[xPETEZx]

Ever since I purchased my 325i and discovered it basically has the same engine as the 330i, I wondered if it couldent be possible to boost its power.

I found this: http://mosselmanturbo.co.uk/remappin...25i-e90-218hp/

At £1299, it seems very very steep!

They also offer an ECU only tune, found here: http://mosselmanturbo.co.uk/remappin...25i-e90-218hp/

But at £380 for a 10hp boost, and 14Nm torque, it does not seem worth it either.

So question to other 325i owners, have any of you had any performance upgrades done?
From my searches, it dosent seem like there is much worth getting

[verysideways]

£1300 gets you a 330i instead of a 325i, that's what it boils down to.
What's the price difference of selling your car and buying a similar 330i?

[xPETEZx]

It looks like prices and/or supply has changed.
When I was looking to buy, I managed to get my 325i for £8500.
Now I cant find a 325i LCI for less than £10k.

330i's are even more rare in LCi flavour. On AT can only find 2, (Manual/E90/LCI) both over £12k

If I was to change my car, I would go 330d anyway I think.
Problem is, I do not really want to hassle of changing car. I dont have the money to outright buy another and then wait to sell mine.
Which means I would need to PX, and by the sounds of it I am likely to get very little for mine.

With this topic, really just wanted to see if anything can be done.
The way the market is at the moment, the £1300 is cheaper/less hassel then selling/buying 330i/d

[sheps]

£1,300.00 for near-60bhp from a N/A car (which are generally much harder to release additional power from than their 'blown' cousins) sounds good value to me.

[verysideways]

Yep, exactly!

The N52 and N53 are notoriously hard to extract more from. People have been talking about turbo and supercharger conversions for years but i've yet to see a successful application appear. The way the engine operates, valvetronic and vanos and so on, and the fact that BMW extract a fair bit of power and torque from an engine that produce a decent output from a relatively meagre capacity and yet maintains sensible fuel consumption means there's not a huge amount left for the aftermarket tuners to do.

And when the 135i/335i is already turbo'd and is easy to tune, i think that gives the tuners reason not to spend too much time or effort on the N52/N53 line up.

[xPETEZx]

I guess my reason for thinking the price was very high is how cheaply you can get a map for a d with better results.

My thinking then was, well the N53 engine can already produce 270bhp, so surely its just a "software" issue.
Guess the 3 stage manifold plays a bigger role!

Still be interested to hear if anybody with a 325i has done any kind of performance mod

[dobbo99]

theres plenty of info on the US side of the site, theres a seperate forum for non-turbo'd cars. loads of info about upgrades - exhausts, de-cats, intakes, tunes etc.

i think the 'easy' upgrade is the change the intake/manifold and update the software, as long as you have the right version of the engine, which I think you do.
this mod then makes it a 330, rather than a detuned 330.

ive not see anyone do this on the UK site though

[Phil325i]

Originally Posted by xPETEZx

I guess my reason for thinking the price was very high is how cheaply you can get a map for a d with better results.

Still be interested to hear if anybody with a 325i has done any kind of performance mod

Reason the power of the 'd' can be increased so much more is because it has forced induction - the 325i is normally aspirated. Some 325i owners in the States have done this - though bear in mind their engines aren't the same as ours (indirect injection, not direct). And by the way, the N53 engine has Vanos, but not Valvetronic.

I've found other tuners who, with a software re-map alone will get you about 15bhp at a cost of around £400. So I guess Mosselman's increase of four times that, at less than four time the price is 'fair' value?

But, OP, my conclusion is the same as yours - accept your 325i is a GT car rather than a racer, and enjoy driving it accordingly. And maybe consider a better air filter and performance exhaust to improve the breathing (and the noise!)...

[xPETEZx]

Yea I had a flick through the us section of this site and saw a lot of detail of guys doing this kind of thing.
Its way about my comfort level for a DIY though.

I think I am just going to enjoy the car the way it is. Maybe next time get a bit more power :P
Funny thing is, off the line I am very impressed with it. Its just in gear sometimes its really lacking.
Guess thats what a D is for :P

Cheers for all the replies

[MrBen]

I've always been of the opinion it's only worth modding for power if you already have the quickest model in the range - when you look at the dropping used prices of 335i's, why bother spending loads of money making a 325i quicker - it just doesn't make financial sense.

The 325i is by no means the fastest car in the range, but it still makes a lovely noise when it's singing at the top end!!

[dobbo99]

Originally Posted by MrBen

I've always been of the opinion it's only worth modding for power if you already have the quickest model in the range - when you look at the dropping used prices of 335i's, why bother spending loads of money making a 325i quicker - it just doesn't make financial sense.

The 325i is by no means the fastest car in the range, but it still makes a lovely noise when it's singing at the top end!!

agree.
when i bought mine, i really wanted a 330 but they were just way off my budget.
now, I could have a 335i for the same price I paid, and probably with some cash left over to cover me if the turbos give me grief!

however, Ive grown really attached to mine, it does everything I need and isnt exactly slow. Ive almost sold it on the cheap a couple of times and Im glad i didnt.

[djgandy]

If you can get a 335i for £8500 why don't you buy it? Is it because it has 200,000 miles on the clock?

[dobbo99]

Originally Posted by djgandy

If you can get a 335i for £8500 why don't you buy it? Is it because it has 200,000 miles on the clock?

was that aimed in my direction?

I meant that i paid £14k for my car 3years ago, in the current market Id pick up a pretty nice 335 for that money.

[djgandy]

Earlier in the thread you said you paid £8500 for your 325i?

[xPETEZx]

No that was me.
I purchased mine for £8500.

[djgandy]

Sigh. Sorry. My brain is really not working today. Must be this man flu.

[verysideways]

Originally Posted by djgandy

Sigh. Sorry. My brain is really not working today. Must be this man flu.

It's going round. My missus has it. Does that mean she's a man?

[wallsmk2]

you mean you haven't checked yet?

[dobbo99]

Originally Posted by dobbo99

was that aimed in my direction?

I meant that i paid £14k for my car 3years ago, in the current market Id pick up a pretty nice 335 for that money.

Originally Posted by djgandy

Sigh. Sorry. My brain is really not working today. Must be this man flu.

no worries.

having had a sneaky peek on autotrader at lunchtime, there seems to be a vast selection of 335i for 14k or less.
i knew that you'd get a shoddy example for about £10k, but there looks some decent cars indeed as long as you dont mind a non-facelift.

my mrs will not be impressed

[djgandy]

Yep you can get a 56 plate with under 60k for around £12k if you bide your time. My 57 plate was £14k from BMW!

[verysideways]

I just bought an 07 pre-LCI 330i E91 Msport with 60k miles for £10k from a dealer (non-franchise). Black, black leather, heated + lumbar, pan roof, cruise, xenons, etc.
Bargains to be had if you're patient.

[xPETEZx]

Thats a nice find on a E91!
Id love one of those, but they where even harder to find!!
Didnt have the time to wait, needed a new car for work.

Is your 07 an N52 or N53 engine?