E91 Straight Six Bearding
Discussion
MajorMantra said:
https://www.pistonheads.com/buy/listing/14981045
Looks good, although price may raise some eyebrows. Is this one of you lot?
A bit toppy perhaps as you say. However it is a well specced lovely rare car though. I wouldn't mind this myself! I do love an E9x. Looks good, although price may raise some eyebrows. Is this one of you lot?
helix402 said:
cerb4.5lee said:
A bit toppy perhaps as you say. However it is a well specced lovely rare car though. I wouldn't mind this myself! I do love an E9x.
If that’s worth 14.5k mines worth 20!
It is amusing when numbers seem to get picked out of the air for car values I reckon
rallycross said:
This looks very tempting ! Lsd Equiped 335i touring manual how rare is this?!
Big miles but the 335i can take the miles my last one was on 190k when I sold it and was fine...
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/285247991450?mkevt=1&am...
Big miles but the 335i can take the miles my last one was on 190k when I sold it and was fine...
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/285247991450?mkevt=1&am...
christhreadgill said:
Very nice! Almost a twin to my E91 335i manual - same colour and same YF56xxx plate!
Jakg said:
It's got a PH sticker so it's going to be someone on here...
MajorMantra said:
That one has been on sale for months – perhaps the mileage and mods (not totally clear what they are?) are putting buyers off? On the face of it looks quite appealing...
EDIT: I think it's just the LSD and remap?
I didn't realise you guys had been discussing this car. I just read back through the thread a little way having bought this last week EDIT: I think it's just the LSD and remap?
It seems that I am at least the third PH'er to have owned it. There are a few posts about it.
So far I've only driven for a short, very wet test drive and then to bring it home, 40 moist miles.
I still have an S4 Avant that I need to get around to selling so I'm using the opportunity to go over the 335i with a fine tooth comb. I noticed a slight vibration at motorway speeds from the read on the drive home. I decided to do the prop bearing and coupling but this has very much turned into a catalogue of 'while you're in there' jobs. I've replaced every joint on the gearshift mechanism. Bought a load of new heat shields. Removed a very rusty tow bar and it's getting liberally spattered in Bilt Hamber Juice all over the underside. The bills are mounting already and I haven't even driven it!
Some parts of the bodywork are a little scruffy so I'm hoping to be able to get those sorted before it starts getting regular use. And the wheels are all tatty so they'll be done too. I'll install an Andream unit too once I've finished the mucky stuff. I reckon I'll be in for about £7k once the music stops which I admit is plenty of money for a 185k 17 year old 3 series it's on the flip side, it should be in lovely fettle and it's a very unusual car. I'll also get a big chunk of change once I sell my Audi so it feels almost sensible!
I bought this by accident really. BMW owner for 20 years on and off but we sold our 525i earlier this year and I bought an S4 thinking that it ticked an awful lot of boxes and it was about time I tried something different. Now the Audi is a great car. A really good all rounder but for whatever reason, it doesn't suit me. Can't put my finger on it but I just haven't gelled with it. Then the BMW popped up on my ebay alerts fairly local to me and though I initially did nothing about it, eventually I had to go and see it.
Gad-Westy said:
I didn't realise you guys had been discussing this car. I just read back through the thread a little way having bought this last week
It seems that I am at least the third PH'er to have owned it. There are a few posts about it.
So far I've only driven for a short, very wet test drive and then to bring it home, 40 moist miles.
I still have an S4 Avant that I need to get around to selling so I'm using the opportunity to go over the 335i with a fine tooth comb. I noticed a slight vibration at motorway speeds from the read on the drive home. I decided to do the prop bearing and coupling but this has very much turned into a catalogue of 'while you're in there' jobs. I've replaced every joint on the gearshift mechanism. Bought a load of new heat shields. Removed a very rusty tow bar and it's getting liberally spattered in Bilt Hamber Juice all over the underside. The bills are mounting already and I haven't even driven it!
Some parts of the bodywork are a little scruffy so I'm hoping to be able to get those sorted before it starts getting regular use. And the wheels are all tatty so they'll be done too. I'll install an Andream unit too once I've finished the mucky stuff. I reckon I'll be in for about £7k once the music stops which I admit is plenty of money for a 185k 17 year old 3 series it's on the flip side, it should be in lovely fettle and it's a very unusual car. I'll also get a big chunk of change once I sell my Audi so it feels almost sensible!
I bought this by accident really. BMW owner for 20 years on and off but we sold our 525i earlier this year and I bought an S4 thinking that it ticked an awful lot of boxes and it was about time I tried something different. Now the Audi is a great car. A really good all rounder but for whatever reason, it doesn't suit me. Can't put my finger on it but I just haven't gelled with it. Then the BMW popped up on my ebay alerts fairly local to me and though I initially did nothing about it, eventually I had to go and see it.
It looks a rare car - the main thing with the E9x series is maintenance, if you keep on top of it they’re generally very reliable. It seems that I am at least the third PH'er to have owned it. There are a few posts about it.
So far I've only driven for a short, very wet test drive and then to bring it home, 40 moist miles.
I still have an S4 Avant that I need to get around to selling so I'm using the opportunity to go over the 335i with a fine tooth comb. I noticed a slight vibration at motorway speeds from the read on the drive home. I decided to do the prop bearing and coupling but this has very much turned into a catalogue of 'while you're in there' jobs. I've replaced every joint on the gearshift mechanism. Bought a load of new heat shields. Removed a very rusty tow bar and it's getting liberally spattered in Bilt Hamber Juice all over the underside. The bills are mounting already and I haven't even driven it!
Some parts of the bodywork are a little scruffy so I'm hoping to be able to get those sorted before it starts getting regular use. And the wheels are all tatty so they'll be done too. I'll install an Andream unit too once I've finished the mucky stuff. I reckon I'll be in for about £7k once the music stops which I admit is plenty of money for a 185k 17 year old 3 series it's on the flip side, it should be in lovely fettle and it's a very unusual car. I'll also get a big chunk of change once I sell my Audi so it feels almost sensible!
I bought this by accident really. BMW owner for 20 years on and off but we sold our 525i earlier this year and I bought an S4 thinking that it ticked an awful lot of boxes and it was about time I tried something different. Now the Audi is a great car. A really good all rounder but for whatever reason, it doesn't suit me. Can't put my finger on it but I just haven't gelled with it. Then the BMW popped up on my ebay alerts fairly local to me and though I initially did nothing about it, eventually I had to go and see it.
There’s a wealth of information out there on these cars, and judging by Court_S’s build thread they’re fantastically tuneable, it’s definitely worth a read if you want to spend a bit more!
Gad-Westy said:
I didn't realise you guys had been discussing this car. I just read back through the thread a little way having bought this last week
It seems that I am at least the third PH'er to have owned it. There are a few posts about it.
So far I've only driven for a short, very wet test drive and then to bring it home, 40 moist miles.
I still have an S4 Avant that I need to get around to selling so I'm using the opportunity to go over the 335i with a fine tooth comb. I noticed a slight vibration at motorway speeds from the read on the drive home. I decided to do the prop bearing and coupling but this has very much turned into a catalogue of 'while you're in there' jobs. I've replaced every joint on the gearshift mechanism. Bought a load of new heat shields. Removed a very rusty tow bar and it's getting liberally spattered in Bilt Hamber Juice all over the underside. The bills are mounting already and I haven't even driven it!
Some parts of the bodywork are a little scruffy so I'm hoping to be able to get those sorted before it starts getting regular use. And the wheels are all tatty so they'll be done too. I'll install an Andream unit too once I've finished the mucky stuff. I reckon I'll be in for about £7k once the music stops which I admit is plenty of money for a 185k 17 year old 3 series it's on the flip side, it should be in lovely fettle and it's a very unusual car. I'll also get a big chunk of change once I sell my Audi so it feels almost sensible!
I bought this by accident really. BMW owner for 20 years on and off but we sold our 525i earlier this year and I bought an S4 thinking that it ticked an awful lot of boxes and it was about time I tried something different. Now the Audi is a great car. A really good all rounder but for whatever reason, it doesn't suit me. Can't put my finger on it but I just haven't gelled with it. Then the BMW popped up on my ebay alerts fairly local to me and though I initially did nothing about it, eventually I had to go and see it.
Cool that is been through so many PHers. It seems that I am at least the third PH'er to have owned it. There are a few posts about it.
So far I've only driven for a short, very wet test drive and then to bring it home, 40 moist miles.
I still have an S4 Avant that I need to get around to selling so I'm using the opportunity to go over the 335i with a fine tooth comb. I noticed a slight vibration at motorway speeds from the read on the drive home. I decided to do the prop bearing and coupling but this has very much turned into a catalogue of 'while you're in there' jobs. I've replaced every joint on the gearshift mechanism. Bought a load of new heat shields. Removed a very rusty tow bar and it's getting liberally spattered in Bilt Hamber Juice all over the underside. The bills are mounting already and I haven't even driven it!
Some parts of the bodywork are a little scruffy so I'm hoping to be able to get those sorted before it starts getting regular use. And the wheels are all tatty so they'll be done too. I'll install an Andream unit too once I've finished the mucky stuff. I reckon I'll be in for about £7k once the music stops which I admit is plenty of money for a 185k 17 year old 3 series it's on the flip side, it should be in lovely fettle and it's a very unusual car. I'll also get a big chunk of change once I sell my Audi so it feels almost sensible!
I bought this by accident really. BMW owner for 20 years on and off but we sold our 525i earlier this year and I bought an S4 thinking that it ticked an awful lot of boxes and it was about time I tried something different. Now the Audi is a great car. A really good all rounder but for whatever reason, it doesn't suit me. Can't put my finger on it but I just haven't gelled with it. Then the BMW popped up on my ebay alerts fairly local to me and though I initially did nothing about it, eventually I had to go and see it.
I’ll probably be into similar money on its baby brother, a manual 330i touring that I’m replacing her 125i. It’s higher mileage than I’d normal buy but it’s a) petrol and b) manual which makes it quite unique. There aren’t many options.
I really like this era BMW, for me personally they’re a sweet spot of being decently rust priced but fairly easy to work on yourself with a wealth of knowledge out there. I think they drive well too, I prefer them to the more modern versions.
nipsips said:
It looks a rare car - the main thing with the E9x series is maintenance, if you keep on top of it they’re generally very reliable.
There’s a wealth of information out there on these cars, and judging by Court_S’s build thread they’re fantastically tuneable, it’s definitely worth a read if you want to spend a bit more!
They’re definitely very easy to get more power from; it makes you realise how lazy the engine is in stock tune, especially since it’s barely any more then an N53 powered 330i. There’s a wealth of information out there on these cars, and judging by Court_S’s build thread they’re fantastically tuneable, it’s definitely worth a read if you want to spend a bit more!
Mine is a very different cat under acceleration now.
Output Flange said:
If I may venture into this thread with my cap in hand, I'd like to swap my manual E91 320i for an auto E91 325i (I don't mean p/x, I mean buy a 325i and sell the 320i).
If anyone has a lead on a decent, non-NAV 325i that's not on the south coast, I'd appreciate a steer.
TIA
Why not a 330i (or the 330d)?If anyone has a lead on a decent, non-NAV 325i that's not on the south coast, I'd appreciate a steer.
TIA
Output Flange said:
Don't particularly want a diesel, and don't need a 330i. The 325i is a good enough upgrade over the 320i without the price premium of the 330i, and most 330i/d have Nav, which again, I don't really want.
The old nav is dead easy to update to CarPlay these days which brings some useful modern functionality. Output Flange said:
helix402 said:
Why not a 330i (or the 330d)?
Don't particularly want a diesel, and don't need a 330i. The 325i is a good enough upgrade over the 320i without the price premium of the 330i, and most 330i/d have Nav, which again, I don't really want.Gad-Westy said:
I didn't realise you guys had been discussing this car. I just read back through the thread a little way having bought this last week
It seems that I am at least the third PH'er to have owned it. There are a few posts about it.
So far I've only driven for a short, very wet test drive and then to bring it home, 40 moist miles.
I still have an S4 Avant that I need to get around to selling so I'm using the opportunity to go over the 335i with a fine tooth comb. I noticed a slight vibration at motorway speeds from the read on the drive home. I decided to do the prop bearing and coupling but this has very much turned into a catalogue of 'while you're in there' jobs. I've replaced every joint on the gearshift mechanism. Bought a load of new heat shields. Removed a very rusty tow bar and it's getting liberally spattered in Bilt Hamber Juice all over the underside. The bills are mounting already and I haven't even driven it!
Some parts of the bodywork are a little scruffy so I'm hoping to be able to get those sorted before it starts getting regular use. And the wheels are all tatty so they'll be done too. I'll install an Andream unit too once I've finished the mucky stuff. I reckon I'll be in for about £7k once the music stops which I admit is plenty of money for a 185k 17 year old 3 series it's on the flip side, it should be in lovely fettle and it's a very unusual car. I'll also get a big chunk of change once I sell my Audi so it feels almost sensible!
I bought this by accident really. BMW owner for 20 years on and off but we sold our 525i earlier this year and I bought an S4 thinking that it ticked an awful lot of boxes and it was about time I tried something different. Now the Audi is a great car. A really good all rounder but for whatever reason, it doesn't suit me. Can't put my finger on it but I just haven't gelled with it. Then the BMW popped up on my ebay alerts fairly local to me and though I initially did nothing about it, eventually I had to go and see it.
Good stuff. I think I’m the third PH’er to own my car, too. Funny how these things move in circles. Tbh I don’t think it’s a bad move either. N54s don’t wear out, and it should mean most of the maintenance needs have been taken care of. I’d rather 185k of sympathetic out of town use rather than 100k of inner city awfulness.It seems that I am at least the third PH'er to have owned it. There are a few posts about it.
So far I've only driven for a short, very wet test drive and then to bring it home, 40 moist miles.
I still have an S4 Avant that I need to get around to selling so I'm using the opportunity to go over the 335i with a fine tooth comb. I noticed a slight vibration at motorway speeds from the read on the drive home. I decided to do the prop bearing and coupling but this has very much turned into a catalogue of 'while you're in there' jobs. I've replaced every joint on the gearshift mechanism. Bought a load of new heat shields. Removed a very rusty tow bar and it's getting liberally spattered in Bilt Hamber Juice all over the underside. The bills are mounting already and I haven't even driven it!
Some parts of the bodywork are a little scruffy so I'm hoping to be able to get those sorted before it starts getting regular use. And the wheels are all tatty so they'll be done too. I'll install an Andream unit too once I've finished the mucky stuff. I reckon I'll be in for about £7k once the music stops which I admit is plenty of money for a 185k 17 year old 3 series it's on the flip side, it should be in lovely fettle and it's a very unusual car. I'll also get a big chunk of change once I sell my Audi so it feels almost sensible!
I bought this by accident really. BMW owner for 20 years on and off but we sold our 525i earlier this year and I bought an S4 thinking that it ticked an awful lot of boxes and it was about time I tried something different. Now the Audi is a great car. A really good all rounder but for whatever reason, it doesn't suit me. Can't put my finger on it but I just haven't gelled with it. Then the BMW popped up on my ebay alerts fairly local to me and though I initially did nothing about it, eventually I had to go and see it.
For comparison, my 330i on 195k will still run into the limiter, as it did earlier this week. Taking something to high mileage doesn’t phase me.
JakeT said:
Gad-Westy said:
I didn't realise you guys had been discussing this car. I just read back through the thread a little way having bought this last week
It seems that I am at least the third PH'er to have owned it. There are a few posts about it.
So far I've only driven for a short, very wet test drive and then to bring it home, 40 moist miles.
I still have an S4 Avant that I need to get around to selling so I'm using the opportunity to go over the 335i with a fine tooth comb. I noticed a slight vibration at motorway speeds from the read on the drive home. I decided to do the prop bearing and coupling but this has very much turned into a catalogue of 'while you're in there' jobs. I've replaced every joint on the gearshift mechanism. Bought a load of new heat shields. Removed a very rusty tow bar and it's getting liberally spattered in Bilt Hamber Juice all over the underside. The bills are mounting already and I haven't even driven it!
Some parts of the bodywork are a little scruffy so I'm hoping to be able to get those sorted before it starts getting regular use. And the wheels are all tatty so they'll be done too. I'll install an Andream unit too once I've finished the mucky stuff. I reckon I'll be in for about £7k once the music stops which I admit is plenty of money for a 185k 17 year old 3 series it's on the flip side, it should be in lovely fettle and it's a very unusual car. I'll also get a big chunk of change once I sell my Audi so it feels almost sensible!
I bought this by accident really. BMW owner for 20 years on and off but we sold our 525i earlier this year and I bought an S4 thinking that it ticked an awful lot of boxes and it was about time I tried something different. Now the Audi is a great car. A really good all rounder but for whatever reason, it doesn't suit me. Can't put my finger on it but I just haven't gelled with it. Then the BMW popped up on my ebay alerts fairly local to me and though I initially did nothing about it, eventually I had to go and see it.
Good stuff. I think I’m the third PH’er to own my car, too. Funny how these things move in circles. Tbh I don’t think it’s a bad move either. N54s don’t wear out, and it should mean most of the maintenance needs have been taken care of. I’d rather 185k of sympathetic out of town use rather than 100k of inner city awfulness.It seems that I am at least the third PH'er to have owned it. There are a few posts about it.
So far I've only driven for a short, very wet test drive and then to bring it home, 40 moist miles.
I still have an S4 Avant that I need to get around to selling so I'm using the opportunity to go over the 335i with a fine tooth comb. I noticed a slight vibration at motorway speeds from the read on the drive home. I decided to do the prop bearing and coupling but this has very much turned into a catalogue of 'while you're in there' jobs. I've replaced every joint on the gearshift mechanism. Bought a load of new heat shields. Removed a very rusty tow bar and it's getting liberally spattered in Bilt Hamber Juice all over the underside. The bills are mounting already and I haven't even driven it!
Some parts of the bodywork are a little scruffy so I'm hoping to be able to get those sorted before it starts getting regular use. And the wheels are all tatty so they'll be done too. I'll install an Andream unit too once I've finished the mucky stuff. I reckon I'll be in for about £7k once the music stops which I admit is plenty of money for a 185k 17 year old 3 series it's on the flip side, it should be in lovely fettle and it's a very unusual car. I'll also get a big chunk of change once I sell my Audi so it feels almost sensible!
I bought this by accident really. BMW owner for 20 years on and off but we sold our 525i earlier this year and I bought an S4 thinking that it ticked an awful lot of boxes and it was about time I tried something different. Now the Audi is a great car. A really good all rounder but for whatever reason, it doesn't suit me. Can't put my finger on it but I just haven't gelled with it. Then the BMW popped up on my ebay alerts fairly local to me and though I initially did nothing about it, eventually I had to go and see it.
For comparison, my 330i on 195k will still run into the limiter, as it did earlier this week. Taking something to high mileage doesn’t phase me.
Once I've finished underneath the car, I'll have to have a think about what stuff I ought to be doing under the bonnet. I know it has an oil leak from somewhere as the gearbox casing is quite wet and it has clearly come from the front of the car somewhere. Seems these engines can (and do) leak from just about anywhere so that might take some careful detective work. If it's the the sump gasket that one might have to wait a little while until I have a proper lift. Can't imagine it's much fun doing that on axle stands!
Gad-Westy said:
It feels low risk at this money. This is one of the more appealing BMW models that actually fits into our lives so seemed well worth a punt. 525i left us on 197k. It had a few glitches along the way but was still in remarkably good condition so I'm happy that these cars can take it but I think preventative maintenance and a bit of pampering is going to be key.
Once I've finished underneath the car, I'll have to have a think about what stuff I ought to be doing under the bonnet. I know it has an oil leak from somewhere as the gearbox casing is quite wet and it has clearly come from the front of the car somewhere. Seems these engines can (and do) leak from just about anywhere so that might take some careful detective work. If it's the the sump gasket that one might have to wait a little while until I have a proper lift. Can't imagine it's much fun doing that on axle stands!
Is it even a BMW if it doesn’t leak oil? Once I've finished underneath the car, I'll have to have a think about what stuff I ought to be doing under the bonnet. I know it has an oil leak from somewhere as the gearbox casing is quite wet and it has clearly come from the front of the car somewhere. Seems these engines can (and do) leak from just about anywhere so that might take some careful detective work. If it's the the sump gasket that one might have to wait a little while until I have a proper lift. Can't imagine it's much fun doing that on axle stands!
My car had a slight leak from the oil cooler / filter housing gasket which has been sorted. The rocker cover is dry but I think I have a slight weep underneath because I noted some misting around the gearbox too. It doesn’t appear to use any oil though; I’ve not had to top it up since I’ve owned it with the idrive readout staying on max between oil changes (half of the CBS typically).
My friends 330i is leaking from the sump as did his 125i. I think it’s a bit of a turd of a job on the drive - he paid for someone to do his and he usually does as much as he can himself.
Court_S said:
Gad-Westy said:
It feels low risk at this money. This is one of the more appealing BMW models that actually fits into our lives so seemed well worth a punt. 525i left us on 197k. It had a few glitches along the way but was still in remarkably good condition so I'm happy that these cars can take it but I think preventative maintenance and a bit of pampering is going to be key.
Once I've finished underneath the car, I'll have to have a think about what stuff I ought to be doing under the bonnet. I know it has an oil leak from somewhere as the gearbox casing is quite wet and it has clearly come from the front of the car somewhere. Seems these engines can (and do) leak from just about anywhere so that might take some careful detective work. If it's the the sump gasket that one might have to wait a little while until I have a proper lift. Can't imagine it's much fun doing that on axle stands!
Is it even a BMW if it doesn’t leak oil? Once I've finished underneath the car, I'll have to have a think about what stuff I ought to be doing under the bonnet. I know it has an oil leak from somewhere as the gearbox casing is quite wet and it has clearly come from the front of the car somewhere. Seems these engines can (and do) leak from just about anywhere so that might take some careful detective work. If it's the the sump gasket that one might have to wait a little while until I have a proper lift. Can't imagine it's much fun doing that on axle stands!
My car had a slight leak from the oil cooler / filter housing gasket which has been sorted. The rocker cover is dry but I think I have a slight weep underneath because I noted some misting around the gearbox too. It doesn’t appear to use any oil though; I’ve not had to top it up since I’ve owned it with the idrive readout staying on max between oil changes (half of the CBS typically).
My friends 330i is leaking from the sump as did his 125i. I think it’s a bit of a turd of a job on the drive - he paid for someone to do his and he usually does as much as he can himself.
Gad-Westy said:
Yep. I think it's a subframe off job which doesn't sound like much fun to me. I'll kick that can down the road for now but I'll keep an eye on it.
That’s the approach I’m taking especially as my car doesn’t seem to require topping up. It’s not moved off full in 17k other than queuing nose down for ages at Prescott and it deciding that it had no oil in it! I did my sump gasket myself, and I can honestly say that I’ve never done a job that was that much of a pig - although to be honest the manual cars are slightly easier as access is slightly less restricted. It’s still subframe off more or less completely at the very very least - I think next time (god I hope not) I’d completely drop it just to make life easier.
The only leak I’d be really concerned about and get done as a priority is the oil filter housing gasket - and if you do it yourself make sure you prime it before starting the car.
These have a habit of leaking onto the belt and causing the belt to fail. In fact for how cheap they are even for genuine or fit an auxiliary drive belt and a tensioner as preventative maintenance.
The only leak I’d be really concerned about and get done as a priority is the oil filter housing gasket - and if you do it yourself make sure you prime it before starting the car.
These have a habit of leaking onto the belt and causing the belt to fail. In fact for how cheap they are even for genuine or fit an auxiliary drive belt and a tensioner as preventative maintenance.
nipsips said:
The only leak I’d be really concerned about and get done as a priority is the oil filter housing gasket - and if you do it yourself make sure you prime it before starting the car.
These have a habit of leaking onto the belt and causing the belt to fail. In fact for how cheap they are even for genuine or fit an auxiliary drive belt and a tensioner as preventative maintenance.
Agreed on this, it was one of the first things I did with my 330i. New genuine oil filter and cooler gaskets, followed by a replacement INA tensioner and Gates belt.These have a habit of leaking onto the belt and causing the belt to fail. In fact for how cheap they are even for genuine or fit an auxiliary drive belt and a tensioner as preventative maintenance.
My 335i has presumably had the filter gasket done in its recent past as it's dry as a bone (and no oil cooler gasket on these as it has an external oil cooler). I might however change the belt, tensioner and rollers as a preventative job anyway.
Gassing Station | BMW General | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff