[Gregrobin]

Regarding maintenance, should I go with upgraded plugs/coils, or are stock ok?

[iqraceworks]

Originally Posted by Gregrobin

Regarding maintenance, should I go with upgraded plugs/coils, or are stock ok?

I would do stock coils, but 1 step colder plugs.

[Gregrobin]

Also, regarding DIY, I am DIY guy but looking at these engines is a bit intimidating compared to working on a Chevy big/small block. I don't mind paying a good shop the $$$ to do the maintenance right.

[Gregrobin]

Originally Posted by iqraceworks

I would do stock coils, but 1 step colder plugs.

Recommendation on the plugs?

[stewbets]

Originally Posted by Gregrobin

Regarding maintenance, should I go with upgraded plugs/coils, or are stock ok?

I've been running a tune similar to MHD Stage 2+ for a while now and have had no issues with stock for both plugs and coils. It makes a lot of sense to use FCP Euro and their lifetime warranty for parts like these.

[stewbets]

Originally Posted by Gregrobin

Also, regarding DIY, I am DIY guy but looking at these engines is a bit intimidating compared to working on a Chevy big/small block. I don't mind paying a good shop the $$$ to do the maintenance right.

If you're a DIY guy, you're not going to screw this up. What makes the N54 intimidating? Swapping plugs, coils and a charge pipe is nothing for someone familiar with an engine bay. I mean, if you just don't want to, that's fine, but don't be intimidated. The only "special" tool you'll need is a thin-walled socket for the plugs.

[fgpalmer71]

Originally Posted by stewbets

If you're a DIY guy, you're not going to screw this up. What makes the N54 intimidating? Swapping plugs, coils and a charge pipe is nothing for someone familiar with an engine bay. I mean, if you just don't want to, that's fine, but don't be intimidated. The only "special" tool you'll need is a thin-walled socket for the plugs.

Stewbets....it is rather intimidating truthfully. I've wrenched on every car I've owned....Lexus, Mazda, Cadillac, Honda.....everything except my 2 Genesis sedans as they were relatively new and under warranty for the duration of my ownership. Your right....it's JUST an engine...but everyone I know warned me about the fickle nature of these N54's, joked about how any day without some sort of check engine light was a glorious day, etc. It's definitely mostly in my head, but the 1st few times I messed around under the hood it was accompanied by a strange, uneasy, trepidacious type of feeling! After the 1st few times the feeling subsided.....but I still approach this car as if it's some strange foreign space ship! Lol

[Gregrobin]

Originally Posted by fgpalmer71

Stewbets....it is rather intimidating truthfully. I've wrenched on every car I've owned....Lexus, Mazda, Cadillac, Honda.....everything except my 2 Genesis sedans as they were relatively new and under warranty for the duration of my ownership. Your right....it's JUST an engine...but everyone I know warned me about the fickle nature of these N54's, joked about how any day without some sort of check engine light was a glorious day, etc. It's definitely mostly in my head, but the 1st few times I messed around under the hood it was accompanied by a strange, uneasy, trepidacious type of feeling! After the 1st few times the feeling subsided.....but I still approach this car as if it's some strange foreign space ship! Lol

Lol, absolutely agreed.

I've watched videos on everything that needs to come off/be disconnected (the cowl for example), keeping track off all of the bolts/screws, wires, clips, etc...I'd break and/or screw something up. Pulling coils and plugs and reinstalling is the easy part.

[Torgus]

Originally Posted by Gregrobin

Also, regarding DIY, I am DIY guy but looking at these engines is a bit intimidating compared to working on a Chevy big/small block. I don't mind paying a good shop the $$$ to do the maintenance right.

Just do it yourself. It's not really hard and shops charge a TON. I6s are easy to work on, the n54 included. Plugs, coilpacks, and injectors takes all of an hour. Valve cover 3 hours your 1st time.

Don't buy stock coils. Run the pencil S55 coils. Buy from FCP Euro for lifetime warranty, they do wear out.

Don't run stock plugs. Get some NGKs. Buy from FCP Euro for lifetime warranty, they do wear out. Might go -1 colder but you don't need to.

Buy the OBD2 cable and get MHD. Buy the licenses. Run OTS tunes if you want. A custom tune is $250 from a well known remote tuners. You are going to want to cable to pull codes etc.

I agree on the chargepipe, it's a ticking time bomb, it will either crack or the DVs will fail etc. given the age. Chargepipe with Tial BOV and upgrade to the 1/4 vac line. Take off the stock IM, walnut blast while you are in there, but the 1/4'' barb in the stock IM. Don't buy a knock off Tial BOV on ebay etc.

Get some used downpipes, and a used IC. That should be enough for stock turbos. Lots of used parts, not that new are super expensive.

[Smgs1992]

Originally Posted by Gregrobin

Also, regarding DIY, I am DIY guy but looking at these engines is a bit intimidating compared to working on a Chevy big/small block. I don't mind paying a good shop the $$$ to do the maintenance right.

It’s an inline 6 once you remove the plastic covers you’ll see it is just an engine and a relatively accessible one at that. None of that should take more than an hour or two to do everything yourself.
I can somewhat understand not wanting to do VCG or injectors. However plugs, coils and chargepipe is incredibly simple you should have no trouble.
I would also flash MhD yourself. As long as you have a battery tender and can read and follow basic instructions it is fool proof.

[Gregrobin]

stewbets , love the turtle boost gauge video!

[fgpalmer71]

Sorry to thread jack a bit.....

In all my pre-purchase investigation I concluded that MHD was my best route for tuning. But the more I look at this the more it's sounding as if the full JB4 might be "safer" with how it seemingly defaults to an 8 psi boost map at the slightest sign that something is off....seemingly protecting me from grenading my car. Now, MOST of the information I'm going through is at least a year old if not much older. I'm sure MHD on 12/15/20 isn't the same as what was pumped out 1 year+ ago....right? Guys and gals seem to have been running MHD for some time without issue. Is this "JB4 is overall safer and a backend MHD flash on top of it down the road being the ultimate tuning package" all in my head? MHD is cheaper and seems to be easier to deal with so if all things are equal I'm all over it. Set me straight folks! Please.

[stewbets]

Originally Posted by fgpalmer71

Stewbets....it is rather intimidating truthfully. I've wrenched on every car I've owned....Lexus, Mazda, Cadillac, Honda.....everything except my 2 Genesis sedans as they were relatively new and under warranty for the duration of my ownership. Your right....it's JUST an engine...but everyone I know warned me about the fickle nature of these N54's, joked about how any day without some sort of check engine light was a glorious day, etc. It's definitely mostly in my head, but the 1st few times I messed around under the hood it was accompanied by a strange, uneasy, trepidacious type of feeling! After the 1st few times the feeling subsided.....but I still approach this car as if it's some strange foreign space ship! Lol

Are they finicky and sometimes unpredictable? Sure! But that really has nothing to do with the difficulty involved with replacing parts. That process is still as straightforward as ever. And I understand that the electronics side can get in your head a little. But this is why I wholly encourage everyone to tackle the basic stuff themselves and utilize a good BMW-specific code reader (I just use the MHD app to read and clear codes most of the time). Build up that confidence! One benefit is that these cars do a pretty good job of letting you know what the problem is, so once you get the codes you have a good idea how to proceed (or how to Google). The bottom line for me is that I would hate to be relying on some shop to address each and every check engine light with this car. It's so much more convenient to just service it yourself. And you know you've got plenty of support!

[Torgus]

Originally Posted by fgpalmer71

Sorry to thread jack a bit.....

In all my pre-purchase investigation I concluded that MHD was my best route for tuning. But the more I look at this the more it's sounding as if the full JB4 might be "safer" with how it seemingly defaults to an 8 psi boost map at the slightest sign that something is off....seemingly protecting me from grenading my car. Now, MOST of the information I'm going through is at least a year old if not much older. I'm sure MHD on 12/15/20 isn't the same as what was pumped out 1 year+ ago....right? Guys and gals seem to have been running MHD for some time without issue. Is this "JB4 is overall safer and a backend MHD flash on top of it down the road being the ultimate tuning package" all in my head? MHD is cheaper and seems to be easier to deal with so if all things are equal I'm all over it. Set me straight folks! Please.

They both have advantages. I prefer flash only.

[ky0u]

Originally Posted by fgpalmer71

Sorry to thread jack a bit.....

In all my pre-purchase investigation I concluded that MHD was my best route for tuning. But the more I look at this the more it's sounding as if the full JB4 might be "safer" with how it seemingly defaults to an 8 psi boost map at the slightest sign that something is off....seemingly protecting me from grenading my car. Now, MOST of the information I'm going through is at least a year old if not much older. I'm sure MHD on 12/15/20 isn't the same as what was pumped out 1 year+ ago....right? Guys and gals seem to have been running MHD for some time without issue. Is this "JB4 is overall safer and a backend MHD flash on top of it down the road being the ultimate tuning package" all in my head? MHD is cheaper and seems to be easier to deal with so if all things are equal I'm all over it. Set me straight folks! Please.

So this is somewhat true, but that being said, running a stage 1 flash is relatively safe as it's a pretty conservative tune.
JB4 was one of the original game changers back before we had DME flashing at the level we do today. It was a physical piggyback. They are still going today and have updated their functionality, the current day JB4 has the ability to run in tandem with MHD which gives you the best of both worlds. Eventually down the road, you may want to explore doing this as it'll allow you to take advantage of JB4's failsafes

==========================

OP I agree with pretty much everything everyone said, as you can see, its fairly unanimous across the board regarding the typical Bolt on process as well as addressing problem areas.

To put your mind somewhat at ease, the n54 is indeed finicky, but it's also become pretty overhyped with notoriety and heresay over the years. It's not an engine to work on for greenthumbs, but if you're mechanically inclined at all, it's not too bad for a BMW. Just make sure you run through and take care of the maintenance items outlined in this thread. FCPEuro is your best friend here

Chargepipes - OEM is plastic and at this age likely brittle. Any significant bump in boost/power puts it at risk of blowing

Coils - I second Torgus suggestion, go for the Delphi coils that were used in the S55 powered cars. Theyre direct plug and play

Plugs

Vacuum lines - Likely brittle due to age, common factor in causing the 30FF code due to boost leak

Boost Solenoids- Can also trigger 30FF if they're going out, these should be swapped out every 50-60k miles or so

Other stuff like the Downpipes, intercooler, intake, etc are fine stock to run a stage 1 tune (assuming theyre in good shape). Upgrading them will allow you to run stage 2 stuff

[fgpalmer71]

Originally Posted by Torgus

They both have advantages. I prefer flash only.

Can you expound upon that a bit please? PM me if you'd rather that....but it seems as though a serious breakdown of it might also interest the OP. Again, I've been all through the site but most of it seems to be older information on 2 ever evolving tuning solutions. If all that I've found in old posts is still current and accurate information, then I'm good.

I know Justin from Twisted tuning from my Mazda 6 days and reached out to him when I was deciding between an E93 and a corvette as a summer fun car. I left that conversation thinking MHD as I didn't intend to ever replace the twins and stage 1+ seemed as if it'd keep me content. It seems as though it alows me to remotely have the car custom tuned if I did want to push it. I THOUGHT I left the mod bug on the curb in 2012. Wheels and tint are staples and I don't consider them mods....every car got those. But since the day I parked the E93 in the garage I can't stop!! The mod bug is on my back, unshakeable as ever. Now I'm thinking some day I might want to max this thing out, and if so, I'd like to get whichever setup gets me to content for now.....while being capable of reigning fire in the future.

[fgpalmer71]

Originally Posted by ky0u

So this is somewhat true, but that being said, running a stage 1 flash is relatively safe as it's a pretty conservative tune.
JB4 was one of the original game changers back before we had DME flashing at the level we do today. It was a physical piggyback. They are still going today and have updated their functionality, the current day JB4 has the ability to run in tandem with MHD which gives you the best of both worlds. Eventually down the road, you may want to explore doing this as it'll allow you to take advantage of JB4's failsafes

==========================

OP I agree with pretty much everything everyone said, as you can see, its fairly unanimous across the board regarding the typical Bolt on process as well as addressing problem areas.

To put your mind somewhat at ease, the n54 is indeed finicky, but it's also become pretty overhyped with notoriety and heresay over the years. It's not an engine to work on for greenthumbs, but if you're mechanically inclined at all, it's not too bad for a BMW. Just make sure you run through and take care of the maintenance items outlined in this thread. FCPEuro is your best friend here

Chargepipes - OEM is plastic and at this age likely brittle. Any significant bump in boost/power puts it at risk of blowing

Coils - I second Torgus suggestion, go for the Eldor coils that were used in the S55 powered ///m cars. Theyre direct plug and play

Plugs

Vacuum lines - Likely brittle due to age, common factor in causing the 30FF code due to boost leak

Boost Solenoids- Can also trigger 30FF if they're going out, these should be swapped out every 50-60k miles or so

Other stuff like the Downpipes, intercooler, intake, etc are fine stock to run a stage 1 tune (assuming theyre not busted). Upgrading them will allow you to run stage 2 stuff

Thank you!

[ky0u]

Originally Posted by fgpalmer71

I THOUGHT I left the mod bug on the curb in 2012. Wheels and tint are staples and I don't consider them mods....every car got those. But since the day I parked the E93 in the garage I can't stop!! The mod bug is on my back, unshakeable as ever. Now I'm thinking some day I might want to max this thing out, and if so, I'd like to get whichever setup gets me to content for now.....while being capable of reigning fire in the future.

you picked the absolute wrong car if you were trying to avoid the mod bug!

[fgpalmer71]

Originally Posted by ky0u

you picked the absolute wrong car if you were trying to avoid the mod bug!

I had a 1k mile drive to get it home from Florida to Indiana. By the time I hit Atlanta I knew I F'd up man. I knew it 4 hours in! Lol

[Gregrobin]

Originally Posted by ky0u

you picked the absolute wrong car if you were trying to avoid the mod bug!

Wanting a convertible and something I could tinker with and tune is another reason I sold my 2011 335i Coupe and finally got another 335i.

My garage is very tight, I can't even open the doors all the way. It's getting cold here so if I DIY I've got to do it soon.

Do I need to remove all the stuff this guy removes (at the beginning of the video) to get to all of the plugs/coils and the charge pipe?

[fgpalmer71]

Charge pipe install only required that I remove the airbox and intake ducts on the bumper. It's the easiest install next to the DCI's for me so far.

[ky0u]

Originally Posted by Gregrobin

Do I need to remove all the stuff this guy removes (at the beginning of the video) to get to all of the plugs/coils and the charge pipe?

Yes, that shelf/cowl thing he removes blocks access to the plug/coils for cyl 6 and i think 5. It looks like a lot of disassembly, but once you're familiar with the process, it's actually a quick job

If you havent already, would suggest looking into BMS cowl filters. It replaces the top half of that cowl assembly and makes future maintenance much easier