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      04-05-2014, 08:46 PM   #1
snowymountains
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2006 330xi - Repair Thread

Thought I would post about my new to me 2006 330xi and the issues I've had and still have.

Bought the car in early January with a little over 86k on it. I've put about 7k on it since then. When I got it, everything checked out ok which I was happy about given the weather was arctic cold.

The last few weeks things have been downhill. Started hearing pretty loud road noise so two weekends ago I got it up in the air and found a bad passenger side wheel bearing bad. I also heard a pretty decent whining sound on the engine.

I changed the wheel bearing and with that noise out of the way I tended to the whining sound. When diagnosing that and while on jack stands I thought I heard what I would call a clacking marble rolling around sound underneath. My suspicion is rod bearing. Also, the engine has the ticking sound I have read lots about.

The whining sound turned out to be the oil filter. So the oil and filter got changed. Now with things much quieter that clacking sound is more noticeable. And unfortunately it sure sounds like a rod bearing. Ticking sound is still there which is likely the darn lifters.

So this Monday I'm calling the BMW shop for an appointment to confirm my suspicions. I'm hoping I'm wrong.

In case it is what I think does anyone know of a reliable place to get good used/remanned/or rebuilt N52 engines? I'm in Grand Rapids, MI.

Or any thoughts on whether it would be worth going through the pain of putting new bearings on?

More to come as another BMW saga unfolds!
This being the newest BMW I have had I'm bummed I'm facing the potential to yank the engine. Have had tons more miles than this on other models with no major internal issues.......ugh
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      04-05-2014, 11:08 PM   #2
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Originally Posted by snowymountains View Post
Thought I would post about my new to me 2006 330xi and the issues I've had and still have.

Bought the car in early January with a little over 86k on it. I've put about 7k on it since then. When I got it, everything checked out ok which I was happy about given the weather was arctic cold.

The last few weeks things have been downhill. Started hearing pretty loud road noise so two weekends ago I got it up in the air and found a bad passenger side wheel bearing bad. I also heard a pretty decent whining sound on the engine.

I changed the wheel bearing and with that noise out of the way I tended to the whining sound. When diagnosing that and while on jack stands I thought I heard what I would call a clacking marble rolling around sound underneath. My suspicion is rod bearing. Also, the engine has the ticking sound I have read lots about.

The whining sound turned out to be the oil filter. So the oil and filter got changed. Now with things much quieter that clacking sound is more noticeable. And unfortunately it sure sounds like a rod bearing. Ticking sound is still there which is likely the darn lifters.

So this Monday I'm calling the BMW shop for an appointment to confirm my suspicions. I'm hoping I'm wrong.

In case it is what I think does anyone know of a reliable place to get good used/remanned/or rebuilt N52 engines? I'm in Grand Rapids, MI.

Or any thoughts on whether it would be worth going through the pain of putting new bearings on?

More to come as another BMW saga unfolds!
This being the newest BMW I have had I'm bummed I'm facing the potential to yank the engine. Have had tons more miles than this on other models with no major internal issues.......ugh
Sorry to hear about the problems. I hope it is something simple and if not hopefully you paid cash and got a good deal. If I were to buy a used higher mileage German car I would make sure I put aside 10K for future repairs. Great automobiles but expensive to fix. Certified pre owned from BMW or new are my only 2 choices.
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      04-06-2014, 11:24 AM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SaviorXi View Post
Sorry to hear about the problems. I hope it is something simple and if not hopefully you paid cash and got a good deal. If I were to buy a used higher mileage German car I would make sure I put aside 10K for future repairs. Great automobiles but expensive to fix. Certified pre owned from BMW or new are my only 2 choices.
10k for repairs thats silly I bought my e90 w 90k. I just hit 201k. My repairs since I have owned it have been as follow. Waterpump/thermostat, front driveshaft, one coil pack brake pads front and rear and oil changes and a set of spark plugs... these cars are built well.
Id recommend for the op looking for someone local who knows these cars. Your knocking may not be knocking. Its prob a lifter issue or timing chain issue. Used engine would be way to go as I could only imagine you would pay 2-3 times
What a used engine would cost for rebuilt. There are a few of us w over 200k I know that will be the route I go most likely once I finaly blow this thing up one day.
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      04-06-2014, 04:19 PM   #4
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Originally Posted by freon480 View Post
10k for repairs thats silly I bought my e90 w 90k. I just hit 201k. My repairs since I have owned it have been as follow. Waterpump/thermostat, front driveshaft, one coil pack brake pads front and rear and oil changes and a set of spark plugs... these cars are built well.
Id recommend for the op looking for someone local who knows these cars. Your knocking may not be knocking. Its prob a lifter issue or timing chain issue. Used engine would be way to go as I could only imagine you would pay 2-3 times
What a used engine would cost for rebuilt. There are a few of us w over 200k I know that will be the route I go most likely once I finaly blow this thing up one day.
The 10K would be safety for me just in case the unfortunate transmission or engine bomb would occur.
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      05-03-2014, 09:33 PM   #5
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Here is a quick update.

The sound is in fact the lifters. Once I changed the oil and quieted down things a little I took out my stethoscope and started poking around. After listening at all sorts of locations on the engine it does appear that the sound I thought was rod bearings is the classic lifter noise. Also, the injectors are sure noisy!!! They seem to clear up after the RPM's get up past 2500 though.

I'm attaching a picture to show the spot on the engine where the lifter noise was most apparent with the stethoscope.

The red arrow points to a tab that is on the left side of the engine.

In the next post I'll go in to detail about the next set of repairs I need to make!
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Last edited by snowymountains; 05-04-2014 at 07:18 AM..
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      05-03-2014, 09:44 PM   #6
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Rear Shocks Leaking

This Friday I got in the car at work and I heard a clunking sound when I hit a bump in the parking lot. I hit another bump and didn't hear it...wierd!
Then on the 70 mile trek I hit a few bumps that caused the car to almost feel like it was fishtailing. I also noticed that it seemed to float (not the usual stiff feel) while driving over some ups and downs on the highway. I immediately thought...shocks.

Got home, look under the rear and sure enough....fluid all over the left shock and some starting on the right.

So, here's what I am thinking:

I'd like to go with the Koni FSD package from BavAuto. I want to keep the stock springs as I am not interested in going crazy at this point!

Seems that there are a lot of good opinions on these.

Are they good for a 330xi all wheel drive?

Last edited by snowymountains; 05-04-2014 at 07:20 AM..
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      05-03-2014, 09:51 PM   #7
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Repair saga continues!

All I can say is thank god I can work on cars!!! And that I for some reason love BMW's!!

So, I've had this vibration for a while now. As I mentioned I replaced the right rear bearing and that helped things. But still had vibrations.

I know it's not the tires because the symptoms are the same on balanced winter and summer wheel/tire sets.

I put new rotors and pads on because they were needed! That did nothing to change the vibration.

Next on my list is to put new bearings in the front. While I've had it up in the air a few times none of the bushings have any play and I've checked them a few times now.

If it's not the bearings then I'm leaning towards either the axle CV joints or possibly the drive shaft bearing.

I'm also going to change the front and rear diff fluid. Man that stuff is high dollar!!!

The front dif looks like there is a drain and fill plug. The rear looks like only a fill plug which means you need to suck out the old? If someone reads this can you confirm this?

As things progress I'll update my thread!

Last edited by snowymountains; 05-04-2014 at 07:22 AM..
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      05-05-2014, 10:41 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by snowymountains View Post
All I can say is thank god I can work on cars!!! And that I for some reason love BMW's!!

So, I've had this vibration for a while now. As I mentioned I replaced the right rear bearing and that helped things. But still had vibrations.

I know it's not the tires because the symptoms are the same on balanced winter and summer wheel/tire sets.

I put new rotors and pads on because they were needed! That did nothing to change the vibration.

Next on my list is to put new bearings in the front. While I've had it up in the air a few times none of the bushings have any play and I've checked them a few times now.

If it's not the bearings then I'm leaning towards either the axle CV joints or possibly the drive shaft bearing.

I'm also going to change the front and rear diff fluid. Man that stuff is high dollar!!!

The front dif looks like there is a drain and fill plug. The rear looks like only a fill plug which means you need to suck out the old? If someone reads this can you confirm this?

As things progress I'll update my thread!
Correct. Front has a plug and rear needs to be sucked out. There are DIY's for both.
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