E91 330i LCI

[Sn1ckers]

Now I have my iDrive working I plan to install bluetooth. I would prefer an OEM installation controlled through the iDrive screen. There is therefore research to be done however, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[Court_S]

Glad to hear that it’s all fixed.

Fully understand what you mean about cars getting bigger and bigger. When my E90 was in the body shop, I was loaned an F30 330d x drive. I really liked the car and thought it was really expensive at c.£44k. When I git my car back, it felt bloody tiny.

Cars do have a lot of info on display these days. A friend’s wife has an A250 and he’s said a few times that there’s too much info on all of the time and that the vast screens are too distracting, especially at night.

[Sn1ckers]

Next item on the list now on the way to being sorted;



The car is booked in for a pair of Goodyear Eagles non runflats this week.

I have to say I didn’t experience any significant problems with Landsails but 1. They’re runflats so don’t do anything for the ride and 2) When/ if I ever have to stomp on the brakes....

Still trying to figure out how to retrofit Bluetooth. There’s lots of stuff about standard set ups but not much about retrofitting to an iDrive system (which may / may not be different?).

[Stussy]

I’d look into getting a combox, with all the software options added you will get Bluetooth calls, streaming audio, apps (when plugged in by cable) text message delivery to idrive screen and some other stuff I can’t remember

[Sir_Dave]

Sn1ckers said:

Still trying to figure out how to retrofit Bluetooth. There’s lots of stuff about standard set ups but not much about retrofitting to an iDrive system (which may / may not be different?).

I already posted this earlier on in your thread, but anyhow:

Sir_Dave said:

BMW Basic Handsfree retrofit wiring (£100): 84640441949
e90 Combox Media unit (£150): 84109257160
Combox retrofit plug (£15): 61136913644

That will give you bluetooth for phone calls & music streaming. Then if you want to control the iPod/iPhone via the idrive/get album art etc, you will need to buy a USB cable/interface to plug directly into the combox, something like this worked for me: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Aux-Switch-Wire-Cable-A...

Some further reading here: https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=53...

The whole lot will then need coding with NCSExpert to update your vehicle order etc

With regards to BMW and the CIC installation, it'll likely be as from my understanding, BMW dealers can only code the whole car, or nothing, hence why it took them so long. NCSExpert allows you to code modules individually, hence why the aftermarket can do it so much faster

[Sn1ckers]

It’s been a while since my last update with 6 months of ownership is just around the corner and so I thought I’d do a quick update.

The car (initial teething problems and iDrive/dealership debacle notwithstanding) had it’s first hiccup this week:



£4.92 for a rear brake light.

Otherwise the car has been faultless (touch wood) over the c4k miles it’s done in my custody which I consider to be a result all things considered.

I still have not sorted the Bluetooth integration (thanks to all who gave advice) mainly because I was given this:



which has, to be honest, served my needs perfectly well. It operates via voice command and is plenty loud enough / clear the other end.

For those who are interested in such things I’m averaging about 24mpg pottering about but can get north of 30 quite easily on a longer run.

One final point of interest is that I happened to discover that the car was originally bought in France but to UK spec which explains why it doesn’t show up on some systems (such as Euro Car Parts et al). Not sure if this may become a problem come resale time?

[helix402]

Being a parallel import shouldn’t cause re sale problems. My current car was also imported from mainland Europe.

What does confuse things is the personalised no plate. It means most parts finder systems based on the reg don’t work and even some of BMWs systems. On the plus side it’s ULEZ exempt!

[JakeT]

For an 'enthusiast' car, nothing wrong with a Grey import. Most of the time now specs are similar, and it's been serviced and used here since new.

[B'stard Child]

JakeT said:

For an 'enthusiast' car, nothing wrong with a Grey import. Most of the time now specs are similar, and it's been serviced and used here since new.

Agreed - wouldn't concern me at all

Was it a "armed forces" purchase??

My Monza GSE was UK spec purchased in Germany as by a member of the "armed forces" - lived in Germany for a year (in RHD flavour) before being brought into the UK when his tour finished

[Swervin_Mervin]

Sn1ckers said:

For those who are interested in such things I’m averaging about 24mpg pottering about but can get north of 30 quite easily on a longer run.

I'm surprised at that TBH, given it's the later N53 engine. Those figures are what I typically see in urban/motorway driving respectively from my pre-LCI N52 E91.

I think my record is 34mpg at a steady 80, 3 up with a car full of luggage and a full roofbox.

[Mr Tidy]

Swervin_Mervin said:

Sn1ckers said:

For those who are interested in such things I’m averaging about 24mpg pottering about but can get north of 30 quite easily on a longer run.

I'm surprised at that TBH, given it's the later N53 engine. Those figures are what I typically see in urban/motorway driving respectively from my pre-LCI N52 E91.

I think my record is 34mpg at a steady 80, 3 up with a car full of luggage and a full roofbox.

My E90 330i with an N52 engine is currently managing an average of about 33mpg, but it doesn't commute and 95% of it's use is on NSL roads outside of rush hours - still I'm happy with that!

Did I mention the split/fold seats yet?

[cerb4.5lee]

Mr Tidy said:

Did I mention the split/fold seats yet?

You are making me jealous! I've had 2 E90's without them.

[Sn1ckers]

To be fair I do a lot of short runs of less than 2 to 3 miles from cold so not ideal. Plus when I do a longer run it’s usually with the family. My record fwiw is just over 40.

I do think the 6 speed auto makes a huge difference and suspect a manual would be both more fun and more economical but swmbo needs it to be an auto even though she rarely uses it.

[sixpistons]

I think these were just at the turning point where autos started to get a lot better to drive than earlier slushboxes, but before they overtook manuals for fuel economy. I reckon there’s probably a 10-15% fuel economy hit vs a manual for these, unlike the later 8 speed box. I’ve a 330d auto and the economy averages about 38mpg in mixed driving and rarely climbs much over low 40s despite driving it fairly gently, whereas my mate has a similar e91 with a manual box and that easily average 40 something and 45+ on a run despite having a right foot made of concrete.

Edited by sixpistons on Friday 29th November 22:59

[Court_S]

cerb4.5lee said:

Mr Tidy said:

Did I mention the split/fold seats yet?

You are making me jealous! I've had 2 E90's without them.

Ha ha. That was the one thing that drove me nuts about my 330. Stuff that was too big for the boot ended up on the back seat which was a pan.

Agree with the previous poster re the gearbox. At the time I was pretty happy with the six speed in mine, it was only when I drove a later car with the ZF8 that I realised how far autoboxes have come.

[Stussy]

You can retro fit the split fold seats into saloon and estate, it’s just a case of rounding up the bits and bolting them in. There are various blogs online showing what you need

[Demelitia]

Sn1ckers said:

To be fair I do a lot of short runs of less than 2 to 3 miles from cold so not ideal. Plus when I do a longer run it’s usually with the family. My record fwiw is just over 40.

I do think the 6 speed auto makes a huge difference and suspect a manual would be both more fun and more economical but swmbo needs it to be an auto even though she rarely uses it.

I’d agree it’s largely down to the auto box. The difference between a similar era 130i auto and mine as a manual is 30mpg and 47mpg respectively on a run. Bonkers really. Mine is one of the few cars I’ve seen that actually meets or exceeds the manufacturers claims.

[Sn1ckers]

sixpistons said:

I think these were just at the turning point where autos started to get a lot better to drive than earlier slushboxes, but before they overtook manuals for fuel economy. I reckon there’s probably a 10-15% fuel economy hit vs a manual for these, unlike the later 8 speed box. I’ve a 330d auto and the economy averages about 38mpg in mixed driving and rarely climbs much over low 40s despite driving it fairly gently, whereas my mate has a similar e91 with a manual box and that easily average 40 something and 45+ on a run despite having a right foot made of concrete.

Edited by sixpistons on Friday 29th November 22:59

I think you're right about this box being more of a slushbox than the later 8 speed (I've had a couple of BMW's with the later box and it's without doubt much better though the 6sp was good in it's day).

I've had a couple of 330d's in the past with this box and they seem less affected by the auto, maybe because of the torque?

One thing I will say though is this box has the most dramatic difference between standard & sport of any car I've driven. Often the most notable difference is the way in sport the box hangs on to revs for longer and doesn't engage top at all but this car has a dramatic improvement in throttle response to the point that you'd think it was a completely different engine. The difference is huge and makes me wonder if the box has been remapped in some way?

[330ti]

Mr Tidy said:

Did I mention the split/fold seats yet?

Once or twice

[cerb4.5lee]

Sn1ckers said:

I've had a couple of 330d's in the past with this box and they seem less affected by the auto, maybe because of the torque?

I used to have a E90 330d with the ZF6 auto and I did think that the gearbox worked pretty well with its torquey engine. I will also never forget the first time my Mrs drove my E90 330i with the ZF6 auto though, and she just completely took the pee about how dog slow it felt in comparison!

She laughed at how the engine revved its backside off but didn't actually make very much progress, she still laughs about it now when we think back. The 330d did make the 330i feel very limp wristed in fairness. I'd love to try a manual 330i to see if that feels the same or whether it suits the engine much better.