My E92 335I SE
Discussion
Thought I would start a thread for this as a few people have questioned the reliability of the N54 engine, so over the next year and probably 20K I'll give you a warts and all account.
Background. Coming from a a couple of company funded 3 series diesels I changed jobs about 15 months ago and purchased my own car, an E90 330D and covered the best part of 25K miles in just over a year. I posted a review of my time with that car if anyone is interested.
Anyway, I had planned to keep that car for a little while longer but then this caught my eye:
It's a late 2006 E92 335I SE. The headlines are: 58K full BMW service history, in fact 15 stamps from BMW, lovely condition, it's still on run flats which may be unusual on a car of this age but as it's just had a full set of RE050's it'll be staying that way for the time being. RIde is firm no doubt....but I'll cope with it. Two former keepers.
Spec wise, it's Black with cream leather and Piano black trim, Pro Nav, 6 CD changer, xenons, dimming/folding mirrors, heated, electric seats with memory function on the drivers side, 19" style 230 wheels, electric sunroof....that's about I think....
In addition, the standard sound system has been upgraded at some point, with a Genesis amp underneath the rear shelf and tweeters added to the a pillars, which sounds far better than the audio in my last E90. It also has BMW iPod adapt or installed.
Reading though the very comprehensive BMW history, in the last year it's had new brakes all round, new injectors and a new cam cover and gaskets. Certainly, the impression is that it has never been scrimped on in terms of servicing.
I've had it remapped, with the instruction to not chase headline power figures, but keep it driving like a standards car with smooth, progressive power. Result, as near as makes no difference to 370bhp.
I've had it for a month and 1400 miles. Coming from a diesel fuel economy was always a potential banana skin and yes it's predictably not fantastic. Sat at a cruise controlled 70-75mph while have the OBC showing in excess of 40-43mpg, equally a start from cold will have it showing 7MPG. Over the last 1400 miles it's averaged, again according to the OBC, over 32mpg. I can cope with that.
So what it's like? Effortless power, lovely sound, gem of an engine. The auto box with paddles seems far more responsive in this compared to what I believe is the same unit in my 330D, which is an unexpected bonus. The E92 shape has aged well IMO, and lends a bit more of a sense of occasion, well as much as an ageing 3 series can do in any case, than my last saloon model.
My wife got a bit sniffy about practicality, but it's been no problem. my seven year old hops in the back no problem, aided by the electronic sliding button on the top of the seat. Infact, as the E92's got split folding seats as standard rather it being a relatively rare option on the E90's, It may even be a little more practical for me.
Faults? Yeah one. It came up with an engine fault message. Oh s
t I thought...split vacuum pipe costing less than £40 had it sorted.
So how much I am in to this for? As it stands today, just less than 9k, including a "Gold" 12 month third part warranty which no doubt not pay out if I ever need to make a claim, but perhaps that's me being cynical.
Future plans? The current plan is to keep this for a year, so eleven months to go, before going for the car I was hoping to buy, a Lexus ISF.
If anyone's interested, I'll keep this updated on a monthly basis with how I'm getting on.
Background. Coming from a a couple of company funded 3 series diesels I changed jobs about 15 months ago and purchased my own car, an E90 330D and covered the best part of 25K miles in just over a year. I posted a review of my time with that car if anyone is interested.
Anyway, I had planned to keep that car for a little while longer but then this caught my eye:
It's a late 2006 E92 335I SE. The headlines are: 58K full BMW service history, in fact 15 stamps from BMW, lovely condition, it's still on run flats which may be unusual on a car of this age but as it's just had a full set of RE050's it'll be staying that way for the time being. RIde is firm no doubt....but I'll cope with it. Two former keepers.
Spec wise, it's Black with cream leather and Piano black trim, Pro Nav, 6 CD changer, xenons, dimming/folding mirrors, heated, electric seats with memory function on the drivers side, 19" style 230 wheels, electric sunroof....that's about I think....
In addition, the standard sound system has been upgraded at some point, with a Genesis amp underneath the rear shelf and tweeters added to the a pillars, which sounds far better than the audio in my last E90. It also has BMW iPod adapt or installed.
Reading though the very comprehensive BMW history, in the last year it's had new brakes all round, new injectors and a new cam cover and gaskets. Certainly, the impression is that it has never been scrimped on in terms of servicing.
I've had it remapped, with the instruction to not chase headline power figures, but keep it driving like a standards car with smooth, progressive power. Result, as near as makes no difference to 370bhp.
I've had it for a month and 1400 miles. Coming from a diesel fuel economy was always a potential banana skin and yes it's predictably not fantastic. Sat at a cruise controlled 70-75mph while have the OBC showing in excess of 40-43mpg, equally a start from cold will have it showing 7MPG. Over the last 1400 miles it's averaged, again according to the OBC, over 32mpg. I can cope with that.
So what it's like? Effortless power, lovely sound, gem of an engine. The auto box with paddles seems far more responsive in this compared to what I believe is the same unit in my 330D, which is an unexpected bonus. The E92 shape has aged well IMO, and lends a bit more of a sense of occasion, well as much as an ageing 3 series can do in any case, than my last saloon model.
My wife got a bit sniffy about practicality, but it's been no problem. my seven year old hops in the back no problem, aided by the electronic sliding button on the top of the seat. Infact, as the E92's got split folding seats as standard rather it being a relatively rare option on the E90's, It may even be a little more practical for me.
Faults? Yeah one. It came up with an engine fault message. Oh s
t I thought...split vacuum pipe costing less than £40 had it sorted.So how much I am in to this for? As it stands today, just less than 9k, including a "Gold" 12 month third part warranty which no doubt not pay out if I ever need to make a claim, but perhaps that's me being cynical.
Future plans? The current plan is to keep this for a year, so eleven months to go, before going for the car I was hoping to buy, a Lexus ISF.
If anyone's interested, I'll keep this updated on a monthly basis with how I'm getting on.
Another problem.......
The car made an incredibly loud bong yesterday, telling me that both front and rear pads will need replacing soon.
A quick visual check and they are all fine, so a quick replacement of the wear sensors and a reset of the service light took and hour and cost less than £15.
Total maintenance cost in 1700 miles, £55...money pit this thing!
The car made an incredibly loud bong yesterday, telling me that both front and rear pads will need replacing soon.
A quick visual check and they are all fine, so a quick replacement of the wear sensors and a reset of the service light took and hour and cost less than £15.
Total maintenance cost in 1700 miles, £55...money pit this thing!
f1nn said:
Another problem.......
The car made an incredibly loud bong yesterday, telling me that both front and rear pads will need replacing soon.
A quick visual check and they are all fine, so a quick replacement of the wear sensors and a reset of the service light took and hour and cost less than £15.
Total maintenance cost in 1700 miles, £55...money pit this thing!
Mine lasted a full 2 years until I changed the front pads (after the initial warning bong).The car made an incredibly loud bong yesterday, telling me that both front and rear pads will need replacing soon.
A quick visual check and they are all fine, so a quick replacement of the wear sensors and a reset of the service light took and hour and cost less than £15.
Total maintenance cost in 1700 miles, £55...money pit this thing!
Had mine nearly 4 years now and done 30,000 miles with no warranty. Faults to date:
2 pre cat lambda sensors caused eml to light. Garage replaced one, I replaced the other
Leaking gearbox sump meant a new sump as they warp
Failing battery caused the steering lock warning. Battery replacement fixed the fault
Mine is also averaging 32mpg, but I mainly use it for long runs. No plans to swap mine yet.
Can I ask what the ipod adapter is and does it control the ipod through the Idrive? Mine doesn't have a USB port as standard but I use a split cable which plugs into the phone one end, and plugs into aux and USB charger at the other end. A cigarette USB adapter charges the phone.
mudster said:
Can I ask what the ipod adapter is and does it control the ipod through the Idrive? Mine doesn't have a USB port as standard but I use a split cable which plugs into the phone one end, and plugs into aux and USB charger at the other end. A cigarette USB adapter charges the phone.
The adaptor is BMW supplied box of tricks which is hard wired into the car and terminates with a connector in the glovebox allowing an iPod to be connected and controlled through the Idrive.problem is, I don't own an IPod, and the earliest IPhone in the family is a 4s, which although shares the same connector, appears not to be supported, so I've no idea if it works.
Very nice. I've got one too, with Birds suspension, LSD and a Cobb tune and it's a lovely thing. I had my intakes cleaned and injectors and plugs changed before I tuned. I average 30mpg but do live in London!
The only thing I've had was the dreaded ABS module went which was an expensive fix. BMW want £1600 for the part so I got mine reconditioned. I've had intermittent issues with one of the tyre pressure monitors reporting low pressure but it's fixed with a reset after checking the pressures. Apart from that it's been good as gold.
I did a small mod to the exhaust (easily reversible for long journeys) which I can heartily recommend to give a little bit more volume and burble:
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=806...
If you've got a USB port, just buy a dedicated USB stick and put all your music on that rather than faffing with your phone:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00812F7O8/ref...
The only thing I've had was the dreaded ABS module went which was an expensive fix. BMW want £1600 for the part so I got mine reconditioned. I've had intermittent issues with one of the tyre pressure monitors reporting low pressure but it's fixed with a reset after checking the pressures. Apart from that it's been good as gold.
I did a small mod to the exhaust (easily reversible for long journeys) which I can heartily recommend to give a little bit more volume and burble:
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=806...
If you've got a USB port, just buy a dedicated USB stick and put all your music on that rather than faffing with your phone:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00812F7O8/ref...
I have the E91 great car amazing engine like the rumble when it starts. Had to have a new battery after I kept getting discharge warnings apart from that its been fine. Spent 3 weeks commuting to Bournemouth from Farnborough and got 36 mpg providing I sat at 70 with the cruise on! Also did the exhaust flap mod but find it drones a bit on the motorway. I bought the cable and software and have so far coded the door mirrors to fold with the key. will do the angel eyes as DRL next.
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