I brought my 2018 F60 S in to summer-ize.
The dealer told me that the spark plugs are due to be changed in June. The SA said that’s the first he’s seen a spark plug change at such low mileage. We use only 91 in the car…

Has anyone had this request front the dealer on service? Our gas mileage is good, pedal response is fine. Nothing to suggest there is an issue. Any ideas?? Might explain the issues on my F54, but the F60 is problem free.

 

That the SA mentioned the plug change at such low miles maybe there is a requirement to change plugs on time? Have you checked the car's owners manual for service schedules?

I have changed or had changed plugs in various engines a number of times over the years. For years there has been no noticeable improvement in how the engine ran. But really I like this. It means the plugs though due to be changed -- on miles -- were still doing a good job. One doesn't want to run the plugs too long for incomplete combustion can really result in a build up of deposits which then can be a problem to remove.

Another risk is the plugs are steel. The head is aluminum. If you look at a plug that has been in service a while the threads are discolored starting at the tip end and going up. This is normal. But the discoloration is combustion byproducts (moisture and other stuff) which forms an acid and this can damage the plug threads which is no problem since they get renewed when the plug is replaced. But it can also damage the threads in the head. At best one can repair the head threads with a thread insert but really one want to change/replace the plugs before this happens. So a change on time might be a fall back to avoid head thread damage. You can see from the pic below how the old plug -- with 60K miles on it -- has its threads discolored. With this car -- as was and has been the case with all cars before and after -- the cars always got plenty of use so plugs were replaced on miles not on time.

 

Great feedback. I’m all for proactive maintenance. I was looking up service intervals and this dealer says it’s part of the 100k mile service. I have 13k miles. Seems a bit much? The SA said it may be because my car is so low mileage. I don’t think they are trying to fleece me but it’s expensive. I also found it off that I was complaining about my 2017 Clubman with about 25k miles and it doesn’t call for a change yet.

https://www.myminiannapolis.com/mini...-annapolis-md/

 

Sounds like you're out of the warranty period based on time? Plugs at 13K miles (should be under a warranty) shouldn't need to be changed unless there is an actual issue or they're a root cause to something. 100K service makes complete sense for plugs. Changing the plugs is one of the easiest things on these vehicles.

 

The plugs I'm sure would be due to be changed at 100K miles but if all you have on the car (and plugs) is just 13K miles unless there is a plug change required based on time then I think you can leave plugs in service.