DIY: BMW 650i / 645Ci / E63 / E64 Oil Change and Check Control Reset

hi does anyone have anything like this for water pump

Thank you so much for the great DIY.

Well you learn something new every day. I just realized there is a "secret" oil dip stick on E63/E64 650i motors. This is not mentioned in the owner's manual and I just found this thing after 2 years of ownership.

Located here:

I wonder why it's almost kept a secret. I always wondered how accurate the digital oil level read was. Good job finding it and thanks for letting us know sir.

There was an article in a recent Roundel that talked about the digital oil meter. It's the same (simple) technology used by aircraft to detect fuel levels. Basically two open air capacitors sit in the oil and measure the capacitance. When there's oil on them, it's one level, when there's air, it's another. They also use this measurement to detect when the oil needs to be changed. Over time, the oil degrades and the capacitance will change as well. It's not as complex as we all made it out to be. This is proven technology from many decades ago.

I still think a dipstick would be nice, though.

Originally Posted by Yorgi

Well you learn something new every day. I just realized there is a "secret" oil dip stick on E63/E64 650i motors. This is not mentioned in the owner's manual and I just found this thing after 2 years of ownership.

Located here:

Awesome! That is a great find.. Cheers Yorgi...

Originally Posted by Yorgi

Well you learn something new every day. I just realized there is a "secret" oil dip stick on E63/E64 650i motors. This is not mentioned in the owner's manual and I just found this thing after 2 years of ownership.

Funny story: I recognized the dipstick immediately on my ED '07 650 coupe. At a car event, a bmw salesman who was once active on this board, refused to believe me when i told him that the 650 had a dipstick. So we bet on the presence of the dipstick, followed by me opening the hood. Easiest 20 bucks I ever made

Spyder

So just to be clear how many QUARTS of oil do I need for the oil change?

Is this the correct type of oil?
http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/web...earchTerm=ow40

And I wanted to get someone's opinion on these air filters
http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/web...ley_21299488-p

Are these the only air filters in the car or are these just the cabin filters and is there another filter I should be changing as well?

Thanks for the help!

Originally Posted by shan904

So just to be clear how many QUARTS of oil do I need for the oil change?

Is this the correct type of oil?
http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/web...earchTerm=ow40

And I wanted to get someone's opinion on these air filters
http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/web...ley_21299488-p

Are these the only air filters in the car or are these just the cabin filters and is there another filter I should be changing as well?

Thanks for the help!

Engine capacity is 8.5quarts or 8.0L according to the manual. I would drop in 7.5 quarts to be safe, start the car then top-up as required.

That is the correct oil in your link.

I can't tell if those will fit since I don't see any model info, but the filters in the link are cabin air filters and they are the better charcoal type. You need two of these and they install under the hood near the windshield. (your link includes two filters)

There is an additional engine air intake filter. Part # 13717521023 for the 650i and 645Ci.

Here are the instructions for installing the engine air filter. There are a few DIYs for the cabin filters in this section. You can also check out the bottom of my brake pad DIY which shows how to remove the cabin filters to get to the brake fluid reservoir.

Thanks Yorgi! You're awesome! Is there any specific brand of brake fluid you prefer? And I recently changed my brakes, when I went to reset the service interval in my iDrive, it did the whole -15000 and -9000. I checked out the sensors before I put them back on with the new brakes and they looked perfectly fine. I'm ordering new ones today so hopefully that'll take care of the issue but I can't imagine what could be wrong with the ones that are already on there...

Originally Posted by shan904

Thanks Yorgi! You're awesome! Is there any specific brand of brake fluid you prefer? And I recently changed my brakes, when I went to reset the service interval in my iDrive, it did the whole -15000 and -9000. I checked out the sensors before I put them back on with the new brakes and they looked perfectly fine. I'm ordering new ones today so hopefully that'll take care of the issue but I can't imagine what could be wrong with the ones that are already on there...

I've never had the -15000 problem happen to me but it seems like it's almost always a bad sensor. I would also try the reset several times, I have seen people say it took several attempts before the reset finally took.

For brake fluid I like Ate Typ200 and Ate SuperBlue the best. They are the same fluid with the Typ200 gold in colour and SuperBlue is blue. I alternate between the two so I can tell when new fluid is coming out at the bleed valve. Ate is a semi-racing fluid though but works fine on the street.

I also like Pentosin Dot4 brake fluid. I use this on my 6er or wife's car if I am out of Ate.

I am having difficulty with the large o'ring mating with the motor. My motor side mating surface is very thin (I am assuming the oring sits on the plastic flange of the filter housing and mates flush with motor). It doesn't appear to fit inside the motor housing so my guess is the torque wrench might be over torquing? Thoughts?

I am having difficulty with the large o'ring mating with the motor. My motor side mating surface is very thin (I am assuming the oring sits on the plastic flange of the filter housing and mates flush with motor). It doesn't appear to fit inside the motor housing so my guess is the torque wrench might be over torquing? Thoughts?

Sorry figured it out. Previous owner did oil change before I purchased the car. He didn't take the original oring off and I saw the second one and took it off and put the new one in its place. I figured out it sits higher in the groove. Replaced with new one and all is well.

Yorgi,

Great DYI write up on the oil change. I have a 2007 E63. When I looked under the car, it looks different than your picture. I did not see an access panel to the oil filter and plug. It looks like a whole piece covering the bottom of the engine. Is 2007 different than 2006? I have hard time getting underneath the car as it is so low and my jack stand did not clear the front. When I looked for the jack points in the owner manual, it does not show jacking underneath the engine is a jack point. I am afraid to break anything if I try to jack from the middle. Any ideas?

Thank you.

I'm going to do the first oil change ever in my life tomorrow. Thanks Yorgi. Wish BMW had a manual book for everything as detail as your DIY. BTW your engine bay is amazingly clean. I clean my engine bay once a month and it's no where near yours.

P.S: Regard my lack of english vocabulary. My engine cover has lost one of the 3/8mm "thing" to lock it. What is that call, I don't know what it call in English. It's hard to google without knowing it's name. And one of them is locked/broken, I tried several ways but there is no way I can take it out in order to remove the engine cover. You have any suggestion to remove that one? Thanks.

Originally Posted by pcm888usa

Yorgi,

Great DYI write up on the oil change. I have a 2007 E63. When I looked under the car, it looks different than your picture. I did not see an access panel to the oil filter and plug. It looks like a whole piece covering the bottom of the engine. Is 2007 different than 2006? I have hard time getting underneath the car as it is so low and my jack stand did not clear the front. When I looked for the jack points in the owner manual, it does not show jacking underneath the engine is a jack point. I am afraid to break anything if I try to jack from the middle. Any ideas?

Thank you.

Here is a diagram of an LCI 2007 under tray (part #7) and it shows the door is still there. I cannot imagine BMW removing that access cover. If it's not there you will need to remove about 10 screws to get the large under tray off. Removing the full tray is not that bad but much more effort than the screws required for the cover.


You cannot miss the middle jack pad under the front of the car. It is a large rubber pad. You normally need to jack the car up from the side first to get enough clearance for a second jack on that middle pad.

Originally Posted by reytran

I'm going to do the first oil change ever in my life tomorrow. Thanks Yorgi. Wish BMW had a manual book for everything as detail as your DIY. BTW your engine bay is amazingly clean. I clean my engine bay once a month and it's no where near yours.

P.S: Regard my lack of english vocabulary. My engine cover has lost one of the 3/8mm "thing" to lock it. What is that call, I don't know what it call in English. It's hard to google without knowing it's name. And one of them is locked/broken, I tried several ways but there is no way I can take it out in order to remove the engine cover. You have any suggestion to remove that one? Thanks.

Don't worry, your English is perfect; better than some English-as-first-language guys I see on the forums.

Here is the link to the page with the diagram of the underdtray I have shown in the above post. The link shows the part numbers and names of each part.

What I think you are missing is the #9 - quick release screw or the #5 c-clips. If you cannot get the access cover open then I would remove the entire undertray. I think there are 10 to 12 screws to remove, it's not hard but takes some time. If you have an electric drill with a Philips screw bit it will go much faster. Just be careful when re-installing if you use a drill, don't strip the screws. With the tray off you will have access to the back of the cover and you can then fix your problem.

Thank you, Yorgi. You are right. May be taking the under tray off is not bad. I should take the opportunity to flush the radiator as well.

After coming to realize that the dealer did not change my oil, I'm going to change the oil soon. Thank you Yorgi for an excellent guide!

What is the best oil to use in my 650i? should I even consider domestic oil or go for the European made oil. I use Pennzoil synthetis in my other cars, but do not want to use it in the beemer if it is not good enough. Where is the best place to buy Euro oil?

Originally Posted by gjw109

What is the best oil to use in my 650i? should I even consider domestic oil or go for the European made oil. I use Pennzoil synthetis in my other cars, but do not want to use it in the beemer if it is not good enough. Where is the best place to buy Euro oil?

I would not use a non-BMW-LL-01 approved oil. So no Pennzoil.

I mention the 3 commonly available approved oils and where to get them in section A (right at the top of the DIY). If you cannot find Mobil 1 10W-40 locally then just go to the dealer for BMW 5W-30 synthetic oil.

I've just realized that during the last oil change my indy didn't use the drain plug & just drained the oil by removing the filter. Now I noticed the actual oil pan recesses below the filter housing…

Yorgi do you have an idea how much of undrained oil stays in the pan, below the filter opening? You've been under this car many times, so I completely trust your gut feeling Should I be afraid there's a lot of old oil in the system now? (It took ~8.45qt of new oil…)

Thanks!

Originally Posted by janbrasna

I've just realized that during the last oil change my indy didn't use the drain plug & just drained the oil by removing the filter. Now I noticed the actual oil pan recesses below the filter housing…

Yorgi do you have an idea how much of undrained oil stays in the pan, below the filter opening? You've been under this car many times, so I completely trust your gut feeling Should I be afraid there's a lot of old oil in the system now? (It took ~8.45qt of new oil…)

Thanks!

Why do you think the indy did not use the drain plug? Based on the amount used to fill I would say he definitely used the plug. Removing the filter only would probably drain a quart or maybe two.

I was watching him. And realized this too late… when it was filled and running… and there was the plug washer still unused in the box.

If I look at the shape of the pan http://www.ecstuning.com/ES19061/ I can't tell how much of the oil would be stuck in the recess. Surprisingly it took almost the right amount of fresh oil, so I had no suspicion then.