I changed the oil myself the next time and they had the filter cover torqued down so tight I had to make a wrench out of an old timing belt to get enough leverage to remove it. The cap has a torque spec printed right on it that is much lower than whatever the dealer tightened it to.
The amazing thing isn't just the degree to which they make mistakes it's the frequency. More often than not they are doing the job wrong.
I've always changed my own oil, and at every 7500, rather than the insane 15000 BMW states for their service intervals. So while it was in warranty, I took advantage of the 15000 mile changes, and did my own in between. In hindsight, it's not even worth my time, and I won't be doing it again with a future car. Oil change is quick, and you can get 5L Liqui Moly for much cheaper than "BMW" brand oil.
This is exactly what I do, down to the oil. BMW made it really easy with the access flap for the drain plug and there are convenient jacking points on the subframe. The service calls for more than just changing oil but I'm not confident that the dealer even does all the "extra" things they claim. My car is due for a brake fluid flush soon, not sure if I will do that myself or have the mechanic do it.
> My car is due for a brake fluid flush soon, not sure if I will do that myself or have the mechanic do it.
If you have the knowledge to jack up your car then just do it yourself, it's really easy, even better if your car is such that you can reach the fluid valve by the wheel without jacking it up.
Buy a brake bleeder kit, it's a small bottle with hoses.
You'll need an assistant to press and release the brakes on command.
Keep an eye on the fluid reservoir and don't let it go dry or you'll waste even more time and fluid bleeding it. Keep it covered at all times, open it just long enough to fill - don't do it like the mechanics, who just leave it open since it's not their car and they don't care.
A friend of mine actually made a pressure bleeder out of an old weed sprayer. I really like the idea of using that because it's easier to maintain the balance in he system and fully flush the old fluid.
He stores his with brake fluid in it which seems to me to defeat the purpose of bleeding brakes because the weed sprayer isn't going to be any more resistant to moisture than the brake system in the car. I'll probably have him help me build my own and then use that.
There is also a tool library around here that may have an actual pressure bleeder I can rent.
> My car is due for a brake fluid flush soon, not sure if I will do that myself or have the mechanic do it.My car is due for a brake fluid flush soon, not sure if I will do that myself or have the mechanic do it.
Leave brake fluid stuff to the experts. If you manage to get any moisture or air into your brake systems, say goodbye to your brakes. Back when I had a car, I did everything by myself except brakes, engine works and steering - mess up on these three and you can end up dead.
> The brakes are the easiest [major] thing of all to to fix on a car. Your caution was completely unnecessary.
Yeah but when the brakes fail (or the steering, or the engine seizes) you usually end up injured or dead.
If you have had a licensed mechanic dealing with the life-critical stuff and it turns out that it was the fault of the mechanic then you can at least sue his insurance for damages after the fact (or, if you die, your dependants can sue, e.g. for widowers' benefit). It also protects you from being sued by others in case your screw-up causes an accident.
I've had complete brake failure due to a rusted brake line. There's no need to panic: I applied the emergency brake and pulled over to the side of the road, then drove to the nearest auto shop that was conveniently a block away.
Unfortunately, their insurance didn't cover dropping the gas tank that was in the way of replacing the brake lines, so then I had the fun of driving to the next nearest place two miles away with only a handbrake and engine compression to slow me down. Fun times!
This is right, it is quite easy if you know the procedure.
However, no brake system is perfectly water right because it has moving parts. Flushing the system periodically removes this moisture before it can accumulate to a level that will cause significant corrosion of the internal brake parts.
In a past life in spent a couple years in an auto tech program and was an equipment mechanic in college to pay for books (beer) so I am familiar with the process of bleeding my brakes.
You are right to be concerned about moisture, that's actually why they need bled. BMW suggests bleeding them roughly every other oil change because no system is perfectly water/moisture tight.
The nice thing about having my mechanic do it is they already have a place to do it and they deal with the waste fluid plus they also inspect the rest of the car and have a lot more experience with what to look for than I do. Preventative maintenance is a big deal on these cars so having an experienced mechanic look at it regularly puts my mind at ease.
I just recently started renting a friend's garage so I could rebuild my motorcycle so now that I have my tools and a space to do work I am much more likely to do this kind of thing myself.
To be fair, brakes are stupid easy to replace. I did my girlfriends pads, rotors, calipers by myself, for the first time ever, just watching some online videos. I certainly would not pay someone to replace pads / rotors. The only thing you really need for that is a brake spreader tool, which is free to rent from Autozone type places. Regarding flushing brake fluid, you can bring it a place if you're not comfortable, but it's really not difficult either.
While that works it's a good idea to always bleed the excess fluid out because it doesn't last forever. Brake fluid is lighter than water so any moisture will make its way to your calipers then start rusting them from the inside. That's why manufacturers suggest flushing the system regularly. Brake fluid is pretty cheap relative to calipers so you may as well just bleed it out.
Not sure what you mean by cross pattern but most cars have their braking system split up into two systems that are diagonally opposite. This way a failure in one only results in a loss of 50% of braking instead of up to 80% if the front fails. The cross bleeding is done to maintain the balance in the system and prevent the sensors from improperly detecting a failure in the brake system.
The amazing thing isn't just the degree to which they make mistakes it's the frequency. More often than not they are doing the job wrong.