[iamjamen]

Originally Posted by DonDre

Fuel Injectors: Injectors are common to fail also. They have had over 10 revision, but are still known to fail. Symptoms are intermittent misfires and loss of power. If you were lucky enough to buy one between late 2009 and early 2010, you should have a 10yr/120k mile warranty on the injectors. If you don’t have a warranty, the labor to replace them is fairly easy, and they can be had for around $850-$1000 for a set of index 12 revised injectors.

FYI:

Fuel Injectors – Limited Warranty Extension to 10 Years/120,000 Miles
E90 produced from 4/23/2009 to 2/25/2010
E92 produced 7/27/2009 to 02/26/2010
E93 produced 8/29/2009 to 2/25/2010

[mex2309]

Such a good post! This saves days of research. Wish I could find something like this on other used car forums.

[WhiteBeard]

Also maybe OP can update/add section about how to spot if ECU was tampered with, like jb4 etc. - not that it matters, but it's good to know if car was modded or if it was stock. I think ECU cover plate has black bolts on top and if someone opened it to install jb4 - there should be scuffs on black bolts - easy to check. That being said an experienced owner could have done it very carefully, so no signs of wear are visible, but still a good quick trick to recognize if car was stock or not

And BTW why is this not sticky yet? Where are mods?

FUCK YOU MODS!!! - ok this is going to attract their attention lol (hey mods, please stick this thread - it's more useful than 99% of BS here on forum)

[TwinTurboTime]

Great list. Would be great if you could add popular options and how to identify if the car has them.

[mweisdorfer]

I'd probably add to the part about intake valves is that purchasing a RB PCV valve and replacing it along with the PVC vent hose every 50k is a must for reducing the carbon build up on the intake valves. Also, using an oil catch can will reduce the amount carbon buildup on the intake valves.

[DonDre]

Thanks for all the props guys. I am going to add a few things this week that you all suggested.

[TwinTurboTime]

How much does the average N54 owner spend on maintenance a year?

[335e92tx]

Good effort. I might also suggest asking if the under tray can be removed to ensure the purchaser is getting good info on leaks.. It gets complicated at about 6 yrs +

[buzzedhornet]

Thank you for the write up. This will be my 4th BMW in a row and second E9X platform.

Question for you experts. OP says to stay away from low milage 335's. Didn't most of those things you mentioned get resolved on the 2011-13 "is" models. I am currently looking for one in the 30-40k mile range.

What if it's serviced at the dealer it was purchased from. The dealer wont give me a copy of the records because of "personal info on the po", what BS!

I will have a PPI from my indy of the past 10 years but thats only if the car is local, I am looking up and down the west.

Would love any pointers on the 'is' cars.

[jt335i]

Just refreshing this useful topic since it seems that there are more frequent posters looking to buy a used 335 (N54).

[kbsmth]

I'll need to set aside some time to write up the full story about how I stumbled across my 335i N54 almost 2 weeks ago, and leading up until delivery yesterday. I was happy to hear that much of the caution you spoke about, validated my scenario and condition that my car was in..

Thanks for writing this up to benefit those folks like me, first time bmw owners who are optimistic about the future.

[DonDre]

If you'd like additional info and media, I worked with FCP Euro to create this article linked below.


N54 Ownership Guide

[wes.myers]

subscribed

[BreakingTraction]

Hi there, sorry to bring up an old thread but I feel, for my question, it's a better idea than starting a new one.

I've researched these engines to death in the hope that I can justify owning one of these without it becoming a money pit in spite of the known issues. Thank you to DonDre for his concise summary.

I want to know if once the big issues (HPFP, water pump, coils, injectors, OFHG, valve cover gasket, turbo wastegate rattle) are resolved, are they recurring or are they done and dusted?

I intend to daily one of these so it has to be fairly reliable. My hope is that with appropriate preventative maintenance for the listed issues, or in seeking out a car with them already fixed/replaced, I can avoid any major problems. Cheers

[bimmerzeit]

I bought my 2007 335i almost two years ago with 182,000 original miles. Original turbos. One owner car, with many thousands in repairs all done at BMW dealer. So far, so good!

[AZE93M3]

I recently purchased a 2009 335i with 79k miles. The turbos were replaced by BMW about 2 years ago, but the car has a bad wastegate rattle on deceleration, especially dropping from 3,000 RPM to idle. Given the recent turbo replacement, is it likely this is just a wastegate actuator problem as opposed to the whole turbo? There is no noticeable loss of boost pressure. Am I safe to keep driving and just deal with the noise?

Thanks

[dreinberger]

Excellent info, thank you. When I purchased my 2009 e92 335i it had none of these issues at 50k miles. 4 years later at 65k several of these have popped up. Nature of the beast.

[mittu]

I'm new to the n54 scene. Tryna figure out which oil is best to use, Castrol gtx or liqui moly molygen?
Here in the UK both are about the same price.
5L is around £40-42.