Silver_545i

Hey Guys, as I mentioned yesterday, my '05 545i is sitting at the dealership for a scheduled oil change. My mileage is 79,988 km's (49,702 miles) and I essentially loose the factory warranty and start my CPO today. Therefore, I asked them to comb the car over to see if there are any other concerns that should be addressed.

I specifically asked them to research a small whistling noise and found that to be a worn out pulley, which will be fixed under warranty at no cost to me. Outside of that, the car is great - with exception to their service recommendations which I need your advice on.

Since my car is an '05 with approx 80,000 km's, they are asking me to do the following recommended maintenance:
1. rear differential fluid - $94 (apparently, the fluid is a little dark but that's supposed to be normal due to my mileage?)
2. flushing the cooling system, including all the lines and the cooling jacket - $137
3. fuel injector flush - $98
4. oil change - $161
TOTAL before tax: approx $500.00 ($565.00 with tax!)

So, outside of the oil service, all of the above is their recommendation and is optional. Obviously not covered under warranty since it's maintenance work. But my friend who is the shop foreman said I should seriously consider doing all the work due to my mileage and age of car. I was not expecting to spend $565 today. They are waiting for me to confirm if I want this service done. What do you guys think / suggest?

I appreciate all your comments & thanks for your support!

Silver_545i

oh, forgot to mention, they are already giving me a 10% discount on this pricing.

Frac

Isnt maintenance covered o 50,000 miles?

Silver_545i

Unfortunately, that only applies when you purchase the car new. I purchased mine used from a dealership and therefore have the CPO, but not regular maintenance coverage.

That said, the BMW tech says they would have only recommended the 3 fluid services after 80,000 km's (or 50,000 miles) so it wouldn't have been covered anyway. The free maintenance is to the discretion of BMW and apparently, they have selected services that can be conducted for free - like an oil change.

MisledYouth

That's crap. I bought mine used and have taken it to BMW in California AND Colorado, and they both honored the 4/50k plan.

BrianTx5

I am confused at what you mean by your comment. What was honored?

Gene

that oil change can be done yourself..there are some great DIY threads on here to help

Howitzer

BMW is really stingy on replacing things even under their PAID Maintenance program. I blew like 1800 bucks on that damn thing and have to pull teeth to get brakes changed.

Just yesterday at Motor Werks in Barrington I had been denied new rotors/pads because BMW requires my pads to be at 6mm front and 3mm rear for a change. Mine were 9mm front and 6mm rear. So in like 3,000 miles they'll change them but not before. 3 millimeters people.

cokeefe

I think all those items, possibly excepting the injectors, are very good ideas if you plan to keep the car (or even if you plan to sell it and want the buyer to know it's well-maintained).

I do oil at 7K, transmission and diff at 30K (possibly somewhat excessive, but cheap insurance), and coolant at 30K. Injectors I send out every 90K miles. It really helps knock down the costs if you can do any of the work yourself, but even at $500 it's worth it in my opinion. Note that you can actually get your injectors rebuilt and blueprinted for $100 if you can take them off the car. BMW's injector service is better than nothing, though.

I think BMW's "lifetime fluids" are geared toward people who are going to get rid of the car before it hits 70-80K miles...no lubricants or coolants can possibly last forever.

txag_530i

1. Rear differential- for $98 why not?
2. Flush coolant system = $137 doesn't sound too bad for a dealer, but an independent shop may be less costly
3. Skip
4. $161 for an oil change! Yikes! You can get the filter for $15 and Mobil 1 for $5/quart x 6 quarts (guess) = $45. That leaves $116 to buy an oil filter wrench and some other minor things you'll need for the oil change.

As I've already written, call an independent shop for a quick comparison.

Good luck.