Can spark plugs last 50k miles with gentle drive

[NewM3owner123]

Dealer quoted me 1200 for spark plugs at 60k service. They said it is recommended, but did say it is not super urgent.

My question is every 30k miles seems pretty frequent compared to my understanding that spark plugs usually last 60-70k.

Can this cause any damage to my engine if I just wait another 20k miles before changing?

Thanks for info!

[TractionControlDelete]

Originally Posted by NewM3owner123

Dealer quoted me 1200 for spark plugs at 60k service. They said it is recommended, but did say it is not super urgent.

My question is every 30k miles seems pretty frequent compared to my understanding that spark plugs usually last 60-70k.

Can this cause any damage to my engine if I just wait another 20k miles before changing?

Thanks for info!

Use an independent shop for 75% of the cost of the dealership or just DIY. You'll be fine with older spark plugs. You'll know when they've gone bad due to symptoms like poor fuel mileage, hesitation, uneven idle, etc. But I'll be honest with you - they can probably last past 100k. I wouldn't recommend that though. Just change them on schedule and don't worry about it.

[NewM3owner123]

Originally Posted by F82KPowers

Use an independent shop for 75% of the cost of the dealership or just DIY. You'll be fine with older spark plugs. You'll know when they've gone bad due to symptoms like poor fuel mileage, hesitation, uneven idle, etc. But I'll be honest with you - they can probably last past 100k. I wouldn't recommend that though. Just change them on schedule and don't worry about it.

Thank you for the info. Dealer did say the same thing as you, when they do wear out you should check Engine light, but it shouldn't cause any damage. Just wanted to double check. I totally get doing fluids on time, but every 30k seems a bit frequent

[1FZFE]

Originally Posted by F82KPowers

Use an independent shop for 75% of the cost of the dealership or just DIY. You'll be fine with older spark plugs. You'll know when they've gone bad due to symptoms like poor fuel mileage, hesitation, uneven idle, etc. But I'll be honest with you - they can probably last past 100k. I wouldn't recommend that though. Just change them on schedule and don't worry about it.

I don't know of any indy in CA that'll do a spark plug job for $900.

As for the OP asking the question, maybe an M car isn't for you. The cost of maintenance and repairs is only going to get worse as it ages.

[TractionControlDelete]

Originally Posted by 1FZFE

I don't know of any indy in CA that'll do a spark plug job for $900.

As for the OP asking the question, maybe an M car isn't for you. The cost of maintenance and repairs is only going to get worse as it ages.

Worked out for me at Bavarian Professionals in Berkeley. But that was in 2020 so things obviously might've changed price-wise.

[spidy512]

Originally Posted by 1FZFE

I don't know of any indy in CA that'll do a spark plug job for $900.

As for the OP asking the question, maybe an M car isn't for you. The cost of maintenance and repairs is only going to get worse as it ages.

I paid my indy $280, I supplied the coils and plugs (OEM, ~$500). So it can be done for less than $900 in Cali.

josh

[agustincuenca]

I changed them myself and only spent $72 in parts on FCP Euro and about $40 in tools I was missing. Took me about 3 hours, I went extremely slow and careful.

[1FZFE]

Originally Posted by spidy512

I paid my indy $280, I supplied the coils and plugs (OEM, ~$500). So it can be done for less than $900 in Cali.

josh

Pedantic. And sounds like your indy doesn't value his/her time very much.

Any shop that'll do it for basement bargain pricing buyer beware. You get what you pay for. DIY it is best.

[krudmunk]

Originally Posted by 1FZFE

Pedantic. And sounds like your indy doesn't value his/her time very much.

Any shop that'll do it for basement bargain pricing buyer beware. You get what you pay for. DIY it is best.

What are you talking about? There's tons of reputable shops in the Bay Area that can do spark plug swaps for around $200-300 range. It's not that difficult and it doesn't take much labor hour.

[G35POPPEDMYCHERRY]

Originally Posted by krudmunk

What are you talking about? There's tons of reputable shops in the Bay Area that can do spark plug swaps for around $200-300 range. It's not that difficult and it doesn't take much labor hour.

hes the kind of guy that just blindly associates cost with quality.

tbh I've had cheap ass labor done by absolute car nuts, who just wanted a side job.

I've also had str8 garbage service at the stealership.

cost cannot just be a determining factor.

[TopJimmy]

If you drive easy then it will likely not be an issue.

Watch the YT videos and do the job yourself. It's very satisfying, and quite easy.

[krudmunk]

Originally Posted by G35POPPEDMYCHERRY

hes the kind of guy that just blindly associates cost with quality.

tbh I've had cheap ass labor done by absolute car nuts, who just wanted a side job.

I've also had str8 garbage service at the stealership.

cost cannot just be a determining factor.

Guy shops around for prices and two shops give quotes around 300 and 900 for spark plug swaps. Guy chooses 900 because he considers that shop values their time more than others and thus does a quality job

[krudmunk]

Originally Posted by NewM3owner123

Dealer quoted me 1200 for spark plugs at 60k service. They said it is recommended, but did say it is not super urgent.

My question is every 30k miles seems pretty frequent compared to my understanding that spark plugs usually last 60-70k.

Can this cause any damage to my engine if I just wait another 20k miles before changing?

Thanks for info!

I'd recommend swap at 60k. 20k miles more is not worth the risk. chances of misfiring and so on.

Spark plugs are constantly firing to ignite the fuel inside the engine. You can't really squeeze 20k more miles because you don't redline often lol. If you're stock tune, 60k miles is the recommended interval. If you're tuned stage 2, then much frequent spark plug replacement interval is needed.

[spidy512]

Originally Posted by 1FZFE

Pedantic. And sounds like your indy doesn't value his/her time very much.

Any shop that'll do it for basement bargain pricing buyer beware. You get what you pay for. DIY it is best.

WTF?

You couldn't be more wrong. My indy is a great guy, and I trust him 100%. He is a long time BMW guy/dork, and is 5 minutes from my house. He works on my Dad's M4 as well. He does quality work.

Also, DIY doesnt work for me anymore. I have bone on bone arthritis that unfotunately, keeps me from wrencing on cars anymore. 35+ years of wrenching on bikes professionally on top a firefighter career has ruined my hands. And it drives me nuts that I can't pull a plug without pain. Trust me, I would give both my balls an a kidney to be be able to have no more pain, and to get my strenght back.

At least I can still ride my bike....

josh

[G35POPPEDMYCHERRY]

Originally Posted by spidy512

WTF?

You couldn't be more wrong. My indy is a great guy, and I trust him 100%. He is a long time BMW guy/dork, and is 5 minutes from my house. He works on my Dad's M4 as well. He does quality work.

Also, DIY doesnt work for me anymore. I have bone on bone arthritis that unfotunately, keeps me from wrencing on cars anymore. 35+ years of wrenching on bikes professionally on top a firefighter career has ruined my hands. And it drives me nuts that I can't pull a plug without pain. Trust me, I would give both my balls an a kidney to be be able to have no more pain, and to get my strenght back.

At least I can still ride my bike....

josh

lol, Im thirty but weight train a lot so generally sore. I was taking off the spacers, and while trying to line the damn wheels to the lug holes, I broke my back

[NothingButToast]

Originally Posted by 1FZFE

I don't know of any indy in CA that'll do a spark plug job for $900.

As for the OP asking the question, maybe an M car isn't for you. The cost of maintenance and repairs is only going to get worse as it ages.

This is the most idiotic common saying on these forums. It doesn't have to be expensive just because it's an M car. Some things happen to be expensive because of the part itself. Spark plugs are spark plugs.

Originally Posted by 1FZFE

Pedantic. And sounds like your indy doesn't value his/her time very much.

Any shop that'll do it for basement bargain pricing buyer beware. You get what you pay for. DIY it is best.

Job takes ~1 hour to do. A shop rate of, say $120/hr, mean it costs $120 + cost of spark plugs.

So on a reasonable higher end, $100 for spark plugs, $120 shop rate. Call it $300 because I'm a nice guy. $300, maybe $400 if it goes into 2 hours. Maybe you add in new coils too.

Worst case: new coils + plugs + service for 2 hours. $150 + $100 + $240 = $490

[dzxy]

I went to an independent BMW shop (Canada), they're one of the most reputable ones for BMWs here. For air filter and spark plug change it only cost me ~300 CAD. I supplied the parts, though, so that's just labour only. Not bad when my dealership was quoting $1500.

[bsmf8x]

Shops near me charge 400-500 for f80 plugs

[Zstyle]

With FCP lifetime warranty and Paypal free return shipping, the cost of ownership should be less than any other vehicle for I have not found the same type of deals for the Japanese, American, Italian, or Korean vehicles. Basically less than a few grand for everything for the life of the vehicle or as long as you own the car, so it is advantageous to keep the car long time.

Likely the only true costs of the car are tires, gas, and insurance (if leaving stock).

[Track/S]

Yesterday I changed mine with 30.000km, stage3 tune. 60k miles sounds like a lot to me...