Hi. I'm a new owner of a 2011 countryman and have a question about the time (not mileage) oil change interval. I purchased my vehicle from a MINI dealership in Feb 2015; it had 50,400 miles on it. A few weeks ago (Late April, 2015) I started getting a "Service" alert upon starting. I called the dealership and they stated that it was because it was due for an oil change, air filter change, and possibly spark plugs (based on the vehicle's maintenance record). Due to a quote of $170-$200 for an oil, oil filter, and engine air filter change, I decided to take it to my neighborhood Valvoline. It was only $75.00 for Valvoline 5W40 SynPower Full Synthetic and the Valvoline Oil Filter. The air filter checked out fine. After the oil change was complete, the technician helped me locate the computer based service reset functions. We used the manual to work our way to the individual resets. It was discovered that the "Service Needed" alert, was not even in regards to oil - it was regarding front brake service, due in 900 miles. The Engine Oil Monitor stated 3900 miles & 03/2016.

I know, I know...get to the point/question.

I reset the Oil Change Service reminder and do not believe what it shows: 14,000 miles & 05/2017. Can that be correct?! I won't "need" an oil change for 2 years; as long as I don't exceed 14,000 miles before then?

I don't really trust asking the dealership, because it seems they didn't even know what service was needed to begin with. As far as I know, they may have just changed the oil in February and I wasted $75.00 (which could have been used for front brake service). P.S. The computer says that my rear brakes are good for another 27,000 miles.

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated!! I'm a 1st time MINI owner and brand new to this group.

Thanks,
Michael

 

like anything, oil degenerates over time, i'd personally do it at least once a year, ideally once per season (once in summer and once in winter) to keep the oil fresh. btw did you make sure that the valvoline oil you bought is LL01 BMW rated? And for the oil filter, its always good to stick with OEM, as not all filters are made the same, and OEM you can trust.

btw, the onboard computer calculates oil life based on the premise that you are using long life fully synthetic oil, whether its bmw's own brand or german castrol or whatever is approved for LL01.

As far as sparkplugs go, it is a good idea to change them every 50k miles, its not difficult at all, and you can buy all the tools you need to change them yourself plus the sparkplugs for less the 100$, so in the future you'll only need to buy sparkplugs as you'll already have the tools.

 

The 2011-2012 year model cars have really long oil change intervals programmed into the computer; if yours said 3900 miles until it was due, you already had 10k miles on that oil & filter. By 2013, MINI realized that this wasn't working the way they intended and the programmed interval was shortened to something like 9000 miles and/or yearly. Most of us here suggest something a bit more conservative, usually 5000-7500 mile change intervals, regardless of what the computer says. Also, the OEM oil filter recommendation is valid - Chad at Detroit Tuned (and maybe Way too) have tales of after-market oil filters that have failed. They're usually pretty reasonably priced at the dealer parts dept, or patronize Outmotoring, Detroit Tuned, or Way - all of whom will gladly sell you the OEM filters and other goodies at fair prices.

 

Its been lowered from MINI from 15,000 to 10,000 miles if you have the flash update. Once the year thing , its once a year even if you don't reach 10,000 miles.

If you need oil kits / filters here they are. Tools if you need them also.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...il-filter.html