BMW Maintenance
Advice On Maintaining A BMW
As you make routine plans to our workshop for oil changes and tire rotations, we’ll also suggest to you an estimation of when certain parts need to be replaced. Staying ahead of the curve in terms of automotive care is the best way to ensure lasting performance.
For example, it’s recommended that you replace your brake pads and rotors around every 50000 kilometres. That number can certainly shift depending on the type of model you drive, your driving style, and what you ask of your vehicle on a daily basis. Still, if you come in at 50000 kilometres, we’ll have the exact pads and rotors you need and will be able to get them fitted quickly.
And when you have a premium vehicle like a BMW, you would want it to run efficiently and last as long as possible.
While the BMW cars are generally pretty reliable from the factory, with some attention and care, you can make your 4-wheeled transport as trouble-free as possible. So here are our top advice to making sure your BMW is well maintained.
1. Warm Up Your Engine
If your car’s engine is cold, a good practice is to let the car sit for around 5 minutes before driving off. This ensures that all the lubricants get up to temperature gradually.
Allowing it to gradually warm up will also help your engine parts to expand slowly, as rapid temperature changes might cause unwanted wear on them.
When everything is warmed, the engine is able to do its job without additional stress.
When in a hurry, try to keep it under 3000-3500 rpm until the temperature gauge is stable.
2. Regular Oil Changes
A standard basic requirement is to replace your lubricant or engine oil every 10,000km when under normal driving use. You can also check your car’s owners’ manual for the recommended oil change intervals.
Keeping the lubricants fresh is essential as impurities from prolonged use may clog up your engine’s internals and make it run inefficiently.
Over time, this may lead to more severe engine inefficiencies too. If you’re taking your car to the track or driving it regularly, more frequent oil changes are recommended to keep engine performance optimal.
If you’re not too sure about how often you should change your oil, or you’re just looking for a reliable workshop to leave your car with iCar Motorwerkz. We specialise in all BMW models, including BMW M models.
3. Check Your Brake Pads
The brakes are essentially one of the most important components of your vehicle! It is able able to bring your car to a stop and is crucial to the safety of yourself and others.
Brakes work by clamping two brake pads made of friction material onto your car’s brake discs, which means that brake pads are a consumable item, as the material will wear down over time of usage.
As your brake pads wear down, they become less effective and the travel in your brake pedal gets longer and longer. Your brakes also become more prone to overheating. And with BMW cars usually being on the heavier side, that also means more weight and more mass for the brakes to stop.
Checking your brake pads regularly and changing them when they get worn down is very important in maintaining the safety and driving performance of your car.
Although your brakes are usually checked during routine servicing, which incidentally can also be done at our workshop, it’s still a good practice to check them regularly to make sure everything is still in optimal condition in between services.
4. Make Sure Your Tyres are Properly Inflated
Tyre pressure that is too low will result in increased rolling resistance, which means poorer fuel consumption due to the increased drag.
Conversely, tyre pressure that is too high will result in a ‘floaty’ feeling as you drive. You can check your optimal tyre pressures in your owners’ manual or on a little sticker on the driver’s door pillar.
5. Regular Servicing and Vehicle Checks
Sending your vehicle for regular servicing is important to maintaining your car’s level of reliability. iCar Motorwerkz provide a one-stop-shop for all your BMW servicing needs), will help you ensure that your vehicle is always in tip-top shape.
They’re also able to service brand new BMWs, including any replacement parts that are still under warranty.
They’ll inspect all the serviceable parts on your car to make sure they’re in good condition, change your engine oil, and check all the necessary fluids.
Regularly servicing your car at a reputable workshop means a headache-free experience as they are experts in what they do.
As the owner of your car, you too can make a difference by ensuring everything is working smoothly. Checking for puddles under your car may warn you of an impending problem such as an oil or coolant leak.
Checking your engine oil level with the dipstick (or through a function in your car’s infotainment system if you’re fancy) is also vital to make sure your engine isn’t running low on oil. By putting in a little bit of effort, you can keep yourself ahead of any potential issues.
