[JWMunson]

Hi all-
I've been intrigued by the 335d for some time now and these forums have been a wealth of information. At first I just loved the idea of that much torque for the money, but now that I have accepted a work assignment that will have me putting on about 500 highway miles per week for the next 6 months to 1 year, I can actually convince myself that the mpg would make this a downright practical choice, and I'm ready to pull trigger. There are two 335d's for sale that I'm currently looking at, and I was hoping you all might be able to give me advice as to which would be a better choice.

The first is a 2010 with 48k miles that has recently been traded in to a (non-BMW) luxury dealership. It appears to be bone stock.

The second is a 2010 with 85k miles, but it already has all the deletes and tune done, and was walnut blasted when those were installed.

I live in Florida, which doesn't care about emissions (or much at all really) so the deletes are something I would definitely want to do. Am I better off with a lower mileage car and doing the deletes and tune myself, or with a higher mileage car that's already how I would like it?

The colors and options are pretty much the same (though the higher mileage one does have the paddle shifters which I like). Am I correct in assuming the deletes and tune is a $3k-$4k job all in if I'm outsourcing the labor to a competent shop? What internals should I be worried about being more stressed/prone to needing replacement at 85k miles vs 48k? They're pretty much exactly the same price so not sure which way to lean.

Thanks!

[335dlci]

Stock

[Nadir Point]

You will probably be leaning hard way or the other after test drives.

[JWMunson]

Originally Posted by Nadir Point

You will probably be leaning hard way or the other after test drives.

I have little doubt the one allegedly running 340+ Hp and 500+ lb/ft of torque will put a much bigger smile on the face, but the question is if I'm planning on putting a good deal of mileage on over a couple of years, which is the WISE choice?

Does an additional 40k miles- almost twice as much- make that much of a difference up front? Seller claims harmonic balancer, tension arm, and all six valves have been replaced.

[floydarogers]

Low miles stock. 500 miles per week will prevent most egr/cbu problems, and will be easy on the DEF/SCR. Then you can ease into any mods/deletes you want to do after some experience with the car.

[robnitro]

Six valves replaced? We have 24 valves, ehh?

Check how each transmission shifts, kick down and so on. If you can get ista+ you can check the injector smooth running numbers and the transmission adaptation values (they should be +-300)

It depends on which tune.
Also in emissions areas of new York if you have egr race pipe or obvious things you can fail inspection depending on the inspector. A stealth delete is the smarter thing.

[Yozh]

Depends on the tune. Some tunes are less than favorable. Also depends on maintenance. I would be leaning stock. Lots of life left. However, if you want a deleted already and was not planning to do it yourself to save money, I would lean deleted, provided it has been done properly and running a good tune. Also, had it been abused or raced?

[JWMunson]

Originally Posted by Yozh

Depends on the tune. Some tunes are less than favorable. Also depends on maintenance. I would be leaning stock. Lots of life left. However, if you want a deleted already and was not planning to do it yourself to save money, I would lean deleted, provided it has been done properly and running a good tune. Also, had it been abused or raced?

Seller says it's a Malone Stage 2 tune. From the online research I've done, people tend to be happy with them but would love to hear anyone's real world experience. He claims it's his wifes car that was used as a commuter. I'm going to see it in person later this week- any signs of abuse I should look out for?

Also, am I correct in assuming that deletes/tunes/injectors/cbu cleaning would be about $6k all in if the labor was outsourced? If so the question becomes, is a 48k mile car worth $6k less than an 85k mile car, or would the money I would potentially save by having less wear items to replace/typical issues to expect that I wouldn't have with a 48k mile car be worth more or less than that number?

Thanks again to everyone for their advice, I hope to pull trigger on one of these two cars soon and look forward to joining the d club.

[Nadir Point]

Originally Posted by floydarogers

Low miles stock. 500 miles per week will prevent most egr/cbu problems, and will be easy on the DEF/SCR.

That would be incorrect. Anyone who still does not recognize the fact that these cars are built with fundamentally flawed emissions systems needs to pull their head out. You have 2 choices, only one of which does not involve dealing with emissions system failures. Anyone living in a jurisdiction where deletes are practically possible and contemplating a 335D purchase between tuned or not has a no-brainer decision on their hands.

[floydarogers]

Originally Posted by Nadir Point

That would be incorrect. Anyone who still does not recognize the fact that these cars are built with fundamentally flawed emissions systems needs to pull their head out. You have 2 choices, only one of which does not involve dealing with emissions system failures. Anyone living in a jurisdiction where deletes are practically possible and contemplating a 335D purchase between tuned or not has a no-brainer decision on their hands.

I will agree that the 335d DEF tank design is flawed, especially from a maintenance standpoint. Fundamentel? No, the theory is good.

Plenty of people have had good experiences in their diesels.

And, BTW, I object to your derogatory comment.

[Nadir Point]

I don't drive theories. Put some miles on it and get back to us.

[Nadir Point]

Originally Posted by floydarogers

And, BTW, I object to your derogatory comment.

I object to people giving bad advice. Guess we're even, then.

[Yozh]

I would get as much information on the deleted car. Maintenance. Carbon clean. And parts replaced with new. Quality of parts. At this mileage suspension refresh is needed. Has it been done. Tranny service done with sleeves? Balancer replaced? Who did all the work. Malone 2 is not as inspiring tbh. It’s their base tune. Some people are happy some day it’s meh.

[RL18]

Originally Posted by Yozh

I would get as much information on the deleted car. Maintenance. Carbon clean. And parts replaced with new. Quality of parts. At this mileage suspension refresh is needed. Has it been done. Tranny service done with sleeves? Balancer replaced? Who did all the work. Malone 2 is not as inspiring tbh. It’s their base tune. Some people are happy some day it’s meh.

Listen to him ^

I'm in the process of a suspension refresh currently and it's not cheap lol. And once you feel the power deleted most don't take it easy on the suspension... atleast I don't lol. And if you do it right you don't replace with factory, you do m3 suspension and coilovers

[JWMunson]

Thanks for the advice on the suspension. Anything I should be looking for visually or will it be more apparent in the way that it drives? And if it will be needing a suspension refresh soon, what sort of costs are we looking at for doing that correctly? Same ballpark as the abc delete, cbu cleaning, and injectors/harmonic or less?

Going to see it in person tomorrow.

[RL18]

Originally Posted by JWMunson

Thanks for the advice on the suspension. Anything I should be looking for visually or will it be more apparent in the way that it drives? And if it will be needing a suspension refresh soon, what sort of costs are we looking at for doing that correctly? Same ballpark as the abc delete, cbu cleaning, and injectors/harmonic or less?

Going to see it in person tomorrow.

Make sure trans shifts smooth, no jolts or rough shifts. Look for oil in the engine bay, around intercooler boots. Hopefully all fluids have been changed. Check vacuum lines.

M3 suspension for me was around $1,200, then coilovers another $1,000.