Running in service at 2400miles

Running in service at 2400miles

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Discussion

lord trumpton

Original Poster:

7,321 posts

125 months

Monday 2nd January 2017
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Been looking at another M car - Z4M Coupe and my favourite from recent viewings has a fly in the ointment. The running in service was only carried out at 2400 miles as opposed to the recommended 1200 miles.

Personally it does not bother me whatsoever as I know any 'damage' will be non existent. It's got FBMWSH and has had the appropriate inspections including an Ins2 fairly recently.

As I've harped on about it in previous buying threads; I always buy minded to minimise loss at resale and try to avoid buying something that will cost me.

So, fellow M car owning enthusiasts - if you were buying one and found this situation would it put you off buying or make you devalue the car in any way?


MDeano

21 posts

96 months

Monday 2nd January 2017
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Stole this from another site as I read a lot about it when researching my Z4MC:

"At manufacture, BMW used a specific 'running in oil' whilst the car was 'broken in' very gently for the 1st 1200 ( recommended miles ) cementing the durability of the S54 engine's internal components.

The oil is then changed to run on Castrol 10w/60 for the rest of its life.

The running in oil is deliberately used to allow parts to "Bed-In" and allows the frictional moving parts to Bed-In (Wear) faster than normal. This allows piston to bore wall clearence to establish it's self correctly ensuring a perfect seal without allowing the bores to "Glaze Up" before the running in period is complete. Also this allows the bearing coatings to bed in correctly on the crankshaft journals and the same proceedure for all frictional parts.

So basically, the engine components wear (Bed In) faster than if the correct running oil had been used from the start.

Any engine that had the "Running In Oil" left in the engine for an excessive period, would have worn its frictional surfaces more than normal."

MDeano

21 posts

96 months

Monday 2nd January 2017
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The thing is, how would any potential "excessive wear" compare to someone jumping in a driving the car hard with a cold engine time and time again?

A long life of careful maintenance outweighs the risks of holding the running in oil for an extra 1200 miles in my opinion. A better informed person may disagree however.

F355GTS

3,721 posts

254 months

Monday 2nd January 2017
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A number of years ago I didn't change my running in oil soon enough on a VX Caterham and it let go big time (bottom end). I suspect the Z4M has done a fair few miles and any issue would have shown up long before now

nickrex

258 posts

172 months

Tuesday 3rd January 2017
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lord trumpton said:
Been looking at another M car - Z4M Coupe and my favourite from recent viewings has a fly in the ointment. The running in service was only carried out at 2400 miles as opposed to the recommended 1200 miles.

Personally it does not bother me whatsoever as I know any 'damage' will be non existent. It's got FBMWSH and has had the appropriate inspections including an Ins2 fairly recently.

As I've harped on about it in previous buying threads; I always buy minded to minimise loss at resale and try to avoid buying something that will cost me.

So, fellow M car owning enthusiasts - if you were buying one and found this situation would it put you off buying or make you devalue the car in any way?
For me, it'd be a no. I bought mine last year after months of looking and I know these cars are extremely sensitive to history and mileage. I'd be patient, the market is a bit sparse at the moment and more will be available spring time.

Patrick Bateman

12,143 posts

173 months

Tuesday 3rd January 2017
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If it makes you feel any better, my M5 missed its running in service entirely and this is how the rod bearings looked when the new owner preemptively changed them at 160k miles-


ds666

2,605 posts

178 months

Tuesday 3rd January 2017
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It would certainly put me off - why did the owner miss the service ? What else did they miss later on ? That said if they were new to M cars they may not have been aware it required an early service until it was too late .
You know the answer to your question ...

Carpmart

142 posts

228 months

Tuesday 3rd January 2017
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I'm afraid I am another doom merchant! Will it be the significant contributory factor to future issues, who knows! But why bother taking the risk? Find another!

MWM3

1,759 posts

121 months

Tuesday 3rd January 2017
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I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole. As other posters have said, if it had the RIS done at twice the suggested mileage, what else has been missed.

lord trumpton

Original Poster:

7,321 posts

125 months

Saturday 7th January 2017
quotequote all
Well thanks to all for the replies.

I decided that as long as the car was good then I'd waive the late running in concerns.

As I type this I'm sitting on the return journey train ride after having seen the car. Absolute load of rubbish.

Despite emailed pics, over the phone appraisals etc from the seller, in the flesh it was utter dogst. Seller claimed upon greeting me off the train (3 hour journey) that he'd 'just noticed' some marks on the tops of the front wings (despite having owned it for 3 years)

These marks were actually total failure of the clear coat - I'm not exaggerating but it was bloody awful and a blind man on a galloping horse could have spotted this.

Honestly, I could have flattened him there and then. Lying through his teeth and then taking the line 'well mate it's fairly priced and you have two options - buy it or go home again'

Whilst he spoke the truth, I had an uncontrollable cold sweat that came over me. I felt my face blushing and my heart racing - I really wanted to punch his wooly bobble hat wearing head in. I've never felt like that for years.

Obviously I didn't, I just told him what i thought of his lies and wished him luck. I've decided that I have bought enough cars recently and I'm fed up and not buying anything for ages.

I know in my heart that this is how it goes with buying cars but it's no less infuriating when experiencing it.

thebraketester

14,192 posts

137 months

Saturday 7th January 2017
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lord trumpton said:
So, fellow M car owning enthusiasts - if you were buying one and found this situation would it put you off buying or make you devalue the car in any way?
No.... absolutely not.

Rick101

6,959 posts

149 months

Saturday 7th January 2017
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There is a lesson in that for all. Hope you didn't go too far.

Missed services to a 'cherished' motor is rarely a good sign. There are often excuses made but when it comes down to it, it's usually because it's simply not cared for in the way that it should be.

To be honest, even annual servicing can leave me uneasy. I like to see it's had some attention. Tyres, geometry, additional oil changes, detailing etc. When people are willing to spend time and happy to spend several hundred a year on over the top maintenance and car care, you can be fairly sure the basic stuff has been done too.

lord trumpton

Original Poster:

7,321 posts

125 months

Saturday 7th January 2017
quotequote all
Rick101 said:
There is a lesson in that for all. Hope you didn't go too far.

Missed services to a 'cherished' motor is rarely a good sign. There are often excuses made but when it comes down to it, it's usually because it's simply not cared for in the way that it should be.

To be honest, even annual servicing can leave me uneasy. I like to see it's had some attention. Tyres, geometry, additional oil changes, detailing etc. When people are willing to spend time and happy to spend several hundred a year on over the top maintenance and car care, you can be fairly sure the basic stuff has been done too.
No, I managed not to punch him biggrin

LostBoy84

26 posts

114 months

Saturday 7th January 2017
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That's a real shame! He's gonna struggle shifting it if It's that bad.
Be good if you shared which car it is so that others can be aware if they see your post.

Have you looked at any of the others up for sale?

ds666

2,605 posts

178 months

Saturday 7th January 2017
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The Daily Mail said :
"Pher narrowly avoids assault charge because he didn't listen to the responses to his request for advice "

lord trumpton

Original Poster:

7,321 posts

125 months

Saturday 7th January 2017
quotequote all
ds666 said:
The Daily Mail said :
"Pher narrowly avoids assault charge because he didn't listen to the responses to his request for advice "
Childish judge

Patrick Bateman

12,143 posts

173 months

Saturday 7th January 2017
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What a bks. I've driven an hour and a half before to meet an M5 with 'no rust' that had rust everywhere and that was infuriating. 3 hours on public transport though? Ugh.

nickrex

258 posts

172 months

Sunday 8th January 2017
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LostBoy84 said:
That's a real shame! He's gonna struggle shifting it if It's that bad.
Be good if you shared which car it is so that others can be aware if they see your post.

Have you looked at any of the others up for sale?
I agree, I think it would help other enthusiasts looking for one of these if you shared the advert.

tjlazer

875 posts

173 months

Sunday 8th January 2017
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What sort of criteria do you have? Probably worth posting on the z4 forum if you haven't already. That's where I got mine from and it's a great resource. To be honest there seems to be a bit of a drought compared to last year when they were still peanuts for the performance. I'd hang on a while as they tend to shift ownership fairly regularly. Mine is staying a while though, every time I drive it I have a smile. Even the simplest trip to sainsburys can be slightly naughty if you go late and the roads are clear...

lord trumpton

Original Poster:

7,321 posts

125 months

Monday 9th January 2017
quotequote all
I can't share the advert I'm sorry as it wasn't advertised as such - came through a friend who had picked up on a forum thread about the seller thinking of selling.

I'm not bothering with buying any more cars for a while - recently bought 2 others and that's enough for anyone*


  • words influenced following a discussion with my wife