Bye, BMW it was fun while it lasted.

[oceanwarrior]

It was fun while it lasted, my 335d was an awesome car when it ran right.
Bought a 2011 335d in 2013, my first BMW, loved the car, the handling and all the little features that make a BMW a driver's car.
Put 7,000 miles on it, had to repair 2 ABS sensors, Replaced the DEF tank, replace the mass airflow sensor, had a minor electrical issue that expensive to trace and repair.
It got so that I'd pray the car would not throw a fault indication when I started it, as my dealer is a 170 mile round trip to get service.
The absolute last straw was after I had the mass airflow sensor repaired, I was driving back home and the transmission blew up at 25,000 miles on the odometer.
Had to have the car towed back to the dealer and rent a car to get back home.
While waiting for the tow truck my wife and I had a heart-to-heart talk and decided the BMW had to go.

BMW stepped up to the plate and warranted the transmission even though we were out of warranty and my dealership offered a fair price for the 335d after it was repaired.
I want to state that BMW gave me excellent service and treated me well, it's just that the 335d was unreliable and was costing to much to own.

Went out and bought nice, boring, Subaru Forester, miss the BMW's power, but I just want peace of mind to have a reliable car.
Friends all laughed at me for buying a Hippie Car, but I now think the Hippies are smarter than us, they buy boring, reliable cars that last forever!
Oh, and I got a Forester with a rare, unheard-of thing in this day and age, an honest 6-speed MANUAL transmission!
So nice to stir gears again and to be able to downshift coming down steep hills.

This will probably be my last post on this forum, it was great while it lasted and enjoyed reading through it.

Bye, Guys and Girls,

Oceanwarrior

[cochise325]

Good luck to you. That Subaru is a nice car. But do you need the awesome AWD in HI?

I personally think a naturally aspirated inline six, running on gasoline, with a six speed manual, is the right BMW to own. And for people living in the USA, that want what I described, there is no choice but to buy a used BMW. Sadly there will be no more new BMWs meeting that description.

So while BMW sales continue to race ahead, there will customers that drift away to other brands.

[oceanwarrior]

Good luck to you. That Subaru is a nice car. But do you need the awesome AWD in HI?

I personally think a naturally aspirated inline six, running on gasoline, with a six speed manual, is the right BMW to own. And for people living in the USA, that want what I described, they is no choice but to buy a used BMW. Sadly there will be no more new BMWs meeting that description.

So while BMW sales continue to race ahead, there will customers that drift away to other brands.

AWD is a plus in Hawaii, lots of unimproved or grass roads, also where I live, the Big Island of Hawaii, it rains so much AND sometimes non-stop, we have algae and moss growing on the roads!
Oh, and we do get snow in Hawaii, on the 14,000 ft. summit of Mauna Kea and the 13,600 ft. summit of Mauna Loa.
You're right on BMW's sales profile, I had my doubts buying a car with a high-torqueing Diesel and an automatic transmission, especially a transmission built by ZF.
ZF builds many fine products, but experience with Diesels and automatic transmissions has shown Diesel engines love to destroy auto transmissions.
A perfect combo for the 335d would have been to use the 6-speed manual transmission Dodge uses behind the Cummins turbo diesel.
Ah, well, it was fun while it lasted.

oceanwarrior

[cochise325]

Wow I did not know those things about HI. So your choice of a new car sounds excellent for those driving conditions. Must be a blast to live in paradise!

[floydr]

...
You're right on BMW's sales profile, I had my doubts buying a car with a high-torqueing Diesel and an automatic transmission, especially a transmission built by ZF.
ZF builds many fine products, but experience with Diesels and automatic transmissions has shown Diesel engines love to destroy auto transmissions.

A perfect combo for the 335d would have been to use the 6-speed manual transmission Dodge uses behind the Cummins turbo diesel.
Ah, well, it was fun while it lasted.

Actually, this is only the 2nd tranny failure I've read about on the 335d and X5d in 6 years, on multiple forums. The 6hp26 has definitely not been the weak spot on these cars - even the tuned ones running 11.8s 1/4 mile times...

The Dodge tranny wouldn't fit under a 335d - way too big. There is no MT on any 35d engine in any market anywhere in the world.

Sorry you had so much trouble - definitely in the minority there, outside of the DEF/SCR. I do want to note that a couple of the problems you had are not unique to the diesel (ABS, electrical).

[shiftmygears]

Newer cars aren't made the same as the older ones. Now they just want to churn a bunch of new flashy cars that fall apart after the warranty period. but then sometimes you just get bad luck.

[diesel335]

Oh No! My 335d got a new mass air flow sensor this summer. It's been doing fine with that since. It's at the dealer now for the DEF tank replacement ... all still under warranty. Hopefully I will not have any more of the same issues you had with yours. I love the diesel and love the car. I don't want to think there are more issues coming ....

[cheech1]

Wow I did not know those things about HI. So your choice of a new car sounds excellent for those driving conditions. Must be a blast to live in paradise!

Yes it is nice to live here, but we do have our problems. The Big Island, where oceanwarrior is from, though is about as close to Paradise as you can get. Probably the best island to own a BMW too, as there are actually some fun roads to drive. But having only one BMW dealer on such a large island sucks.