Z4-forum.com

F.y.i.

2010 35iS 110k miles

Engine Oil (Castrol 5/30) & Filter £165
Pollen Filter £45
Plugs £110
Air Filter £35
Brake Fluid £35
Rear Brake Pads £45
Rear Discs (BMW) £182
Labour £180

Labour £80…? Did he pop over on a dinghy, leave your old parts on and sell the rest for cash to a Romanian mate Buster…?

You're right, of course, John.
I've corrected it.

Oil and filter £165? Must include £100 to put it in.

Done oil service on mine the other day 35i, 10l litres of ll04 spec oil, Bosch filter £40 for all. Nice 20 min job..
If it’s LL04 spec no point spending any more…IMO

Is the price for disks and pads for both sides or is it x2?

Avityesboy wrote: Mon Jun 09, 2025 11:25 pm Done oil service on mine the other day 35i, 10l litres of ll04 spec oil, Bosch filter £40 for all. Nice 20 min job..
If it’s LL04 spec no point spending any more…IMO

20 mins to do an oil change? Curious as to how you are raising your car - takes me as long to assemble tools!

My last year's service was done at an indie shortly after acquiring my 2012 N20 which was on 72K miles. I wanted a proper once-over since I bought privately. Bill was circa £700 with VAT. Don't know if OP has included the VAT but mine similarly required rear discs and pads which was charged at £89 for pads, £25 for sensors and £70 for discs all with the VAT on top.

Having done just over 2K miles in the year since then, I decided it didn't really warrant going into a garage to get fleeced so just settled for a DIY oil change. Yes oil and filter but if you don't have a car lift etc. then you need 2 trolley jacks and a set of jack stands. I guess you could also use ramps if you can get them wide enough and are comfortable with that. Then there is the filter tool, a drain pan and ideally a torque wrench. Had everything except the filter wrench which admittedly doesn't break the bank but cost is 'only' 40 quid if you have already got all these. Doing things safely and deliberately took me over an hour.

Also have to allow minutes for checking the actual level once filled since there is no manual dipstick!

One trolley jack under the central jacking point at the front. Two jack stands. Drain plug out into a drain pan. New filter using the filter tool. I change my oil twice a year so worth it as it doesn’t mangle the filter housing. 30 mins tops

6-6.5 litres of new oil. Always bang on the correct level. Reset using service using Autel or you can do it manually.

Avityesboy wrote: Mon Jun 09, 2025 11:25 pm Done oil service on mine the other day 35i, 10l litres of ll04 spec oil, Bosch filter £40 for all. Nice 20 min job..
If it’s LL04 spec no point spending any more…IMO

To be pedantic there are now much much better oils for a N54 than the basic LL04 spec…it’s a very low bar..the world has moved on..for a N54 an oil meeting API-SP or SN+ would be much better than an oil that just meets LL04..FWIW

For the N54: "1) For petrol engines, only BMW Longlife-04, BMW Longlife-12 FE and BMW Longlife-19 FE oils are permitted in Europe (EU plus Switzerland, Norway and Liechtenstein). They must not be used outside this area."

Yeah luckily had use of a ramp

Scooba_Steve wrote: Tue Jun 10, 2025 9:45 pm For the N54: "1) For petrol engines, only BMW Longlife-04, BMW Longlife-12 FE and BMW Longlife-19 FE oils are permitted in Europe (EU plus Switzerland, Norway and Liechtenstein). They must not be used outside this area."

A more insightful expose on the life and times of BMW oil approvals is here..

https://www.bimmerworld.com/BMW-Engine-Oil/

For the N54 an oil meeting API-SN+ or API-SP in a 5W-30 0W-30 or if hard driven 5W-40 are the current gold standards ..

Some of those oils will certify their BMW compatibility but since N54s are now 10 years out of production wasting time labelling these for obsolete designs are not their priority ..

An LL04 is fine, I’ve never heard of an engine failure due to non compatible oil tbf on anything tbh.
Only times are when the engine has f**k all in it…

Avityesboy wrote: Sat Jun 14, 2025 12:36 am An LL04 is fine, I’ve never heard of an engine failure due to non compatible oil tbf on anything tbh.
Only times are when the engine has f**k all in it…

Of course an LL04 oil is fine..I’m simply saying there are now better oils than oils that just meet LL04 spec…

Since that spec was formulated the world found out a lot more about sludge and varnish formation, cam chain wear and low speed pre ignition which only affects turbo petrol engines…SN+ and SP address all those issues..an oil just meeting LL04 does not..

Just as an ester based oil that does not explicitly meet LL04 such as Fuchs or Redline ester based oils will far exceed the engine protection of a base LL04 oil is



Each to their own..

Reamesy wrote: Tue Jun 10, 2025 7:57 pm One trolley jack under the central jacking point at the front. Two jack stands. Drain plug out into a drain pan. New filter using the filter tool. I change my oil twice a year so worth it as it doesn’t mangle the filter housing. 30 mins tops

6-6.5 litres of new oil. Always bang on the correct level. Reset using service using Autel or you can do it manually.

Did mine on Rhino Ramps no problems at all