E91 Straight Six Bearding

E91 Straight Six Bearding

Author
Discussion

6cylGolf

700 posts

189 months

Wednesday 21st October 2020
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ScottJB said:
Currently got 2 X E91 in the household. Excellent cars. Originally had the 320d (boo) as a runaround while we were renovating. But the engine bored me to tears so I picked up a 335i manual and passed the 320d onto the Mrs.



Hadn't realised just how rare a manual E91 335i was at first. It does just what I need it to do, family duties but with a decent turn of pace. Helpfully the previous owner covered off alot of the big jobs about 10k ago (turbos, clutch, brakes, OFHG). It's been pretty good for me tbh just covering off maintenance (full service inc plugs, coils, brake fluid) & tyres.

Think it's with me for the long term now as bloody hard to beat for the money. LCI exterior retrofit (exc roof bars & mirrors) and M359s on the horizon I think.


Edited by ScottJB on Wednesday 21st October 20:34
Very nice. Regarding the facelift, i really wouldnt.
The LCI e9x is also an old car. You wouldnt be doing anything other than making your car look like a cat. write off. Incredibly common for diy facelifts is for the car to be smashed in the first place.
Also imo i prefer the pre lci & time will be kinder to the pre-lci.

chunkytfg

134 posts

180 months

Wednesday 21st October 2020
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daver1184 said:
Sorry to hear you got shunted. How bad was the damage? (pics?) Was it not worth buying back from the insurance company?
Rear quarter panel, and door took the worst of it and Ins Co said 6.5-7K to fix!!

I was thinking about changing it for a van anyway and other issues made it worthwhile getting rid of it. They paid out well along with iDrive failed so couldnt reset TPMS which is a MOT fail and rear shocks both blown plus the shunt meant I needed to do some pretty heavy adjusting on the rear suspension to get it back in line and it just wasnt the same afterwards

chunkytfg

134 posts

180 months

Wednesday 21st October 2020
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Sir_Dave said:
Noooooo, that must have got smashed into only a couple of months after i fixed the engine/sold it to you weeping

Spec wise, it was very highly optioned, so id try and remove as much as possible

Adaptive xenons - they might notice the headlights missing to be fair hehe
Logic 7 audio - take the amp at least
CCC Nav - take the headunit out, place the button panel back on, they'll never know its not there
Split front armrest - deffo whip that off
Electric/lumbar front seats, see if someone wants to swop in their manual ones, unless the airbags went off naturally
Rear parcel shelf, these are worth good money iirc
TCU & MULF - whip them both out the boot, they are under the boot carpet
Wood interior trim - remove it
Electric folding mirrors - id probably have them as well


Edited by Sir_Dave on Wednesday 21st October 17:21
I made it to August I think then a numpty in a van decided he wanted my lane and side swiped me

zippyonline

Original Poster:

354 posts

165 months

Thursday 22nd October 2020
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Thanks for the warm welcome back to the party smile Swervin - you still got yours? Last I remember you were toying with putting her up for sale having just sorted your drowned ECU and sprucing up the stone chips.

Brake photos:

Took the rears apart entirely, new everything, cleaned them back and a respray in some halfords VHT...



New ATE shoes (I think they're OEM) because I had them - I think they were one of the first spares I bought and then never bothered changing them as I wanted to mate them to fresh discs...!



OE discs and pads


Wheelnuts let the side down now!


Front brakes comparison:



I had to snip the tiniest sliver off the edge of the dust shield to make the calipers fit, otherwise fits exactly spot on, brake balance is all perfect etc.


Snug fit behind my 17s, but the wheel weights do clear the caliper fine.



stevesuk

1,343 posts

181 months

Thursday 22nd October 2020
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It's beginning to become apparent that our 325i is celebrating its 15th birthday this month - with a few niggles starting to appear. I suspect the suspension needs a refresh, because it doesn't seem to drive as nicely as it once did.

Had been toying with the idea of getting something newer recently.

However, a puncture (huge nail) meant that I've just had to spend £200 on two new tyres, so I guess we'll be keeping it for a bit now (providing it passes the MOT next month) smile

JakeT

5,400 posts

119 months

Friday 23rd October 2020
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You've had yours quite a while now, Steve?


I'd say keep, in the case of better the devil you know. Some new dampers, and suspension arms (if necessary) and you should be set. smile

stevesuk

1,343 posts

181 months

Friday 23rd October 2020
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JakeT said:
You've had yours quite a while now, Steve?

I'd say keep, in the case of better the devil you know. Some new dampers, and suspension arms (if necessary) and you should be set. smile
Yes, it was first registered in November 2005, so its literally 15 years old. We've had it for nearly 11 years - which is the longest time I've ever owned the same car. Perhaps that says something about how good they are (or that perhaps cars haven't really improved that much in the last 20 years, and if you "bought well" in the first place, there's little point in buying a new one for the most part - unless you want some technology bling).

I think at some point I'd like to go with something hybrid (like the Lexus CT200h) - zero VED, and twice as many MPG. However, a half decent used example is going to cost 10 times the value of our BMW - so I think we'll be sticking with what we've got for the time being.

Swervin_Mervin

4,408 posts

237 months

Friday 23rd October 2020
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Funny - this is the longest I've ever owned a car as well. It will be 8yrs this November I've had the 330. I think it does say a lot about the car as well, and buying the right one in the first place. I actually paid a car guru (his mechanical and bodywork skills are incredible) to go and look at two examples - one at an indy near Exeter and another at a dealership in Shrewsbury. The latter had iDrive but otherwise similar spec but a few ££ more.

I went the former on his review and it has paid off massively.

I'm only likely to move it on because I want a change, don't need an estate anymore (we have a Superb 272 hatch which is VAST), and I want to squeeze some other engine configs into my life before inevitably going EV. So V8 of some sort next, and I quite fancy an Alpine A110 as well. If i had lots of space I'd just keep the 330 tbh, but sadly we don't.

bongotvr

163 posts

240 months

Friday 23rd October 2020
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Swervin_Mervin said:
Funny - this is the longest I've ever owned a car as well. It will be 8yrs this November I've had the 330. I think it does say a lot about the car as well, and buying the right one in the first place. I actually paid a car guru (his mechanical and bodywork skills are incredible) to go and look at two examples - one at an indy near Exeter and another at a dealership in Shrewsbury. The latter had iDrive but otherwise similar spec but a few ££ more.

I went the former on his review and it has paid off massively.

I'm only likely to move it on because I want a change, don't need an estate anymore (we have a Superb 272 hatch which is VAST), and I want to squeeze some other engine configs into my life before inevitably going EV. So V8 of some sort next, and I quite fancy an Alpine A110 as well. If i had lots of space I'd just keep the 330 tbh, but sadly we don't.
When you thinking of selling? Is your 330 an auto or manual?? Might be interested...

Swervin_Mervin

4,408 posts

237 months

Friday 23rd October 2020
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I have no idea tbh. A friend is pestering me for it as well, but tbh I was hoping to wait until after we'd had our house renovations done, by which time I'll have no money to replace it anyway! laugh

That should've been early this year, but for obvious reasons hasn't happened. Will now probably not be until spring at the earliest. The way it's going I can see me still having it in 12mo time, near 2yrs on from when I first started thinking about it.

toast boy

1,242 posts

225 months

Friday 23rd October 2020
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zippyonline said:
Interesting brake stuff
How are you finding them when driving Zippy? Is the performance significantly better? Looks like it should be by the size increase!

JakeT

5,400 posts

119 months

Friday 23rd October 2020
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stevesuk said:
Yes, it was first registered in November 2005, so its literally 15 years old. We've had it for nearly 11 years - which is the longest time I've ever owned the same car. Perhaps that says something about how good they are (or that perhaps cars haven't really improved that much in the last 20 years, and if you "bought well" in the first place, there's little point in buying a new one for the most part - unless you want some technology bling).

I think at some point I'd like to go with something hybrid (like the Lexus CT200h) - zero VED, and twice as many MPG. However, a half decent used example is going to cost 10 times the value of our BMW - so I think we'll be sticking with what we've got for the time being.
Mine went on the road in September 2005, just a few weeks older. I think next time I get a 'new' car it will be a hybrid/electric one. However, the additional money buys a lot of fuel, and I don't fancy selling up any time soon. This is a very well rounded car, and I can't fault it particularly.

stevesuk

1,343 posts

181 months

Sunday 25th October 2020
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Bearding query about runflats if I may? Both rear tyres replaced yesterday, because one of them had a huge nail/screw sticking out of it. Checked the pressures this morning, and one of the pair has gone completely flat overnight. Can't see any visible damage, so suspect they haven't been fitted properly (rather than getting another puncture on the way home, which is of course possible), so taking it back for them to look at it later on today.

I've heard before that you can't have leaks plugged on run-flat tyres, due to the damage done to the structure when they're flat with the weight of the car sat on them.

Would that be the case even if it was sat still on the driveway overnight? Just wondering whether I should insist the tyre is replaced with a new one?

JakeT

5,400 posts

119 months

Sunday 25th October 2020
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If they're paying? New one. If you're paying? You should be okay.

It's normally running on flat that causes abraision of the carcass of the tyre and subsequent heat. Provided you pump it up before running on it you should be all good.

duff

975 posts

198 months

Sunday 25th October 2020
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Could it be a knackered alloy? I had my rear RFTs replaced recently with normal tyres and one of them lost a few psi overnight. I kept topping it up then had the wheels refurbished and that wheel was beyond repair. I bought a new alloy and it’s been fine since.

stevesuk

1,343 posts

181 months

Sunday 25th October 2020
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duff said:
Could it be a knackered alloy? I had my rear RFTs replaced recently with normal tyres and one of them lost a few psi overnight. I kept topping it up then had the wheels refurbished and that wheel was beyond repair. I bought a new alloy and it’s been fine since.
Spot on... just come back - took the tyre off and had a good look, and diagnosed a cracked rim.

They've accepted responsibility for damaging the wheel when replacing the tyres (it was fine before - even the tyre with the nail in it was taking a couple of weeks to lose pressure). Apparently on the earlier BMW wheels, its quite common/easy to damage them during the process of removing the old run flat tyre, because it requires a lot of force.

Tyre place have agreed to pay to have it repaired, which is good. What's less good is that we have no spare, and only one car - and meant to be going on a few long journeys over the next week :-( They've coated the rim inside and out with sealant, and then let it cure before replacing the wheel. They reckon it will be safe to use until we get it fixed, but the wife isn't so sure about driving it.

daver1184

102 posts

170 months

Monday 26th October 2020
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Sir_Dave

1,494 posts

209 months

Tuesday 27th October 2020
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That is a proper poverty spec some equipment, but its cheap, so to a point, who cares hehe

pmorg4

705 posts

115 months

Tuesday 27th October 2020
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daver1184 said:
Good price for a 330i touring manual. It wouldn't cost much to put some OE spec wheels on it and sell those fitted to it for a packet of crisps and a mars bar.

It will be N53 though, so be prepared to spend a bit of cash on the usual injectors, fuel pump, NOx system.

zippyonline

Original Poster:

354 posts

165 months

Tuesday 27th October 2020
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toast boy said:
How are you finding them when driving Zippy? Is the performance significantly better? Looks like it should be by the size increase!
My experience may be slightly tainted by the ones before being cheapo brembo's from ECP from when I got the car and being well past it.... but brake balance is still good - maybe even better, feel is better (although again, that may just be because I gave them a good bleed! I have braided lines on the front, and originals on the back). It feels like they have a good amount of power, certainly better than stock - but I expect just new discs and pads of OE quality on the front plus a bleed would have made a big difference...They certainly feel like they've got more ooomph, I feel I have more control of the braking if that makes sense - not done anything scientific though!

Oh yeah, I'm pretty sure I've lost some rotating weight too!