came in too early" or "how much is an oil change since I want it done early". There are also many many oil debates and discussions about this topic. Why do you think this thread went from a nonsensical rant, to an intelligent discussion... and then back down the slope...
Thank you for you infinite wisdom. With your posting you have saved countless owners from ending up with cars that have "zero resale". I can only hope that you are able to convey the same message to the countless Mini owners that have never been to this forum and read your gospel. Those are the many that will need to be saved in order for you to be able to trust that all the used Minis for sale from Craigslist to Carsoup will have had the optimum service completed.
I wish you well on your quest...

 

We should have a pot calling the kettle black award

 

I think you give the general public way too much credit. A lot of people pay NO attention to regular maintenance -- they only do something when they see the service light on the dash. My feeling is that most buyers do not ask for (and the seller wouldn't have it anyway) the history of regular maintenance.

 

Awright, I apologize for calling you a nit-wit.

 

Poopie-head....

 

Pardon me, I have to now face east (toward Oxford) and have a cup of tea while singing the words of the owner's manual to the tune of a Gregorian chant.

 

 

Okay.
That "poopie-head" comment was totally inappropriate and uncalled for.
I should be chastised.
No, wait.
I should be punished.
Yes, that's it.
A thorough thrashing.
Perhaps, a spanking.

 

actually BMW used a CBS ( condition based service ) in BMW and Mini. Even the new N54 335 uses the same 15,000 mile oil interval as all other BMWs. I dont agree to much with a twin turbo engine thats cooled by engine oil going 15K but i havent done the R&D. neither have you Mini1966. BTW the "OBS" you speak of calls for 4 services before maintenance runs out idiot. 1rst oil service, inspection, 2nd oil service, inspection 2. no to mention the countless low mileage oil adn filters you can get ( atleast 4 ). so really you can get as many as 8 oil changes in 50,000 miles. I change my oil PERSONALLY every 3-5 thousand but to state that you know better than BMWs engineers is a travesty. get lost newby.

 

Enough!!!

Fine, debate the merits or folly of the BMW/MINI maintenance schedule, but quit dropping in comments like idiot and the like. Ya'll are bunch of adults. Act like it!!!

Imagine you were standing around in parking lot after a nice spirited drive and you actually somewhat knew each other. Stop hiding behind a keyboard tossing uncalled for insults.

 

Dam..........

who made you teacher?

And your comment sure helped.............

 

grumble grumble, i guess idiot was a little uncalled for but this stuff is rediculous and has nothing to back it up. unless he has ben engineering cars for over 30 years?

 

I don't know of *anyone* that's gotten through the first four scheduled services before the standard maintenance agreement ran out. My *second* service didn't come due until almost 33k miles.

And what does "50,000 miles" have to do with anything? The standard maintenance agreement ends at 3 years/36k miles.

Also, you can only receive a *maximum* of three "low mileage oil changes" during the maintenance period, not a minimum of four, so I don't know what you're talking about there, either.

 

FYI i work at a dealer. so first i see people all the time who have gotten all 4. second 50,000 is within the goodwill process and your dealership can goodwill maintenance up to 18 months or 15k over maintenance. you just have to ask nicely. low mileage oil and filters can be done 1 time a year reguardless of mileage. if following the good will actually you can get 5 if your lucky but goodwill can only be performed 3 times total so use them wisely. please dont tell me i dont know what im talking about scott, i do this everyday.

 

Really - how often does a customer come in and say "I know that my service agreement ended ten thousand miles ago, but would you give me another free oil change just because I'm such a nice guy" and actually get it?

And how exactly do you get the first four service visits within the first 36k miles? Most people seem to come due for their first visit around 10-12k miles, and their second visit somewhere in the low-to-mid 20's. They *may* make it to the third scheduled maintenance before 36k miles, but if they're driving enough to do that within 3 years, they're probably not going to qualify for many (if any) "low mileage" oil changes on top of the scheduled visits.
Getting through the first four scheduled maintenances in 36k miles would be amazing - I've never had the OBC specify a 9,000 mile interval even once, much less four times (which is what it would take to hit the fourth service by 36k).

If your dealer is routinely extending people's service periods to 4/50k for free, that's great for your customers, but I don't think that's something the typical owner can count on.

 

If you wanted to milk the maximum possible amount of free services out of the dealer before the 3yr/36k mile service agreement expires, here's how I think you could do it. (And for this scenario, I'm assuming the agreement actually ends at 3/36k - I'm not including any nebulous "goodwill" services beyond the terms of the agreement:

Let's say you took delivery January 1st, 2005.

On January 1st, 2006, you've only hit 10k miles and your OBC says you're not due for 1,000 more miles, so you get a free "low mileage" oil change.

On March 1st of 2006, your OBC comes due, so you get the OBC-recommended "oil service" at 11k miles. You then proceed to start driving the heck out of the car and come due for "Inspection I" at 23k miles around August of 2006. You continue to drive the heck out of the car and come due for another "oil service" at 34k or so in December of 2006.

Then, you cut down drastically on your driving and only put about 2,000 miles on the car in the next year, allowing you to get another "low mileage" oil change in December of 2007. Then your service agreement ends on January 1st, 2008.

So, you will have gotten through the first three scheduled maintenance visits ("oil service", "Inspection I", "oil service") and received two low-mileage oil changes, for a total of five oil changes (even though the oil changes weren't spaced out very well.)

I really don't see a way to get more than that out of the dealer before hitting 3/36k. If there's anyone here that's made it to "Inspection II" before 36k miles, I'd love to hear about it. (Especially if you managed to both hit Inspection II prior to 3/36k *and* get one or more free low-mileage oil changes along the way.)

 

you are correct, its not likely but possible. I exagerrated his original complaint of 3 oil changes. I was simply stating all of the possible oil changes you can get. Also its not my dealership that eats the cost of a goodwill its BMWNA. and youd be surprised how many people take advantage of it. Id say hundreds. it is great for customers and its not true that the normal mini customer cant count on it. thye just have to ask nicely. If you march into the dealership complaining you want this and that, youll get nothing!
IMHO i just thought he should do his homework a little more before posting stating that I "hump porkupines", good talk scott

 

I wouldn't dare post to this thread. Compared to the rest of you guys, I know nothing.

 

Oh, and if anyone wants a good chuckle, I got a free extension of my service agreement to 4 years/50k miles because of a factory screwup involving my car's VIN numbers (they stamped my 2006 MINI with a 2007 VIN).

But even with the free extension, it's looking like I'm going to get a grand total of *two* OBC-recommended free services out of the dealer before hitting four years/50k miles.

Here's how it's breaking down-

I took delivery on 30-October-2006, and came due for "oil service" on 1-June-2007, at 12,396 miles.

I came due for "Inspection I" at 33,294 miles on 10-May-2008. Yes, the OBC recommended a 21k mile interval between services, and it hadn't been a year since my last service, so no "low-mileage" extra oil change for me.

Now, I only have a little less than 17k miles until the *extended* service agreement ends at 50k, so if the OBC-recommended interval before my next service is more than that, I won't even make it to the second "oil service" before the agreement ends. Considering that the last OBC interval was 21k miles, that's looking like a good possibility.

So, it's looking like 50k miles with a total of *two* OBC-recommended services at the dealer. I'd have been royally pissed if I'd paid the $600-700 that my dealer usually charges for the service extension to 4/50 instead of getting it for free, because it's looking like I'm not going to have a single OBC-recommended service visit during the extra 14k miles that the extension provides. (Although, the biannual brake flush/coolant flush will fall during that period, which I wouldn't have gotten for free if my service agreement ended at 36k.)

 

Anyone know how long BMW has had this long oil interval change by computer in their cars?

I seem to remember 90's era BMW cars with a hokey looking LED gauged bar green to red. At red it was time to change the oil.

Even the slug of the auto industry is going to longer intervals. GM I heard is recommending 7k with regular oil. Same for my wifes 2000 Subaru.

Wasn't the 3K oil change a result of leaded gas, and also the reason you had to change spark plugs ever 3 oil changes?

To me, it is the water pump that kills your car, if you do not catch that right away...hello cylinder head.

 

I am finally getting into the maintenance aspects of my MCS 05. I bought this fine jet black baby at the end of last year. As the third owner, I have promised "Isabelle" a home for life. I am pulling articles from all kinds of sources to get a grip on the newer synthetics, and technologies. I look eagerly to the NAM sites to hopefully get to the graduation level of "Gear Head". Can't wait to get a floor jack and get started.....

 

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