Individual BMW E90 335i

[Dannbodge]

I've been a member on here for a while, but never started a thread on my car, so figured why not.

I've owned this for just over 2 years and loved pretty much every week of it. Here's the car's history over the last two years of my ownership.

Apologies for the long post!

I previously had a 1998 E36 328i sport in Techno violet which was in a very good condition and had a lot of money spent on it including upgrades such as Bilstein B8 shocks and Eibach pro springs, M3 3.15 LSD, K&N gen2 air filter kit, M3 backbox, BBS split rims and fully polybushed suspension/running gear.

Couple of pictures of the 328i:







However it was old, the ride was hard and noisy and my OH never liked it. I had also got used to the power (the noise was incredible though) and had my heart set on getting an E91 LCI 335i. AFter only seeing a few manual 335is in E91 LCI form I lowered my expectation to an E90 LCI.

I had planned on waiting till May but an offer came up for my E36 and I found a 335i that had an incredible spec.

I couldn't turn down the offer for the E36 and I couldn't let such a fully loaded E90 go.

So I sold the E36 and bought the E90. I had no plans for the E90 except new number plate holders, black grills and a splitter, maybe a gearknob and to update the sat nav to 2014 maps. I though that I might eventually get some different wheels but nothing major or performance wise.

This E90 had a list price of in excess of £50k when new and has a great service history behind it. It's had 2 HPFPs on BMW warranty and 2 new turbo actuators, however the waste rattle is still present.

The car is Individual Azurite Black with Individual Syrah Blue Merino Leather interior and has things like active cruise, adaptive xenon headlights, Professional Nav, Individual Sound system, Individual sunshade glazing (tinted windows), Fully electric towbar, front and rear PDC, high beam assist, all the rear windows have sunshades (rear window is electric sunshade), fully electric seats with full lumbar support, Individual Piano Black trim, Sunroof, Extended luggage storage, climate comfort windscreen and brake energy regeneration. Although the main bonus for me was the fold down rear seats.

The pictures from the advert:


























Once I got it home I Bought some new Plate holders, did the Golf tee mod and updated the Sat Nav maps to 2014.







The following month it needed a brake fluid change, so that was done at my local BMW garage

After doing the plates etc, I bought some new angel eye bulbs and fitted them:









The interior trim is beautiful but was all scratched and scuffed, so one weekend I removed it all and polished it:

Edited by Dannbodge on Tuesday 28th March 13:29

Edited by Dannbodge on Tuesday 28th March 13:47

[Dannbodge]

Had a day off work, so took the front bumper off to see where the headlight washers were leaking and both were fuubaard.
Whilst the bumper was off I fitted my black grills. The seller told me they were gloss but they are actually Satin (as they were only like £10 I'm not too fussed)

Also washed it and snapped a few pics. I'm planning on getting some in a couple of weeks at Thruxton when I go to watch BTCC.













Next up I replaced all the undertray fixings, missing bits of trim that are broken along with the headlight washers.

A few months went by with no issues or problems until a few cold starts and at idle I'd been noticing a slight misfire.

I got a code reader set up and wiped all the old codes, after a week I rechecked and had the Fuel Pump Plausability.

Not an issue as it could be unrelated.

Then came a week later.

I started the car and it runs like arse. Misfiring, idling very rough and stinking of petrol. I figured it was a cold issue so drove the car as usual.

I did about 50 miles in it and it was fine once hot, pulled like normal all the way to redline.

The following morning I went to read the codes again and it starts and runs worse than the previous day.
This time it springs up a check engine light and stalled itself

Read the codes again and got these codes.
10738 (29F2)
10701 (29CD)
10702 (29CE)
10713 (29D9)
10700 (29CC)

Looks like I need a new HPFP......again....it will be the car's 3rd or 4th one.
It was previously replaced at 55k. I'm now on 57k and it's been 11 months.

I made a video of the idle issue:

https://youtu.be/uQCQmNlLssI

Edited by Dannbodge on Tuesday 28th March 13:48

Edited by Dannbodge on Tuesday 28th March 13:51

[Dannbodge]

As I had recently taken out BMW warranty, I decided to let me local dealer carry out an investigation.
They diagnosed the car as needing either 6 injectors, 6 plugs and 6 coilpacks. Either individually or any combination of.

Even worse, my warranty was still within the 30 day no claim period, and because BMW had seen the car it was treated as pre-existing and would not be covered by the warranty.
So being faced with a very large bill I decided against letting them do the work and took the car away.

I've always been handy with cars so figured I'd give the work a go.

I started by stripping the engine down and found that the top of the engine was covered in dirty oil.
It had the valve cover replaced before I bought it so a bit more investigation and I found a couple of cracks in the actual cover. So that needed replacing along with a new gasket (whilst it's off I might as well).
Pulled the plugs and they look alright but will be replaced anyway.
Pulled Injector 1 and it was soaking wet with fuel. Looks like that one is leaking then
Pulled Injector 2 and it was covered in thick black oil mixed with fuel. Looks like that one leaks too and the valve cover isn't helping.
Pulled injector 3 and it was the same as 2. Looks like so far I need 3 injectors.
After that I needed to take a break (this is depressing) so didn't bother with 4 5 and 6.

Plug 1


Injector 2


Injector 3




Following this strip down it was clear that it needed a new valve cover, 6 new injectors and a set of new plugs.
I ordered the parts from Germany and took advantage of a good exchange rate, getting £200 injectors for £140 and the total parts bill coming to £1400.

It took about 4.5 hours to change the valve cover, injectors and plugs and was actually really easy.

The hardest bit was trying to pick up a socket and bolt that I dropped onto the undertray.

After changing the injectors, I booked it in for an oil change to get rid of the contaminated oil and gave it a long run.
All seemed to be fine and the car was running well again. The idle was slightly rough but no worse than before. Issue sorted!

A couple of weeks later I removed the Clutch Delay Valve and replaced it with a new non restricted one.
Then gave it a wash.



Snowfoamed using AF Avalanche then washed with a incredipad and AF lather.



Didn't bother with anything else as it will be getting clayed this week and machine polished over Christmas

Edited by Dannbodge on Tuesday 28th March 13:31

Edited by Dannbodge on Tuesday 28th March 13:58

[Dannbodge]

So after looking at the Style 189s for sale for the last 3 months I decided to make an offer and ended up buying them. They had winter tyres fitted but I have a very good tyre fitter who switched the winters from my new wheels onto my MV3s and my Eagle F1s onto the new wheels.

The wheels are oem style 189s in ferric grey and now have my Goodyear Eagle F1s fitted









Following the wheel change I just drove it around for a while, not doing any major mileage or having issues and got some decent MPGs on a long trip





Painted all 4 calipers and gave it a good wash:













Then bought a Dension DAB+U, Diversity Antenna and a few bits to allow me to do a DAB retrofit.

[Dannbodge]

Then bought some splitters off another forum and over the xmas break got them painted and fitted:

In primer:



Painted in the correct Azurite Black



Then Wet sanded with 1000, 2500 and 3000





Finally Machine Polished







Then got round to fitting them, and gave it another wash, a quick polish and two coats of wax to see me through winter:

Before fitting:



One fitted:



Both fitted:







And then after being waxed twice:

[Dannbodge]

And then last friday this happened:



With this message



Promptly followed by this one


So at 61k I now need a new waterpump.

Update: On the monday I dropped the car off to BMW.
Whilst they had the car I asked them to also check the WG rattle as it's got quite bad.

A couple of hours later I got a phone call saying it needed a new waterpump (Already knew that) and 2 new turbos due to the wastegate rattle.

So on tuesday night I should have the car back with both those changed, all for my £100 warranty excess payment. Result!

[Dannbodge]

TheAngryDog said:

looks a good one OP, despite the issues I guess.

The e90 is the better looking 3 series imo.

Any power plans?

Yeah. Issues are a shame, but I knew when I bought it what was likely to go wrong, so all of the issues I have sort of expected.

Remap will be happening some point before summer so should see me around 60-70bhp increase.

MikeGoodwin said:

Nice. I like it.

Ive been tempted to run a 335i a few times and for the reasons above wouldnt do it without warranty.

Its a nice spec that btw.

Oh definitely. Especially the BMW warranty.
This latest claim will be well into the 2-3k mark.

Thanks!

[Dannbodge]

CarAbuser said:

Dannbodge said:

Remap will be happening some point before summer so should see me around 60-70bhp increase.

With the remap you should look into using MHD Flasher for the N54. Much better than anything you will get from a garage, it's a must-have tool for the N54 engine.

ardy89 said:

How did you get on with coding the injectors? I recently had on go on my 335i, fortunately covered by warranty but I'm thinking about doing them myself when warranty runs out and more inevitably die.

Thanks

Rob

Injector coding is really easy with INPA software, you just need a laptop and a cable. Search on YouTube for N54 Injector Coding DIY.

I was actually going to use MHD, it's currently what I use for code reading/clearing anyway. I've been following it's development since the thread started on E90post.
It's just easier telling people it's a remap.

As above, although my INPA was in German so all I did was follow a guide.
Coding actually only took about 5 mins.

[Dannbodge]

Thanks.

Got the car back yesterday

So its had a new waterpump, thermostat, 2 new Turbos, a low pressure fuel sensor, 2 new lambdas and an oil change along with all the other gaskets and bolts etc.
Drives beautifully, no boost hesitation, the rough idle has died down but more importantly no wastegate rattle.

Also got a copy of the warranty invoice which totals over £3.2k not including VAT.
My payment was £100 warranty excess and £120 for the thermostat.

I'm over the moon. Once again I love this car.

[Dannbodge]

Mike335i said:

That is a stunning motor, mine is sapphire black with only the dakota leather, but otherwise very similar. So few of these with the manual gearbox. Your spec does seem incredible though, I though I was lucky to find a manual and pronav, but the folding seats, merino leather, sunroof and xenon really is nice. Suprised that it didn't come with Dab though, is yours the logic 7 system?

I had the same injector issue 5 days after purchasing mine and coughed up £1800 for injectors, plugs and a service all in. Was gutted but no way was I brave enough to diy it! Should have been covered by sellers warranty, but they were cowboys sadly.

How are you finding the Eagle F1s? I went michelin PS4 but have had Eagle F1 2s in the past and liked them. Great in the wet I seem to remember.

Yeah the spec is amazing. One of the main reasons that I bought it. Nope it's the Individual system which is even better.

They are good. Soft and when pressing on it bounces around a fair bit but they are pretty grippy and comfortable.

JakeT said:

I remember seeing this car for sale and really like the look of it, and some super rare options like the individual audio and the ACC. The individual blue leather looks great too. How does the ACC work with a manual box? Will it drop engine revs too low if it slows for traffic in front?

It will only slow the car down to 15mph, but if the revs get too low it tells you to change down.
It's also quite funny being able to change up whilst the car is accelerating away.

Because it's quite an early system it gets confused easily by bends and hills etc but overall its okay.

Avalyn said:

That's a cracking car fella.

I've an F30 335i with a lot of individual options (thankfully that I didn't pay for, and they didn't appear to add much to the price I paid for it last year only 3 years old).

What a shame you've had some many issues with it, I know they have a reputation for the work you have had done, and it's good they all seem to have been resolved. I'm not sure I'd have stuck with it if it was me. I prefer things a bit more low maintenance and I've not the patience, skills or tools to do anything myself.

Anyway, all I wanted to say was - nice car

Thanks!

[Dannbodge]

ManOpener said:

The E90/92 335i are very high on my shortlist for a next car and this one looks mega.
BUT that's a LOT of very expensive issues to experience in what seems like a short space of time. Brave pills or warranty badly needed!

They are brilliant cars tbh.
Just a shame they have issues, and expensive ones at that.

I wouldn't consider running one without warranty, although you can DIY a lot of things and the price of them are coming down.
Injectors can now be had for £800 for 6, the waterpump can be picked up for £300 and turbos can be reconditioned for £500.

If you get one, you won't regret it.

[Dannbodge]

Had the car walnut blasted this week, along with the normal brake fluid change.

Walnut blast results speak for themselves. Apparently mine was one of the worst they've seen due to it being very baked on rather than the normal gummy residue.

The difference is that it feels a bit faster, my economy has increased a bit (we'll see going forward) but I now can't even feel the car running at idle, whereas before I'd feel everything through the seat.

Whilst I had the workshop's hire car, I went up to see a member of the facebook group to pick up a new bit for my exhaust.













After:

[Dannbodge]

RyanE91 said:

Hey!

Absolutely love your E90 and all the work that you put into it. I saw it up for sale on Autotrader not so long ago, I’m guessing it didn’t take long to sell.

The angel eye upgrade looks great and I’ve been looking on doing the same to mine, but not much luck. Do you have any advice/info on how to get this done? And was it a difficult diy?

Nope it's still with me.

Had some interest and still got people interested, just a bit of an odd time to sell. It is still for sale, just not on Autotrader or pistonheads as I had more interest from forum sale pages.

The angel eyes was just a bulb change. These lights (Adaptive Xenon) take H8 bulbs and these are just 20w LED ones.
Changing wise, there is a panel in the inner arch so remove that, take the bulb covers off and swap them over (much easier if you take a wheel off too)

Manmoths said:

Superb spec! Finding LCI 335s, both d and i models is getting tough these days.

It certainly is.
I only know of 3 or 4 other LCI 335i with the N54 and manual box.

Mr Tidy said:

Wow, that is a superb car with a fantastic spec. Sunroof has to be a rare option.

I ended up buying an E91 325i earlier this year because finding an E90 with the split/fold rear seat is quite challenging - why didn't BMW just fit it as standard? Even Ford managed that on my 1991 Sierra Sapphire!

I hope it has been behaving since the last posts.

Just 3 months after I bought it the electric water pump on my 325i died - but it did last 12 years and 134K miles so I can't complain! I deliberately chose one with the N52 so it shouldn't need coils or walnut blasting.

Funnily enough the sunroof is one of my favourite options on the car.

No idea, just typical BMW options I suppose. It was one of the options I wanted, I can't imagine having a saloon and not being able to fit anything long into it.

It's been pretty good, just likes drinking fuel (currently sitting around 21mpg) and still runs a bit rough occasionally but I think it probably needs new plugs and coils.

[Dannbodge]

seefarr said:

As a counterpoint, I've owned my 2007 335i for almost 5 years now. I've had the ABS pump go which was painfully expensive but that's it in terms of faults. I replaced the coils and gave it a walnut blast before I chipped it. The chip (a Cobb) turned it from a quick car to a properly fast car (my last car was a 380hp Evo for comparison). I average 28mpg and I live in central London and don't baby it. Previous (London) owner was getting 31mpg!

I'm getting itchy feet now, but have no idea what I can replace it with!

How the hell do you get 28mpg.
I'm lucky if I crack 22mpg with my town driving it only ever goes up if I have a long motorway journey.

For replacement? I should be getting a Seat Leon Cupra. Bit more practical for me as we've got a newborn due (well overdue now)

[Dannbodge]

Drew986 said:

Great read to brighten up a slow first day back to work.

In April last year I made a very similar move to yourself, in my case an e36, M3 convertible to n54, e92, like yours my car is almost full loaded bar one or two options, it even has the motorised rear blind, coming from a 20 year old e36 to the 92 is like stepping from the 18th in to the 21st in terms of the tech, one thing about your car I envy is the individual interior, it looks stunning.

I look forward to updates.

Thanks
The plan was that I would be selling it but after not much interest (bar the normal jokers) and being messed around by two others I'll be keeping a while longer

Got some paint issues to sort, the wheels need a refurb and get the exhaust sorted out (leaks at the joins were I cut the mid silencer out).

The interior will be getting a big deep clean with all of the DR leather products as I won them in a competition over Xmas.

Apart from that I'll keep running it daily.

[Dannbodge]

RyanE91 said:

Fair play to you! I’m sure it will be snapped up closer to summer.

By any chance do you have a link to the ones you used? Knowing my luck, I’d order the wrong ones.

Cheers

I don't unfortunately. I bought them 2nd hand off a forum.

The car is back on AT now. Having been driving around in my OHs focus has made me realised how much harder it is to drive around in this and not so sure I'll enjoy it daily.

If anyone is interested I'll do a better deal for pistonheads members.

[Dannbodge]

RyanE91 said:

No worries mate, I’ve just found it difficult finding the bulbs just through internet searches, I’ll get there eventually.

I’d snap it up tomorrow if i had the spare cash and run it as a 2nd car, but that would be pointless in my circumstance. If yours was an e91 with the same spec, that would be a different prospect altogether ??

They are H8 from what I can remember and mine are 20w LED.

I'd love someone to buy it. I honestly though it would have been bought very quickly but it's not been massively popular.

If it was a E91 I'd probably keep it. That would be the ultimate family car.

Edited by Dannbodge on Friday 18th January 14:34

[Dannbodge]

Thought I'd give this a quick update.

Managed to get the car sold yesterday, so the search for a new car has begun!

[Dannbodge]

Picked up the replacement last weekend.

I knew I wanted a Leon Cupra 290 DSG. It had to be 5 door, 2016 with around 20k miles and had to have the black pack.

I found a few for sale but each one sold before I had a chance to enquire about them. Then one popped up with a very short description (Grey, 1 owner, x miles) at a dealer.

I knew that I wanted a white one, and Seat do a very light grey that is basically white (Cupra only colour). So when I enquired and found out it was the light grey I put a deposit down.

A week later, I jumped on the train for a 3.5hr trip from Portsmouth to Ashford in Kent to collect it.

So here it is:

Seat Leon Cupra 290 Black
6spd DSG
2016
17,000 miles
Black pack consists of Heated Bucket seats, Black trim pieces and 19" Diamond cut alloys.











Just waiting on the V5 so I can put my private plate on ( I hate GB plates too)

It's great fun to drive (290bhp, fwd with LSD and Adjustable suspension) and is super quick (on paper faster than the 335i). Very different to the BMW though (not high spec, seats are no where near as soft and everything is more manual)
Its a bit boring to look at but this will change with side skirts, front splitter and rear diffuser.
Hoping to keep it fairly standard, but you never know :thumbsup: