We’ve documented the oil change frequency on our Ultimate E46 M3 Maintenance Guide and now we’re going to tell you how to change the oil yourself. It’s especially important to change your oil based on the Inspection I or Inspection II schedule because the viscosity of the oil protects your S54 rod bearings, which already is a sensitive wear and tear item. This article will go through the entire oil change process including step-by-step directions and high quality photos to explain the DIY as easy as possible.

1. Run the engine for 3-5 minutes (if on a cold start) to get oil temperature up. This will help the oil flow out better when you extract it.

2. Jack up the car’s front end to access the drain plug. Access the engine bay.

3. Locate the drain plug underneath the car and loosen the 6mm hex bolt.

3.1 Unscrew the last few turns by hand and let the engine oil drain into a drain pan. Discard the old crush washer.

4. Locate the oil filter housing (OFH) and throttle position sensor (TPS) which is right above the OFH. Perform this while the oil continues to drain.

4.1 Unplug the TPS sensor by pushing down on the metal tab.

5. Remove the OFH cap using a 13mm socket.

5.1 Remove and discard the old oil filter.

6. By now the engine oil should be drained. If the oil is extracting in a constant stream give it a few minutes until you see it drip.

6.1 Install the drain plug along with a new crush washer. Torque to 18 ft-lbs.

7. Clean out the OFH.

8. Open the contents of your oil change kit. You should have: (2) o-rings and (2) washers including the one you already used (copper) for your oil drain plug.

9. Remove the old o-ring on the OFH with a pick and replace with new o-ring.

10. Replace the crush washer on the OFH bolt.

10.1 Replace the smaller o-ring on the bottom of the OFH bolt by using a small pick.

11. Install new oil filter.

11.1 Pour 0.75 liters of engine oil in the OFH while saturating the new oil filter. This prevents having a dry start-up after the oil change.

12. Install the OFH cap and install the 13mm bolt. Torque to 24 ft-lbs.

12.1 Plug the TPS back in.

13. Locate the oil cap and pour remaining engine oil into the engine.

13.1 The S54 calls for 5.5 liters (5.8 quarts) of engine oil.

13.2 Tighten oil cap after filling with oil.

14. After the oil change, run your car and get the oil to operating temperature.

14.1 Let the car idle for 3-5 minutes.

14.2 Check the oil level on the dip stick. The BMW recommended oil level (5.5 L) is right in the middle of the two marks. For reference, the bottom mark is 5 L and the top is 6 L.

14.3 Fill or extract if necessary.

The BMW E90 E92 E93 M3 suspension can be upgraded to coilover style shocks and springs to improve performance. Although the ride is usually firmer with coilovers, a good quality set of coilovers can drastically improve the handling characteristics while retaining ride comfort. For this DIY, I will be installing the ST XTA Performance Coilover System featuring adjustable dampening to control suspension rebound.

The installation process takes about 3-4 hours for first timers and about 2 hours for installers with previous experience. Installation procedure may differ depending on your coilover model.

Before you purchase your coilover kit, it’s important to figure out which kit you need. There are two main options for the E9X M3: with EDC or without EDC. If you’re confused what this is, you can take a look in your engine bay and look for the Electronic Damper Control modules on top of each shock tower. The EDC module is very visible with a trailing wire that comes out of the shock tower cap/cover.

The only difference between each kit is that the non-EDC rear shock has a 10mm shaft while the EDC version has a 12mm shaft. Technically you can use a non-EDC coilover kit on a EDC car by running 10mm rear shock mounts – and vice versa. Make sure you select the correct shaft diameter hardware for your application! It is recommended to switch out the RSM during the install to ensure your bushing are fresh. Worn out RSM’s can lead to alignment issues and poor handling.

1.1 Jack up the car. I started with the fronts first, but you can work on the rear if you choose to. Jack up the car using the center jack point and place jack stands to support the car.

1.2 Disconnect the headlight auto-level sensor located on the driver’s side control arm using a 10mm socket and wrench. This is an optional step however be careful not to droop your control arm all the way down if you plan to leave connected.

1.3 Remove wheels.

1.4 Disconnect brake line, ABS sensor and other wiring located on the inside of your shock.

I’ll be removing KW V3 coilovers, but if you have a non-coilover style suspension system (including stock) you will need to use a spring compressor to remove the strut assembly.

2.1 Remove end links. The stock end links can be removed with a 16mm socket and a 16mm open-ended wrench.

2.2 Remove the 3 M8 nuts on the top of each strut tower using a 13mm socket. Provide support from underneath while you remove these nuts so the control arm does not fall.

3.1 Once the old strut is out, you can install the new strut. My ST comes with a sleeve that needs to be inserted first. Line up the sleeve, in accordance to the spindle gap, and insert the new ST shock with the metal nub sliding down the spindle gap.

3.2 The best thing about the ST kit is that it comes with camber plates. After the sleeve and strut is inserted, use a jack from underneath to slowly raise it towards the shock tower.

3.3 Tighten the 3 shock tower nuts firm, but not torqued yet. We will torque once the car is loaded.

3.4 Install your new end links. Stock end link M10 bolt calls for 42.7 ft-lbs.

3.5 Install brake lines, ABS sensor wiring, and bracket to strut housing.

3.6 Install headlight auto-level sensor if removed. Torque to 6 ft-lbs.

3.7 Load the front suspension by lowering the car back to the ground and then torque the three M8 strut tower bolts to 25 ft-lbs.

4.1 Jack up the rear of the car.

4.2 Remove the inner trunk liner on both sides of the trunk to expose the rear strut tower.

4.3 Remove the top strut mount by using an open ended 16mm wrench and a hex socket to hold the spinning strut in place.

4.4 Remove the headlight auto-level sensor on the driver side rear using a 10mm socket and wrench.

4.5 Support the bottom control arm with a jack and remove the 18mm and 21mm bolts. The 21mm bolt will require a 21mm wrench to hold the other side which spins.

5.1 Prepare your rear spring for installation. My ST kit came with a helper spring which I added to the top half. You may need to re-use your spring pad for the bottom of the spring which sits on the spring perch. ST advises not to, but others may vary. I actually decided to re-use the pad on mine. On some coilover kits, you may have to re-use the upper spring perch as well. For my ST I did not.

5.2 Prepare your new rear shocks for installation by inserting the lower half of the rear shock mount (RSM).

5.3 Place the new shock into the rear shock tower.

5.4 Simultaneously insert the new spring setup into location.

5.5 Once the rear spring and shock is in place, line up the lower control arm and lower shock hole. This part can get a little tricky because the knuckle needs to slide in between the control arm, however the knuckle bushing may flex instead of sliding into place.

5.6 After everything is lined up, reinstall the 18mm first then 21mm bolts. Torque the 18mm M12 bolt to 74 ft-lbs and the 21mm M14 bolt to 122 ft-lbs. Once the car is loaded and back on the ground, re-torque these values. It’s important that the car is loaded when final torque is applied.

5.7 Go back up to the upper strut mount and install the other upper half of the rear shock mount. Tighten the 16mm nut to 27 ft-lbs.

The Alternative Performance Engineering (APE) X85 Flex Fuel Kit is a great way to increase horsepower and torque on your BMW S65 engine (E90, E91, E92, E93 M3) while having the flexibility of running a variable concentration of ethanol. Ethanol tuning once used to be a high-involvement solution to increase power because it required a dedicated tune and the engine was 100% reliant on running a fixed ethanol concentration that it was tuned for. That has changed with the aftermarket Flex Fuel solution, however the market is still in the “early adopter” stage of the product. Those of you that run or have run a Flex Fuel solution, you know how convenient it is to not be 100% reliant on a fixed amount of ethanol while still making substantial power.

We’ve done numerous reviews for the E46 M3 and now we are proud to have tested the same APE flex fuel kit for the V8 S65 engine. Below is a guide to do the install. It’s pretty straight forward.

1. Remove fuse #70 (fuel pump) and start the car. Let the engine stall. This will remove excess fuel in the lines to help reduce the amount of fuel leaking out of the lines when you disconnect it in the later steps.

2. Disconnect battery harness to reduce any chances of electrical issues during the install.

3. Remove upper intake cover.

4. Remove lower half of intake box.

5. Locate the fuel line towards the back of the engine bay closest to the driver side firewall.

6. Locate the fuel line towards the back of the engine bay closest to the driver side firewall.

7. Disconnect main fuel line.

8. Assemble the flex fuel sensor unit and install in place of the original fuel line.

9. Grab the main wiring harness loop for the injectors and feed through each side of the engine. It’s going to get really tight and you may need to remove the top intake plenum to gain more clearance. In my case, I did not have to.

10. Start disconnecting all 8 Bosch EV1 connectors by pulling the metal tab up. This is going to be tricky and you will need a small pick to get to the metal tabs. Be careful not to pull out too much because you will dislodge the metal tab and may drop inside the engine bay.

On the driver side, disconnect the intake return inlet hose to make clearance.

11. Once all 8 connectors are plugged in, tuck in the wiring as best as you can. I used several zip ties to keep the wires together.

12. Mount the main module to a “cooler” area on the car. I decided to mount mine next to the passenger side firewall. Try to avoid mounting it close to the headers or anywhere that may get really hot.

Identify the passcode on the back of the module before you install as you will need that to access additional tuning features.

13. Connect the ground coming from the harness. There is a ground point right next to the washer fluid fill cap.

14. Reconnect the battery and start the car up. Run the engine for a bit and check for fuel leaks.

15. Once everything is good, re-install your intake.

16. Finally, download the APE ape from the app store and connect via Bluetooth.