Engine oil — diesel
CBS: starting value 30,000 km / 24 months
Diesel starting value, recalculated by CBS from fuel consumption. Due 24 months after the last change at the latest.
Source [3]E87 · 2007–2011
BMW 118d E87 · 143 PS (2007–2011)
In 2007 the 118d changed engine: the aluminium-block N47 replaced the old diesel and added 15 kW. Quantities and intervals are therefore not those of a pre-March 2007 118d.
Choose an engine
Identify the car and prepare its maintenanceTechnical specifications
- Fuel
- Diesel
- Power
- 143 PS / 105 kW
- Displacement
- 1 995 cm³
- Torque
- 300 Nm
- Cylinders
- 4
- Engine code
- N47
- Period covered
- 2007–2011
- Documented market
- Europe
Transmission
- Manual · 6 speeds · 2007
- Automatic · 6 speeds · 2007
Figures apply to the cited configuration and market; equipment and transmissions may vary by production date.
Specification source : [7] BMW Group
Manufacturer figures — manual gearbox
- 0–100 km/h acceleration
- 9.0 s
- Combined consumption — period European cycle
- 4.7 l/100 km
Figures published at launch for the cited manual configuration. Consumption is a test-cycle measurement, not a real-world guarantee; automatic versions may differ. Source [7]
What distinguishes this version
1,995 cc four-cylinder diesel with aluminium crankcase, common-rail injection and variable-geometry turbo: 105 kW at 4,000 rpm and 300 Nm at 2,000 rpm, particulate filter as standard. BMW quotes 9.0 s and 4.7 l/100 km for the five-door manual.
Engine oil: quantity and approval
Oil change with filter: 5.2 l according to TIS data for the N47/N47S D20. BMW’s 2007 press table lists 5.5 l of engine oil; that is not the change quantity. With a particulate filter, BMW requires Longlife-04 oil: its additives form less ash and keep the filter from clogging.
What the CBS tracks
Oil: starting value 30,000 km, 24 months at most. Front and rear pads separately, brake fluid 24 months, vehicle check 60,000 km or 48 months. Microfilter at every oil service; air filter and main fuel filter at every third. The particulate filter is no longer on the CBS display: a Check Control message warns if it reaches a critical state.
Timing drive
Chain-driven, with a tensioner piston, and the timing case cover sits at the rear of the engine, on the gearbox side. No chain item appears in the CBS list: it is a repair, not scheduled maintenance.
The N47 timing chain reputation
The N47 in this 118d has a reputation for timing chain trouble: owners report many cases of metallic scraping and, sometimes, chain failure. In August 2013, BMW told AUTO BILD that the scraping noise of some 1.6 and 2.0-litre N47 engines built from 2007 to 2011 came from unfavourable tolerances and a manufacturing fault in the crankshaft sprocket; BMW called it an acoustic issue with no consequential damage expected. The issue has reached the courts in Germany: in a case about an N47-engined BMW X1 18d, the Darmstadt regional court (2015, upheld on appeal in 2017) ruled that chain noise without loss of function was a comfort issue, not a defect; the court’s expert noted that no link between the noise and chain failure had been established. In practice: a metallic scraping or whine from the gearbox end of the engine deserves a diagnosis straight away. Because the chain sits at the rear of the engine, replacing it is a major job: when buying used, ask whether it has already been replaced and keep the oil-service invoices.
Prepare the next service
Count oil services since the last fuel filter and air filter: both are due at every third. Report any Check Control message about the particulate filter, which the CBS no longer shows.
AutoKarnet advice
Maintenance and records
Front and rear brake pads
Wear calculated per axle
Two separate countdowns fed by the wear sensors. With new pads, replace the wear sensor as well before resetting the display.
Source [2]Cabin microfilter
At every engine oil service
Since March 2007 the microfilter is replaced at each oil service (cars with air conditioning) and no longer has its own CBS countdown.
Source [9]Engine air filter
Every 3rd engine oil service
Intake silencer element. Shorten the interval in dusty regions.
Source [9]Diesel fuel filter
Every 3rd engine oil service
Main fuel filter. BMW allows a shorter interval where diesel quality is poor.
Source [9]Diesel particulate filter
No CBS display since 03/2007
On E87 cars with the N47 engine, the particulate filter was removed from the CBS display in March 2007. A critical state triggers a Check Control message: have it read out rather than waiting for the next service.
Source [8]Brake fluid
Calendar-based
24 months
Counted from the vehicle’s on-board date, even at low mileage. That date stops when the battery is disconnected: correct it afterwards.
Source [4]Vehicle check
Whichever comes first
60 000 km
48 months
A CBS item separate from the oil service; the diesel distance is longer than for petrol engines.
Source [4]Questions about this version (5)
Does my 118d have an M47 or an N47?
Built from March 2007, it has the N47: BMW’s CBS bulletin dates the N47’s arrival in the E87, in two outputs, to 03/2007.
5.2 or 5.5 l of oil?
5.2 l for an oil change with filter according to TIS. BMW’s 2007 press table lists 5.5 l of engine oil, a different reference from the change quantity.
Where is the timing chain?
At the rear of the engine, on the gearbox side: TIS describes a rear timing case cover on the N47.
Does the automatic use more fuel?
Yes: 5.4 l/100 km instead of 4.7 l according to BMW, with 9.1 s to 100 km/h.
Source : [7]
Documentary sources
- [1] BMW AG TIS — CBS E87, bulletin 00 01 04 (070)
BMW AG (TIS, copie archivée) · EN · Worldwide · Archive · p. 1 · update 11/2006 · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [2] BMW AG TIS — calcul huile, microfiltre et freins
BMW AG (TIS, copie archivée) · EN · Worldwide · Archive · p. 3 · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [3] BMW AG TIS — CBS, valeurs de départ EURO
BMW AG (TIS, copie archivée) · EN · Europe · Archive · p. 4 · starting values, not fixed mileage intervals · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [4] BMW TIS — CBS: spark plugs, vehicle check, brake fluid
BMW AG — TIS (archive) · EN · Europe · SBT CBS · p. 5 · EURO · update 11/2006 · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [5] BMW TIS — BMW Quality Longlife-04
BMW AG — TIS (archive) · EN · Europe · SI 11 03 04 (156) · revision 09/2005 · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [6] BMW TIS — 1 Series E87, vehicle and engine index
BMW AG — TIS (archive) · EN · Europe · Vehicle list (model / engine / body) · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [7] BMW Media Information 1/2007 — The new BMW 1 Series
BMW Group · EN · Germany · PDF pp. 4–5 (five-door engines), p. 34–35 (five-door specifications, German market) · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [8] BMW TIS — Modifications to “Condition Based Service”
BMW AG — TIS (archive) · EN · Worldwide · SBT 00 04 06 (148) · 03/2007 · pp. 1–2 (E87 03/07; DPF display: E87/E81 N47 OL+UL 03/07) · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [9] BMW TIS — Oil service, diesel from 03/2007
BMW AG — TIS (archive) · EN · Europe · RA 00 00 610 · from 03/2007 · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [10] BMW TIS — Oil Supply N47 / N47S D20
BMW AG — TIS (archive) · EN · Europe · TD 11 40 · oil change volume with oil filter · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [11] BMW TIS — Chain tensioner piston (N47/N47S)
BMW AG — TIS (archive) · EN · Europe · RA 11 31 · N47/N47S · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [12] BMW TIS — Timing case cover at rear (N47/N47S)
BMW AG — TIS (archive) · EN · Europe · RA 11 14 · N47/N47S · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [13] LG Darmstadt, 30.01.2015, 27 O 100/13 (OLG Frankfurt a. M., 21.04.2017, 24 U 26/15) — BMW X1 sDrive18d N47, Steuerkette
autokaufrecht.info (résumé de jugement) · DE · Germany · Gutachten; Entscheidungsgründe · Accessed 08/10/2026
- [14] BMW: Steuerkette schleift bei Vierzylinder-Dieseln
AUTO BILD · DE · Germany · Statement by BMW to AUTO BILD on N47 diesels built 2007–2011 · Accessed 08/10/2026