[Pierre Louis]

Originally Posted by skychismo

You don't sound cynical, you sound like you don't really know what you're talking about. The dealer would have nothing to do with a swirl flap actuator sticking. It's most likely due to oily buildup in the intake mixing with carbon from the egr.

So, uh, in "fixing" the car, the dealer, theoretically, just goes by the book and replaces stuff at high cost, while the private mechanic (I've had the best) troubleshoots the car and fixes stuff ahead of time/failure to avoid the customer coming right back with a problem.

Sort of sucks not to know anything about cars...

The trouble is to find a private mechanic that knows enough about BMW diesels and has access to necessary equipment. I've found that the unique Mercedes sens-o-tronic brake system was such an animal and found that the best mechanics had the means to fix/maintain them.

PL

[Pierre Louis]

Unfortunately the last time I discussed these issues with my current private mechanic, he recommended an extended warranty.

PL

[skychismo]

Originally Posted by Pierre Louis

So, uh, in "fixing" the car, the dealer, theoretically, just goes by the book and replaces stuff at high cost, while the private mechanic (I've had the best) troubleshoots the car and fixes stuff ahead of time/failure to avoid the customer coming right back with a problem.

Sort of sucks not to know anything about cars...

The trouble is to find a private mechanic that knows enough about BMW diesels and has access to necessary equipment. I've found that the unique Mercedes sens-o-tronic brake system was such an animal and found that the best mechanics had the means to fix/maintain them.

PL

Unless you're buying the car new the damage is probably already done. Once you pull the intake and walnut blast the head you can start over, but you'd still have to cross your fingers that the the injectors and/or DDE don't take a crap. All of this has nothing to do with the dealer. The one thing they suck on is with DDE failure, as they'll replace all the injectors first. However there are a whole host of other things that can go wrong.

[skychismo]

Originally Posted by Pierre Louis

Unfortunately the last time I discussed these issues with my current private mechanic, he recommended an extended warranty.

PL

Exactly.

[Pierre Louis]

Originally Posted by skychismo

Unless you're buying the car new the damage is probably already done. Once you pull the intake and walnut blast the head you can start over, but you'd still have to cross your fingers that the the injectors and/or DDE don't take a crap. All of this has nothing to do with the dealer. The one thing they suck on is with DDE failure, as they'll replace all the injectors first. However there are a whole host of other things that can go wrong.

You're missing my point. Its not that the dealer does any thing "wrong." I expect a private mechanic to go the extra mile, thus charging me more or less what the dealer does but I get more value, s.a. determining if the injectors or DDE need help or not even if it doesn't "fix" the current problem. I suppose this would only occur with the best mechanics that are also experienced/knowledgable with the specific model. I can name 4 such mechanics from my past experience.

PL

[hybridp]

Originally Posted by Pierre Louis

From reading these pages, it seems like a 335d owner has a choice:

Go to a dealer and be insured, get a bill for up to $15,000 for repairs er.. replacements

or

Go to a private mechanic knowledgable about diesels and be uninsured, get a bill for up to, uh, maybe $3000 for cleaning and repairs.

BTW, "insurance" means a $2500 extended warranty.

Am I wrong?

PL

To me it sounds like the choices are:

1. Get a 335d under CPO and open it up WOT every time you drive and drive it mostly highway if you can. Once the warranty is up, either risk paying a bunch of money if something breaks or drive it

2. Get a 335d under CPO and drive it until the CPO is expired, then walnut blast and do the EGR/DPF/urea delete and maybe add meth since now you have nothing to lose

3. Get a 335d without CPO since you plan on doing these mods/deletes anyways that would void the warranty but make the car reliable.

[AirBull]

You can get an entire new intake manifold for just under $900. At worst case, i would imagine you could replace your intake (and get your old one cleaned to have as a backup or sale,) and then maybe have a mechanic clean the cylinders in the head per the BMW CBU removal procedure. The CBU issue should be something that shouldn't cost more than $2k to have a dealer perform. Use a good diesel conditioner and protect the injectors, as they are $450 or so a piece. You look up all the parts below and get an idea of what it costs to replace them.

http://parts.bmwofsouthatlanta.com/p...wd=&origin=pla

[skychismo]

Originally Posted by AirBull

You can get an entire new intake manifold for just under $900. At worst case, i would imagine you could replace your intake (and get your old one cleaned to have as a backup or sale,) and then maybe have a mechanic clean the cylinders in the head per the BMW CBU removal procedure. The CBU issue should be something that shouldn't cost more than $2k to have a dealer perform. Use a good diesel conditioner and protect the injectors, as they are $450 or so a piece. You look up all the parts below and get an idea of what it costs to replace them.

http://parts.bmwofsouthatlanta.com/p...wd=&origin=pla

My CBU wrecked the swirl flaps, EGR, EGR cooler, and a few sensors. In addition to the intake, they also replaced the MAF. The injectors them started acting up after they blasted the head. Then the AC compressor wouldn't come on for some reason. About a month or so later it's now back with a swirl flap SES. The CBU causes a cascade of problems. My car had 34k miles when the first light went off.

[skychismo]

Originally Posted by Pierre Louis

You're missing my point. Its not that the dealer does any thing "wrong." I expect a private mechanic to go the extra mile, thus charging me more or less what the dealer does but I get more value, s.a. determining if the injectors or DDE need help or not even if it doesn't "fix" the current problem. I suppose this would only occur with the best mechanics that are also experienced/knowledgable with the specific model. I can name 4 such mechanics from my past experience.

PL

Gotcha. I guess I just don't see how that level of service would be isolated to a non dealer. The tech on my car worked hand in hand with BMW NA in order to trouble shoot the issues.

[Pierre Louis]

Originally Posted by hybridp

To me it sounds like the choices are:

1. Get a 335d under CPO and open it up WOT every time you drive and drive it mostly highway if you can. Once the warranty is up, either risk paying a bunch of money if something breaks or drive it

2. Get a 335d under CPO and drive it until the CPO is expired, then walnut blast and do the EGR/DPF/urea delete and maybe add meth since now you have nothing to lose

3. Get a 335d without CPO since you plan on doing these mods/deletes anyways that would void the warranty but make the car reliable.

I am leaning toward getting an extended warranty to cover me after 50,000 miles. Not the usual thing for me.

PL

[Pierre Louis]

Originally Posted by skychismo

Gotcha. I guess I just don't see how that level of service would be isolated to a non dealer. The tech on my car worked hand in hand with BMW NA in order to trouble shoot the issues.

Yeah it really depends on the independent shop's desires and capabilities. Not the best set of choices for the 335d owner IMO.

PL

[grotto]

Don't buy one not worth it. I bought one less than a year ago with 34k miles on it as a CPO car and it has been in the shop several times in less than a year and now as I write is having CBU cleaned at the dealer. I usually keep my BMW's for a long time (150k or so) and this one will be sold before CPO expires in two years from now. Great car but PIA. BMW's have gone down hill profiting from their name.

[kenmasters]

I've had my 2009 D for several months now, put on about 5K km on the odo. So far no issues. The car has now 120,000km. Service history reveals no issues other than replacing the fuel rail about 50K ago. The car from day 1 was modded for track use. Upgraded intercooler, VAC controller, etc. no issues.

My friend who has a stock D has over 230K on the odo. He has CBU but the car still drove without issues. I am curious in why there is such a large range of experiences when it comes to CBU. Perhaps its the fuel in the local areas that creates this variety. Thoughts?

K