[123Britt]

CBS - Says plugs good until 56k
.
Dealer would not Change - minor skipping on cold starts
.
Ordered from bmwmercedesparts
.
Special Socket from ECStuning
.
The Lower Cowl and even the engine cover is heavy & a pain to remove
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Plugs came out just like DIY Post -- thanks
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Did not use anti seize -- my Bently did say use copper based - I forgot
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Torqued at 23nm
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All plugs looked ok except #3 looked a little oily -- others were dry and white deposits and definitely look worn --- prior engine skipping on cold starts -- no more
.
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With the engine cover off -- initial start up -- the valve tapping is loud -- guess that is why the cover is insulated. Made me wish for thicker oil .
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Changing the wifes X5 3.0si plugs next w/e (65k).
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GO TEAM

[GMWNashville]

good deal! not sure why bentley says to use anti seize as bmws specs for torquing the spark plugs are always ungreased...aka dont use it...

[Alex D]

Actually what you heard was not valve tapping but the piezo injectors ...HPFI is actually noisy

[fisherbln]

Originally Posted by volkswackin

good deal! not sure why bentley says to use anti seize as bmws specs for torquing the spark plugs are always ungreased...aka dont use it...

+1. Anti-seize is not necessary.

[timmahh]

Per the Service/warranty guide it says to replace the spark plugs every 45,000 miles... Did you have yours done at 45k or are those the original ones?

[123Britt]

Well I thought the dealer would change but they said it was Condition Based and that the computer said it would be around 56k before they would need replacing. Similar to my rotors and pads. I do alot of highway driving so miles rack up with little wear.
.
So I just orderd the parts myself -- this was the first replacement.

[timmahh]

My SA said the same thing; it's CBS specified, but they will check into it.. The service manual says every 45k miles!

[anerbe]

Confirmed - dealer says I have another 10K to go, and I just passed 45K. Sucks, as there's no notification in our onboard service menu, so I assumed 45K.

[halfmonkey]

Originally Posted by 123Britt

Well I thought the dealer would change but they said it was Condition Based and that the computer said it would be around 56k before they would need replacing. Similar to my rotors and pads. I do alot of highway driving so miles rack up with little wear.
.
So I just orderd the parts myself -- this was the first replacement.

For all of you that are reporting that your dealer is giving you a hard time about replacing your spark plugs at 45k miles, tell them to read the owner's manual. I brought this up to my SA and at first, they kept telling me that it was CBS based. It seems that nowadays, with their CBS, everything falls back to that lame answer.

They even went as far as to tell me that my idrive has a little picture of a spark plug that tells me when I should bring it in for service. I told them that it doesn't and even welcomed them to sit in my car and find the little spark plug picture. They didn't take me up on my offer.

In any case, I told them that the owner's manual gives an absolute statement to replace the spark plugs at 45k miles and that it doesn't say to replaced them at 45k miles or when the CBS says so. It says to replace at 45k miles.

After some back and forth, they asked their warranty administrator and I guess that person agreed and so I brought my car in and had all six replaced.

When I was there, they brought up the spark plug little picture again and he looked through the read data from my key and said, "oh, it looks like maybe your car doesn't have the little spark plug picture because it appears to be grouping the spark plug service with the oil change and filter service."

'08 335 w/ 50600 miles. good luck.

[bmodzelewski]

Originally Posted by halfmonkey

They even went as far as to tell me that my idrive has a little picture of a spark plug that tells me when I should bring it in for service. I told them that it doesn't and even welcomed them to sit in my car and find the little spark plug picture. They didn't take me up on my offer.

When I was there, they brought up the spark plug little picture again and he looked through the read data from my key and said, "oh, it looks like maybe your car doesn't have the little spark plug picture because it appears to be grouping the spark plug service with the oil change and filter service."

'08 335 w/ 50600 miles. good luck.

they're not totally ignorant... mine has a separate icon and countdown for the spark plug

[Never-Enough]

Originally Posted by bmodzelewski

they're not totally ignorant... mine has a separate icon and countdown for the spark plug

Why do some cars get the plug icon & others do not? I haven't seen the plug icon in my idrive.

[anerbe]

^ it's most likely due to a SW update in the car. If they scan the key/vehicle, they can check maintenance countdown of your sparkplugs.

Also, 2007 model manuals show to change Spark plugs based on CBS. 2008+ based on 45K miles.

[scottp999]

I know I'm tuned, but if you own your car and want to keep it for a while, why not change them earlier? Mine looked heavily worn at 13,000 miles. Even though I have lots of mods I drive the car gently almost all the time.

After seeing how much the electrode had worn down compared to a new plug, I'm changing mine every 15k.

[335i Pal]

I am planning on changing my plugs out soon, just got them in the mail today. Is it possible to reset the computer without iDrive. Not to mention this will help when I change my microfilter and brake fluid flush here soon.

[Never-Enough]

Originally Posted by halfmonkey

For all of you that are reporting that your dealer is giving you a hard time about replacing your spark plugs at 45k miles, tell them to read the owner's manual. I brought this up to my SA and at first, they kept telling me that it was CBS based. It seems that nowadays, with their CBS, everything falls back to that lame answer.

They even went as far as to tell me that my idrive has a little picture of a spark plug that tells me when I should bring it in for service. I told them that it doesn't and even welcomed them to sit in my car and find the little spark plug picture. They didn't take me up on my offer.

In any case, I told them that the owner's manual gives an absolute statement to replace the spark plugs at 45k miles and that it doesn't say to replaced them at 45k miles or when the CBS says so. It says to replace at 45k miles.

After some back and forth, they asked their warranty administrator and I guess that person agreed and so I brought my car in and had all six replaced.

When I was there, they brought up the spark plug little picture again and he looked through the read data from my key and said, "oh, it looks like maybe your car doesn't have the little spark plug picture because it appears to be grouping the spark plug service with the oil change and filter service."

'08 335 w/ 50600 miles. good luck.

where does it say 45k in the manual? I didn't see it anywhere. Only saw CBS based & my car doesn't have a plug indicator in the onboard menu.

[x26]

I have an Icon of a Naked Girl dancing with a Hula Hoop...So what's that mean??

[halfmonkey]

Originally Posted by Never-Enough

where does it say 45k in the manual? I didn't see it anywhere. Only saw CBS based & my car doesn't have a plug indicator in the onboard menu.

I don't have access to my owner's manual at the moment but maybe check in the maintenance section. Keep in mind, my car is a 2008 and I've heard that various years have different "schedules." Just so you know though, my 2008 says to change the spark plugs every 45k miles. It's an absolute statement meaning it doesn't say to change it at 45k miles or when the CBS says to change it. It says change the spark plugs every 45k miles. Good luck.

[Glim]

How about: don't reset the CBS, put the old plugs back in when the CBS goes off then take it in for a plug change.

[anerbe]

Originally Posted by halfmonkey

I don't have access to my owner's manual at the moment but maybe check in the maintenance section. Keep in mind, my car is a 2008 and I've heard that various years have different "schedules." Just so you know though, my 2008 says to change the spark plugs every 45k miles. It's an absolute statement meaning it doesn't say to change it at 45k miles or when the CBS says to change it. It says change the spark plugs every 45k miles. Good luck.

Look up 2007 3 series and 2007 3 series separately:

http://www.bmwusa.com/Standard/Conte...antyBooks.aspx

[BlackedOutBimmer]

Originally Posted by halfmonkey

I don't have access to my owner's manual at the moment but maybe check in the maintenance section. Keep in mind, my car is a 2008 and I've heard that various years have different "schedules." Just so you know though, my 2008 says to change the spark plugs every 45k miles. It's an absolute statement meaning it doesn't say to change it at 45k miles or when the CBS says to change it. It says change the spark plugs every 45k miles. Good luck.

I have an '08 with 46k... still under factory warranty and is also CPO. I don't have the maintainence plan, but would they cover this under my warranty or do they consider spark plugs "wear" items?

[anerbe]

Originally Posted by AllBlackBimmer

I have an '08 with 46k... still under factory warranty and is also CPO. I don't have the maintainence plan, but would they cover this under my warranty or do they consider spark plugs "wear" items?

cars under new warranty also have maintenance till 4yr/50K. any maintenance items (sparkplugs, brakes, etc..) should be covered.

you will not be covered past 4yr/50K, so take it in now.