2007 BMW 335i Coupe - maintenance 90k+ miles

[mcfly0081]

Hello everyone, this is my first post so I'm sure I'm not the first person to ask this question (moderators please feel free to bump me into another thread) but I've really haven't found any decent information about the reliability of the 2007 335i approaching the 100k mile marker or over. Well I've recently just purchased one and the car looks, drives, and sounds clean as a whistle. But with 91k I've basically feel like I got the normal salesman talk about how the car just went through the shop and was fully serviced and that I have nothing to do to the car for at least 30k miles (which they are saying will be brakes) with the exception of changing the oil because they just changed the spark plugs. I'm hoping that maybe some of you could agree with this statement or if not tell me what I can expect over the next, lets say for sake of conversation 50k miles... Any information positive or negative would be greatly appreciated.

[cochise325]

At the mile marker you are at, you can expect to spend some money on maintenance and repairs. Look at your maintenance schedule in your owners manual for the prescribed items. Beyond that there are inevitable items that will come up. The car will go 200,000 miles plus, but it will require some effort to get there.

[alkdc2]

I'd look into either replacing or upgrading the cooling system. I recently purchased a 2008 335i and they pretty much told me the same thing. I'm going to re-do the cooling system with an aluminum radiator so i'll never have to worry about it again. The main crucial thing I have been always told about is the thermostat and water pump. A failure with those two and it can result in catastrophic engine damage. So i would look into that mainly. Other than that, I would take into your local BMW and have it checked out to see if the HPFP, turbos, and injectors had any work done as the 335i is notorious for having problems with those items.

[cochise325]

Electric water pump failures cause the engine to go into limp mode, and the electric fan runs on high speed to dissipate heat. So an engine failure due to overheating is not as likely as it used to be when the pump and fan were belt driven.

Many people are rebuilding their suspensions at around 100k miles. Front struts, rear shocks, control arms and all the associated mounts are required to do this job correctly. You can scope parts and prices by using www.realoem.com (http://www.realoem.com) and www.ecstuning.com (http://www.ecstuning.com)

[0107n54guy]

Window regulator? Turbos waste gate ? Valve cover gasket and OFH, waterpump and thermostat

[marine24]

My 07 335i has 147k now and I bought it at 92k. All of the maintenance I've done is pretty routine, but I upgraded as I went. M3 front control arms, water pump/t-stat, valve cover gasket, OFH gaskets, plugs and coils, rear links, shocks, clutch and flushed brake fluid/added SS brake lines. The only thing put of the ordinary was I had to replace a resistor in the ECU (turns out to be a common issue, bit I had never heard of it before) which gave me a misfire on the rear three cylinders. Other than that, just tires and lots of fun

[shiftmygears]

I got stranded in the mountains from a water pump going out at 58K miles. Expensive part around 430 bucks. I'm up in Canada and had to get one from the stealer at the time so that was a $1200 CAD (900 usd) kick to the nuts.

DMTL went out at around 50K- not an expensive part but in my case was causing the engine to go into limp mode after long and hard drives, as it kept thinking there was a more serious problem.

Then the seatbelt jammed last week from the interia ball getting stuck. The whole seatbelt system is a connected system with a motor in my case so it was around 250 bucks from the stealer.

335i likes to eat rear tires too. If you have 18s it's not bad, but if you have the staggered 19s their odd sized tires are close to 300 a piece. I got my MSS back in May and already I'm down to 6/32 and don't really drive that hard.

My 335 has been a fun car to me but just have had quite some nuisances. I have around 60K miles on it. Some days I wish I just saved my money for something more economical, but when I drive it I quickly stop complaining

[adam1979]

I'm curious about this as well. I've done some searching and found lots of threads full of panic and members advising extended warranties, or dumping as soon as the CPO runs out. My interpretation of common problems:
* HPFP - I think this was fixed sometime in 2010. Google hits for this pretty much dry up around 2010, roughly coinciding with a recall.
* Injectors - expensive, but not the end of the world. Acceptable risk
* Waterpump - the electric waterpump is much more expensive than the old belt-drive ones. That said, it can save the car from engine meltdown, and I want to say Mike Miller (Roundel Tech Talk) stated that they do last longer than the old mechanical ones installed on E46, E39, etc. Not worried about it.
* OFHG - Wow, they still haven't fixed this? Sounds significantly more expensive than repairing the same thing on the E46. Must be more crap in the way. Painful, but acceptable risk.
* Turbos - I'm not clear if the turbos themselves fail, or if it is just wastegate rattle that might or might not have a cheaper fix at an indy mechanic that will play ball. It sounds like this job averages 14 hrs labor, and the turbos are around $700 each. Needing new turbos would be a very bad day, and is the primary reason I'm not sure a 335i is a good idea.

For context, I put up with a '98 540 6-speed for five years (125k miles through 196k miles). An E9X 335i can't be worse than a 540i, can it?

[cochise325]

For context, I put up with a '98 540 6-speed for five years (125k miles through 196k miles). An E9X 335i can't be worse than a 540i, can it?

Yes it can. Same circus, different clown. A naturally aspirated car is a safer bet, if you are concerned about reliability, longevity, and serviceability.

[shiftmygears]

I'm curious about this as well. I've done some searching and found lots of threads full of panic and members advising extended warranties, or dumping as soon as the CPO runs out. My interpretation of common problems:
* HPFP - I think this was fixed sometime in 2010. Google hits for this pretty much dry up around 2010, roughly coinciding with a recall.
* Injectors - expensive, but not the end of the world. Acceptable risk
* Waterpump - the electric waterpump is much more expensive than the old belt-drive ones. That said, it can save the car from engine meltdown, and I want to say Mike Miller (Roundel Tech Talk) stated that they do last longer than the old mechanical ones installed on E46, E39, etc. Not worried about it.
* OFHG - Wow, they still haven't fixed this? Sounds significantly more expensive than repairing the same thing on the E46. Must be more crap in the way. Painful, but acceptable risk.
* Turbos - I'm not clear if the turbos themselves fail, or if it is just wastegate rattle that might or might not have a cheaper fix at an indy mechanic that will play ball. It sounds like this job averages 14 hrs labor, and the turbos are around $700 each. Needing new turbos would be a very bad day, and is the primary reason I'm not sure a 335i is a good idea.

For context, I put up with a '98 540 6-speed for five years (125k miles through 196k miles). An E9X 335i can't be worse than a 540i, can it?

I've been thinking about this myself lately too as I'm getting close to the point that most cars will start needing more work. But for the price it's hard to find a better fun daily driver. The hardtop convertible is a pretty thing too- I always get a lot of comments in the public when I utilize it.

Aside from oil changes my maintenance on my 335 has been about $3K in the last 40k miles. I did go through another 5 from hitting a nasty pothole though.

[bigdaddy63]

I bought a 2007 335i E90 with 82000 miles a little over a year ago. I now have 100300 miles and my water pump just went out last week. I have a replacement ordered for less than $400. Since I have owned it and prior to the water pump I have replaced the valve cover gasket, front tires and spark plugs. Being close to needing new rear tires. As someone mentioned earlier the tires wear quickly. I do my own repairs so cost is not too bad. This car is a blast to drive and I enjoy wrenching so I expect at least 200k miles.

[Seph540i]

For all of you complaining about tires, you must not live in an area where there is a llantera on every street corner. lol I get 19s for my Z for $100 or less.