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BMW 3-Series Maintenance and Repair

5349 messages,  Last post on Apr 30, 2013 at 3:31 PM

You are in the BMW 3-Series Forum.

What is this discussion about? BMW 3 Series, Sedan

    
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Messages Page 535 of 535

#5340 of 5349 Re: Help deciding to sell or keep my used bmw 335i [dan12] by nyccarguy

Apr 29, 2013 (11:19 am)

Replying to: dan12 (Apr 29, 2013 12:16 am)
Can you go into a little detail about "share of problems?"
 
Did your fuel pump fail & your engine went into "limp mode" while driving 90 mph in the left lane of a busy highway?
 
Or are we talking defective power seats & faulty window regulators?

#5341 of 5349 Re: Help deciding to sell or keep my used bmw 335i [nyccarguy] by dan12

Apr 29, 2013 (11:50 am)

Replying to: nyccarguy (Apr 29, 2013 11:19 am)
Close. The fuel pump failed at midnight in the middle of nowhere while driving home from a long trip. I was still about 6 hours away. Luckily I was able to limp home despite the "engine malfunction" lights in the dash. (I called BMW assist and they assured me it was ok to continue driving.)
 
The engine also overheated and left me stranded while driving to work. I had to get the car towed to the dealership.
 
The turbos had some other issues.. I'm no mechanic, so I can't really go into the details. But the mechanic at the dealership maxed out my extended warranty to fix whatever was wrong and then advised me to come back again so he could do more work. I did that and now the car runs ok, but it's kinda hard not be concerned.
 
I do have a local mechanic who I can use and he is much, much cheaper than the dealer. He specializes in BMW's and he advised me to sell my car and not touch any turbo engines from BMW for a while.

#5342 of 5349 Re: Help deciding to sell or keep my used bmw 335i [dan12] by nyccarguy

Apr 29, 2013 (1:53 pm)

Replying to: dan12 (Apr 29, 2013 11:50 am)
I think you've got your answer my friend. Sell or trade now.

#5343 of 5349 I am 2 years behind dan12 by bhill2

Apr 29, 2013 (3:10 pm)

with a 2009 335i. Mine hasn't had very many problems (it was delivered with an oil leak, which the dealer fixed, and I have had some false alarms with the malfunction light) but it only has 25K miles on it. Any wise advice for me when I get closer to the end of the warrantee?

#5344 of 5349 Re: I am 2 years behind dan12 [bhill2] by qbrozen

Apr 29, 2013 (6:26 pm)

Replying to: bhill2 (Apr 29, 2013 3:10 pm)
Honestly, there isn't a whole lot to be worried about (that we know of yet). The fuel pump is covered for something like 100k miles now, I believe (maybe 120k? I forget). Same goes for the turbo wastegate problem (I'm not even sure either of these apply to your '09, though). That only leaves coils and vanos sensors as far as common failures go. Both of which are very easy to do yourself if so inclined.
 
Anyhoo, as you start getting close to the end of your warranty, I'd be looking into getting the walnut blasting service of the valves done on BMW's dime. Not all service advisors will do this under warranty, but if you have a good relationship with yours, it is quite possible. The other is that the spark plugs are technically due just before 50k miles. Doesn't sound like you'll be coming near that in your 4-years free service, though.

#5345 of 5349 Re: I am 2 years behind dan12 [qbrozen] by bhill2

Apr 29, 2013 (7:13 pm)

Replying to: qbrozen (Apr 29, 2013 6:26 pm)
Thanks for your response. The fuel pump has already been replaced under a recall, so I don't think it is an issue. The wastegate issue I will look into. I got the extended warrantee (I know it's not a good gamble but modern cars scare the hell out of me, what with the tendency for malfunctioning turn indicators to require replacing a $1000 module), so I have 7 years for spark plugs and such.

#5346 of 5349 Re: I am 2 years behind dan12 [bhill2] by qbrozen

Apr 30, 2013 (6:59 am)

Replying to: bhill2 (Apr 29, 2013 7:13 pm)
you got the extended warranty, but what about the maintenance plan? That's where the spark plugs would come from. They are a normal replacement item around 45k miles. But its not a big deal.
 
With the extended warranty, at least the valve cleanings should be covered.

#5347 of 5349 Re: I am 2 years behind dan12 [qbrozen] by busiris

Apr 30, 2013 (12:04 pm)

Replying to: qbrozen (Apr 30, 2013 6:59 am)
One an buy a lot of spark plugs for the cost of the extended maintenance plan. IMO, unless you're into putting tons of miles on our car, the maintenance plan doesn't get you much.

#5348 of 5349 Re: I am 2 years behind dan12 [busiris] by qbrozen

Apr 30, 2013 (12:21 pm)

Replying to: busiris (Apr 30, 2013 12:04 pm)
Agreed. I wouldn't want to be forced to follow their maintenance schedule anyway.

#5349 of 5349 Re: I am 2 years behind dan12 [qbrozen] by dan12

Apr 30, 2013 (3:31 pm)

Replying to: qbrozen (Apr 30, 2013 12:21 pm)
I didn't get the maintenance plan on my 335i which would have basically amounted to me pre-paying all the maintenance. But I did get the extended warranty and I'm very glad I did. It definitely paid off in my case, although statistically speaking it's generally not worth it.

Messages Page 535 of 535

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