How many miles do you need to go before your first oil change. Has a 05 MCS and needs to know what brand oil filter you guys perfer and what brand and type of oil you use?
Thanks any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

You've asked the wrong crowd here. Many of us are a bit **** about oil and filter changes. I recommend the first change after the break-in period +/- 1,500 miles. Use the BMW/MINI filter and a top quality synthetic , like Mobil 1 in 5w-30 weight. Search this forum for threads on oil changes. There are many of them.

 

Change it RIGHT after the break-in miles, IMHO.

There's no choice on the filter that I am aware of... you have to get that from the MINI dealer. You'll need a shallow-drive 36mm socket to get the oil filter cover off...

I go to WalMart and grab a 5 qt. jug of 5W-30 Mobil 1 every 3k miles... I autocross 10 times a year and do 1-2 DE's or more, and everytime I pull the plug after 3k miles the oil is dirty.

 

Or you can go by your manual & computer which will having you doing the first oil change at 10,000 miles and then every 15,000 thereafter.

I don't know because I bought my US Spec MINI in Italy, but I believe all your maintenance service is part of your purchase agreement?

 

There is no such thing as changing your oil too often. Everyone has an opinion on the proper oil change interval. It will vary from every 3000 miles to following the recomendations of the service indicator. You will have to decide what interval is right for you and your driving. Remember that the recommendations in the owner's manual are for an expected life of 100,000 miles. If you want a longer life, or drive the car harder that "normal" it may be a good idea to perform servces more frequently. The important thing is that you use the proper viscosity synthetic oil. There is some debate as to whether Castrol is a true synthetic, which I won't re-hash here. Most people agree that Mobil 1, Amzoil, Redline, and Royal Purple are all quality products and there may be others. But use the correct viscosity. Thicker oil is not better or stronger. I don't believe there are any aftermarket oil filters available for the MINI yet, so you will have to use the OEM filter.

 

Yea, get that break-in out out soon after the break-in. Make sure you've done some runs at high rpm's before you do the change because the engine won't be completely broken in until it's had to deal with high rpm's. After that, the oil can be changed anywhere between 5 and 15k miles. Everyone differs on this. I do my oil with Mobil 1 every 8-9k miles. The less you idle and the more you cruise, the higher the change interval can be.

My next chage is due in a few thousand more miles and I'm going to start sending a sample for evaluation. I'll post my results.

 

There has not been anything like "Break-in" oil in about 30 years, and there has never been anything like synthetic break-in oil. Modern car engines are designed with different materials and processes than older engines, and the "break-in" is more for the rubber gaskets and o-rings to swell than seat the rings. Mini , Chrysler, and BMW spent a lot of money on the Tritec engine, and if you were going to measurably shorten its life or performance by not changing the oil at 1500 miles, they would do it for you. Perhaps if you plan to hop the engine up to 250 HP and really stress it out, it is cheap insurance, but in a regular street car, taking short commuter trips will do more harm to your engine than anything you do to the oil. All things considered, you can not change the oil too often, but you sure can waste money with little benefit. Follow the manufacturers reccommendations and relax.

 

I have to agree with the first post here as we're all a "bit" excessive when it comes to our Minis. Personally, I changed the oil right after the break-in period and every 3,000 miles (or so) when it wasn't done by the dealer as part of routine service. I appreciate that changes of that frequency with full synthetic is over the top, but I do them myself, they take no more than 20 minutes, and the oil and filter really don't cost that much for the piece of mind.

 

OK, call me crazy (I've been called worse!). I changed the oil and filter on my '04 MC right when I got home from the dealer (60 miles). Yep, and boy was that oil ugly looking; and in the sunlight I could see the tell-tale sheen of piston ring/cylinder wall scrapings. You know what I'm talking about if you have seen it for yourself - the micro particles of metal suspended in the oil - not, mind you, CHUNKS of metal (AKA, "casting flash" from the olden days...), but rather the literally micron-sized remnants of piston rings seating (that's why cylinder walls have a somewhat "rough" cross-hatch pattern honed into them). Then I changed the oil and filter again at 500 miles. Boy, did that oil look nice and clean! Then for good measure I changed the oil and filter again at 1,500 miles. Beautiful! Now my routine will be an oil and filter change every 5,000 miles or so, but I'm not going to be too fussy about that from this point on. You see, I'm clearly a believer in frequent and early oil changes right off the bat when most of the metal getting aquainted with its neighbor is taking place. And, since I do my own work, what do I care anyway? A measly $7 for a filter and $19 for a jug of good synthetic. I spend twice that on wings and stage tips in one evening! Anyway, it makes me feel better and all my previous cars have gone high miles with little oil burning, so there!

Oh, yeah, and at 1,500 miles I also changed the gear oil. Man, was that gear oil nasty looking! I used Redline MTL to replace it and the box feels great (in fairness, it felt great before, too, but fresh fluids is always a good thing). OK, too much typing, now for some wings....

 

I agree with Bradman. I had to take care of my Dad's Ford Bronco a while ago. I changed that oil every 2.5k miles. It was a '94 anyways, but its good to be flushing the oil and fluids, its always good for an engine. Im going to do the same as Bradman for my mini when it comes. Then after the first 5k, ill stick to manufacturers recommendations. :smile:

 

That is my policy with new cars as well. There ARE small particles created in the first few miles of operation. When I pick up my MINI, I plan to buy a half dozen filters and take them home with me. My nearest MINI dealer is about 100 miles away, so I plan to stock up!

Here are some more tips I do to a new car.

Remove the spark plugs and put a little Anti-Seize on the threads. Also wipe a VERY LIGHT film of Dielectric Grease onto the porcelain part to keep the plug wire boots from sticking.

Remove the lugs and wheels. Coat the lugs with antiseize, then remove the bolt that attaches the rotor to the hub and apply antiseize there as well. A light film of antiseize on the center of the wheel's hub will also help keep the wheel from sticking on the rotor. ALWAYS use a torque wrench to install lug nuts or bolts. Too much torque or uneven torque will warp rotors EVERY TIME. (Ever had a pulsating pedal after some moron installs new tires with an impact wrench? This is why.) Also, you don't need the assistance of the Incredible Hulk if you ever need to remove a wheel if they're not over tightened.

A nice coat of wax on all surfaces of new wheels makes it much easier to keep brake dust cleaned off. Ya gotta take them off to do this properly.

Anywhere a fastener is exposed to temperature extremes or a steel bolt is threaded into aluminum, it is at a high risk to seize in place.

Overkill? Maybe, but I do all my own work after the warranty expires and I have had to drill out fasteners that are seized in place. It AIN'T ANY FUN AT ALL.

An afternoon of preventive maintenance is always a good idea with a new car.

Rawhyde

 

Most tire installers recommend not using anti-seize on the lug hardware itself. Torque specs are for dry hardware unless specified, so if you do use anti-seize adjust your torque settings so you don't get things backing off - also re-torque periodically. I personally just use anti-sieze on the hubs... I'll let you do the research and determine if you use it on the lugs or not.

YMMV,