F15 maintenance schedule by mileage

[probee773]

I can't seem to find a simple maintenance schedule by mileage for my 2014 X5 xdrive 35i with 75k miles. Anyone know where to find one?

[bavautosport]

Originally Posted by probee773

I can't seem to find a simple maintenance schedule by mileage for my 2014 X5 xdrive 35i with 75k miles. Anyone know where to find one?

Subscribed. 60k CPO 2015 n55 with zero issues except for front lower control arm bushings replacement. Oil change ~5-6k miles with BMW n55 kit. Wanted to keep the car for as long as I possibly can so don't mind preventative maintenance. Would love to hear the same info on high mile maintenance from other members here.

[Swiftness~]

I too was curious and after a quick search found alot of helpful information here with great diys. Just recently hit 55k did my spark plugs, changed all filters which included air filter, cabin filters, recirc filter and changed fluids which included transfer case, front/rear diff, brake fluid also plan on doing the trans fluid at around 65-70k. I planned on doing the ignition coils while doing the plugs but my shop advised me that it can wait till around 90k+ and that it wasn't needed since Im not tuned he mentioned coils aren't something that just gradually goes bad where you need to be proactive as they randomly can go one by one not sure if theres any truth to this but considering he use to be a foreman for BMW guess I'll take his word for it.

[bavautosport]

Originally Posted by Swiftness~

I too was curious and after a quick search found alot of helpful information here with great diys. Just recently hit 55k did my spark plugs, changed all filters which included air filter, cabin filters, recirc filter and changed fluids which included transfer case, front/rear diff, brake fluid also plan on doing the trans fluid at around 65-70k. I planned on doing the ignition coils while doing the plugs but my shop advised me that it can wait till around 90k+ and that it wasn't needed since Im not tuned he mentioned coils aren't something that just gradually goes bad where you need to be proactive as they randomly can go one by one not sure if theres any truth to this but considering he use to be a foreman for BMW guess I'll take his word for it.

Glad I'm talking to like-mind owners so I can learn along the way. While I already changed all filters and planned to change fluids on these four items: front and rear diff, transfer case, and brake flush; I was not aware of the spark plugs change. Would you mind elaborating on any issue that prompts the replacement, i.e. an error code? And also condition of the plugs at 55k when you took them out? Looks like as one of the preventive maintenance items, I should do that too, but can't tackle so many things as once so need to prioritize.

[KCTiger]

I am at about 50k miles and just did transmission fluid and spark plugs. A lot of debate over the need to do trans fluid but my vehicle drives much better after having it done. I wish I would have asked about the condition of the plugs but I forgot to. I am not going to replace transfer case fluid anytime soon since it was replaced under warranty a few thousand miles ago. I will do diff fluid change at my next oil change most likely.

[Hellrot]

I'm at 50k and just had my spark plugs done after a misfire. Seems to be noticeably more powerful now.

[steelerfan]

Subscribed for future reference

[cfm56d7b]

Also subscribed. Very helpful thread.

[HJ]

The air filter should be changed at a faster interval than other filters I was suprised how dirty mine was after 14 months and 10k miles

[Swiftness~]

Originally Posted by bavautosport

Glad I'm talking to like-mind owners so I can learn along the way. While I already changed all filters and planned to change fluids on these four items: front and rear diff, transfer case, and brake flush; I was not aware of the spark plugs change. Would you mind elaborating on any issue that prompts the replacement, i.e. an error code? And also condition of the plugs at 55k when you took them out? Looks like as one of the preventive maintenance items, I should do that too, but can't tackle so many things as once so need to prioritize.

No particular reason for the plugs other than recommendation from the forums as part of maintenance. I don't know if its just in my head but car does feel more responsive especially when going up a hill

[pwrdbym]

There's not a lot of published information from BMW because they're not interested in vehicles that make it trouble free for 200k. The stereotype from the 80-90's of BMWs being high in maintenance costs hasn't been shook yet-their tactic is to extend and eliminate preventivive maintenance items. I'll get off my soapbox.

I can tell you what I do; some may disagree. I have 8 BMWs and maintain them all the same way.

Oil & Filter every 7.5k miles or 1 year
Air Filter every 30k miles & inspected at every oil change, blow with air if it doesn't need replacement
Spark Plugs every 60k miles
Brake fluid flush every 2yrs regardless of miles
Rear Diff Fluid every 60k mi or 3 yrs (plus front diff & transfer case if equipped)
Drain & Fill transmission (Filter if able) every 60k mi or 3 years
Power steering fluid drain and fill every 60k or 3 years (if equipped)
Coolant drain and fill every 100k or 5 years

All but my daily drivers have maintenance done on time and not miles since they don't accrue many. This isn't a comprehensive list as some cars have particular needs and features.

[ferrarif1]

Maintenence intervals are tied to oil changes. See below for F15 3.5i:

https://www.newtis.info/tisv2/a/en/f...nce/1VnXQgC1NR

[avidec3]

Maintenance services not listed in CBS are linked to engine oil service. See attached.

Originally Posted by probee773

I can't seem to find a simple maintenance schedule by mileage for my 2014 X5 xdrive 35i with 75k miles. Anyone know where to find one?

[probee773]

Originally Posted by pwrdbym

There's not a lot of published information from BMW because they're not interested in vehicles that make it trouble free for 200k. The stereotype from the 80-90's of BMWs being high in maintenance costs hasn't been shook yet-their tactic is to extend and eliminate preventivive maintenance items. I'll get off my soapbox.

I can tell you what I do; some may disagree. I have 8 BMWs and maintain them all the same way.

Oil & Filter every 7.5k miles or 1 year
Air Filter every 30k miles & inspected at every oil change, blow with air if it doesn't need replacement
Spark Plugs every 60k miles
Brake fluid flush every 2yrs regardless of miles
Rear Diff Fluid every 60k mi or 3 yrs (plus front diff & transfer case if equipped)
Drain & Fill transmission (Filter if able) every 60k mi or 3 years
Power steering fluid drain and fill every 60k or 3 years (if equipped)
Coolant drain and fill every 100k or 5 years

All but my daily drivers have maintenance done on time and not miles since they don't accrue many. This isn't a comprehensive list as some cars have particular needs and features.

This is very helpful, thank you!

Anyone have any experience with BG flush products? Local BMW mechanic swears by it, and reviews are good on Amazon. Would love to get 200K miles out of this engine and transmission.

https://www.bgprod.com/catalog/engin.../#bg-product-3

[Rightlanedriver]

Originally Posted by KCTiger

I am at about 50k miles and just did transmission fluid and spark plugs. A lot of debate over the need to do trans fluid but my vehicle drives much better after having it done. I wish I would have asked about the condition of the plugs but I forgot to. I am not going to replace transfer case fluid anytime soon since it was replaced under warranty a few thousand miles ago. I will do diff fluid change at my next oil change most likely.

How much was trans fluid change and was the filter also changed? I saw a trans kit online that includes oil, new cover that has built-in filter as well.

I also wonder how much is transfer case and both diffs oil change if anyone knows? I'm at 60k mark and I thought to change everything at once: trans, transfer case and both diffs. I'm just not sure if that is something to go to dealer to be ripped off or this is fairly easy procedure and other shops can do it?

[KCTiger]

I think my total added up to about $600 for the trans flush. It included a new pan and gasket.

I did not change any other fluids. My xfer case was replaced at about 44k miles. My shop inspected all other fluids and did not think they needed to be changed. I will have them check again at 60k miles.

[Rightlanedriver]

Originally Posted by KCTiger

I think my total added up to about $600 for the trans flush. It included a new pan and gasket.

I did not change any other fluids. My xfer case was replaced at about 44k miles. My shop inspected all other fluids and did not think they needed to be changed. I will have them check again at 60k miles.

Thank you. Was it at the dealer?

[Rightlanedriver]

Originally Posted by avidec3

Maintenance services not listed in CBS are linked to engine oil service. See attached.

Thank you for the pdf file. I can't seem to find differential fluid change interval anywhere. Does anyone know when do diff oil is changed? So my understanding is that we have front and rear diffs. Is this something easy so any shop can do it?
I also noticed it says lifetime fluids for transfer case and transmission in that pdf, but my previous 2009 528xi with 90k that still has original fluid shifts very very rough, like to the point that you can feel a strong "thud" during shift points. I'm guessing that is partially because I never changed oil and filter in trans. probably should have NOT listened what dealer says and what BMW maintenance says.

[KCTiger]

Originally Posted by Rightlanedriver

Thank you. Was it at the dealer?

Definitely not at the dealer lol. I found an Indy shop with a good rep.

[Rightlanedriver]

Originally Posted by KCTiger

Definitely not at the dealer lol. I found an Indy shop with a good rep.

Thanks man. That's what I'm going to try to find too. Do you think this is simple enough to choose a regular descent shop or it's better to find a dedicated transmission shops who specialize on transmissions? Sorry for the dumb question, I'm kinda new to this.

[KCTiger]

Originally Posted by Rightlanedriver

Thanks man. That's what I'm going to try to find too. Do you think this is simple enough to choose a regular descent shop or it's better to find a dedicated transmission shops who specialize on transmissions? Sorry for the dumb question, I'm kinda new to this.

I did some research for shops that claimed to specialize on BMWs. I found two. One seemed to have a better rep so I went with that one.

Difficulty? Sure seems like this would be basic fundamentals of car care but if I was that knowledgeable, I could have done it myself 🤣

One other thought is to look for BMW shops OR performance oriented shops.

[probee773]

I really am in shock. I was attempting to have the local BMW dealer replace the transmission fluid in my 2014 X5 xdrive 35i with 80K miles, but they talked me out of it. They sampled the fluid and said it looks good and doesn't have any metal shavings in it. My service advisor, who has been with BMW for 30 years, said they have customers with 250K+ miles on the same transmission with the original fluid. They said changing the fluid really isn't necessary. I should be happy with this news since it saves me money, but I'm struggling with it since I've always been under the impression that all fluids will eventually breakdown over time. I'm not a chemical engineer though, so what do I know.

The other interesting thing I found with a quick Google search was used transmissions for sale for around $2K. So, over 240K miles, you can replace the fluid every 60K miles at ~$500 per service which costs roughly the same as just waiting for the transmission to go and buying a replacement (if that were to even happen at all). This excludes labor of course, which would add a good bit I'm sure, but it's still an interesting point.

I guess it all depends on how long you are planning on keeping the car and how much you like to gamble. A lot to think about here...