[araje]

Hey Santosh - cool write up.
I crossed the 16500 mark recently and gave it for servicing in the last week of. Dec as well.

One point about RFTs : over the past 2yrs I have tried different pressures and settled on 36 psi all throughout. When I am going out with lot of luggage I do 37rear. So far I have seen it helps with roads.

I have an IOC nearby and go there all the time. My service advisor this time gave me the BMW diesel additive for free to try out. 1 can for full tank. I don't know if it's the can or replaced brand new engine oil but the pickup is noticably good. They told me to use one can every alternate full tank.
Let's see.

I am planning maderiki trip this weekend. Will experiment a bit on sport+

Njoy👍

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by araje

Hey Santosh - cool write up.
I crossed the 16500 mark recently and gave it for servicing in the last week of. Dec as well.

One point about RFTs : over the past 2yrs I have tried different pressures and settled on 36 psi all throughout. When I am going out with lot of luggage I do 37rear. So far I have seen it helps with roads.

I have an IOC nearby and go there all the time. My service advisor this time gave me the BMW diesel additive for free to try out. 1 can for full tank. I don't know if it's the can or replaced brand new engine oil but the pickup is noticably good. They told me to use one can every alternate full tank.
Let's see.

I am planning maderiki trip this weekend. Will experiment a bit on sport+

Njoy👍

I also did my second service on Saturday. They gave me 2 cans of the additive. I think they charged me for one can. No communication regarding the same though. I just found the cans inside the car. I drove down to Belgaum today. Tanked up 65L of diesel and emptied one can of the additive. I don't know what they've done, but after service, the engine just feels silky smooth. Must be the fresh oil but the engine sure is purring like a cat. Got great mileage too this trip.

Wow, 36 psi is too high IMO. I keep 32 psi highway and 30 psi city. If fully loaded, I go upto 34 psi max.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

Warning this is has turned out be a loooooong post! Turns out I have so much to say!

Fantastic 12-month update! Your post was added to the homepage. Thanks for sharing!

A lot of your points can be cut-copied-pasted into my 530d review .

Lack of a ‘next track’ button and mute button on the steering.

Agreed on mute. But you can use the scroller to go to the next track.

Centre armrest box already creaking.

Well & truly sucks. I'm also hearing mild creaks & rattles in my cabin, which I'm sure will only grow louder with time.

Going to ask the dealership to fix them on the next service visit. It's not a top priority as I usually play the music so loud that it drowns out every other noise.

Virtually two thirds of the running has been on drives up and down to Belgaum. The X3 has brought the 2 cities closer and its unbelievable how fresh I am at the end of every 500 kms drive

You said it - something about these cars and how they keep you fresh on long drives. Like your 3.0, even mine has covered a majority of its miles on the highway. I'm 21 trips up in less than 2 years.

The engine has been absolutely brilliant on these long drives. Great power, great handling, fantast gear box and superb brakes make highway driving a real treat

I’ve configured sport mode to alter only the chassis so that the drive train remains in normal mode

I've always wanted to do this, but the BMW idiots removed individual settings in the M-Sport. Now, it's all sport or nothing. In the earlier 530d, you could firm up only the suspension and keep the rest in normal mode.

I’ve never been a frequent user of paddle shifts but off late I’ve started using it during my long drives on NH4. They are extremely responsive and shift levers are well finished and feel lovely to operate and touch

I'm a big, big user of the paddles. They are lovely to use.

As a results RFTs wear a little faster and don’t last as long as regular tubeless tyres. At 16,000 kms tyres look like they are down to about 40% wear and I expect them to last anywhere between 35 and 40k kms.

I doubt it. Considering the 530d requires new runflats every 22k - 25k km, you will too.

I was keen on swapping the 18” rims to 19 inchers purely for cosmetic reasons, but have dropped the idea now

Smart decision. 19s will kill your ride and also increase the possibility of tyre / wheel damage. This is especially important since you drive on the highway so much. If I had a choice, I'd have picked 17s for my car.

After sales experience has been just about OK during the times I’ve had to use their services

Agreed. BMW's after-sales isn't a match on Mercedes' exemplary service.

Wish you many more grin-inducing drives in your X3!

[Santoshbhat]

Second Service Update : 18,000 Kms

All BMWs in India currently follow an interval of about 12,000 kms for oil change. My last oil change was at 7,000 kms. I had done it about 1,000 kms early last time. Every oil change service costs about ₹ 24K. So I wanted to squeeze the last drop out of this interval and waited till the last minute before I booked for service. This time the iDrive called for oil change after 11,000 kms. I've got extended warranty and the card clearly says that service has to be carried out at prescribed intervals with an allowance of maximum 10%. If you delay service beyond that, you risk invalidating your warranty.

Service was done at Navnit's Airport Road facility again. I got the appointment for the very next day I called them. Nice clean and large facility and the service experience was overall good.

This time they gave me 2 cans of BMW OE diesel additive. Each can is about 100 ml costing about 900 bucks. You need to pour it into the tank before tanking up diesel. The ratio is 100 ml for 40 to 65l of diesel. I've used one can so far and can confirm the mileage I got was about 5 to 8% more than normal for my Belgaum drive. Increased mileage could be due to fresh engine oil and air filter rather than the additive. Will use the other can a few months down the line. It supposedly cleans the injectors and carbon deposits and keeps the engine healthy.

They did not change the AC filter this time as the system only recommended it to be cleaned. This time, after service, the engine felt really smooth. It was really hard to believe from inside that you are driving a diesel car.

The service advisor this time was quite pushy was trying hard to market all kinds of accessories which they seemed to have stocked up at the facility. Sadly they did not have what I really wanted - BMW all weather mats for X3. One accessory that I did buy though was BMW Advanced Car Eye. Basically a BMW OE dash cam. The system comes with 2 cameras, one front facing and one rear facing. A 32 GB micro SD card stores all the data. Ever since I bought the Bimmer, I wanted to get a dash cam. In India driving a BMW is almost considered villainesque . A dash cam is good to have , but I hate the clutter of wires on my dash and like to keep it clean. The biggest advantage of this cam is that it is BMW OE and installed at the dealership. So there is no danger to warranty. Installation is clean and there are no wires dangling anywhere. The camera draws power from the mirror assembly and rear camera installation is also clean. It starts up every time you start the car and shuts down when you turn off ignition. There is also a parking mode where it records even when the car is parked. It comes with a G sensor so if it detects any movement or impact it records the video in a separate folder which does not get overwritten. You can download the videos onto your computer and view it with the help of a separate software that has to be downloaded from the internet. It also has a GPS sensor that records speed and also shows location on a map. Videos are clear and crisp. Front camera records in 1080 and rear in 720 resolution. This is my first dash cam, so I don't have much experience to rate it. MRP is about 35K. I managed to eek out a 10% discount.

Summarizing it..

Pros

• Front and rear cam.
• BMW OE Product. Car warranty intact
• Professional installation by BMW Auth dealer.
• Clean installation. No wire clutter.
• Does not block or impede driver vision while driving
• Integrates well with car ignition and shut off.
• Event mode saves 30 secs before and 30 secs after in a separate folder and prevents it from being overwritten.

Cons

• G sensor is too sensitive even at its lowest setting. Gives out beeps at almost every speed breaker and records it as an 'event'
• Each video length is only 1 min. System records about 100 videos of 1 min each and then starts overwriting. So if you've had an 'incident' and want to save it, better remove the card from the camera.
• Pricey

The Package


View from driver seat


View from passenger seat


How it looks from outside


The rear Cam


Screen Shots of viewing software




The woofer on the dashboard is creating a bit of a reflection for the front camera. Maybe I need to adjust the angle or position a bit.

[Turbanator]

The woofer on the dashboard is creating a bit of a reflection for the front camera.

I think the camera needs to go higher and more towards left, will post the one I have on mine X5 when I am back in Chandigarh.

There is also a parking mode where it records even when the car is parked.

But this works only for 6 hours, there is some hack to make it 12 but I have not figured it yet. Do let me know if find a workaround.

So if you've had an 'incident' and want to save it, better remove the card from the camera.

Are you sure, I thought incidents are recorded and don't get deleted unless you specifically remove these & yes the G sensor is very sensitive, won't know how it will behave on Gurgaon roads

You can download the videos onto your computer and view it with the help of a separate software that has to be downloaded from the internet. It also has a GPS sensor that records speed and also shows location on a map.

Can you post link.

I will agree with most of your observations and will recommend to everyone for your BMW

[Axe77]

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

Second Service Update : 18,000 Kms

One accessory that I did buy though was BMW Advanced Car Eye. Basically a BMW OE dash cam.

Cons

• G sensor is too sensitive even at its lowest setting. Gives out beeps at almost every speed breaker and records it as an 'event'
• Each video length is only 1 min. System records about 100 videos of 1 min each and then starts overwriting. So if you've had an 'incident' and want to save it, better remove the card from the camera.
• Pricey

This is a really neat option to have. Thanks for the overview.

In the context of Cons (as contrasted with other dashcam solutions), would it be fair to say that this Cam is not portable to another non BMW car - should you at some point sell this car and want the system transferred to a non BMW alternative? Or can it be seamlessly transferred to any car of any brand - whether BMW or otherwise.

Thanks

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by Turbanator

I think the camera needs to go higher and more towards left, will post the one I have on mine X5 when I am back in Chandigarh.

I'll have to do some reallignment. Will get it done if I happen to visit the airport as the service centre is on the way.

Originally Posted by Turbanator

Are you sure, I thought incidents are recorded and don't get deleted unless you specifically remove these & yes the G sensor is very sensitive, won't know how it will behave on Gurgaon roads

I meant an incident which does not involve the G sensor. Say a drunk biker falling on his own right in front of you and blaming you for it.

Originally Posted by Turbanator

Can you post link.

www.advancedcareye.com just click on it and the download starts automatically.

Originally Posted by Axe77

This is a really neat option to have. Thanks for the overview.

In the context of Cons (as contrasted with other dashcam solutions), would it be fair to say that this Cam is not portable to another non BMW car - should you at some point sell this car and want the system transferred to a non BMW alternative? Or can it be seamlessly transferred to any car of any brand - whether BMW or otherwise.

Thanks

It should be transferable to any non BMW car as long as it can get its power supply. But I am not sure how seamlessly it will start up and shut down with ignition.

[Akshay1234]

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

The woofer on the dashboard is creating a bit of a reflection for the front camera. Maybe I need to adjust the angle or position a bit.

Nitpicking, but its a midbass

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

It should be transferable to any non BMW car as long as it can get its power supply. But I am not sure how seamlessly it will start up and shut down with ignition.

Since its a pin to pin connection in many harnesses in the vehicle, I doubt it can be transferred to any non BMW vehicle without quite a bit of trouble.

[shibujp]

Originally Posted by Santoshbhat

They did not change the AC filter this time as the system only recommended it to be cleaned. This time, after service, the engine felt really smooth. It was really hard to believe from inside that you are driving a diesel car.

One accessory that I did buy though was BMW Advanced Car Eye. Basically a BMW OE dash cam.

View from driver seat
Attachment 1593938

Thanks for the update.

Is the 12K interval a maximum interval or would the system recommend higher intervals if the conditions are cleaner etc? I assume the system also recommends change intervals for stuff like the oil and diesel filter.

I would also have liked the Front camera + Dashcam screen to be smaller. The BMW OE looks a bit bigger. The rear facing cam is a perfect size though.

Drive on,
Shibu.

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by Akshay1234

Nitpicking, but its a midbass

You're the mod. Please make the correction in the post

Originally Posted by shibujp

Thanks for the update.

Is the 12K interval a maximum interval or would the system recommend higher intervals if the conditions are cleaner etc? I assume the system also recommends change intervals for stuff like the oil and diesel filter.

I would also have liked the Front camera + Dashcam screen to be smaller. The BMW OE looks a bit bigger. The rear facing cam is a perfect size though.

Drive on,
Shibu.

12K or 1 year whichever is earlier is the max interval. There's no way the system can take it beyond 12k or 1 year. If necessary it will shorten the interval but 12K/ 1 yr is the max you can go for one oil change.

Yeah I could've been smaller. But the screen facing the driver is an LCD touch screen. You can review the videos whilst in the car and also change settings using the touch screen. It does not block driver vision in any way, so the size does not really bother me.

[KAUBMW7]

Great write up Santosh, I have a BMW X3 as well and it's run about 50K kms till date with loads of out station tips. I am planning to drive down to Hyderabad for this long weekend (taking off on Friday!) so that'd add another 1200 kms roughly.
I will post an ownership thread soon but i have enjoyed it thoroughly till date & with the BSI package taken (5 yrs) I have had to pay nothing for any services till date.
I am tempted to pick up the Advance Car Eye, will visit Navnit Motors on Airport road to check it soon. btw, I stay in North Bangalore and thankful that Navnit's service center is this side of town as well now.
Off topic: Unsure if there are an BMW meets that happen in Bangalore, will certainly join those if any..

[ajaypjayaraj]

Couple of things I noticed and wanted to point out. Not quoting several posts as typing from a mobile.

Regarding the incident recording. Usually a hard braking is enough to detect an event and the saved video for the incident starts a few seconds before the event detection. Recording is happening continuously anyways. So it's programmed to save starting from a few seconds before the event detection.

Regarding the reflection of dashboard, you need a CPL filter to minimise it. I'm not sure if bimmer dashcam specific ones are available. You could try searching on eBay US/UK or just a Google search should help finding one if it's available.

[morphin1]

Hi guys,
I have an X3 2014 model and it has run about 15,000 kms so far. The car now needs a brake change. What is the average life and cost for rear and front brake pads as 15,000 Km's feels very less.
Looking forward to hearing from the pro's here.
Cheers

[Santoshbhat]

Originally Posted by morphin1

Hi guys,
I have an X3 2014 model and it has run about 15,000 kms so far. The car now needs a brake change. What is the average life and cost for rear and front brake pads as 15,000 Km's feels very less.
Looking forward to hearing from the pro's here.
Cheers

Brake pad life depends on usage pattern (Highway Vs. City) and driving style (sedate Vs. aggressive). Having said that I am surprised that your car needs a brake pad change at 15,000 kms. My X3 is now at 19,000 kms and according to iDrive I still have about 28,000 kms to go before pad change! My driving is 90% highway and 10% city though. Having said that I do drive aggressively at times and the brakes have to work really hard to rein in the torque monster.

Have you periodically checked for brake pad life on iDrive? Was the pad life prediction linear or did it drop quickly after a certain point?

[morphin1]

Dear Santosh,
Thanks for the quick reply .
I did not check the life of the brake pads prior to the change message .
60% drive is highway and 40% is city(Delhi).
Also this message came up after the last service and the car had barely been driven for 600kms .
I feel that my after sales Center Deutsche Motoren is Is up to something.
I had sent my car in October for free software upgrade after which problems started .
After the upgrade some sensor failed and I had to spend Rs 10000 on having that fixed .
Then service reminder came up.
After service they also managed to screw up my horn and now are ready to replace the same after I complained to BMW India.
After service reminder brake pads came up.
So I need some help figuring out what's going on .
Also guys should I get the brake pads changed from outside ? Cost difference is Rs 23,000.
A shop called Motor 1 in Faridabad is offering to change the pads for about 10,000 and Deutsche Motoren is asking for about 28,000.
I don't have faith in Deutsche anymore though .
Please help.