11-15-2019, 06:57 AM | #1 |
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Is it normal to change spark plugs so early?
Hello friends.
Quick question. I have a service appointment scheduled for next week. It's for the 3 year service (I bought the car on Nov 2016). The dealership called me last night saying they received a message from my car that spark plugs will need to be changed and to be prepared for a longer appointment. I said sure, I didn't know my car can send random messages to BMW, but go ahead and I'll just take their shuttle home. My question is why would the spark plugs need to be replaced so soon? I've only got about 25,000 kms (15,500 miles) on it. Is this normal for the S55 engines? |
11-15-2019, 11:37 AM | #2 |
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First off, you should drive your car more
But anyway, spark plugs are done every 3rd oil service so this is correct. Oil service is every 10k miles or one year, whichever comes first. In most instances the mileage hits first so this would equate to spark plugs roughly every 30k miles. But since your car is so low mileage you have hit the 1-year time intervals instead, thus necessitating the plugs at a lower mileage but longer time period. |
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12-24-2019, 03:50 AM | #3 |
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Dealership got me today with that...Thought I was only having oil service and received a 750Euro bill for spark plug service... My biggest issue is that I was not made aware of this before hand, the Germans just seem to do whatever they want and damn the customer.
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https://f80.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1466873 Last edited by metomwhou; 01-16-2020 at 11:22 AM.. |
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12-24-2019, 12:58 PM | #4 |
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I'd change the plugs every 15k. I have 22k on my current plugs and the engine doesn't feel as smooth as before. A bit of idling hiccups upon start up and doesn't feel as peppy at WOT.
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12-24-2019, 01:13 PM | #5 |
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Interesting.... While my car did not seem "off" before my plugs were changed, I would be lying if I said the butt dyno did not feel a difference after the plugs were changed. The car did seem more "peppy" after the change - I had mine done at 30k miles IAW the included BMW maintenance schedule plan. Not sure I would change the plugs that frequently unless the engine was heavily modified though....
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12-27-2019, 05:50 PM | #6 | |
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Off the top of my head I believe the stock spark plug gap is either 0.030" or 0.032" which is considered pretty big in the world of tuned turbocharged engines but is becoming very common now that manufacturers have to look everywhere for fuel economy, emissions, etc. If you drop them down a hair to 0.025" or so, you'll notice they'll easily make it past the "third oil change" recommendation and if you're on a Stage 1 or Stage 2 tune, you'll want about 0.022". |
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01-08-2020, 07:39 AM | #9 | |
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01-10-2020, 02:37 PM | #11 |
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I changed my stock plugs to .018 NGK's at 17k due to some hesitation and uneven idles on startup per Cary's advice. Car is running much better now. You really can tell the difference. Stage 2.
Last edited by c4ss; 01-15-2020 at 12:21 PM.. Reason: Posted incorrect gap (.022 should have been .018) |
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01-10-2020, 07:02 PM | #12 |
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How long does this job take to diy?
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01-14-2020, 02:05 PM | #13 |
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BM3 Stage 1 here, and I have some rough idle at times. Perhaps I should change the stock plugs at some point (only have 2k miles on them).
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01-15-2020, 12:20 PM | #14 |
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I'd been running higher boost maps since ~7k or so, so it might not be an apples to apples comparison, but my last 2 thousand miles since changing the plugs has been night and day. I recommend contacting your tuner for their rec. If it's OTS, go NGK 97506 at a .018 gap if you have plans for Stage 2.
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01-15-2020, 12:27 PM | #15 | |
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I didn't think BM3 recommended different plugs for stage 1 maps, but I may be wrong. |
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01-16-2020, 11:32 AM | #18 | |
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Can't remember what the hourly rate was...I'll check and report back. I do remember that the charge for the new plugs was like 160Euros...
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01-16-2020, 04:51 PM | #19 |
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