How You Can Maintain the Brake System in BMW

Posted on | 27 Dec 2017 By Anita Gaal

BMWs are quality vehicles that offer drivers security and stability; however, the maintained quality of a BMW is highly dependent upon how well we take care of them. Routine maintenance is critical in order to extend the life of your vehicle, but it is also important for safety reasons. For instance, your BMW’s brakes won’t last forever, and will certainly need to be replaced or serviced every now and then. Of course, the rate at which your brakes wear out is also heavily impacted by the overall quality of parts you use to maintain them. Furthermore, driving habits can greatly affect the condition of your brakes—and believe us, we know how easy it is to drive like a race car driver when behind the wheel of a BMW. Here are some tips on how you can best maintain the brake system in your BMW.

Be Good to Your Brakes

Treating your BMW’s brakes well falls under a wide range of categories of care. What we mean by “be good to your brakes” is that it’s especially important to become aware of your driving habits. Driving fast in a BMW seems to come naturally; however, when you drive fast you often have to brake fast—especially if you live in a populated city with many traffic lights. Refrain from standing on the gas pedal until you’re out of the danger zones in which you may have to brake quickly. Disregarding your driving habits can erode your brakes a lot quicker than under normal conditions.

Replace Brake Pads

There are several parts of your BMW’s brake system that may need service or repair if you don’t take good care of your brake pads. Unfortunately, brake pads do wear out eventually, and its important to replace them with good quality brake pads in order to reduce the amount of time between replacements. Be sure to check with your BMW automotive specialist on what the best type of brake pads are for your particular vehicle—choosing the right brake pads can save you expensive trips to the mechanic.

Keep Brake Fluid Full and Clean

BMWs have advanced systems that can tell you when problems are arising, but it’s best to stay one step ahead at all times to avoid costly visits to the automotive shop. Be proactive about your brake fluid as often as possible. Checking your brake fluid’s level and clarity can preemptively stop internal corrosion and/or brake failure. In other words, your brake fluid is essential to the overall health of your brakes, but it’s also important in order to ensure your safety and that of your passengers.

Remain Aware of Symptoms and Troubling Noises

Once there are noticeable symptoms associated with deterioration or failure of your BMW’s brake system, it has gone past the point of preventive care and turned into a damage control situation. Screeching or grinding sounds are concerning when it comes to your brake health; it typically means that repair work is in the near future for your BMW. Staying on top of routine inspections is the best way to prevent brake issues. Brake inspections are easiest to perform when the tires on your vehicle are off—so, you might want to ask that your brakes are inspected every time you have a tire rotation. However, you can check the brake fluid year-round, as this is one important way to prevent damage and troubling symptoms from occurring. Consult with your BMW automotive specialist on how to best care for your brakes in such a way that will be convenient for you.

How We Can Help

Here at Euro Automotive, we specialize in luxury European repair and maintenance services for BMW owners in the areas of Dallas, Garland, Arlington, and Fort Worth, Texas. Our certified and highly skilled technicians focus on preventive care and maintenance in order to save our clients money on costly repairs, whereas many other shops and dealerships tend to ignore preventive care all together and make their money off of the more expensive repair work. We believe that fundamental automotive knowledge can help our clients best care for their vehicles and save money in the process, so it is our mission to help our clients understand the basics. If your BMW is in need of brake service or repair, or you have any other automotive concerns, contact us directly—we look forward to helping your BMW get back to its old self again.

Featured image credit goes to: kurmyshov.

Secrets to Help Your BMW Demand Less Maintenance

Posted on | 29 Nov 2017 By Anita Gaal

BMWs are designed and engineered to outperform nearly all other luxury vehicles on the market. Each year, drivers rate BMWs the highest out of many other options available; however, any vehicle, including BMWs, only perform at their best when the driver or owner follows routine maintenance procedures. Even cars with reputations like BMWs can break down and begin to fail on us. While it is impossible to avoid automotive care, there are certain things you can do as a BMW owner to cut down on repair costs and help your car demand less maintenance over the course of its lifetime. Here are some secrets that will help extend the life of your BMW and lessen the overall amount of maintenance expenses over time.

Follow the Scheduled Maintenance Plan

Every vehicle manufacturer creates a specified maintenance plan for each model. Every brand is different, but furthermore, so is every model within a brand. For instance, the BMW 7 Series will need a different schedule of maintenance than the 3 Series. Following the scheduled maintenance plan for your specific BMW is the best way to organize your expectations in terms of cost and time management over the course of your BMWs lifetime. The maintenance plan set forth by the manufacturer is designed to help your BMW perform optimally—when you don’t follow this plan, parts and services can become neglected, leading to costly repairs and higher need for maintenance.

Don’t Wait to Have Troubling Symptoms Checked Out

The longer a problem continues, the more likely your car is to experience further damage, and therefore a higher repair bill. Your BMW is an intricate system of many different subsystems and parts that all work together to function at their best. When you notice a sign or a symptom that something isn’t working quite right, you should bring your BMW in to the nearest, most trusted BMW specialist. Troubling symptoms that continue or get worse should be thoroughly inspected before the problem spreads to other systems and areas of the vehicle. The longer you wait, the more likely that you’ll wind up paying a fortune in various repair costs.

Regular Oil Changes

Many drivers underestimate the importance of routine oil changes. You can find the recommended schedule for oil changes in your vehicle’s owner’s manual. Generally oil changes should be performed once every 3 months or 3,000 miles; however, this is based on an average of the typical drivers’ conditions and habits. You can speak with your BMW specialist to see if you can cut down on oil changes, but they should never be eliminated or forgone. Oil changes help keep your engine’s oil clean and running smoothly, lubricating vital parts of your engine. If your oil becomes dirty, it can become defective. Oil filters should also be changed often.

Find Professionals Who Specialize in BMWs

There are many misconceptions about the automotive industry. One of them is regarding who you must bring your vehicle to for inspections, services, repairs, and maintenance work. Bringing your BMW to any average mechanic who does not have specific knowledge and training background in German-engineering can be detrimental to your wallet and to your car’s life expectancy. Another misconception is that you must bring your BMW to the BMW dealership for servicing. Dealerships often overcharge their clients because of this common misconception, but it is important to know that most BMW dealerships do not hire technicians with any specific training in BMW repair.

Our Approach to BMW Care

Euro Automotive specialists, serving Dallas, Garland, Arlington, and Fort Worth, Texas, are specifically trained and skilled in working with BMWs and other German-engineered cars. We take pride in our philosophy on educating and informing our clients about basic automotive knowledge so that they can get a better picture of the work we do, as well as care for their vehicles appropriately. Furthermore, we offer up to 25% lower pricing than dealerships nearby so that the same services can be performed on clients’ BMWs at a more affordable price. If you would like more information about the services we provide or would like to schedule an appointment to have your BMW inspected or diagnosed, contact us today—we look forward to helping more people save money and extend their vehicle’s longevity.

Featured image credit goes to: joephotographer.

BMW Maintenance Tips for Safe Traveling

Posted on | 31 May 2017 By Anita Gaal

Owning a luxury car usually comes at a cost—and we don’t mean just money. Time and effort must be put into your car if you are to invest in such a purchase, and respecting the integrity of the vehicle you choose is of the utmost importance if you hope the car will live for any extended period of time. German engineering in particular is known for it’s incredible performance and impeccable designs; and BMWs are no exception. When you own a BMW, it is likely that you know how magnificent these machines can be. With the proper maintenance, BMWs can out-perform most vehicles on the road. Respecting the engineering and design that BMWs entail is part of the benefit of owning one, especially because they so rarely encounter issues. There are general maintenance suggestions that one should follow with any car, but especially with BMWs because they are particularly deserving of proper care. BMWs are rated as one of the safest vehicles out there, and this is partly due to the customer following that invests in them. If you own a BMW, or any other German vehicle such as a Mini, or a Volkswagen, here are some maintenance tips for safe traveling.

Scheduled service & maintenance is the key

Your BMW comes with a service and maintenance schedule that should be followed routinely, but there are general procedures that you should be sure to stay on top of regularly. Especially for safety purposes, there are numerous ways you can be sure to stay safely on the road, and not on the side of it. Firstly, before you take your BMW on any lengthy drive you should bring it to your favorite, trusted auto mechanic for a lookover. They can top off any of your fluids that you may be lower on such as motor oil, windshield wiper fluid, radiator fluid, and brake fluid. These are all critical to be sure are full and clean before you embark on any trip, and are generally important for daily usage of your vehicle. Keeping fluids full and clean (with the exception of windshield fluid) is critical to keep your car running smoothly and without any hiccups. For instance, if your brake fluid is low, it can cause severe issues if you are driving in an area with a lot of declines—in these areas in particular you use your brakes more often and for longer periods of time.

Be vigilant to tire pressure and wear

Another important BMW safety tip is to be vigilant of your tire pressure and wear. You can do this by checking the pressure with a pressure gauge regularly. The desired pressure level for your particular vehicle can be found either in the owner’s manual or on the inside of the driver’s side door. Be careful not to overfill your tires, because this can cause distortion and bubbling rendering your tire unusable and unsafe to drive on. If you are not familiar with how to fill your tire with air or don’t trust yourself to do it properly, then do not hesitate to bring it to a professional—they can also inspect your tires while you are there. However, if you want to check your tire wear yourself, the most important thing to look for is evenness amongst all four of the tires. If you notice any areas that are particularly worn on any one tire, then it might be time for an inspection. Tires can tell you a lot about your BMW and indicate any issues there might be.

Look for a qualified mechanic

Before you bring your BMW to any auto mechanic, it is imperative that you think about their qualifications and credentials. General automotive shops may do an adequate job on repairs and maintenance, however, if you are serious about the health of your BMW and want to preserve the integrity of the engineering, then you should consider going to a European automotive specialist; they are especially well-versed in German engineering and will be more thorough than any average mechanic shop. Furthermore, they are skilled in performing repairs on these vehicles because they have the proper training to do so. Having regular maintenance performed on your BMW is essential to keeping your car running for many decades to come, and will allow you to forever enjoy your beloved Bimmer.

Tips for Driving BMW Through Hills & Terrains

Posted on | 27 Jan 2017 By Anita Gaal

Drivers have come to expect more from their BMW than what you may expect from another brand of car and for good reason. BMW’s are known for their innovation and commitment to unparalleled standards for both luxury and performance and that is expected to be maintained even on a variety of inclines and terrains. You don’t purchase a car solely because it drives straight lines well on flat surfaces and you shouldn’t expect your BMW to fold at the first sign of less than ideal terrains. There are however important tips to consider to keep navigating these less than ideal hills and roads easier on you and your car at the same time so consider these tricks before your next drive.

Important tricks to consider

• Utilize Your Hill Descent Control– Hill Descent Control is a driver assistance system available in four-wheel drive BMWs. When navigating a hill it will take control of the vehicle and hold it at a steady, pre-determined speed. This will help control the brakes so you the driver can better focus solely on steering and navigating the hill. Combined with the BMWs anti-lock braking system, HDC is a great feature for driving on loose downhill surfaces like gravel, grass or snow and gives you excellent stability and helps to prevent the vehicle from skidding.
• Use the Right Drive Gears– If your vehicle has an automatic transmission then it’ll be easier for you to drive uphill as opposed to a manual one. Your transmission automatically will switch to a lower gear with lower RPMs when your speed gets low enough but there is a way to get more power while being easy on your engine and transmission. Your BMW should have drive options like D1, D2 or D3 to give your vehicle more climbing power and speed while maintaining higher RPMs, D2 or D3 will offer you an easier uphill drive while allowing for less wear on the engine by maintaining the RPM levels.
• Check Coolant and Engine Oil Levels– If you are going to be driving steep uphill or downhill grades, check your engine oil and coolant levels prior to heading out. These should be filled close to the MAX line and will help keep your engine from overheating and well lubricated to avoid added strain.
• Clean Your Car After Driving Rough Terrains– After driving on any poor roads or terrain you can check your vehicle’s safety by removing any excess dirt and mud from the body and by clearing mud, snow, ice and any other types of debris from the wheels and tires. You can also inspect your BMW after driving for any damages that may have been caused by the terrain.
• xDrive Is Worth It– On most top selling models of BMW, xDrive All Wheel Drive is available and should be considered before purchasing any new BMW. It is a permanent all-wheel drive system that distributes the engine power between front and rear axles and it can send 100% of power to either axle at any time. It constantly changes how much power is delivered to the front and rear wheels to give you the best traction possible at all times. This makes handling any terrain, hill or windy road easier and gives you more grip and control of your vehicle. This option is extremely popular with BMW drivers so if you think that you may be driving a wide variety of terrains with your BMW, consider just how effective and beneficial this feature may be before purchasing your new BMW.

Don’t neglect car maintenance

Chances are you will have to navigate some rough terrains at some point and time with your BMW and while it is designed to handle anything the roads can throw at it, maintaining your car is always a good idea. Knowing the best ways to care for your car during and after driving these roads and hills will help preserve your BMW’s performance and appearance as well. Being better prepared is never a bad thing and when it comes to the health of your car, you want it to be running properly for its’ entire lifespan and following these tips and others when it comes to care, your BMW will also likely have a longer lifespan as well.

Featured Image credit goes to : DathArt

BMW X4 image credit goes to : DathArt