[andreu12qw]

Loved seeing some of the other stories here so I wanted to share mine.

Before the BMW:

2005 Subaru Legacy GT. Bought used in college and this turned out to be a great buy and a lot of fun. It was not the sharpest or fastest and towards the end it burned 2 quarts of oil to one full tank but it took me across the US and it ALWAYS had me looking back after I parked it. It was one of those underestimated fun cars, in my mind.

With regards to the accident. Family ran a red light doing near 80mph. The front end was toast and something sparked a fire. The car was gone..

[andreu12qw]

After this car was totaled, I was in no hurry looking for the replacement and decided this would be the time I go for a BMW. Weighing my options between the 335i and an M3, I decided at the time to go with the 335i. I found one that was the color I wanted with all the options I was looking for.

As this car was bone stock, I was planning on choosing my modes smartly and "doing it right the first time" but that plan went out the window as there were other large life purchases I was planning at the same time so it will still be done right but just a lot slower.

First mod was a no brainer.. Fire extinguisher. Never would I let myself end up in a situation like I was in previously again.

Mod #2 was another easy choice. Since I had the Cobb accessport from the Subaru, I decided to keep it and have it re-coded for the BMW. It may not provide the most power with its OTS tunes but it's been solid and with what I am doing with this car I am happy.

Next was a modified stock rear exhaust section. I liked this idea because it was stock looking but gave the car a nice note.

#4 was braided brake lines, some heavy duty brake fluid and higher temp brake pads.

Next, I wanted to upgrade the stock speakers and liked what Bavsound has done. Their stage 1 kits are plug and play and for a few extra bucks you get that little tool kit that I keep in my car now for quick fixes.

[andreu12qw]

After a few months with the car I wanted to address the run flats, i.e. TOSS THEM.

at the same time I was looking at cup kits as this is a daily and I did not see coilers to be that necessary. I went with Bilstein's B-12 Kit and I will say the car drove really well in my mind. It's not going to be a Nurburgring track tool or glide over bumps like a Lexus, but for everyday drivability, weekend trackability 5 times a year and overall longevity, I felt this kit struck a nice balance.

After getting the kit installed the track day bug bit..

[CJ421]

Glad to see you took it on track!

Beautiful car. Le Mans Blue is outstanding in the sunlight.

Charles

[andreu12qw]

Originally Posted by CJ421

Glad to see you took it on track!

Beautiful car. Le Mans Blue is outstanding in the sunlight.

Charles

Thank you! Coming from a Subaru, This 335 feels like a better sorted chassis. With a handful of new, stiffer bushings and heavy duty pads and fluid, this car hold up well during 20 min sessions.

[bkwld]

Beautiful car. Certainly a classic in my opinion. Well equipped MT, M Sport stock with tasteful mods, just as it should be. Great choice!

[shawn2010]

Nice car, looks really nice, looks better on track!

[andreu12qw]

Update:
From the time I visited Laguna Seca there was a laundry list of changes that I was able to complete. I will post photos here in a little but here is the rundown.

I took the B-12 kit off the car as my front end dropped more than the advertised amount. I moved from central valley, California to Los Angeles and my front bumper went from spotless (literally), to covered in scratches in about a month. Growing tired of scraping, I swapped out the b-12 kit for new B8's and the M-sport springs. This setup was alright but the car had more body-roll and dive than the B-12 kit and so I started to look for new options that would fix that while maintaining some usable clearance.

While I debated my suspension options, I carried out my plans to refresh the rear end. I had Malek@MRF install his solid rear subframe bushings along with car_con Condor Speed shop's Diff bushings. while the subframe was out I had the sway bar replaced with an Eibach rear bar. Not the most extreme but I wanted to balance out the car so I bought their non-adjustable F/R kit. I will say the front bar was a noticeable improvement as I installed that beforehand. MRF's solid bushings cleaned up the rear end wiggle I experienced on track and really made the car feel more stable. There is no increase in NVH with the subframe bushings. zero, zip, zilch, nada. I say this for the people that bought a BMW for the comfort and quietness, there is a MICROSCOPIC increase in NVH with the condor speed shop bushings BUT as long as you don't hate fun and a feel that this car should have come with from the factory, then you wont notice it at all. With the windows down or music playing you cant hear any difference..

After this install, I hit up a few more track events and the car was great!

Over the last year, I took care of a clutch replacement around 140,000 miles due to a failing throw out bearing. Was told my clutch had a lot of meat left on it so I could have possibly taken it to 200K.

I then decided on a set of coilovers. Went with Fortune Auto. I have seen mixed reviews but in doing my research, these guys were the friendliest in answering my questions and were also ABLE to answer my questions. They also have that 5 year warranty! I purchased these around the time that global supply chains started to strain as things slowly started to open up. The install took about a month as I needed some parts swapped out shortly after starting the install. My wife is forever scarred by me telling her "this will only take a few hours on Saturday and Sunday".. I also added the turner motorsports rear lower monoball shock mounts and they made installing and adjusting the shock tube height a breeze as the lower threaded stud can slide into the monoball mount a lot easier than the rubber mount. While this was not the sole reason for getting these, its was a very nice benefit. I will eventually get the solid upper mounts to help solidify the rear suspension.

After getting everything installed and aligned, I scored a cheap set of RE-71r's (as they were stopping production on these) and picked up a set of BimmerWorld's TA5R wheels. With a more track appropriate alignment and some more serious tires, I headed out to the streets of willow and Holy S%!$. This car was hilarious fun! Set some decent lap times and ended up only a few second behind my buddy in his E92 M3. Only got two out of the four events in due to a misfire. Limped home and swapped out what looked like the original plugs and coilpacks. If these were the originals, they served me and the previous two owners well, up to 152k miles!

After this track day, I visited Malek@MRF again and he hooked it UP with rod bearings, the waterpump and thermostat along with some other tender loving care for ol' blue. If you can make the drive to his shop I 100% recommend going to him.

One thing I have seen on Youtube only a few times, are the "influencers" that actually invest heavy in BMW maintenance over some of the other useless or less beneficial mods. I get it that they will do the flamboyant mods for views but it is funny to see someone like the Vehicle Virals channel where some of the episodes are just maintenance. If you really want to flex nowadays, show me your E36 in perfect working condition. No floppy headliners, or burnt out pixels.


Anyways, that's all I have for now. Will follow up with photos shortly!

[andreu12qw]

Updates:

over the past two years I have tried out a few wheel styles. I did like the 193's my car came with but I always had my eye on the 335D wheels. They were hard to come by so I tried a set of Z4 wheels before hand.

I found a crack in one of the rear Z4 wheels. It still held air and did not wobble. I discovered the crack when I was trying to sell the wheels so I just gave them away.

I came across the TA5R's from Bimmerworld during one of their initial sales and decided to snatch up a set. I have loved them and you can feel the difference in weight. I still miss the 335D wheels but am very happy with my Bimmerworld wheels.

[Quiter]

Nice upgrade

[andreu12qw]

Filling in the story:

Over the lockdown I decided to add some storage to the garage.

Not my ideal setup but will get there soon.

[andreu12qw]

Suspension updates:

As mentioned earlier I had switched from the B-12 kit to B-8's with stock sport springs and then the Fortune Auto's. I also threw on M3 arms from and back as well as solid rear subframe and diff bushings.

[andreu12qw]

I originally kept the front sway bar end links and this is what happened eventually.

That is the lower coilover mount...

Went with TurnerMotorsport adjustable end links.

[andreu12qw]

Before I got rid of all the other wheel sets I had to have some fun with them

[andreu12qw]

last year in the peak of summer, my radiator decided it had enough.. Got the ol' girl towed back to the stable and fixed her up, replacing all the hoses, the radiator and the plastic fitting.

[andreu12qw]

had to enjoy the California Canyons as I took a new job out of state. Not completely moved out but the Bimmer will finally be exploring other states!

Off to Colorado!

[andreu12qw]

UPDATES:

Hello! have been busy with life but would like to post a few updates. Upon getting a slight promotion I was going to be relocating back home as I was working remote during the week and flying home for about a year. Before the big road trip I took care of a few things.

First up, The "carbon fiber" rear lip. I love it and i think it looks nice but it was staring to fade in areas so I decided to change the look up a little until i can get the thing sanded down and recoated.

[andreu12qw]

NEXT UP:

trailing arm bushings...

From what I could read, this was a nightmare of an install. I did find that bavarian autosport use to make a press kit specifically for these bushings and that kit makes this install go a lot faster and smoother than you would believe. I had one side complete in about 30 minutes once I got the trailing arm off. I went with the bimmerworld rear spherical bearings. I honestly don't notice a huge difference with this mod but I have also not really pushed the car hard since. I am planning on hitting the track soon, which is why i did this, so I am excited to see how the car feels then. Other than that, these are a little easier to install since they don't have to be pinched when pressing in.

I also had a rear shock blow out so shout out to Fortune Auto for sending me a replacement.

I also threw on a rear diff brace (again) as I notice quite a lot of wheel hop when tooling around.

[andreu12qw]

THE CLEAN UP:

so as I mentioned, I was going to be moving back. After completing the 1000 mile road trip it was going to be time to get a deep clean in. Got the car up on jack stands and the foam cannon filled up.

[andreu12qw]

ROD BEARINGS:

I have been meaning to post this photo for a while. Rod bearings were done at roughly 140K miles.