[Kikken]

Four line summary of this thread:

OP: Which is more reliable, the 328i or 335i?

People interested in posting useful information: The 328i.

People insecure that their car may not be perfect in every single way: SO WHAT!!!1 MY CAR IS FASTAR AND BESIDES YOU ARE A LIE THE 335i IS THE BESTEST CAR EVAR MADE!!!!1

People interested in posting useful information: ?

[BTTGMan]

Originally Posted by Kikken

Four line summary of this thread:

OP: Which is more reliable, the 328i or 335i?

People interested in posting useful information: The 328i.

People insecure that their car may not be perfect in every single way: SO WHAT!!!1 MY CAR IS FASTAR AND BESIDES YOU ARE A LIE THE 335i IS THE BESTEST CAR EVAR MADE!!!!1

People interested in posting useful information: ?

Alternative Read:

OP (feeling insecure about his purchase): Which is more reliable, the 328i or 335i?

Other people feeling insecure about their purchases: The 328i.

335 owners: What's your definition of reliability?

Bored 335i owner *guess who this is*: flame, flame flame

Insecure 328 owner: ZOMG! YOU ARE LIK SOOOOOO MEEEEN!



Reality is, despite all my posturing earlier, i'll gladly confess that a 328 is more reliable in that there aren't those pesky HFPF issues that may require driving a loaner for 2 days every now and then after driving the car at 328 speeds (limp mode) back to the dealership. I do maintain that part of this is that people who buy 328s are probably less interested in flogging their cars on their daily drives, aside from the few you see putting carbon fiber scoops and intakes and all those other random items that might add up to an additional 5hp.

i think 328 is a phenom car. really. i am just still trying to understand when i see people putting 5K in performance, or performance-looking (purely aesthetic) mods on their car. at the end of the day it's not my business, i get that also, that doesn't keep me from wanting to understand.

to anyone whose feelings i hurt with my flame earlier, my apologies. and if you really think anyone would un-jokingly use the phrase "spirited driving" when referring to a parking garage, you need your sense of humor checked,.

[PoorMan]

Originally Posted by aolsux00

The only reason I ask is because BMW hasn't used turbos in a long time and I was wondering if anyone was having turbo problems.

About the Toyota comment.... My mom has a v6 Camry, man do they drive like crap. I don't think I can drive anything other then a BMW from now on unless its like a Porsche, everything drives like crap.

*Sigh*

[josephr25]

I've had two injectors, two HPFPs, and two headlight bulbs replaced within the 50K warranty. Anxiously waiting for two turbos to go out...

I had a riced-out 350Z that had no problems at all whatsoever for the same mileage, even after hearing stories about transmissions and engines crapping out.

[rzacc]

Greetings all. I am brand new here...we've had bimmers in the family for a long time..wife, kids...and my 3 motorcycles. Now it's time for me to look for a run around vehicle. I saw this thread, but it's now 10 years old. Has anything changed? Im looking at two used cars. A 2007 335xi automatic with 119,000 miles. The dealer has replaced fuel pump and a bunch of other things. The other one is a 2009 328xi, with manual 6 speed. But it has 169,000 on it. Both are the same price at the same lot. Ive driven both and they both are tight as new. I am not a racer, and need something reliable and fun. Can anyone give me some advice? (Dont tell me to go back to my volvo... ) thanks in advance. Ron Z

[e91Owner]

Originally Posted by rzacc

Greetings all. I am brand new here...we've had bimmers in the family for a long time..wife, kids...and my 3 motorcycles. Now it's time for me to look for a run around vehicle. I saw this thread, but it's now 10 years old. Has anything changed? Im looking at two used cars. A 2007 335xi automatic with 119,000 miles. The dealer has replaced fuel pump and a bunch of other things. The other one is a 2009 328xi, with manual 6 speed. But it has 169,000 on it. Both are the same price at the same lot. Ive driven both and they both are tight as new. I am not a racer, and need something reliable and fun. Can anyone give me some advice? (Dont tell me to go back to my volvo... ) thanks in advance. Ron Z

Hands down the 2009 will be more reliable. The 2007 is more mechanically complex with turbos, a high pressure fuel pump for direct injection, is an automatic, etc. If reliability is the only consideration, that's a pretty easy choice.

[drymite]

If i didnt have my 2007 335i
I would definitely go for a 2006 330i RWD. If i had the space i would have both

[mainbearing]

Between the 335xi and 328xi definitely lean the 328xi. If you do not need AWD, go with 328i.

The 09 328xi probably also has a better GM 6L45 than the 07-08. There really was no business for a GM transmission to be in a BMW, but BMW decided to cheap out. The 335 should have the ZF 6HP19, but the N54 engine is junk.

335 with the N54 engine was when BMW was learning how to build a turbo engine, and they did a poor job at that. I am not sure the B58 that came after N54 and N55 is that much better. The N20 turbo is junk too. I would think Audi builds a better forced induction engine than BMW.

You can check out VehicularDIY's video linked here on the deficiencies of the N54 vs B58:
https://www.e90post.com/forums/showt...php?p=28147394

Originally Posted by rzacc

Greetings all. I am brand new here...we've had bimmers in the family for a long time..wife, kids...and my 3 motorcycles. Now it's time for me to look for a run around vehicle. I saw this thread, but it's now 10 years old. Has anything changed? Im looking at two used cars. A 2007 335xi automatic with 119,000 miles. The dealer has replaced fuel pump and a bunch of other things. The other one is a 2009 328xi, with manual 6 speed. But it has 169,000 on it. Both are the same price at the same lot. Ive driven both and they both are tight as new. I am not a racer, and need something reliable and fun. Can anyone give me some advice? (Dont tell me to go back to my volvo... ) thanks in advance. Ron Z

[E93Dude]

Originally Posted by mainbearing

Between the 335xi and 328xi definitely lean the 328xi. If you do not need AWD, go with 328i.

The 09 328xi probably also has a better GM 6L45 than the 07-08. There really was no business for a GM transmission to be in a BMW, but BMW decided to cheap out. The 335 should have the ZF 6HP19, but the N54 engine is junk.

335 with the N54 engine was when BMW was learning how to build a turbo engine, and they did a poor job at that. I am not sure the B58 that came after N54 and N55 is that much better. The N20 turbo is junk too. I would think Audi builds a better forced induction engine than BMW.

You can check out VehicularDIY's video linked here on the deficiencies of the N54 vs B58:

If reliability is your main concern, the condition of both cars being equal, I'd lean toward the 328. The turbo, high pressure fuel pimp, and injectors on the 335 are all known potential failure points, and can be enormously expensive to have repaired. Even if your are mechanically inclined to do your own work, the parts are still expensive. HPFP is about $800, cheapest chinese turbos on eBay (never a great option) are about $1000/each, and the direct injection injectors are the biggest overcharge at at least$250/each. Ask me how I know….

And I disagree that the N54 is junk. That is a simplistic and lazy comment. It is a great performing engine when maintained and not abused. Many (but certainly not all) of the failure stories you read about on this forum are from people who have beat on their car or aggressively tuned it, or both. If you are going to install MHD and go full blast without upgrading your coils, plugs, MOSFETs, charge pipe, etc., of course something is going to fail.

Some of the parts bolted to it could have been designed better, and reliability did improve with subsequent iterations.

[mainbearing]

I would say all of the parts bolted to the inline-6 engine block could have been designed better.

Originally Posted by E93Dude

Some of the parts bolted to it could have been designed better, and reliability did improve with subsequent iterations.

[E93Dude]

Originally Posted by mainbearing

I would say all of the parts bolted to the inline-6 engine block could have been designed better.

I was trying to be, uh, kind to the hard working accountants at BMW who over ruled the engineering department, but since you spoke truth...agree!

[krhodes1]

Originally Posted by rzacc

Greetings all. I am brand new here...we've had bimmers in the family for a long time..wife, kids...and my 3 motorcycles. Now it's time for me to look for a run around vehicle. I saw this thread, but it's now 10 years old. Has anything changed? Im looking at two used cars. A 2007 335xi automatic with 119,000 miles. The dealer has replaced fuel pump and a bunch of other things. The other one is a 2009 328xi, with manual 6 speed. But it has 169,000 on it. Both are the same price at the same lot. Ive driven both and they both are tight as new. I am not a racer, and need something reliable and fun. Can anyone give me some advice? (Dont tell me to go back to my volvo... ) thanks in advance. Ron Z

Depends on which Volvo, LOL (I've had 14 of them). I currently have a P2 V70, and while it has been very reliable, it is also every bit as expensive to maintain as a BMW, if not more so. Probably more so in the long run as it is FAR more tied to the dealer for anything electronic than these BMWs are. I can do pretty much anything but make a key for my BMWs in my own garage, the Volvo, not so much without paying lots of money to Mama Volvo for access to their systems and to download software.

As for reliability, the 328i has less to go wrong with it, stresses all of the drivetrain components less, and is generally easier and cheaper to work on. If you don't NEED AWD, a non-AWD car is also that much cheaper to run with that much less to go wrong (and they DO go wrong). With modern traction and stability control and a set of decent winter tires, I never felt a need for AWD in my BMW in Maine, at all... The 6spd manual is also more reliable than the automatics, though of course the clutch (and flywheel in these cars) are wear items. But you can change a clutch in your garage, not many can rebuild an autotragic... And a 6spd 328i is a plenty fun car to drive, as I am sure you noticed.

Ultimately, I think these cars are pretty darned reliable, but they certainly have a well-defined list of things that WILL fail on every car eventually. For the 328i the trifecta of oil gaskets (valve cover, oil filter housing, and oil pan gasket), the electric waterpump and/or thermostat, various suspension bushings, the PCV diaphragm in the valve cover (means replacing the whole thing), just off the top of my head. For the 335i add the high pressure fuel pump, injectors, and the turbo(s) to those. And they are somewhat random - though IMHO, the hotter the climate and the more stop and go driving the car sees, the sooner the stuff will fail. In same time and ~50K miles, my '11 328i that has lived in Maine it's whole life and sees zero traffic has needed, er, nothing but a battery since the warranty ran out. My '11 128i that I bought used last year grew up in Austin, TX and has had all three gaskets done already. I think the closer the climate is to Germany, the happier these cars are.

I would be VERY wary of a car being sold at a dealer with that kind of miles on it. A full service history so you know what has been done and thus what to plan for is gold with these cars, as is a loving, caring owner. Especially at today's inflated prices. You are buying the previous owner as much as the car. I think it is pretty true that those of us here who bought our cars new or nearly new have generally had better experiences than people who bought random well-used ones. I bought my 128i from a BMW dealer last year with only 46K on it, with the full dealer service history printed out and in the car. Wasn't cheap though! But it has needed nothing other than when I was doing a full fluid service I figured I might as well just change that oil filter housing gasket, and sure enough, it was JUST starting to leak a little.

[krhodes1]

Originally Posted by E93Dude

I was trying to be, uh, kind to the hard working accountants at BMW who over ruled the engineering department, but since you spoke truth...agree!

But here's the thing. If the engineers had their way completely, the cars would have been even *less* affordable to buy in the first place (see golden years Mercedes when a 240D cost an inflation-adjusted $60K for 56hp). I am OK with the compromises they made. Do I wish they specc'd better gaskets and such - sure. But none of the common issues are that difficult to deal with.

I'll take the bad with the good, because the good is really damned good! You might spend less maintaining a Lexus, but then you get stuck driving a boring fancy Camry around.

[mecheng77]

Originally Posted by mainbearing

Between the 335xi and 328xi definitely lean the 328xi. If you do not need AWD, go with 328i.

The 09 328xi probably also has a better GM 6L45 than the 07-08. There really was no business for a GM transmission to be in a BMW, but BMW decided to cheap out. The 335 should have the ZF 6HP19, but the N54 engine is junk.

335 with the N54 engine was when BMW was learning how to build a turbo engine, and they did a poor job at that. I am not sure the B58 that came after N54 and N55 is that much better. The N20 turbo is junk too. I would think Audi builds a better forced induction engine than BMW.

You can check out VehicularDIY's video linked here on the deficiencies of the N54 vs B58:
https://www.e90post.com/forums/showt...php?p=28147394

Originally Posted by mainbearing

Between the 335xi and 328xi definitely lean the 328xi. If you do not need AWD, go with 328i.

The 09 328xi probably also has a better GM 6L45 than the 07-08. There really was no business for a GM transmission to be in a BMW, but BMW decided to cheap out. The 335 should have the ZF 6HP19, but the N54 engine is junk.

335 with the N54 engine was when BMW was learning how to build a turbo engine, and they did a poor job at that. I am not sure the B58 that came after N54 and N55 is that much better. The N20 turbo is junk too. I would think Audi builds a better forced induction engine than BMW.

You can check out VehicularDIY's video linked here on the deficiencies of the N54 vs B58:
https://www.e90post.com/forums/showt...php?p=28147394

What did GM change in the 2009 transmission?
What is wrong with the 2007-2008
Version?

[delmarco]

Outside of the shitty water pump issues and leaky oil seals my 2011 335i xDrive has been fairly reliable. Just be sure to look under the hood and monitor the oil seals for leaks and what not.

On these cars you'll get all your big issues (fuel pumps, water pumps, oil leaks, battery-electrical) between 50,000 and 70,000 miles. So second and third time buyers may find themselves MORE lucky than the original owners.


BIG DISCLAIMER: If you are buying these cars to mod the shit out of them, tune the engine to 1000BHP, delete mufflers and shit like that then don't expect any sort of long term reliability!

[CTinline-six]

There really is no argument. 328i has less moving parts, and is more reliable. The 335i has more power and tuning potential. IMO they are two different classes of car. You either want something kinda fun and fairly reliable or you want a car you can go fast in and tune for more power that has more parts to break. : I'm sure there are exceptions to both sides, but this is the norm. If I had more time to wrench I'd love an N54 to play with.

[ParadeinBerlin]

Originally Posted by F30guy

I was wondering if anyone knew which one was more reliable. I remember a while ago while the driver from the dealer was driving me back home, he was telling me the mechanics told him the 330i was much more reliable then the 325i and its worth the extra cost. I was wondering if anyone knows if the 328i coupe was more reliable or if the 335i coupe is.

The 328i is a lot more reliable than the 335i. From experience the engine in the 335i range (N54 and N55) have their own problems ranging from HPFP, VANOS, waste-gate rattle, turbo oil starvation, and a lot more too!