I know this has been discussed to death here in various threads (many of which I have searched and read in the last couple of days), but I find myself needing your collective expertise and advice on the following:

About a month ago, I had a "Brake Fluid Change" warning on my iDrive. Took the car into the dealer and they produced the following:


The dealer advised me that the brake fluid change alert is an automatic alert as the car approaches being 2 years old, and that, given the numbers on the readout, I need only bring the car in when it hits 55,000km (it had only done 45k at that point). I was told that would cover the brake fluid, microfilter, engine oil and front brakes. Seemed reasonable to me based on what I had been reading here.

This morning my iDrive turned red for the brake fluid change warning - obviously it thinks that it's overdue. My "service due" intervals have now moved as follows:
Microfilter: down to 3,400km
Engine oil: down to 9,000km
Front brakes: down to 10,000km
Vehicle check: down to 11,000km
Rear brakes: no change

The car has only run a further 1,500km in the 4 weeks since the key reading posted above. I know these numbers can increase as well as decrease, and I know that the dealers have a heck of a lot more experience of this than I do, but my gut feel is to get the car booked in immediately for new brake fluid, engine oil, front brakes and a vehicle check. Am I being over-protective/over-prudent?? What practical advice would you folks have given the situation described above?

 

I would wait until you hit 55000km, as the dealer advised. The biannual brake fluid change is called for because brake fuid is hydroscopic, and will not transfer braking force as efficiently as it gradually absorbs moisture. Unless it has taken on a lot of water, it doesn't go bad per se and I doubt the few thousand km you'll drive will make much difference--noticibly or mechanically.

I would suspect that both you and the dealer will be happier if he just has the car come in once for multiple scheduled maintenance items, rather than having to bring it in every few weeks for each new service. Also, the dealer would probably rather change the fluid when he changes the brake pads (and discs if needed--I don't think they turn them any more).

Pieter

 

What your dealer says makes sense IF the car counts exactly the way it's listed... but the fact is that it wont. It will count down depending on conditions and by the time you reach 55,000 not all those things that need service will stand true.

1. Your brake fluid will still indicate it needs changing
2. Your microfilter will probably end up being over due
3. Motor oil will be ify... it might or might not make it down to <1000km where it'll indicate it needs changing.
4. Front brakes will also be ify... they dont change that fast. last time I remember looking at my front brakes it indicated it needed changing in 22K miles... after driving it for 2K miles it still showed 22K miles till changing...


So in other words your dealer should change what you want changed NOW. As long as iDrive says it needs changing... and you can go back as often as you wish as long as iDrive says so.

If I were you I would have made my dealer do the brake flush NOW because in the USA free maintence is good for 4 years... so that will get me 2 free brake flushes before warranty expires... and if you delay that for a month... your second "free" brake flush will be outside the free maintenance interval.

 

In your case, I would chose an intermediate solution, delaying the break fluid change and anticipating the microfilter and oil change.

 

Thanks for the input guys! I'm going to head across to the dealership and get the car booked in for the brake fluid, oil and vehicle inspection.

The car was manufactured 13-Oct-05 and first went on the road 14-Nov-05 and I feel it should be serviced around about now, regardless of what the iDrive is telling me. Add to that the fact that I get a little spooked by the fact that the iDrive seems to count up as well as down - and sometines it counts down faster when the car has sat parked for a week while I have been away on a business trip. It has needed/had zero maintenance on it to date other than the pre-delivery inspection when new and the pre-delivery inspection when I bought it in March this year (BMW Den Haag had leased it to a local company which went bust and returned the car to them. I picked it up CPO from BMW D-H).

EBMCS03: I have the BMW Nederland 2-year CPO warranty expect to have to pay for the brake flush here regardless, since the warranties in this country do not include any servicing - Inclusive Servicing is a package one buys when buying a new car here.

 

As a general rule, I would take the i-drive information and the manufacturer recommended schedule over the dealership advice.

Local dealerships can have motives that are not always in line with what the original engineers intended.

 

I will attach my question to this thread as it is in general about the same subject.

My car is just approaching its second service (59.900km this morning), however - the oil service seems to be far away (I don't know why, may be it is my driving pattern on long trips?)...

So, I just called my usual dealer to find out what should I do. Surprisingly, nobody was able to give me one, clear answer.
I wanted to know:
1) - if I arrive for the 60K service now - will they change the oil, which according to the car does not require change just yet?
2) - how much more kms can I do to arrive and do both in reasonable time? (and not jeopardize the warranty)

To 1st question they answered that normally if I drop the car now for the service they will not automatically change the oil, leaving the indicator pushing me come back in 5000km, unless I want to do it now - which I find logical by the way (note that in EU I have to pay for this normally out of my pocket).

2nd: they simply don't know (or don't want to tell?). I suggested to drive another 3-4 thousand km and then come for a check-up + oil change, and they did not object it ... that much So, I don't really understand what are the official "service rules"?

Moreover, they told me they will change all the brakes as well with 60.000km service and when I said that car indicates them for another 19-29 thousand kms they said I must be seriously wrong (suggesting between lines that my French is probably not that good...

And what I read on the bord computer is as follows:

next vehicle service: 100km
Engine Oil: 5.000km
Microfilter: 16.000km
Front brakes: 19.000km
Rear brakes: 29.000km
brake Fluid change: May/2008
Particle Filter: 150.000km

Any suggestions from the fellow-forum-members will be appreciated...

 

Just as they will change oil a little early (~5%) even for te free maintenance here in US, going a little over will not harm the warranty. You are paying in this case and you want to stretch your service to near required to economize prudently.

As far as brakes are concerned some folks (like me) are easy on brakes. At ~85.000km now and iDrive service computer, and visual inspection by my dealer this week confirms, I have about 40.000km left in the fronts and even more in the rears. You have to go by the individual driving habits not some canned number on a "recommended" list. Others out there are far more hard on their brakes and would require new pads BEFORE the recommended kms. I would have dealer, as I do, confirm with visual inspection the #s you are getting on service indicators.

 

IMO you have to change things when I-drive tells. I-drive is designed for that, if you listen your dealer suggsestions what the hell of we need then i-drive advice???