[nicholaf]

I have an 08 335xi with 105,000 on it, bought it 4 years ago with 60,000 as a college graduation present to myself. I've loved this car since I first drove it. I still find it wildly attractive, but it's been a constant struggle to maintain. I can't logically justify repairing the oil leaks (oil pan gasket/valve cover). Putting $2,500 into a car only worth about $7,000 just doesn't seem right. especially after doing the spark plugs/coils a month ago, installing KW V1's last summer along with a new set of tires, and doing the thermostat and water-pump months prior. How do I part with something I still adore?? I am starting to realize I'm in an abusive relationship. I don't know if I need to be talked from the ledge or given a push. Figured you guys could advise either way.

Thank you and best wishes,

an unenthused enthusiast.

[CTinline-six]

335i's are expensive to maintain. With that said, there are few cars out there that are similar.

While $2,500 is a decent amount of maintenance on a $7,000 car, you have to look beyond that. What would it cost to replace the car? A newer car has higher insurance, payments, taxes, still will break eventually, etc. My cars aren't worth much, and neither is my GF's 325i. They were bought with cash a few years ago though, and any maintenance will be less than monthly payments and higher insurance on a newer vehicle.

$2,500 isn't all that abnormal for a 2008 with over 100k miles on it. My friend spent that on his 2006 Acura TL redoing the suspension and brakes. Like me, it was cheaper to put money into his paid-off car knowing it would be good for a while than drop the cash on a newer ride.

Also, how bad is the oil pan gasket leak? The valve cover can be done DIY, and if not done the oil will leak on the exhaust, but the oil pan can be left alone if it is just a minor seep. My Jeep Cherokee has had a small oil pan leak for about 6 years now, and it doesn't cause any problems. As long as oil isn't dumping all over your exhaust and creating a fire hazard you will be fine.

For me, I hang on to things I like to drive. I could buy a new car tomorrow but there aren't many out there that really interest me. I looked at F30 340i's and while they were quick the steering and handling wasn't the same.

[boostE92d]

Sounds terrible. I have my wife's old 05'civic that we take turns driving, to keep the miles down on our newer cars. It never brakes down. Literally, it has never broken down in any way. I guess I would be willing to trade you for your uninspiring 335. Just trying to help you out, lmk.

[OP3NAIR]

Simply put, how far will $2500 get you in a new car? 5 months? 6 months?
I would say leaks at 100k are routine maintenance. If you like the car, it's not worth getting rid of it unless you're going to replace it with something you like more. And remember, that new car comes with payments AND repair bills.
If it's any consolation, I took an E46 off my dads hands, and have dumped Over $3000 into it in the last 3 months. It's finally squared away and running great, but I know it'll need a clutch soon. So I'm gonna get it done. Why? Because the test of the car is pretty solid, and it's a manual wagon. Pretty hard to replace those. My dad resisted getting rid of it for as long as he could, but got tired of fixing it. I wasn't about to let it go. Upside is I have no payments on it. So when it's running, it's a free car.

[CTinline-six]

Originally Posted by boostE92d

Sounds terrible. I have my wife's old 05'civic that we take turns driving, to keep the miles down on our newer cars. It never brakes down. Literally, it has never broken down in any way. I guess I would be willing to trade you for your uninspiring 335. Just trying to help you out, lmk.

Keep an eye on the cooling system on that 2005 Civic. Head gaskets are common on that generation Civic. Just did one on my sister's 2005 1.7L Civic. Not a hard job, but something to watch for. Hers has about 160k miles.

[spencers]

I know your feelings exactly. I've been hit with the starter and water pump failures on mine. Luckily I DIY'ed both and didn't have to pay arm/leg.

Oil pan gasket and oil filter housing gasket are now leaking so add that to the list.

Maintenance on these is a pain in the ass, especially as it turns over 100k miles. But that's part of the "fun" in owning one past the majority of its depreciation. Just enjoy driving it when you can!

[gxe2se]

The valve cover is important. As for the oil pan, I'd wait to get that done. If everything else in the car is updated, then the maintenance for the car is worth it.

How long do you plan to drive it? at 100k expect to put some money into it to ensure driving dynamics and overall maintenance.

$2,500 is a down payment. But you owe $0, then consider that $2,500 a downpayment for a car that would be a pleasure to drive for the next year or two.

@spencers you sell your PE exhaust yet?

[GreenMeansGo]

Originally Posted by spencers

I know your feelings exactly. I've been hit with the starter and water pump failures on mine. Luckily I DIY'ed both and didn't have to pay arm/leg.

Oil pan gasket and oil filter housing gasket are now leaking so add that to the list.

Maintenance on these is a pain in the ass, especially as it turns over 100k miles. But that's part of the "fun" in owning one past the majority of its depreciation. Just enjoy driving it when you can!

Anyone ever do a "group buy" on an oil pan gasket repair? I'm looking down the same barrel right now. Sounds like there's 3 of us already..

[tlow98]

Repair the OHFG and valve cover and leave the pan gasket as it's not hurting anything.

Have you done turbos yet? Likely, they'll be next.

You bought one of the most complicated German cars on the market for its time. All of this should be no surprise. I'd say take the opportunity to learn how to DIY.

You'll appreciate the car so much more. If not, expect offers around 4-5k given the maintenance that needs to be done. You'll pay for it one way or the other...

[N52UNED]

I totally see where you're coming from ... there comes a point where you have to weigh sinking more money into a car or ditch it. As you likely already have figured, you're at the point where costly repairs are fairly common with 335's of this milage (thinking about turbos).

First off ... unless you're looking at trade-in value, I'd say your 335xi is worth more than $7k. If I had to guess, more like $8,500 depending on how clean the car is and your local market (without gasket issues).

If other than the leaks you mentioned, and the rest of the car is well sorted .. to me your car is still worth enough to make the investment worthwhile. Plus it's a pretty cool car so it has cache working in its favor. Until you have to invest close to half the amount of value, repairing is a pretty good option. Also the car only has 106k miles, there's a lot of life left in it yet ... so you can get a good return on your investment.

If you look to sell the car, you're gonna have to disclose the issues (unless you're a dirtbag). With that, anyone who's willing to buy the car is going to take the repairs into consideration ... so you're going to lose part if not all of that $2,500 selling it as is. And if you look to trade it into a dealer ... you're going to lose that amount anyway since dealers aren't going to give you a good price for it. And they'll likely be able to figure out its got gasket issues. So it's a lose / lose situation when you think about it cost wise.


Like others ... I'm in the camp of fixing the valve cover gasket and holding off on the oil pan gasket until later (I'd wait until it starts putting you at least half quart down between oil changes. A buddy of mine's 335 leaks a quart and is just getting around to it). Until then, find a quality shop that gives you the best price. Regarding the VCG, if you're not going to DIY it ... you can find a place that will do it for a reasonable price ... just shop around as the prices will vary.


Honestly at this point ... the only reason to sell it is if you just want to be done with it. Unfortunately even that is going to cost you money due to the lower price you're going to get for it due the the repair issues.


Good luck on your decision. Interested to hear what you do.

[Game]

Ditch it.

I hit 115k on my 335, got an S5 and couldn't be happier.

[N52UNED]

Originally Posted by Game

Ditch it.

I hit 115k on my 335, got an S5 and couldn't be happier.

This must be a quandary that a lot of 335 owners face ... the Cars for Sale forum is loaded with 335s. (most with a laundry list of repairs done with mileage varying from 50k to 100k+)

Regarding the S5 ... Audi's seem to be pretty good vs BMW especially when it comes to issues at low mileage ... but when they start having problems they get just as expensive (especially O2 sensors). I can't say I'm a fan of their electronics which get seriously glitchy as they get older or even not so old, some of their interior pieces don't hold up very well to constant use ... and of course their notorious headlight issues. But they do handle super; although not as smooth a ride, and more body roll. But hands down ... fantastic auto transmissions are incredibly smooth through the gears.... and most importantly ... fun to drive.

[nicholaf]

I was able to save SOME money by doing some of the work myself i.e. Brakes**/rotors, oil filter housing gasket/ pullies-tensioner-belt, the coilover install, and the spark plugs/ignition coils. I'm just finding less and less time to fit it in, though it would save me $4-500. I want to ignore the oil pan but I lost about a quart between my last oil change and the one last month. I'm just weary spending a good amount and fixing one problem(valve cover)with a few more looming in the near future i.e. Oil pan gasket, steering fluid resovior, maybe injectors or hpfp and even possibly turbos. It's hard not to see it as a ticking time bomb. A beautiful, ticking time-bomb.
^Almost forgot literally ticking, will probably have to repair the clutch too.

Thanks for all of the input, I'm really enjoying all of the responses

Cheers

[Bamaben]

You'll have to do those same repairs on any car so what's the big deal?

[NGEE]

Where is BrakesNotBreaks when you need him?

[NGEE]

Sounds like you've already taken care of the usual suspects, except maybe the starter and walnut blast. My 2007 has almost 200k and turbos are still good. If it's your only car, I understand that maybe you want something newer. But if you love the car, seems like you're good to go.

[dlf750]

Originally Posted by Game

Ditch it.

I hit 115k on my 335, got an S5 and couldn't be happier.

I drove the new S5 cabrio, amazing car!

[sirdaft1]

OP- Beyond the maintenance items you've mentioned, you're also dealing with an EXTREMELY capable and tuner friendly platform. So it is a matter of time until you drop many, many, many more dollars on upgrades . Only fair to take into consideration as well.

To me it sounds like this platform may not be the right fit for you at this stage in your life.

[delmarco]

Hoestly as a long time BMW owner and DIYer (three BMW cars over a 13 year period) I have to agree with you. I think I stopped recommending the BMW brand to people that ask me when I got my E90.

These cars are now so complicated and tedious that when they get old in anyway the maintenance expense and hassle is an absolute nightmare.

When you tell me a water pump costs thousands of dollars because it has a computer inside of it and you have to jack up the car and remove the wheels to change a fog lamp bulbs or peel back an entire fender to fix a leaky wash fluid tank or depend on run flat tires in a car that doesn't sell with a jack or spare tire....then I have to point people to other car brands.

I won't even say run to a Honda Civic or a T. Corolla but current and recent Audi's are easy to maintain and cheap because they share many readily available parts among the VW group. Subaru cars are fun to drive and won't drive you bonkers with maintenance.

[Joebie]

Hey this is something I can actually speak to.

I'm a young guy, I don't have tons of cash to throw around like some.

So I bought a 135i when I was 24 years old, duh, what else would I do? I had just graduated college with an engineering degree and thought I was making a decent wage so why not?

After just 4 months of owning it and working on it a few times I realized just how much a pain in the butt the car was going to be and sold it at a slight loss.

I bought a 328i.

I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss the power. The N54 is an AWESOME thing when its running right but there are just way too many common problems for even me, someone who DIYs everything except for alignments (and even sometimes those) to pay for or have the time to work on.

But the mental burden of the N54 and what it might do to my time and bank account is gone and that's such a relief for me. I still have a classy, attractive, 4-door, naturally aspirated, port injected, 6 speed, comfortable, 50/50 weight distribution German sports sedan. I think the worst two things that could possibly happen would be a water pump failure ($500 + easy DIY) or an oil pan gasket leak ($50 + harder DIY).

No fancy 12th revision piezoelectric direct injectors, zero wastegates to rattle, no carbon buildup to be cleaned every 20k miles, no pressurized charge pipes to burst, no HPFP in sight, etc. etc. etc. etc. etc.

I really wish I could afford a 135i or a 335i. But a 328i is a great substitution if you can stomach a slower ride.

[Jeff@TopGearSolutions]

If anyone wants to keep a high mileage N54 I highly recommend having a good knowledge of the vehicle, it's quire and flaws as well as being handy with a wrench. If you were to maintain this car to a "T" after 100K miles and have someone like the dealer bang you out for each repair, it would become very costly. However, as a DIY type of Joe, it's not TOO bad. I tell all folks looking at high mileage 335 to accommodate for an easy $2500 in getting everything up to par. A lot of folks and I mean A LOT don't maintain their cars very well. This includes pro-active maintenance. Most people wait for a light to do something. Meanwhile the injectors are ticking louder then a diesel, valve cover, oil filter housing and oil pan gasket are leaking, turbos are rattling and spark plugs are foiled - but no LIGHT means nothing is getting fixed. These cars require attention. There is also the few that are actually fairly reliable with little issue. The engine is stout but the accessories and other areas due require attention. If you want a reliable high mileage car stick to the Honda/Toyota market and I mean that in a sincere way. Any German car, Audi, BMW, Merc become a pain at high mileage - some better then others.

[lukasB]

I think you are right just give up get yourself an suv a wife a dog a kid and a TV and call it a day with your life you are too old for this car nonsense anyway right?