Wow, high milage E46!

nate328Ci said:

http://bimmer.roadfly.org/bmw/forums/e46/archives/forum.php?postid=419474&page=1

112K and 18K mile oil changes! The oil is still good when it gets taken out! :yikes:

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:yikes: :yikes:

I think he'd flame me if I told him I changed the oil @ ~3,500 miles...

Re: Re: Wow, high milage E46!

ALEX325i said:

:yikes: :yikes:

I think he'd flame me if I told him I changed the oil @ ~3,500 miles...

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Do you really?

I personally drive 25-30K miles per year, and that is exactly why I AM buying a BMW. For some, it is logical to buy a BMW and baby it and keep the miles low. My logic is to buy a BMW to ENJOY DRIVING it! Since I spend nearly three hours a day in my car, I want it to be something I really like, not a tin-can rice-burner!

Nothing was funnier than one of my mom's friend that has an old Tercel. At about 125k km's, she said something about her car running rough. After a bunch of questions, I thought about something. "When was the last time you changed your oil?" "What oil?" ....:yikes:

She seriously never changed the oil since she bought the car new. Toyota engineers are Gods I tell you.

Mystikal said:

Nothing was funnier than one of my mom's friend that has an old Tercel. At about 125k km's, she said something about her car running rough. After a bunch of questions, I thought about something. "When was the last time you changed your oil?" "What oil?" ....:yikes:

She seriously never changed the oil since she bought the car new. Toyota engineers are Gods I tell you.

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Did she save the motor?

I don't think that oil would pass the purity test :eeps:

Re: Re: Wow, high milage E46!

ALEX325i said:

I think he'd flame me if I told him I changed the oil @ ~3,500 miles...

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I'd flame you too. that's way overkill for synthetic oil and a wste of money. changing dino oil every 3500 miles is equivalent to changing synthetic every 4500. factory recommended intervals are typically 7500 for dino and 15K for synth.

nate328Ci said:

112K and 18K mile oil changes! The oil is still good when it gets taken out! :yikes:

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that car is just broken in. that's teh whole point of buying a BMW. you can have lot's of fun for a long time and many miles.

I've owned two early E30s with high miles. I purchased both (about 5 years apart) with high miles. they were both HAMMERED and I hammered them both for another 150K miles. both with original engines and neither burned a drop of oil when sold. I pulled the head on the first one to freshen up the valves and change the guides. I sold both with ~250K miles on each and they both ran like tops. the first one (alpine white ) was purchased from a friend who had his 16 year old lead footed kid driving it (he only knew two speeds: idle and WOT). amazing cars.

I've got 62,000 miles on my 2000 323i with oil changes every 7500 miles. I really question the value of doing the interim oil change. The last 2 I've done myself and the oil looks extremely clean. I'm really starting to buy the rumor that the frequent oil changes are just propaganda created by the quickee-lube places.

Doesn't mean that I'll quit doing them though.

JPinTO said:

I've got 62,000 miles on my 2000 323i with oil changes every 7500 miles. I really question the value of doing the interim oil change. The last 2 I've done myself and the oil looks extremely clean. I'm really starting to buy the rumor that the frequent oil changes are just propaganda created by the quickee-lube places.

Doesn't mean that I'll quit doing them though.

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it's not just dirty oil that you need to worry about, it's viscosity break down. dino oil supposedly breaks down at ~5K miles and synthetic at ~8K-10K miles (so I've read).

31st330i said:

it's not just dirty oil that you need to worry about, it's viscosity break down. dino oil supposedly breaks down at ~5K miles and synthetic at ~8K-10K miles (so I've read).

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If this is true:

I send my oil in to Mobil labs at every change to have it analized. ($20) the report always shows no sign of water, coolant, or fuel in the oil, and very very low amounts of various metals (well within the safety zone). They always say the oil is suitable for continued use.

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Then we have nothing to worry about :dunno:

nate328Ci said:

If this is true:

Then we have nothing to worry about :dunno:

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the first part of that means the engine isn't bad (low metal, no water, coolant or water) but there's nothing in that tidbit that specifically states the viscoity is still good.

31st330i said:

the first part of that means the engine isn't bad (low metal, no water, coolant or water) but there's nothing in that tidbit that specifically states the viscoity is still good.

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But, the final part says "They always say the oil is suitable for continued use"

I would hope that the Mobil labs would test the viscosity of an oil before saying that it is still good for use :dunno:

nate328Ci said:

But, the final part says "They always say the oil is suitable for continued use"

I would hope that the Mobil labs would test the viscosity of an oil before saying that it is still good for use :dunno:

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yes, I read that part but like I said, there was nothing *specific* mentioned about viscosity. yeah, it's implied but that's a different thing in my book. is the mileage on the tested oil mentioned?

Re: Re: Re: Wow, high milage E46!

nate328Ci said:

Do you really?

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Well, I did it because it took me 6 months to put ~3,500 miles on the 325i...

Re: Re: Re: Wow, high milage E46!

31st330i said:

I'd flame you too. that's way overkill for synthetic oil and a wste of money. changing dino oil every 3500 miles is equivalent to changing synthetic every 4500. factory recommended intervals are typically 7500 for dino and 15K for synth.

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31st,

Read my post above... Maybe it's still an overkill, but to me it's either 5,000 miles or 6 months. Whichever occurs first.

Edit:

And 15K miles for synthetic. Sorry, but I'll never put that many miles on without at least ONE oil change @ 7,500 miles... I don't care what BMW says. Especially in this case - brand new engine. That's one of the things I learned from my dad (myth?) - I'll always have the first oil change at 5K miles/6 months...