[wantone]

Hi everyone,


I drive a BMW 118i LCI with the B38M 1.5L 3 cyl engine. For the Mini Cooper owners with the same 1.5L engine I have a few questions:


When did you have your first oil change? BMW suggests an oil change in 2 years or 20k km but some say this is too long.


The car is very quiet. I am still in the break in period (2000km) and I have only rev it up to 3700 rpm but there is no engine noise from it. I am thinking I should put a sport exhaust to it if there is any with nice noise. Any suggestions?


Thanks very much!

 

[jeremybingham]

I changed my oil after one year 6000 miles simply because it's so cheap and I think 2 years is too long. All my vehicles get this.Didn't change the filter. It sure can't harm. I left the computer so next change will be at mini. It's a great sounding engine. I love mine after 4000rpm it sounds like a Porsche. Happy with mine as is but a louder exhaust could be interesting!

 

[siriuszero]

2 years?!

In the US, MINI recommends oil changes at 1 year or 10,000 miles, whichever comes first.

 

[wantone]

I changed my oil after one year 6000 miles simply because it's so cheap and I think 2 years is too long. All my vehicles get this.Didn't change the filter. It sure can't harm. I left the computer so next change will be at mini. It's a great sounding engine. I love mine after 4000rpm it sounds like a Porsche. Happy with mine as is but a louder exhaust could be interesting!

What type of oil did you use?

 

[jeremybingham]

Yes USA seems far more sensible! Imo 2 years 20k miles is too long. I got a bargain euro car parts were selling petronus 5w30 mini specific I think it is xs3000 for £18 so I did both our minis! I actually prefer Mobil 0 w40 but it's not 100% mini spec at least over here! If you read the book I think they recommend acea c spec but that's from memory.read the net and there is loads.of info on oils! These 5 30 viscosity oils are for low fuel consumption and long life ie of the oil or extended service intervals.wife's roadsters s oil was back as treacle after one year 6000 mils turbos hammer oil..if you change it more regularly you can buy oils that protect from wear better according to some on the web! Personally it's so cheap and easy I think why not and it might make a private buyers realise you cared for the car!

 

[hotrunner]

Should there ever be an issue with your engine cuz of non approved engine oil that an owner decides to use on their own, this will nullify your warranty from Mini. You will then be SOL. The owner will be in the hook. It is best to use ONLY Mini approved engine oil and keep your receipts to have proof, just in case of the unknown. Cutting corners is cheap short term, but it sometimes catches up to you and bites you in the *** ...And then what ?

 

[hotrunner]

In the US, MINI recommends oil changes at 1 year or 10,000 miles, whichever comes first.

I agree !

As outlined per the owners manual.

Follow the CBS.

If you decide to do it yourself, you might have to keep receipts to substantiate
your warranty, if asked. All Mini dealer Service Departments are all connected to each other. They can see when the oil was last changed and by whom.

 

[jeremybingham]

It's mini specific oil I used but I don't alter the cbs, it's just an extra. They'd never know even if it wasn't mini approved oil!

 

[jeremybingham]

But agreed never put cheap stuff in. By cheap I meant in terms of ownership an extra oil change costs very little for peace of mind. Changing it with cheap or low quality oil I feel would be pointless and quite rightly invalidate the warranty. Always check on the oil can for the acea specs or bmw/ mini approved.. This was just a sale item and a bargain! Fully synthetic and mini bmw specific petronus oil. Good enough to win the f1 world championship again good enough for me!.

 

[hotrunner]

They'd never know even if it wasn't mini approved oil!

Never say "never"........Mini would have the last say and win.
What they say goes. They can always do an oil analysis if they are suspicious
on the oil used. Going cheap and using a non approved product would definitely void any warranty. I would not suggest to have your car serviced anywhere else, especially while it is still under warranty !

 

[Evlkarl]

"All Mini dealer Service Departments are all connected to each other. "


Yikes ...I am a part of a Cult that I did not know about


I do wonder sometimes if the the cheaper oils are really as bad as they make them out to be. Now they use recycled oil to make it new again. What is great. I always worried about the 1st oil change when I buy a new car. I change the oil after about 500 to 800 Miles just for a piece of mind and to flush out whatever is in the motor no matter if the dealer says it does not need it. I bet it is an old wifes tail by now too. I guess we old farts don,t trust anybody... when they say trust me it does not need it.

 

[jeremybingham]

Never say "never"........Mini would have the last say and win.
What they say goes. They can always do an oil analysis if they are suspicious
on the oil used. Going cheap and using a non approved product would definitely void any warranty. I would not suggest to have your car serviced anywhere else, especially while it is still under warranty !

I don't have it serviced elsewehre- i changed the oil myself-simple undo and replace the sump drain plug, and the oil is most def mini approved; says on the can! they can analyse it with pleasure!

 

[jeremybingham]

"All Mini dealer Service Departments are all connected to each other. "


Yikes ...I am a part of a Cult that I did not know about


I do wonder sometimes if the the cheaper oils are really as bad as they make them out to be. Now they use recycled oil to make it new again. What is great. I always worried about the 1st oil change when I buy a new car. I change the oil after about 500 to 800 Miles just for a piece of mind and to flush out whatever is in the motor no matter if the dealer says it does not need it. I bet it is an old wifes tail by now too. I guess we old farts don,t trust anybody... when they say trust me it does not need it.

I get the feeling some on here think i put cheap oil in teh car-far from it; i did a lot of research and the petronus is good synth stuff mini approved -covers every spec and states quite clearly on the can it is for mini. it was a bargain, yes-normally sells for much more but i was lucky!

Anyway this is a subject close to my heart;
if you look on nam there are some great articles on oil and analysis-re quality-and a real big one found that there was no real advantage in changing the oil after running in since there was very little evidence of engine wear =ie the engine is made well to close tolerances unlike the olden days. HOWEVER nothing to lose for peace of mind as you say!

Likewise another report analysed a variety of oils-the findings were VERY interesting-the Castrol mini recomended when i bought mine came out quite poorly-more additives to extend the service interval of the oil rather than anti wear properties-amsoil came out really well for you guys in the usa, and for europe mobil 1 was better but best from memory was motul which came out really well. not sure where i found it but it was really interesting and a good read. lots of chemical analysis etc to back up the findings. i suspect that mini do the same withoil as with tyres-do a deal with a major manufacturer for factory fill-they get it very cheaply and then stamp mini recommmends-on everything. that way we the punter go out and buy the product at full price-happens with tyres too! competition for std fit tyres is very high apparently as most people just refit what's on! Am i being too cynical here?

i concluded that if you are changing the oil regularly then there are better oils out there than the factory fit castrol BUT you dont want to risk the warranty!BUT again if you read the manual a variety of oils and viscocities will do-it says so in the book! it's all good fun!

 

[Evlkarl]

Jeremy, I was not saying that you put cheap oil into the Mini. I was wondering in general how good or bad cheaper oil or recycled oil would be and if it is up to standard with them new Engines.

 

[jeremybingham]

Sorry no I wasn't accusing you at all but I find all this very interesting. Having read lots of oil posts I concluded that expensive doesn't always give best protection.there seems to be a life v protection compromise. But i did get the impression non synthetics less capable. However at least here in the uk a supermarket own brand will be far cheaper and probably equally as good as the label that produces it but analysis would be needed to know for sure! I suppose if it surpasses the acea spec it's ok.

 

[bjblyth]

Mini TLC for 5 years... I'll let them do it for a while!

 

[jeremybingham]

The issue is under the mini regime they change the oil every 2 years or 20,000miles, or so my computer is telling me; many of us oldies(!!!!) think this is just too long and dont trust oil to last this long! Hence the discussion on an interim change.

 

[mrmonnz]

I have a BMW 1.5 118i and it makes a silly buzzing noise in sport mode which to me sounds like a broken turbo but bmw said nothing was wrong with it

 

[wantone]

How many liters of oil do I need for an oil change for the 1.5L B38 engine?

 

[jeremybingham]

Off top of my head it's just over 4 litres think 4.25 but you probably won't get 4 l
in due the amount that stays around the engine.