[CrocodileHunter]

Hello people

Just bought myself a 330d m sport and have a couple of questions I'd like peoples opinions on. Its my first bmw after being into jap stuff for the last few years

After a bit of research i decided i wanted an m57 engined car and found a nice straight car in sliver on a 55 plate.

The things i wanted to ask about have been covered loads of times but there is loads of conflicting information out there.

Firstly swirl flaps. Assuming that my car will have the later type fitted is it worth removing them? From what i can make out i dont think it is? This was more an e46 issue

Next is the egr valve. Can they just be blanked off (or vacuum disconnected and plugged) without causing a fault code on these? My experience with egr valves on all diesels is that they are a complete pain in the neck.

I plan to at least remove the manifold to inspect what its like and at least give it all a clean.

Lastly there seems to be a fair few posts out there about thermostats preventing operating temperature being reached and causing problems. How common actually is this

Any advice will be much appreciated

[Jeff123]

The last point about thermostats normally gets mentioned in the same post as MPG. As long as you can achieve 50mpg driving really steadily on a run and a minimum of 35ish around town, you are in the right ball park for MPG.

[bfleming]

Originally Posted by CrocodileHunter

Lastly there seems to be a fair few posts out there about thermostats preventing operating temperature being reached and causing problems.

Will your car have a DPF? If so, then fully functional thermostats (2 of them, coolant and EGR) are a must. There are other things which are a factor of the thermostats too, so make sure they're 100% in order.
You can access a hidden menu in the onboard computer to see running temperature.

[dragerboy]

EGR Delete will give you a warning lamp on the dash, does with my 2006 330D.

I get 28mpg around town and about 40mpg on a run but I know my main thermostat is not functioning correctly.

You should be able to remove swirl flaps with no issues I believe.

[CrocodileHunter]

Originally Posted by Jeff123

The last point about thermostats normally gets mentioned in the same post as MPG. As long as you can achieve 50mpg driving really steadily on a run and a minimum of 35ish around town, you are in the right ball park for MPG.

Thanks, im going to go into the hidden menu and check the coolant temps.

Its seems to be good on fuel, its gotba good service history but no mention of thermostat replacement. I might just change both of them for piece of mind.

[CrocodileHunter]

Originally Posted by dragerboy

EGR Delete will give you a warning lamp on the dash, does with my 2006 330D.

I get 28mpg around town and about 40mpg on a run but I know my main thermostat is not functioning correctly.

You should be able to remove swirl flaps with no issues I believe.

Im going take the manifold off and check it all out first. Probably wont bother blanking the egr if it causes a fault code to show up?

Supposei could try it first and if it brings the light on just delete the code and reinstate

[CrocodileHunter]

Originally Posted by bfleming

Will your car have a DPF? If so, then fully functional thermostats (2 of them, coolant and EGR) are a must. There are other things which are a factor of the thermostats too, so make sure they're 100% in order.
You can access a hidden menu in the onboard computer to see running temperature.

Are there any thermostat manufacturers to avoid? Think if decided im going to just replace mine

There are loads out there. Anyone know who are the bmw oem manufacturer?

[BMW Steve]

Originally Posted by CrocodileHunter

Hello people

Just bought myself a 330d m sport and have a couple of questions I'd like peoples opinions on. Its my first bmw after being into jap stuff for the last few years

After a bit of research i decided i wanted an m57 engined car and found a nice straight car in sliver on a 55 plate.

The things i wanted to ask about have been covered loads of times but there is loads of conflicting information out there.

Firstly swirl flaps. Assuming that my car will have the later type fitted is it worth removing them? From what i can make out i dont think it is? This was more an e46 issue

Next is the egr valve. Can they just be blanked off (or vacuum disconnected and plugged) without causing a fault code on these? My experience with egr valves on all diesels is that they are a complete pain in the neck.

I plan to at least remove the manifold to inspect what its like and at least give it all a clean.

Lastly there seems to be a fair few posts out there about thermostats preventing operating temperature being reached and causing problems. How common actually is this

Any advice will be much appreciated

Swirl Flaps, get them removed, they are problematic across the whole range and not just the e46. Although the M57 had the newer heavy duty plastic swirl flaps they are still prone to breaking off...

Removing the manifold to give every thing a clean is a very good idea, you will get to see how much mess is in there also cleaning will help with better performance and throttle response.

Thermostat, or Stat's, if they have not been replaced then its worth doing some preventative maintenance and replacing them, consider replacing the water pump as well.

I found with the M57 engine (On my e60) that they love clean oil, try and carry out oil changes at more regular intervals, I did mine every 6K, a bit like the f11 535D I have at the moment. There is also the CCB, although it has no filter now its worth replacing that every couple of years, more then likely still the original one in there.

EGR, never removed it on my old e60, just cleaned it out from time to time....

There is also stuff like the fuel filter, if that's not been replaced, do that as well....

But most of all, enjoy the drive.

[Maxlude]

E90 330d SE manual. remapped, Koni FSD/EPK. 2006/120k miles. Owned for 9 yrs.
Did nothing apart from routine servicing up until 100k miles but since then engine wise:
-EGR Thermostat (DPF errors)
-Main Thermostat (DPF errors)
-Water pump (precautionary whilst doing main thermostat)
-Glow plugs (2 showing as errors so replaced all 6)
-Upstream & Downstream Exhaust Gas Temp sensors (DPF regen errors)
-Inlet manifold seals (Oil leaking down right hand side of engine)
-Deflap (Oil leaking down right hand side of engine - next job to do)
-EGR Pressure converter (making thud thud noise at idle - next job to do)
-Red intercooler pipe (Blowing oil from lower seal - next job to do)

[CrocodileHunter]

Originally Posted by BMW Steve

Swirl Flaps, get them removed, they are problematic across the whole range and not just the e46. Although the M57 had the newer heavy duty plastic swirl flaps they are still prone to breaking off...

Removing the manifold to give every thing a clean is a very good idea, you will get to see how much mess is in there also cleaning will help with better performance and throttle response.

Thermostat, or Stat's, if they have not been replaced then its worth doing some preventative maintenance and replacing them, consider replacing the water pump as well.

I found with the M57 engine (On my e60) that they love clean oil, try and carry out oil changes at more regular intervals, I did mine every 6K, a bit like the f11 535D I have at the moment. There is also the CCB, although it has no filter now its worth replacing that every couple of years, more then likely still the original one in there.

EGR, never removed it on my old e60, just cleaned it out from time to time....

There is also stuff like the fuel filter, if that's not been replaced, do that as well....

But most of all, enjoy the drive.

Great tips thanks.

You can pick up a pair of gates stats for around £60. Or a genuine bmw main stat for about the same. Ive never had an issue with gates stuff before and consider it oem standard. Or in this case is it worth getting gen bmw stuff?

I'll inspect the breather too, if it looks sludgy I'll replace. On these as its only a lump of plastic i assume a cheaper pattern part would be just fine

[CrocodileHunter]

Originally Posted by Maxlude

E90 330d SE manual. remapped, Koni FSD/EPK. 2006/120k miles. Owned for 9 yrs.
Did nothing apart from routine servicing up until 100k miles but since then engine wise:
-EGR Thermostat (DPF errors)
-Main Thermostat (DPF errors)
-Water pump (precautionary whilst doing main thermostat)
-Glow plugs (2 showing as errors so replaced all 6)
-Upstream & Downstream Exhaust Gas Temp sensors (DPF regen errors)
-Inlet manifold seals (Oil leaking down right hand side of engine)
-Deflap (Oil leaking down right hand side of engine - next job to do)
-EGR Pressure converter (making thud thud noise at idle - next job to do)
-Red intercooler pipe (Blowing oil from lower seal - next job to do)

Did your dpf errors ever amount to much, ie ruin the dpf?

Or did replacement of the stats allow if to sort itself out?

[bfleming]

Originally Posted by CrocodileHunter

Did your dpf errors ever amount to much, ie ruin the dpf?

The thermostat issues will mean the DPF can't regenerate, meaning it will get full. A DPF can't be ruined though, it can just be full. The ECU (DDE) needs to be error-free before it will regen, so yes, plenty of people have been fleeced & will badmouth diesels & DPFs, but in reality they are manageable.

[CrocodileHunter]

Originally Posted by Maxlude

E90 330d SE manual. remapped, Koni FSD/EPK. 2006/120k miles. Owned for 9 yrs.
Did nothing apart from routine servicing up until 100k miles but since then engine wise:
-EGR Thermostat (DPF errors)
-Main Thermostat (DPF errors)
-Water pump (precautionary whilst doing main thermostat)
-Glow plugs (2 showing as errors so replaced all 6)
-Upstream & Downstream Exhaust Gas Temp sensors (DPF regen errors)
-Inlet manifold seals (Oil leaking down right hand side of engine)
-Deflap (Oil leaking down right hand side of engine - next job to do)
-EGR Pressure converter (making thud thud noise at idle - next job to do)
-Red intercooler pipe (Blowing oil from lower seal - next job to do)

Sorry double post

[MrSweet1991]

Originally Posted by CrocodileHunter

Hello people

Just bought myself a 330d m sport and have a couple of questions I'd like peoples opinions on. Its my first bmw after being into jap stuff for the last few years

After a bit of research i decided i wanted an m57 engined car and found a nice straight car in sliver on a 55 plate.

The things i wanted to ask about have been covered loads of times but there is loads of conflicting information out there.

Firstly swirl flaps. Assuming that my car will have the later type fitted is it worth removing them? From what i can make out i dont think it is? This was more an e46 issue

Next is the egr valve. Can they just be blanked off (or vacuum disconnected and plugged) without causing a fault code on these? My experience with egr valves on all diesels is that they are a complete pain in the neck.

I plan to at least remove the manifold to inspect what its like and at least give it all a clean.

Lastly there seems to be a fair few posts out there about thermostats preventing operating temperature being reached and causing problems. How common actually is this

Any advice will be much appreciated

As others have said, remove swirl flaps as even BMW ditched them I've read. As for EGR remove the vacuum pipe and block, that said theres still exhaust fumes floating around so blanking is a cleaner option. MPG yes youre pretty much correct, i got 52-53MPG on a run but that was doing 60MPH so bare that in mind, town driving i get 32-33MPG. M57n2 ive heard doesnt suffer with timing chain issues so thats a bonus (doesnt mean it still cant slack/snap at some stage) thernostats are an issue, access hidden menu and town driving should get 90's but motorway i only get mid 70's and got 52-53MPG so bare that in mind. With mine that air intake hose at the front always come away from the housing (above radiator fan) seems the clips break so a quick fix is just use a screw through the top.. post some pics/vids would like to see your 330D

[CrocodileHunter]

Thanks for all the tips folks.

Before i go too too mad I'm going to see if there are any fault codes on the car. I only have a couple of generic types of obd software. Not sure if they will be good enough but will give it a go.

Does anyone know if these c110 readers are any good?

[CrocodileHunter]

Originally Posted by MrSweet1991

post some pics/vids would like to see your 330D

Here it is, it's a really clean car

[IMG][/IMG]

[Maxlude]

Originally Posted by CrocodileHunter

Did your dpf errors ever amount to much, ie ruin the dpf?

Or did replacement of the stats allow if to sort itself out?

Combo of the open thermostats and the exhaust gas temp sensors caused DPF to stop regens. Once those fixed (EGT sensors can be tricky as they get seized in the DPF) took car out on motorway, it would try and start a regen but then feedback the pressure was too high (around 45mb if I recall) so stop. Had to constantly clear the errors until it completed a full regen. Back pressure then returned to around 10mb and all good.

[CrocodileHunter]

Originally Posted by Maxlude

Combo of the open thermostats and the exhaust gas temp sensors caused DPF to stop regens. Once those fixed (EGT sensors can be tricky as they get seized in the DPF) took car out on motorway, it would try and start a regen but then feedback the pressure was too high (around 45mb if I recall) so stop. Had to constantly clear the errors until it completed a full regen. Back pressure then returned to around 10mb and all good.

Interesting thanks.

What sortware setup do you use for code reading? I must get myself something

[Maxlude]

Originally Posted by CrocodileHunter

Interesting thanks.

What sortware setup do you use for code reading? I must get myself something

I'm just using a C110. Basic but easy to use.

[CrocodileHunter]

Originally Posted by Maxlude

I'm just using a C110. Basic but easy to use.

Ive seen those, only about £30 too.

I didn't realise they were any better than a basic obd scanner? If it can read dpf pressures etc then thats probably fine for my requirements too

[CrocodileHunter]

I changed by the thermostats in my car yesterday, the job wasn't too bad to do, i found s decent guide on this site which helped alot.

Started the car and bled the system and all seems to be well. Going into the hidden menu the temp reached 90 deg C so I'm happy with that.

The only thing to happen which concerned me a little was as it was idling to warm up it reached approx 70 deg then started so smoke a bit? I took it for a drive and after not too long it cleared and seems to be fine now.

Unless it was a dpf regen (the car has been sitting around quite a bit recently) i don't know what that was all about?

[mrbubba]

Good luck getting 50mpg on the car, mine saw 43mpg when i first bought it, now sits at 37mpg constantly.
Hey a fault code reader on it and see if there are any issues. Mine needed the thermostats changing and coil packs