# Oil change???



## dave e90 (Feb 25, 2016)

Hi, bought a 320d bout a month ago from 2007, just got round to looking at service history, and only paper I can find for last oil change is October 2012, car has done 40,000 kms since then!!!! Computer says oil is good for 26000kms more?? 1st diesel I've owned but people are telling me change oil regular and use expensive oil, should I change now or wait till computer tells me??


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## F32Fleet (Jul 14, 2010)

It's entirely possible that an oil change was performed but there's no paperwork. I would ask the seller if he remembers where and when he had the oil changed last and then make your decision.


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## Flyingman (Sep 13, 2009)

First thing is to see if the key fob can be read or not, assuming it was serviced by the dealer, but perhaps not.

Someone had to have reset the oil change counter, but did they actually change the oil?

If it were me and no evidence it was done, just do it now and resolve any mystery as to when it was done.:thumbup:


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## imtjm (Oct 5, 2004)

does the oil look bad? If you have doubts, just do an oil change, then you will know for sure when it was done.


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## Master_Chase (Jun 8, 2015)

imtjm said:


> does the oil look bad? If you have doubts, just do an oil change, then you will know for sure when it was done.


Diesel oil turns black almost instantly, so how do you describe bad?


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## imtjm (Oct 5, 2004)

Master_Chase said:


> Diesel oil turns black almost instantly, so how do you describe bad?


funny how mine doesn't, but I must have a special car. I stand by my comment, when in doubt just change it.


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## d geek (Nov 26, 2008)

imtjm said:


> funny how mine doesn't, but I must have a special car. I stand by my comment, when in doubt just change it.


As we diesel lovers say: "soot happens" 
Soot is generated during the compression ignition process. You really do want your oil to darken because it means the oil is holding the soot in suspension. As opposed to the soot sitting on your bearings and prematurely wearing out your engine.

That said, I agree with your comment that if the OP is in doubt they should just change it out. With the appropriate oil: BMW LL04


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## Michael47 (May 9, 2014)

Oil is cheaper than a new engine. Change the oil and enjoy the peace of mind of knowing when it was done.


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## Master_Chase (Jun 8, 2015)

imtjm said:


> funny how mine doesn't, but I must have a special car. I stand by my comment, when in doubt just change it.


I don't pay too much attention to this vehicle oil (other than changing it on/before time) I just know that in the diesel truck world it turns black pretty damn quick.

I do agree that changing the oil is always a good idea when you buy a car unless you know for 100% when it was changed.


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## dave e90 (Feb 25, 2016)

Thanks for advice guys, think I'm gonna change it, that way I know for sure when it was done.


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## GTony (Nov 10, 2012)

dave e90 said:


> Thanks for advice guys, think I'm gonna change it, that way I know for sure when it was done.


When I got mine they said every 2 Years.
The Dealer was using Castrol at the time so I phoned Castrol Tech. Section and they said, because the Oil for mine they use is Fully Synthetic it is good enough for 2 Years.
I got the best oil to use from them and it was even better than my Dealer was using.
I purchase from Car Accessory Places when on Special. If you consider doing this make sure you get the Manufacturers Part Number as Different Places use their own Part/Code Numbers.
On my 1'st Yearly Service, had Dealer using my Oil do a change.

I would Change it Now and Every Year. 
On a side note, use Premium Fuel. I get around 4.5to5.5L/100Km's on 3 to 5 hour high speed road trips with the Aircon On.

Use the Best Oil and the Best Fuel to Blow/Clean the Cobwebs out.
Good luck :thumbup:


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## 55 (Apr 15, 2006)

Master_Chase said:


> Diesel oil turns black almost instantly, so how do you describe bad?


Hello, I did search for "black oil" and found this thread. 
I did my first oil change at around 5k (too late by my standards, but... ).
I've found it extremely black.
I do a lot of oil changes for may family's cars, but they all gas cars, and i don't think, I've seen such black oil. Even on the deep stick it is not transparent at all.
Is it a diesel thing? Could you please elaborate on this? Any technical explanation?
thanks


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## 55 (Apr 15, 2006)

Did some research and reading. True, diesel oil becomes black almost instantly due to blow by and soot. Fact of life it seems.


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## Ozer (Sep 17, 2015)

go to www.mycarfax.com and crate an account, super easy. Then put the VIN and if there are service history to display, it will do that.
Its all free, i enter my cars and any car that i want to check service on, comes handy when buying. Also you can enter your own work as DIY when you perform it.


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## 55 (Apr 15, 2006)

A spare bottle of oil came with my car neatly attached to the bottom of the storage compartment. Are they expected to eat oil?


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## Michael47 (May 9, 2014)

55 said:


> Hello, I did search for "black oil" and found this thread.
> I did my first oil change at around 5k (too late by my standards, but... ).
> I've found it extremely black.
> I do a lot of oil changes for may family's cars, but they all gas cars, and i don't think, I've seen such black oil. Even on the deep stick it is not transparent at all.
> ...


Yes, it is a diesel thing.

I have a 2001 Jetta TDI diesel. Oil turns black as coal as soon as you restart the engine after an oil change.

I had (until it dropped a valve and destroyed the engine at 200,000 miles) a Jeep Libby CRD diesel. It turned the oil black as coal, but it took 3 or 4 minutes to do that after an oil change.

I have a 2012 BMW X5 diesel. Guess what? Takes minutes. Last oil change was done by a shop. They drove it around front for me after the change. I checked the oil level: black as coal.

Technical explanation? ok. Diesels have very high compression ratios that force soot past the rings and into the crankcase with the oil. The oil is formulated particularly to keep that soot (which is carbon particles so small they don't hurt anything) in suspension, rather than letting it build up and clog up places you don't want it. Since it is impossible to drain every last drop of old oil out, when you add the new, there is enough soot still in the remaining old oil to color the new oil black. Can't be avoided. In fact, if you ever see "clean" oil even right after an oil change in your diesel, it means some idiot has put in oil not rated for diesel service, and you need to get it the heck out of there pronto, before things start clogging up.


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## Michael47 (May 9, 2014)

55 said:


> A spare bottle of oil came with my car neatly attached to the bottom of the storage compartment. Are they expected to eat oil?


They might when brand new and before break in is complete. They generally don't after the first, oh, 10 or 20 thousand miles until they get up there toward 100 thousand or so. If then.

And for what it is worth, given the costs of ring jobs and valve jobs and such, until you need to add a quart every 100 miles or so, it doesn't pay to do anything about burning a little oil between oil changes. That is why there's even a dipstick or oil level alert system on cars, and why owners are advised to pay any attention to oil levels.

I have a 2001 Jetta and had a 2005 Jeep, both diesels, with 170,000 and 200,000 miles respectively. The Jetta's first OC was supposed to be at 5,000 miles with subsequent changes every 10,000 miles after that. It burned half a quart before that first change, and hasn't burned another quart since. The Jeep didn't burn a quart until it hit around 160,000 miles, then burned a single quart every 6,500 miles until the weld broke on one of the exhaust valve stems.


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## 55 (Apr 15, 2006)

Michael47 said:


> Yes, it is a diesel thing.
> 
> I have a 2001 Jetta TDI diesel. Oil turns black as coal as soon as you restart the engine after an oil change.
> 
> ...


Thanks. Now I know. Feel better.


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## 55 (Apr 15, 2006)

Michael47 said:


> They might when brand new and before break in is complete. They generally don't after the first, oh, 10 or 20 thousand miles until they get up there toward 100 thousand or so. If then.
> 
> And for what it is worth, given the costs of ring jobs and valve jobs and such, until you need to add a quart every 100 miles or so, it doesn't pay to do anything about burning a little oil between oil changes. That is why there's even a dipstick or oil level alert system on cars, and why owners are advised to pay any attention to oil levels.
> 
> I have a 2001 Jetta and had a 2005 Jeep, both diesels, with 170,000 and 200,000 miles respectively. The Jetta's first OC was supposed to be at 5,000 miles with subsequent changes every 10,000 miles after that. It burned half a quart before that first change, and hasn't burned another quart since. The Jeep didn't burn a quart until it hit around 160,000 miles, then burned a single quart every 6,500 miles until the weld broke on one of the exhaust valve stems.


The level have not drop a bit. I am at 10k now (km). Did one oil change at around 5k.
When I saw the oil, I thought: what idiot I am, should have it changed earlier. Next day I removed the dip stick and it is black again. Then I suspected it is a "diesel thing".


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## Flyingman (Sep 13, 2009)

55 said:


> The level have not drop a bit. I am at 10k now (km). Did one oil change at around 5k.
> When I saw the oil, I thought: what idiot I am, should have it changed earlier. Next day I removed the dip stick and it is black again. Then I suspected it is a "diesel thing".


Welcome to the club!

I change my oil every 13k miles, now at 112k. My engine uses about 1 qt every 6-7k so I top off at the mid OCI and might add a bit more when I get around 11k. For me this is normal and expected. Others burn no or very little oil, but many do their OCI at 7,500 miles.

The car will warn you when the level is low and it will take a qt to bring it back up to normal level, but it may not go to max. Don't overfill!


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