Changed the oil myself. Braman quoted $159 for "non-scheduled" early oil change. Local Jiffy Lube and PennZoil quickie places screamed and ran away as my car drove up. I hadn't finished pushing the engine on/off button when all the workers started nodding their heads in contempt. I felt like I was committing a crime.
Instead I decided to do it myself. I'm a MINI owner, we do things our way! Yeah! Purchased the SJ Rated Castrol Full Synthetic 5-30, Oil filter(mini mania), 36(?)MM socket, Torx T5 tool, a pair of plastic ramps that hold up to 6000 pounds (Ramps not necessarily need for oil change).
Drove the car onto the ramps. Let it cool. Opened the hood. Removed the oil drain plug. Loosened the reservoir tank screw. Moved the reservoir tank to the right (passenger side) and let it sit there. Loosened the oil filter container. Removed the oil filter container with the oil filter. Replaced the oil filter and rubber o-ring. Reinstalled and tightened the oil filter container. Let the oil drain. Installed new washer onto drain plug and tightened (o-ring and drain plug washer come with filter). Refilled 4.4 quarts of new oil. Started engine, nothing exploded or leaked. Reinstalled the reservoir tank. Cleaned up and drove away.

Expenses ramps, tools, $60.
Do it again in 5000 miles, and my expenses next time will be the 5 quarts of oil and oil filter. Then I'll let BMW do the regularly scheduled maintenance.

Have fun.

 

Glad you got it done yourself and thanks for sharing. However, early oil changes are a total waste of money (and resources) in my book. There's no hard evidence anywhere showing that changing the oil sooner than the manufacturer suggests (under normal driving conditions of course) is at all beneficial. We've just ordered our 4th MINI and have never once changed the oil outside of the recommended intervals. The cars all run flawlessly with absolutely no problems whatsoever.

No worries though as it's your money and time so I don't mind. <GRIN>

 

I think you got lucky. After a very bad experience with Jiffy Lube, I will never go to one of those places again.

 

Ah yes, Jiffy Lube....the Land of Misfit Mechanics and Industry Rejects. A prepetual landfill of spent technicians and service managers. Where all the automotive under-acheivers go when they realize the Peter Principal is for real!

We should share war-stories sometime!

 

I remember getting my tranny fluid change for a BMW I owned at Pennzoil. I had them include the service with the oil change. Three thousand miles later I went back for another oil change. The service manager came into the waiting area and told me that my transmission fluid needed to be changed because it was really dirty. Of course I responded with a "you're kidding right?!" I had the guy look up my records and fortunately it showed that they charged to have the tranny fluid change during the last visit. He was very apologetic and did the tranny and gave me a coupon, which I subsequently threw away. Haven't returned since. Ever asince that experience I always watch fluids leaving my cars.

 

I keep thinking of Ocean's 12 (?) and laughing. "I said it was a bad experience".

 

'bad experience?' I think you're talking about the guy in the new Italian Job regarding his experience with big dogs.

 

A MINI engine is a high revving high temprerature fairly high compression motor with a turbocharger that does not exist in a vacuum. It exists in an environment where particulates of dust and other unidentifiable anomolies enter the moving parts of the engine. The same place where the oil is lubricating and indirectly exposed to the elements. If the engine was in a sealed environment without any possibility of external contamination, then the yearly (or more) oil change is advisable. I'm not advocating 3000 miles changes nor do I believe that today's oils are free from deterioration. We really won't know anything until those high mileage MINIs need new engines, but I'm also not diluted into thinking that there's not some marketing scheme from BMW to keep the maintenance costs low for the consumer, which leaves the consequences of the neglect for the next buyer of the used MINI.

 

I simply do not believe that a mcs will need the same frequency of oil changes as a mc

bmw's computer algorithm does not seem to care if you have a turbo or not, nobody has yet to convince me that the turbo is NOT harder on oil than a non turbo

so I will continue to do non scheudaled oil changes until someone posts HARD driven MCS (ie auto-x, tracked) oil test results

 

@cinellipro,

Well said. Touché

Although I was hoping to spark more of a community debate with my comments since I love to see a good fight every once in a while.

@mega72,

A tracked car can't even come close to being compared to a daily street driven car. They're apples and oranges (especially when it comes to engine ware and oil viscosity breakdown, etc.).

 

exactly, so why should I wait 15,000 miles to change the oil?

I drive my car like it's tracked, every day, although I hit cruise speed and that's it, I do pedal to floor every stop sign, light, and curve

 

It's your car. Do what you want with it.

BTW, the point I was trying to make is that the tracked car would definitely be the one that would need the more frequent oil changes and not the other way around. A street driven car just isn't the same even if you do think that you're speed racer while driving it.

While I agree that 15k miles seems like a lot for a turbo charged engine, the standard 3k to 5k changes that folks still seem to like to do are just plain silly in my book with modern engines and lubricants (and "normal" street use).

To each his/her own. I'll stick with the recommended intervals and keep the cash in my pocket thanks. I don't plan on keeping my MINI for 20 years (and 200,000 plus miles) anyway.

 

think nothing, once my car is warmed up, my foot is pushing as far as that pedal goes, I drive my BMW's the same way, and have for 15 years, if I dont hear the tires on the corners I'm going too slow, same as auto-x, no speeding tickets yet knock on wood.

if you think your definition of "normal" street use is anything at all like mine, you are mistaken, very very mistaken

I do not drive a mcs like a pansy, I bought it because it's really really really fun to drive it hard, I do zero interstate driving, I drive backroads to work just to enjoy this car, sure it's an extra 15-20 minutes, but it's fun, and a stress releif


maybe you wont, but I had 260,000 miles on my 325is, and I've got a 1974 2002 with 120,000 miles on it

I plan on keeping this mini for a long time

and I would not call 60 $ every 7500 miles much of an expense, insurance is more like it, I am over insured on everything else too

 

All I can say is that I hope that we don't drive in the same city/state.

If you keep your cars for that many miles/years and drive them like you're at the track every day, then perhaps you should indeed be changing your oil every 3k miles. That would indeed be good "insurance".

Good luck!

 

Sorry to join in but my MCS is telling me to change the oil at 18,000! I don't baby it, but I do a lot of highway miles. Got 4,000 miles on it now (8 wks old) and I'm wondering when to change the oil. I'm already worried, but when I look at the oil it still is clear (whether that means anything)

 

I dont know if you even read my posts, or read what you want to read, but I do oil changes as stated above every 7500 miles, on the mini and bmw's that run synthetic

 

Sorry, I missed that.

Sounds like a good compromise for your driving style.

 

Oh I just love to read posts like this!! Its funny the same person will spend 4.25 on coffee at Starbucks "read hot water poured over ground coffee beans and some corn syrup added for flavor" or drink bottled water "no definition needed" and then wont change their oil on their 25,000 dollar car before 15,000 miles, or use premium fuel because its 8 cents more a gallon??

 

A good debate is one thing, but sparking a fight isn't really necessary.

MINI has a vested interest in making the motor last 50K miles, and spending as little as they can to do it. So if 15000 mile changes make it last 50K miles, then that's all they want to spend. Minimum satisfactory expense. (almost sounds like lowest common denominator...)

Me, on the other hand, have an interest in the motor lasting longer than 50K miles. So to me, a change after breakin then every 7500 miles seems more reasonable and cheap insurance. My car, my money, my desire to make it last as long as possible.

 

Good one...

Keep'em coming!

 

Please show me proof where changing the oil at the manufacturer suggested intervals would cause the engine to only last 50k miles. D'oh!

I'd bet good money that for the "average" life of a MINI, you'd never be able to tell whatsoever if the oil was changed at 7,500 mile intervals or the manufacturer suggested intervals throughout the life of the car.

Now that's the kind of stuff that makes me laugh. Personally, I would indeed rather spend the money on my 4.25 Starbux coffee than waste it on unnecessary oil changes.

Ha ha!

 

4th mini in less than 10 years = not enough miles to see the difference.

 

Your engine will wear more and lose power compared to mine in 100K miles. I plan to own it for much longer. I want to protect the engine.

 

Frankly, you needn't have EVER changed oil in one of your Minis if you have owned four since '02 and would certainly not had a problem. Me, I just changed out my break-in oil at 1750 miles with 10-40 Castrol FullSyn as there is simply too much heat in the '07 S engine bay for 5-30 unles you regularly experience -20 deg. weather.

 

oil may last 15000, but filters dont