DIY Maintenance: A/T Fluid & Filter Change, Differential Fluid, Coolant, & Air Filter

philipb · 06-04-2015, 01:01 PM

Hi!
I'm new to the forum and last monday the flood here in Houston claimed my recently acquired (had it only 30 days) 2011 535i RWD Automatic (no paddles) (Imperial Blue Metallic). The good news is that insurance is covering enough for a replacement and a 2012 535i (F10 w/ N55), same color and also RWD Automatic (no paddles), has been ordered. The bad news is the additional 2yr/50K miles I had left on the maintenance extension that came with my totaled car is now gone and the new car does not come with a Maintenance extension. It would be north of $2K to purchase a maintenance extension on the 2012 535i, so I would prefer to do regular Maintenance myself - specifically getting most parts from FCPeuro to get the lifetime warranty. This forum has excellent walkthroughs of the F10 oil, brakes, & cabin micro filters replacement. What I am looking for is instructions for the following:
1) A/T Fluid & Filter Change (and input on interval - I know it's "lifetime" but is that real or should it be every 50K or 100K?)
2) Differential Fluid Change
3) Coolant Change &/or Flush
4) Air Filter(s) (is there 1 or 2 on the N55?)
5) Brake Fluid (I assume that's just like most cars: remove some fluid under the hood, refill with new, bleed at the wheel, repeat all 4?)
6) And finally, anything else I should be doing for regular Maintenance that you would recommend. (aside from rotation, balance, alignment).

Are there instructions available for any of these items yet?
Any word on a Bently Manual for the f10?
I loved my 535i, I'm looking forward to the 2012 arriving next week (this one's a CPO).
Thanks in advance!
Phil

gatorfast · 06-05-2015, 03:06 PM

Unfortunately, you wont find a ton of detailed DIY's for the 5 series as this is typically not the kind of crowd that does this stuff on their own. I suggest looking at the 3 series forums as most of the stuff you mentioned is basic maintenance and you can probably find good diy's there. It may not be 100% the same configuration but it should provide a good template you could use to figure it out.

Moreover, a great way to save money over buying the maintenance plan and perhaps time/frustration by doing it yourself would be to source the fluids/parts yourself and have a local BMW shop do the work for you.

06-04-2015, 01:01 PM	#1
philipb Registered 3 Rep 3 Posts Drives: 2012 BMW 535i (f10 N55) Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Houston, TX iTrader: (0) Garage List 2012 BMW 535i [0.00]	DIY Maintenance: A/T Fluid & Filter Change, Differential Fluid, Coolant, & Air Filter Hi! I'm new to the forum and last monday the flood here in Houston claimed my recently acquired (had it only 30 days) 2011 535i RWD Automatic (no paddles) (Imperial Blue Metallic). The good news is that insurance is covering enough for a replacement and a 2012 535i (F10 w/ N55), same color and also RWD Automatic (no paddles), has been ordered. The bad news is the additional 2yr/50K miles I had left on the maintenance extension that came with my totaled car is now gone and the new car does not come with a Maintenance extension. It would be north of $2K to purchase a maintenance extension on the 2012 535i, so I would prefer to do regular Maintenance myself - specifically getting most parts from FCPeuro to get the lifetime warranty. This forum has excellent walkthroughs of the F10 oil, brakes, & cabin micro filters replacement. What I am looking for is instructions for the following: 1) A/T Fluid & Filter Change (and input on interval - I know it's "lifetime" but is that real or should it be every 50K or 100K?) 2) Differential Fluid Change 3) Coolant Change &/or Flush 4) Air Filter(s) (is there 1 or 2 on the N55?) 5) Brake Fluid (I assume that's just like most cars: remove some fluid under the hood, refill with new, bleed at the wheel, repeat all 4?) 6) And finally, anything else I should be doing for regular Maintenance that you would recommend. (aside from rotation, balance, alignment). Are there instructions available for any of these items yet? Any word on a Bently Manual for the f10? I loved my 535i, I'm looking forward to the 2012 arriving next week (this one's a CPO). Thanks in advance! Phil
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06-05-2015, 03:06 PM	#2
gatorfast Major General 4995 Rep 6,862 Posts Drives: 718 Cayman Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: SoFla iTrader: (4)	Unfortunately, you wont find a ton of detailed DIY's for the 5 series as this is typically not the kind of crowd that does this stuff on their own. I suggest looking at the 3 series forums as most of the stuff you mentioned is basic maintenance and you can probably find good diy's there. It may not be 100% the same configuration but it should provide a good template you could use to figure it out. Moreover, a great way to save money over buying the maintenance plan and perhaps time/frustration by doing it yourself would be to source the fluids/parts yourself and have a local BMW shop do the work for you.
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