[MikeS300]

So I'm trying to follow some "Old School" maintenance for my 2010 335i xdrive. According to the Mike Miller maintenance schedule, I should be due for coolant change, power steering fluid change, transfer case oil and differential oil. I found an indepedent BMW/Mini-cooper shop and he has done one oil change for me. I showed him the Mike Miller maintenance and he falls somewhere in the middle between BMW's recommendations and the Old School Maintenance.

Could you guys tell me if this quote at the independent shop is about where it should be for these fluids?

Coolant: $180
Power Steering: $130
Transfer case: $190-275
Differential: $170 (f&r)

I'm just debating if this is worth it because he is pushing a lot of these fluid changes to the 40k to 60k mile mark instead of at 30k. I appreciate his opinion and honesty and not trying to "oversell".

[mlifxs]

IMO you are wasting your old school money. I did coolant and ps at 100k, oil changes at CBS and diff at 90k, no issues running at 110k now.

If you are serious about old school, you will save $$$$ with DIY. I'm not real handy but found the resources on this forum very valuable and the work turned out to be easier than I thought.

[shadowx360]

If your car is E-90, chances are that your water pump will fail around 60k miles, there comes the coolant change. I personally think your fluids are fine till you cross the 60k mark. I haven't changed those yet on my 2006 330i

[Perceval]

Could you guys tell me if this quote at the independent shop is about where it should be for these fluids?

Coolant: $180
Power Steering: $130
Transfer case: $190-275
Differential: $170 (f&0


If you pay that for this fluid and maintenance it is completely awful!!!!!!

Im a mecanic and if you buy only the differential fluid is about 30 $

Power steering fluid 50$

Coolant from dealer 20 $ etc etc

Do it yourself or change of shop it is crazy

[MikeS300]

Yeah, I'm definitely not handy enough to do all this myself. I've put in DCI and changed my spark plugs and that's about it. I guess I need to change shops.

[Route 16]

The quotes are reasonable, I change oil every 5-7k miles. No need for any other fluid changes til 60k imo. But I had brake fluid changed at 40k, coolant at 50k, 60k transmission and differential fluids, dealer refilled A/C.

Other fluids still the same, car still handles like it should.

Warranty covered my frm module acting up, oil filter housing gasket, car lock actuators (couldn't get in and out of my car without the detachable key), valve lifters, recent battery recall cable.

[Pittsburger]

I'm at 30k miles now.

I would agree with the Indy guy and push off transfer and differential (only basis is from consensus opinion - I have no technical expertise).

I did do my PS fluid as I was paranoid it needed replacing. The fluid was dirty, but not unusual.
The power steering fluid replacement is easy ~ if you do it the lazy man way and go through the reservoir (suck out fluid, replace, drive, ... slowly over time keep doing this until the fluid is less murky. This costs you in fluid money, but still cheaper than shop). There's a DYI here on the forum.

I'm going to change out the coolant today. I think to keep the coolant pump healthy, it's a good idea to change coolant every 30-45 k miles.
I'm planning on doing the transfer, diff, transmission, etc (other fluids) at around 60 - 75 k. For me, this will be like 3 - 4 years from now.

Brake fluid changes should be every other year.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by MikeS300

So I'm trying to follow some "Old School" maintenance for my 2010 335i xdrive. According to the Mike Miller maintenance schedule, I should be due for coolant change, power steering fluid change, transfer case oil and differential oil. I found an indepedent BMW/Mini-cooper shop and he has done one oil change for me. I showed him the Mike Miller maintenance and he falls somewhere in the middle between BMW's recommendations and the Old School Maintenance.

Could you guys tell me if this quote at the independent shop is about where it should be for these fluids?

Coolant: $180
Power Steering: $130
Transfer case: $190-275
Differential: $170 (f&r)

I'm just debating if this is worth it because he is pushing a lot of these fluid changes to the 40k to 60k mile mark instead of at 30k. I appreciate his opinion and honesty and not trying to "oversell".

All these fluids are 100,000 mile changes per BMW's current maintenance schedule. I did my fluid changes to BMWs schedule and I'm at 220,000 mile with no driveline issues. If you want peace of mind, cut BMW's interval in half and sleep better at night.

There is debate on the 100,000 interval for coolant because BMW has not changed the formulation of their coolant for the last 25 years or so, but what has changed is the use of different materials in the cooling system, which allows for extended intervals for coolant.