E90 Oil Change (DIY)

I would like to share my experience of changing the oil in my 2006 BMW 325i (e90) with sport package. My car has only 2300 miles on it, but I thought I should do a post break-in period oil change. ...

Nice pics. Thanks for the write up.

Hello, I am located in Nevada - where is the best place to order filter, rubber o-rings, and copper crush washer? My car is a 2006 325i. Cheers, J.R.

o-rings and copper crush washer comes included with the filter...

Oil viscosity is dependent upon your respective ambient operating temperature. There is no harm to use 20W50 if you live in hot desert of Nevada, but certainly 0W30 is more logical if you live in frigid ski slopes of Maine. However the designation LL01 is extremely important, this is crucial to the longevity of your engine especially if you abide by CBS oil service alerts. Besides, it is known fact that US gasoline got much higher sulfur content than what is dispensed in Europe. But if you change oil at lesser frequency than 15K/year the necessity of using LL01 becomes less relevant. I am not a believer of CBS philosophy so I use Mobil 1 as my preferred oil brand, and since I live in Northern NJ, my choice of viscosity is 0W30 and I do oil changes at 7.5k intervals. BMW uses Castrol branded synthetic with LL01 designation, since their so called "free oil service" is strictly dependent of CBS alerts. In Europe and certain other markets LL04 is used. Suggested brands of OEM grade oil filters would be Mann or Hengst. Where to buy OEM grade oil filters: http://www.ecstuning.com/BMW-E93-328...il_Filter_Kit/

Thanks for the writeup! My first oil change, successfully completed!

hump... missing pictures

Thanks for the post, pics helped a lot, I had to drive my front tires up on pavers just to get the jack underneath. Definitely gonna buy the rhino ramps, saves at least 20 min of "jacking around" lol.

I have noticed that on my 2009 e93, the flap on the dust pan cover interferes with the draining of the engine oil. It wasn't like this on the e46 engines, the whole sectional piece was removable. I am not a believer of bmw's CBS, so I do one oil change at 3/4 time before it calls for a oil change, typically at 8k -10k miles after the previous CBS oil change. To prevent oil being spilled into the upper surfaces of dust pan I shuffle it with rags. Anyone else with this issue?

Any tips guys? I CANNOT get my oil filter cover off. I got a strap wrench and tore the rubber! I guess I have to buy the tool for it, but I just can't believe how tight the thing is on there. Dang.

I wrapped the lid w/duct tape to prevent scuffing & used plumber's sized wrench, and little by little I was able to turn it. You are right, the bmw service guys over tighten it with a vengeance, if you will...To properly open the lid, you'll need a wrench cap for newer models. On my old e46, it was a pentagon shaped nut on the cap & easier to open.

The flap door can come off. Just lift it off the hinges and pull it out.

Yes, the flap for the oil drain does snap off, but the oil still splash back into the upper surface of the undercarriage cover. In my old e46, the whole section has to be taken off, but it leaves a nice large area where the oil can be drained into a pan without making a huge mess into the undercarriage cover.

Sounds like the pan is too close to the car. Try a shallow, wide drain pan with an old glass to divert the stream of oil sideways. Or raise the car up further. The problem is the car is designed to be drained when on a lift. Most oil drains used when the car is on the lift are funnel shaped so the oil doesn't splash straight back up. Or just get some brake clean...

Can anyone please tell me how to get the damn filter cap off.. I got the strap wrench, but its cloth and not rubber one.. For the life of me i couldnt get that thing off.. Any tips will be greatly appreciated! thanks!

enough to get the bolt on their but dont over tighten to strip the bolt. sounds like ur not sure what the sealer is so make sure u have that under the oil filter cap or else ull have oil all over everything, and im not sure where ur from but if ur familiar with autozone, they take in used oil...lol

enough to get the bolt on their but dont over tighten to strip the bolt. sounds like ur not sure what the sealer is so make sure u have that under the oil filter cap or else ull have oil all over everything, and im not sure where ur from but if ur familiar with autozone, they take in used oil...lol

Was in the same boat as you. Even loosened, the rubber o-ring that goes on the filter cap makes screwing this thing on and off hell with a strap wrench. I never could get it off without the actual tool. Unfortunately, I'd save yourself a headache and just buy the tool. Here's where I got mine.

Just search for "oil filter tool". This was the cheapest I could find the tool.

http://www.bavauto.com

Good luck!

thanks man, im thinking the same, i found one on ebay for like 15 bucks

I have a concern after changing my oil yesterday. After changing my oil I put 7 qts of oil in the engine. Then I started it; let it warm up. Toggled on the switch to check my oil. It stated it was at its Max. Then today after driving it a good bit (20 miles), I checked it again. It was no longer on the Max line, the line was about around 3/4 of the way to Max. So I placed another qt in it. It is still 3/4 of the way till max. What is wrong? I already feel I have put too much oil in it. I am not seeing any leaks from around the filter or near the drain plug.
Maybe a dumb question, but could it be the cold weather affecting its read?

You have 8 qts of oil you the car? I think that is a bit much!!!

Thanks for this great guide.

I guess I wasn't clear:...I do my oil change fully lifted up, NOT on a jack, I have access to a private garage's lift. I was comparing to my e46 when I used to do the oil change in exact same manner. It doesn't matter how close or far you place the oil drain pan in relation to the vehicle drain spout, it splashes into the undercarriage. My e93 gets splashed all with oil, while my old e46 drained flawlessly. Once I took apart the undercarriage entire section, after the Open Road did my CBS annual oil change, and they also splashed oil into the undercarriage, even more than me. I ended up wiping and cleaned it off. Then dam opening where the flap is attached is just too small, I know it snaps off, but then what????... it still gets splashed.