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      01-27-2010, 10:03 PM   #1
L-Altos
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Oil change; wrong oil (5W30)

So I take my E90 in the other day for the “Increased Emissions/Reduce Power” CEL, and while Im there my SA says I can get some additional work done. He mentions that I need the micro filter and brake fluid changed soon, so I ask if I could get a “low mileage” oil change. He says “Absolutely” and puts its in the order.

So. all is well, and the car is ready the next day. I pick it up, drive it home, and then look over the invoice during dinner. Listed under the “Complete low mileage oil change” section is "Motor Oil SAE 5W30." I’m a bit shocked by this, but its done so now I have to decide how bad this is. I only drove 50 miles, and never went above 5K ( its cold and snowing here).

I plan to leave it in the garage and have 10w60 put in this weekend, but now I’m concerned about getting all of the 5w30 out.

After they change the oil (and hopefully the filter) I plan to drive it for a few hundred miles and then change it again. From my internet search, I cant determine if this is really a big issue or not. I see things like” Don’t mix viscosities”, etc.
Although the dealer will correct the problem, I don’t think they will take the time to drain all of the 5W30 out, which is why I want to change it again in a few weeks.

So am I being to anal about this? It may seem like a dumb concern on my part, but Id rather ask the question and look dumb, than not ask the question and feel dumb if something happens.
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      01-27-2010, 11:24 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by L-Altos View Post
So I take my E90 in the other day for the “Increased Emissions/Reduce Power” CEL, and while Im there my SA says I can get some additional work done. He mentions that I need the micro filter and brake fluid changed soon, so I ask if I could get a “low mileage” oil change. He says “Absolutely” and puts its in the order.

So. all is well, and the car is ready the next day. I pick it up, drive it home, and then look over the invoice during dinner. Listed under the “Complete low mileage oil change” section is "Motor Oil SAE 5W30." I’m a bit shocked by this, but its done so now I have to decide how bad this is. I only drove 50 miles, and never went above 5K ( its cold and snowing here).

I plan to leave it in the garage and have 10w60 put in this weekend, but now I’m concerned about getting all of the 5w30 out.

After they change the oil (and hopefully the filter) I plan to drive it for a few hundred miles and then change it again. From my internet search, I cant determine if this is really a big issue or not. I see things like” Don’t mix viscosities”, etc.
Although the dealer will correct the problem, I don’t think they will take the time to drain all of the 5W30 out, which is why I want to change it again in a few weeks.

So am I being to anal about this? It may seem like a dumb concern on my part, but Id rather ask the question and look dumb, than not ask the question and feel dumb if something happens.
I don't think they need te change it twice. They just have to let it drain for a good amount of time.
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      01-28-2010, 08:11 AM   #3
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I think mixing viscosities means don't put 5W30 in as a top up. A full drain will get out most of the wrong oil, especially with a long drain. Maybe, when draining the wrong oil, you could tip in a warmed bottle of 10W60 to rinse the sump, and then close drains and fill up with the right oil?
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      01-28-2010, 08:54 AM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LiM3y View Post
I think mixing viscosities means don't put 5W30 in as a top up. A full drain will get out most of the wrong oil, especially with a long drain. Maybe, when draining the wrong oil, you could tip in a warmed bottle of 10W60 to rinse the sump, and then close drains and fill up with the right oil?

It definitely needs a nice long drain, the problem is that I wont be there when they do it so I wont really know how long they drained it for. That’s the reason I wanted to change it again on my own in a couple of weeks. Then I can be sure that all the 5w30 is out of the engine.
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      01-28-2010, 09:00 AM   #5
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well if you dont trust them doing it, why dont you ask them to give you the right oil(for free, of course) and do it yourself?
unless you dont have time before 2-3 weeks like you said...

just an idea...
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      01-28-2010, 10:19 AM   #6
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They shouldn't be putting 5w30 in the motor per BMW, so they should do another oil change at no charge. It would be good to understand why they put that in there to begin with...

Having a little 5w30 left in the motor is not going to hurt anything.
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      01-28-2010, 10:45 AM   #7
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Your motor will be fine. I work in the Aviation world and ive seen bone heads put hydraulic fluid in jet turbine engines! And let me tell you this is not a good thing much worse than haveing 5w-30 in your M3. All that is required is a drain and flush if you contaminate the oil system. So don't worry 5w-30 use to be the standard fill on ///M engines. So i would have the dealer change the oil with the proper stuff 10W-60. Demand they give you 9 literes of 10W-60 and a filter and seals. Take it for a drive get the oil up to operating temperture and change it yourself or talk the dealer into flushing your system for you! and all will be good no worries.
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      01-28-2010, 10:52 AM   #8
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There's a difference between someone else's jet and YOUR M3...!

BTW: Which airline for future reference?
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      01-28-2010, 01:17 PM   #9
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Turbine versus Piston

Quote:
Originally Posted by LiM3y View Post
There's a difference between someone else's jet and YOUR M3...!

BTW: Which airline for future reference?
The Jet turbine is more complex and costs about the same amount as 58 M3's

Privaleged info you think car dealers are terrible! Then aviation maintenance should flat out scare you!
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      01-28-2010, 02:03 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by L-Altos View Post
So I take my E90 in the other day for the “Increased Emissions/Reduce Power” CEL, and while Im there my SA says I can get some additional work done. He mentions that I need the micro filter and brake fluid changed soon, so I ask if I could get a “low mileage” oil change. He says “Absolutely” and puts its in the order.

So. all is well, and the car is ready the next day. I pick it up, drive it home, and then look over the invoice during dinner. Listed under the “Complete low mileage oil change” section is "Motor Oil SAE 5W30." I’m a bit shocked by this, but its done so now I have to decide how bad this is. I only drove 50 miles, and never went above 5K ( its cold and snowing here).

I plan to leave it in the garage and have 10w60 put in this weekend, but now I’m concerned about getting all of the 5w30 out.

After they change the oil (and hopefully the filter) I plan to drive it for a few hundred miles and then change it again. From my internet search, I cant determine if this is really a big issue or not. I see things like” Don’t mix viscosities”, etc.
Although the dealer will correct the problem, I don’t think they will take the time to drain all of the 5W30 out, which is why I want to change it again in a few weeks.

So am I being to anal about this? It may seem like a dumb concern on my part, but Id rather ask the question and look dumb, than not ask the question and feel dumb if something happens.
make sure they change the filter
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      01-28-2010, 02:25 PM   #11
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I talked to my SA today and it seems to be a order entry issue and not the wrong oil. The ironic thing is that me and the SA were talking about his M5, the price of an oil change, and how the guys in the service department see a lot of M3's and really know what they are doing. The 5W30 comes out of a hose that is hooked up to a big barrel, and the tech definitely added TWS in the liter bottles. He even showed the SA the empty box. The SA said they don’t even have the gold individual 5w30 bottles in the service area, just at the parts counter for walk-in customers who want to buy it. I told the SA "off the record" that I don’t care if a mistake was made, I'll change the oil myself, I just want to know. He assured me that it was the right oil. Considering he is a fellow M owner and is active in the local M community, I will probably give him the benefit of the doubt.

Last edited by L-Altos; 01-28-2010 at 07:01 PM..
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