[kcgman]

Called a different dealer; the ones that I bought the car from. I spoke with the Service Manager who was very helpful. Apparently, the DEF instructions changed in 2010 and now it's okay to top off as opposed to drain and refill. They don't think the DEF changed, they just think that BMW determined that there wasn't an issue with keeping the DEF in the tank.

And yes, the under-hood DEF top off is only in the X diesel -- not the 335d's. I hate being hoodwinked by SAs. Wish this other dealer was in my town.

[DC-IT]

Originally Posted by kcgman

Interesting! What can I ask the SA for to get evidence of what he is saying? Is there a service notice he should be looking at to address this issue? I assume there would be some sort of instructions if there was such a change.

When you go the your dealership ask the SA to open up the hood of your D and show you where is the opening to top up the DEF as it's a PITA to use the rear opening!

I've watched the Tech refill on the rear and it's painfully slow and spills a lot.

BMW should have designed it to be as easy as filling your fuel tank.

[Snipe656]

Originally Posted by DC-IT

BMW should have designed it to be as easy as filling your fuel tank.

Like how the new Ford diesel pickups are done and I'd imagine some other vehicles out there.

[taibanl]

I agree it should be easier to refill, but I wont care for the next 3 years. Dealer's are supposed to fill this stuff under the MX plan, so I will ensure they do.

[kcgman]

Originally Posted by DC-IT

I've watched the Tech refill on the rear and it's painfully slow and spills a lot.

BMW should have designed it to be as easy as filling your fuel tank.

Interesting you should say that. The Service Manager at the other dealer said that the old BMW machine that emptied the tank and then refilled it was actually pretty good. Now that the techs just have to top it off, it actually takes them longer to do the job.

[Snipe656]

Originally Posted by kcgman

Interesting you should say that. The Service Manager at the other dealer said that the old BMW machine that emptied the tank and then refilled it was actually pretty good. Now that the techs just have to top it off, it actually takes them longer to do the job.

It took forever for the machine to drain my tanks and refill them. I was multiple hours late for an appointment because of it. I have a feeling this might have been because my car probably had a lot of DEF fluid still in it when I came in for that first oil change. It made no messes though. The second time, when they just did a top off that did make a pretty big mess but it was much less time to get done.

[DC-IT]

Originally Posted by Snipe656

It took forever for the machine to drain my tanks and refill them. I was multiple hours late for an appointment because of it. I have a feeling this might have been because my car probably had a lot of DEF fluid still in it when I came in for that first oil change. It made no messes though. The second time, when they just did a top off that did make a pretty big mess but it was much less time to get done.

I hate to think how much it'll cost to have the DEF refilled after the warranty + free service is over!
Imagine if it take 3+ hours @ $xxx/hr!

Here in Canada we get free oil change+DEF refills for 80,000KM or 4 years and I'm already over 55,000KM in 1.5 years!

Guess I'll have to spend my Sundays refilling DEF sitting in my garage watching it sloooowly driping into the tanks drop by drop.

[Snipe656]

I highly doubt I will have my car outside the warranty since already looking into replacements. But if I were to have any car that I needed to put DEF in then I'd probably just top it off every so often. Sounds like it is not too slow to dump one of those one liter bottles in there.

[DC-IT]

Originally Posted by Snipe656

I highly doubt I will have my car outside the warranty since already looking into replacements. But if I were to have any car that I needed to put DEF in then I'd probably just top it off every so often. Sounds like it is not too slow to dump one of those one liter bottles in there.

Topping up frequently is an excellent idea. Thanks for the suggestion.
I'll do that once my warranty is up.
I saw the Tech filled the passive and active tanks seperately but they can see on ther screen when the tanks are full.
Our iDrive does not display the DEF levels of the tanks so we have no way of knowing if it's full other than the DEF overflowing the tanks.

The D is a keeper since it's trouble-free so far and there's no other vehicle that can come close to it in performance + FE unless BMW brings over the F30d or the F10d.
The F10 seems to have quite a few issues (crappy RTF, poor NAV routing, steering pulling to one side...).
If M-B puts the new 3.0L BlueTec in the E350BT it might be worth considering.

What's likely going to be your next Diesel to replace the D?

I'll hang onto my D till I see what the F30d's like.

[Snipe656]

Originally Posted by DC-IT

What's likely going to be your next Diesel to replace the D?

I may not get a diesel to replace the D. Currently considering one of three options but need to find time to go and look hard at them. Those options are E350 Blutec, Panamera(probably used, but if they'd just bring the diesels here!), new CLS 550, but considered possibly a used E63 or used CLS63. With the TDI Passat coming soon I am beginning to question the E350. Does not seem like the Benz will be twice the car the Passat is but is basically twice the money. Now I am more than likely to replace my truck in the next 1-2 years and would like to go to a cheap diesel wagon but could deal with a sedan. So I might replace the truck with a VW, since they are the only ones that fit that profile.

If M-B puts the new 3.0L BlueTec in the E350BT it might be worth considering.

I know nothing about this but my big hangup with the current Benz is the power or perhaps more so the power delivery. The BMW really shines not only with more peak power but how things come online with the turbo setup. I think the single turbo in the current Benz offering really hurts the perception of power but maybe it helps fuel economy for normal driving. I kind of like my "nice" car though to have some pep to it, my daily beater I can live with being a turd.

Topping up frequently is an excellent idea.

The only thing that I'd maybe consider about this method though is how well will the old fluid mix with the new. The stuff does not have a super long shelf life and especially if exposed to really cold or hot temps. What I'd like to know though is after it does get old does that mean it just has lost effectiveness or does it in anyway increase the chances of crystallizing. I can live with loss of effectiveness, would like to avoid crystallizing.

[DC-IT]

Originally Posted by Snipe656

I know nothing about this but my big hangup with the current Benz is the power or perhaps more so the power delivery. The BMW really shines not only with more peak power but how things come online with the turbo setup. I think the single turbo in the current Benz offering really hurts the perception of power but maybe it helps fuel economy for normal driving. I kind of like my "nice" car though to have some pep to it, my daily beater I can live with being a turd.

The 2012 ML350 BlueTec is introducing a new "3.0-liter turbo-diesel in the BlueTec is now good for 240 hp and 455 lb-ft of torque, up 30 hp and 55 lb-ft, and will get an estimated 2-mpg city mpg bump for ratings of 20/25. A switch from pressed-in cylinder liners to a spray-on coating in the diesel reduces both weight and friction".
Car & Driver Review 2012 ML-Class

[Quasimodem]

I do not top off my DEF tank. I just put 2.5 gallons in everytime I do an oil change.

I passed 50,000 miles a while back and did my first post-warranty (i did an in-between oil change under warranty) oil change around 56Kmiles. Not long after that I got the 1,000-mile no start warning and then I filled the active tank with about a gallon and a half and put the remaining gallon in the passive tank. I just did my second post-warranty oil change at 64k miles and added 2.5 gallons DEF to the passive tank.

I dont feel the need to "top-off" the passive tank because it takes a long time to use the DEF so I dont know how long it will last. I think if you just do an oil change every 8k miles and throw in 2.5 gallons, you will be good and maybe get the 1,000 mile warning once or twice in the life of the car.

[rogerdiaz]

What is the capacity of the diesel exhaust fluid tanks?

[GreekboyD]

Originally Posted by rogerdiaz

What is the capacity of the diesel exhaust fluid tanks?

I've read 4.5 gallons for the passive tank and 1.6 gallons for the active tank.