From 350z to 335i ... thoughts?

alanmc

So I'm very close to pulling the trigger on a 07 335i. I'm happy enough with the cost to change. I'm just worried the BMW won't live up to the experience I had with the Z. The test drive was rather sedate so I do need to go back for a more spirited one before making up my mind.

I'm aware of the known issues, and there is a slight rattle from the westgate when lifting off the throttle.

I'd appreciate any thoughts.

Thhanks,
Alan.

tossy

Paging MM

I think if you buy the right 335i you won't regret it. Is the one you are looking at manual or Auto?

alanmc

It's an auto. That's why I need the more spirited test drive. I want to make sure I can live with the steptronic.

TCP/IP

335i is a stunning car which one are you looking at as my old one is for sale at the min just wonder if you are looking at the same one. Blows a 350z out of the water.

Shane732

TCP/IP wrote: »

335i is a stunning car which one are you looking at as my old one is for sale at the min just wonder if you are looking at the same one. Blows a 350z out of the water.

What are you driving now TCP?

btkm8unsl0w5r4

Make sure the auto is in DS for the testdrive, the ZF box in that car is a peach, almost psychic. Never driven a 350z so cannot comment on the relative performance.

alanmc

This is the car in question.

DS you say? Nice one.

Shane732

alanmc wrote: »

This is the car in question.

DS you say? Nice one.

Buy an M-Sport and change the wheels!

btkm8unsl0w5r4

Shane732 wrote: »

Buy an M-Sport and change the wheels!

+1,000,000

Those alloys are tragic :eek:

Ardennes1944

Might as well have M6 reps on that! Cant understand anyone buying a car like a 335i new and not getting an M-Sport

Matt Simis

My brother went from a 350z to an e46 M3 and at least initially he wished he went tuned 335i due to the power delivery differences.

alanmc

I think my mind has been made up. Cheers lads.

TCP/IP

Shane732 wrote: »

What are you driving now TCP?

Hi Shane long time no hear. Currently driving a CLK 55 AMG. I thought the 335i was quick but my god this is an animal and the noise is pure addictive. Worst thing is though I am just about to put it up for sale as second baby due in the house so need something bigger. Gonna really miss it. I had my 335 remapped but AMG is the next level in power delivery.

MetzgerMeister

Ardennes1944 wrote: »

Cant understand anyone buying a car like a 335i new and not getting an M-Sport

Because 335s are rare enough in Ireland, let laone an MSport one!

OP, the only thing you have to worry about is wastegate failure. If you hear a loud rattling sound from the engine bay, this means you have to replace both turbos. Due to bad design, the wastegates on these usually fail.

The US got an extended warranty on these but as usual, we got nothing. I have one of mine replaced and am getting the other one done soon. You send BMW your old turbo and they send you a remanufactured one with upgraded parts and a 2 year guarantee. Each turbo will cost you €450 which isn't bad but labour is saucy as it's a pig of a job. If you have to get it done, get both replaced at the same time. You'll save money in the long run by doing this. I didn't and I regret it.

It's a brilliant car and I plan on holding onto mine as long as I can.

rocky

Some people prefer the non-MSport look on the 335. All E92s 335is get the sport suspension by default anyway.

Cleveland Hot Pocket

What about a "different" e92 335?

Cleveland Hot Pocket

OSI wrote: »

There's a nice black 335i with red leather in Sarsfield Motors that I've been eye balling. Might be worth a look.

Me too
It seems awfully cheap though for a 335i (with that interior especially :pac:)

btkm8unsl0w5r4

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

OP, the only thing you have to worry about is wastegate failure.

The wastegate is one thing, but injectors are far more troublesome and common failures. Check how many have been replaced.

galwaytt

TCP/IP wrote: »

.. Worst thing is though I am just about to put it up for sale as second baby due in the house so need something bigger.....

....sorry to hear you're selling. Actually, sorry to hear you think you can't fit a 2nd child in a CLK Merc tbh....really ?

OK, mine are now 13 and 10. But the biggest car I've owned for them is, well, take your pic......... 3 x TT's, 1 x 911, 2 x 968's. I will have to get a bigger coupé in the not-too distant future, and herself wants a CLK convertible. Or maybe a 6-series.........

A CLK would be palatial, space-wise tbh. I mean, how big is this child ye're having anyway ?? :P

Scortho

galwaytt wrote: »

....sorry to hear you're selling. Actually, sorry to hear you think you can't fit a 2nd child in a CLK Merc tbh....really ?

OK, mine are now 13 and 10. But the biggest car I've owned for them is, well, take your pic......... 3 x TT's, 1 x 911, 2 x 968's. I will have to get a bigger coupé in the not-too distant future, and herself wants a CLK convertible. Or maybe a 6-series.........

A CLK would be palatial, space-wise tbh. I mean, how big is this child ye're having anyway ?? :P

I know of someone selling a 166 because they've had a second child.
Aparantly there isn't enough room in it! :eek:

Cleveland Hot Pocket

Scortho wrote: »

I know of someone selling a 166 because they've had a second child.
Aparantly there isn't enough room in it! :eek:

If that's who I think it is then shhhhhh!
:P;)

MetzgerMeister

Harlow Substantial Cement wrote: »

The wastegate is one thing, but injectors are far more troublesome and common failures. Check how many have been replaced.

Forgot about them but I haven't had any injector issues thankfully.

At least though, injectors aren't anywhere near the job to replace as the turbos are. Also Alan, if you do need to get injectors replaced, they need to be coded before they'll work properly.

cabb8ge

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

,,,,,,OP, the only thing you have to worry about is wastegate failure. ----.

fuel pump too an common issue, relatively?

MetzgerMeister

cabb8ge wrote: »

fuel pump too an common issue, relatively?

Not really in Europe. It was a huge issue in the US due to their low octane fuel.

unkel

galwaytt wrote: »

....sorry to hear you're selling. Actually, sorry to hear you think you can't fit a 2nd child in a CLK Merc tbh....really ?

OK, mine are now 13 and 10. But the biggest car I've owned for them is, well, take your pic......... 3 x TT's, 1 x 911, 2 x 968's. I will have to get a bigger coupé in the not-too distant future, and herself wants a CLK convertible. Or maybe a 6-series.........

A CLK would be palatial, space-wise tbh. I mean, how big is this child ye're having anyway ?? :P

You took the words right out of my mouth

If I only had 2 children, I might have bought a 645Ci (4 seater)...

Never understood the need for MPVs when you have only 1 / 2 / 3 children. Big saloon / hatch / estate does the trick easily, even with 3 children

MetzgerMeister

OSI wrote: »

but getting a baby in and out of a child seat in the back of a coupe is back breaking.

Not if it's an RX8 :pac:

Shane732

TCP/IP wrote: »

Hi Shane long time no hear. Currently driving a CLK 55 AMG. I thought the 335i was quick but my god this is an animal and the noise is pure addictive. Worst thing is though I am just about to put it up for sale as second baby due in the house so need something bigger. Gonna really miss it. I had my 335 remapped but AMG is the next level in power delivery.

What year is the AMG? I'm still driving my 335i but have test drove a few 997's, Gran Turismo's, a R8 etc... I'm getting very itchy feet!

Shane732

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

Not really in Europe. It was a huge issue in the US due to their low octane fuel.

They tend to do the injectors and fuel pump at the same time from what I've seen. I had my injectors done as there was a recall - my injectors were actually fine. They replaced the fuel pump at the same time, which I thought there was a problem with.

Thank God for the BMW goodwill program.

MetzgerMeister

Shane732 wrote: »

They tend to do the injectors and fuel pump at the same time from what I've seen. I had my injectors done as there was a recall - my injectors were actually fine. They replaced the fuel pump at the same time, which I thought there was a problem with.

Thank God for the BMW goodwill program.

Goodwill me hole! They wouldn't give me anything just because the first owner didn't bring it to a dealership for servicing.

alanmc

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

Goodwill me hole! They wouldn't give me anything just because the first owner didn't bring it to a dealership for servicing.

So, does the goodwill program only kick in if you have a book full of dealer stamps?

Matt Simis

alanmc wrote: »

So, does the goodwill program only kick in if you have a book full of dealer stamps?

Thats the same with most dealers and issues in Ireland though, I couldnt get Audi to cover an issue years ago either.

MetzgerMeister

alanmc wrote: »

So, does the goodwill program only kick in if you have a book full of dealer stamps?

Yes. I'm the second owner of my car and I now have to fork out to get these things fixed with no goodwill because of the choices someone else made :rolleyes:

When I had the RX8, I got quite a bit of goodwill from Mazda towards the hard-to-start issue even though I was the 3rd owner AND it was a Jap import and I didn't even buy it from a Mazda garage.

The problem with the 335i turbos has been there since they were built on day 1 by Mitsubishi. It's not up to them though, it's up to BMW to rectify this as they put them in their cars.

Blazer

I'm looking at a 335i touring as even though we have just the one child the sheer amount of stuff you have to bring with you is mind boggling.
Looking at going from 5 series to the touring as the estate is just handier

MetzgerMeister

Blazer wrote: »

I'm looking at a 335i touring as even though we have just the one child the sheer amount of stuff you have to bring with you is mind boggling.
Looking at going from 5 series to the touring as the estate is just handier

I saw that black one for sale recently. Quite a rare beast on these shores!

cabb8ge

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

Yes. I'm the second owner of my car and I now have to fork out to get these things fixed with no goodwill because of the choices someone else made :rolleyes:----

but did you not chose to buy car even though you observed audible turbo rattle?

Matt Simis

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

When I had the RX8, I got quite a bit of goodwill from Mazda towards the hard-to-start issue even though I was the 3rd owner AND it was a Jap import and I didn't even buy it from a Mazda garage.

You got iucky then, my dad got nothing from Mazda when the timing chain slipped a sprocket on his CX7 (it was fixable, but at EUR3k) despite being an Irish car bought new and serviced at the Mazda dealer network. They claimed it wasnt serviced exactly according to spec however. I would not rate Mazda aftersales or indeed product at all.

MetzgerMeister

cabb8ge wrote: »

but did you not chose to buy car even though you observed audible turbo rattle?

Yeah I did chose to buy it but regardless of that, no matter who bought it, why should they have to fork out huge money for a problem that was there from day 1 just because the first owner didn't go to a dealership for servicing? Coupled with the fact that "servicing" has absolutely zilch to do with the wastegates.

Like I said already, BMW extended the warranty in the US to cover this issue so they are openly telling people that it exists and that they know about it.

There's not that many 335i's in the country. It wouldn't cost them a lot to give *some* goodwill gesture regardless of servicing.

Matt Simis

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

Yeah I did chose to buy it but regardless of that, no matter who bought it, why should they have to fork out huge money for a problem that was there from day 1 just because the first owner didn't go to a dealership for servicing? Coupled with the fact that "servicing" has absolutely zilch to do with the wastegates.

Like I said already, BMW extended the warranty in the US to cover this issue so they are openly telling people that it exists and that they know about it.

There's not that many 335i's in the country. It wouldn't cost them a lot to give *some* goodwill gesture regardless of servicing.

Same with me and the improperly welded exhaust manifolds taking out turbos on prefacelift Audi S4's. Audi UK did a goodwill thing, Audi Ireland acted like I was some scumbag out to take profit out of the bottom line.

btkm8unsl0w5r4

I am a rabid BMW fanboy, however after owning 5 over they last few years I am always less than impressed with the customer service and build quality. Driving dynamics and getting power out of a engine is not their problem, but a premium brand need to work on their service and QC the problems before launch.

In the UK servicing (especially for older cars) within the dealer network is far more reasonable.

Cleveland Hot Pocket

cabb8ge wrote: »

but did you not chose to buy car even though you observed audible turbo rattle?

Why do you always look for the negative in everyone.
Between me in a few threads a while back, DGT in the bangernomics thread, and now (and there were others)

The world is not always out to get you. Maybe remember that, and stop being so critical and abusive.

MM's machine (even from an oilburner fanboy like myself) is a beast, perhaps it was a heart over head decision, which, as posters in a motoring forum - we should all have some sort of resonance towards.

Ardennes1944

For MM, he just wanted the car, the spec and condition obviously outweighed the issues with the wastegate. Now I dont think he predicted it would be such a costly issue seeing as how he has to replace the second turbo now, but the car is rare in its condition, even before he has put the hours he has into it.

cabb8ge

Cleveland Hot Pocket wrote: »

Why do you always look for the negative in everyone.
Between me in a few threads a while back, DGT in the bangernomics thread, and now (and there were others)

The world is not always out to get you. Maybe remember that, and stop being so critical and abusive.---.

critical and abusive, world out to get me, negative

I send you some head and shoulders in post

dgt was attacking someone over anensis with no NCT, I not attack anyone

Cleveland Hot Pocket

cabb8ge wrote: »

critical and abusive, world out to get me, negative

I send you some head and shoulders in post

dgt was attacking someone over anensis with no NCT, I not attack anyone

You were personally attacking me in the "post a pic" thread and via PM a few weeks ago out of nowhere.
The posts got deleted.
I don't want to derail the thread further and risk another ban - so I will leave it at that. We both know what I meant by my earlier statement.
As I said, the posts were deleted by a moderator, so I cannot link to them. (But if you need a refresher, the mods can still access the posts)

TestTransmission

cabb8ge wrote: »

critical and abusive, world out to get me, negative

I send you some head and shoulders in post

dgt was attacking someone over anensis with no NCT, I not attack anyone

Cleveland Hot Pocket wrote: »

You were personally attacking me in the "post a pic" thread and via PM a few weeks ago out of nowhere.
The posts got deleted.
I don't want to derail the thread further and risk another ban - so I will leave it at that. We both know what I meant by my earlier statement.
As I said, the posts were deleted by a moderator, so I cannot link to them. (But if you need a refresher, the mods can still access the posts)

If either of ye have an issue with a post.Report it.Don't deal with it here on thread

MetzgerMeister

OP - any news on what you're going to do?

ZiabR

Also 4 owners with 56000 miles on the clock???

Seems high.

alanmc

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

OP - any news on what you're going to do?

I've put a deposit down on the car and I'm collecting it tomorrow.

I took it for another spin yesterday and it put a very broad smile on my face. It's definitely a heart over head decision, and I'm still not sure if I'll be happy with the Steptronic 'box in 6 months time, but I'm as giddy as a school boy before TopGear comes back on the telly. Can't wait.

MetzgerMeister

alanmc wrote: »

I've put a deposit down on the car and I'm collecting it tomorrow.

I took it for another spin yesterday and it put a very broad smile on my face. It's definitely a heart over head decision, and I'm still not sure if I'll be happy with the Steptronic 'box in 6 months time, but I'm as giddy as a school boy before TopGear comes back on the telly. Can't wait.

With cars like this, it always is

Any chance you might come to the next meet?

Best of luck with it! It might be a case that what you're hearing is the ticking from the injectors or just the engine ticking over (normal) rather than the wastegate so let's hope so!

alanmc

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

With cars like this, it always is

Any chance you might come to the next meet?

I'll definitely try and make it, yeah.

MetzgerMeister

If you have any questions (I had when I got mine) I'll be more than happy to help out if I can

alanmc

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

If you have any questions (I had when I got mine) I'll be more than happy to help out if I can

Cheers. Much obliged.