"dumpsterfire!" (2020covidsux)
11/03/2019 at 08:22 • Filed to: None
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"dumpsterfire!" (2020covidsux)
11/03/2019 at 08:22 • Filed to: None | 1
| 25 |
M y 120k miles 335xi has some damp oil/dirt film on the front charge pipe probably indicative of a leaky oil seal, in addition to the noisy wastegate on the rear turbo. burns a little oil and seems the oil looks blacker than it should after a recent oil change. bottom line- i’ve been driving like an old man, minimizing my time on the boost fearing that the turbos are ending their lifetime on this earth.
swing by my local Euro repair shop and the guy at the counter says “we did that same job last year, with a new motor mount, for $9100.”
uh, the car isn’t worth that much in total. well shit. the DIYs i’ve watched show removing the whole front subframe for access, and that was on a RWD car without a whole front axle in the way. the Bentley manual makes it sound like a simple straightforward job, but their steps include “remove exhaust system” as one step.
both turbos, new from Mitsubishi (OEM, for real) and an install kit is about $2000. B ut i don’t have hands like a little bavarian girl attached to go-go gadget arms to fit well in that tight space. or a lift. dammit.
track day with dirty said car a few years ago in Aspen for your time.
kanadanmajava1
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 08:45 |
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A turbo rebuild kit for the two turbochargers would cost ~$200 at Amazon .
HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 09:15 |
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And that’s why I bought a 328i. Down side is. 100 less hp up side is I don’t have to Dionne my investment at 120k, which is how much the car has one it.
In reality I’d be faced with the sole option of rebuilding the turbos myself, which means even more work, but a lot less money spent.
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dumpsterfire!
> HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles
11/03/2019 at 09:22 |
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i’ve gotten used to living at altitude with the benefit of the turbos, and not losing the ~12% HP compared to the sea level factory rating.
Snuze: Needs another Swede
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 09:28 |
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At the beginning of this year I was really considering a BMW. This is why I stopped considering a BMW.
Jayvincent
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 09:29 |
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Sadly, you have found the Achilles heel to owning Bavarian automobiles: labor costs. It could be turbo bearing fail ure or secondary air injection or window motors or battery replacement registration, but your BMW will eventually need a relatively minor repair which comes with a 5x cost multiplier for labor.
Typical options are:
a) trade it in before it’s too late
b) do the labor yourself (might need a second car while your BMW is out of commission, plus tools and a garage )
c) search around for a competent BMW mechanic (dealership or independent) who is willing and able to go off-book and charge you only 3x the part cost in labor rather than the standard 5x.
Option b has a lot of risk and logistical issues, so it’s off the table in your case. Option c sounds attractive, but it may not be possible where you are. That leaves option a... you could always upgrade to a newer BMW with the $3-5k you would otherw is e have to spend on your current car.
Full disclosure: I don’t own any BMWs (or repair shops), but I have a friend with three E36s: a daily, a weekender and a backup; along with a garage full of tools and the link to Pellican Parts ( https://www.pelicanparts.com/BMW/index-SC.htm ) as a favorite on his browser.
Good luck and keep us posted on the outcome
PG; the scalpel wielder
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 09:43 |
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Most of those sound like fairly normal symptoms for oem n54 turbos. They all rattle eventually and blow by in the chargepipe is also typical.
As long as they are making boost and your not getting 30ff codes I would suggest to just keep beating the pants off it. I’ve been doing the same tuned to 450-ish wheel hp for the past 4 years with same symptoms.
In Australia, most shops will do a turbo swap on these cars for 1.5k labour. So shop around if you just want to buy the mitsubishi oem units. Don’t fall for the rebuild option as you have to pay the labour cost anyway, so why do it twice when the fix fails again
PS9
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 10:06 |
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Car shopping right now. I eliminated this car from consideration specifically because of stories just like this one.
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dumpsterfire!
> PG; the scalpel wielder
11/03/2019 at 10:12 |
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i was getting limp mode and low boost earlier this summer, but they seem to have resolved after replacing vacuum lines.
and if i am taking the whole front of the car apart, i won’t be rebuilding any turbos.
slipperysallylikespenguins
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 10:14 |
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Welcome to the future of BMW, where every car has Turbos and eventually becomes a paper weight.
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HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 10:24 |
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Turbos are definitely worth it.
Inline6xi
> kanadanmajava1
11/03/2019 at 10:28 |
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As someone who is currently replacing turbos, this kit is missing many critical items. Many items....
TheTurbochargedSquirrel
> kanadanmajava1
11/03/2019 at 10:48 |
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Replacing/rebuilding the turbos isn’t the real issue. It’s getting the turbos out of and then back into the car that is a PITA of epic proportions.
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TheTurbochargedSquirrel
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 10:51 |
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I would guess that the $9k quote is a “I have done this before and please don’t make me do it again” price. I believe my local Euro guy charges something like $4500 or $5000 to do the turbos on one of these but he will go out of his way to avoid doing this service. Basically he will only do it if you are a loyal customer because its several days of him ripping his hair out because it is a massive headache to get the turbos in and out of the car.
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Jayvincent
> slipperysallylikespenguins
11/03/2019 at 11:01 |
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not just BMW... it’s the future of small NA autos searching for fuel economy. VW, Honda, Ford all downsizing displacement and adding turbos which will likely nuke their resale value once they reach 120k+ miles. It used to be transmissions and catalytic converters that limited the repair cost versus vehicle residual value equation, but I suspect it will be turbos for the next generation of high mileage vehicles.
reallykotaku
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 11:22 |
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DIY is really intense. However I’m really terrible with cars and I managed to do it in 22 hours. There are a lot of steps but there’s not a whole lot of creativity involved. What I will say is definitely do not buy factory BMW replacements. You can get entire install kit from Rob Beck T urbo s for $1250 after core charge and they will last for five times longer than the factory originals. if you pay I think it's $400 more he'll even make them billet. My e92 is pushing 22 lb of boost and 460 hp to the wheels on these. It's a track only car so it spends 80% of his run time near red line. The turbos perform amazingly.
DipodomysDeserti
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 11:56 |
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The wastegate on my N20 started rattling at around 50k miles. Got around 130k on it now and all is good (other than the rattling). You’re bound to have some oil residue in the charge pipe of any modern car on account of the EGR. As long as it isn’t dripping oil every week you’re gtg.
CompactLuxuryFan
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 12:53 |
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This video’s a classic!
$9k is definitely an “I don’t wanna do it” quote, but I would gladly pay $2k, hell $3k, for somebody else to do all that! The N54 is so beloved and widespread there are a bunch of shops pretty much dedicated to it. The turbos are seen as consumables by people who track their N54s. You just have to find the right person who’s already done it a million times to do the job.
RobBiddle
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 13:28 |
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I’m thankful that I b ought my used N54 just shy of the warranty running out. BMW replaced the turbos for free . I feel much better about cranking up the boost knowing I won’t have to do that job for a while.
I installed silicone inlets and it was a huge PITA. I can’t imagine being able to replace the turbos without pulling the engine to get to them.
That said I’ll be doing the job myself when that day comes. All that work will be justified by replacing them with bigger turbos
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bcweir
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 13:42 |
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$9,100. You can get a new Ford 5.0 Coyote or LS V8 crate engine with transmission for less than that.
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bcweir
> Jayvincent
11/03/2019 at 13:45 |
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If you're in the USA, go to bimrs.org to find the nearest independent BMW shop that won't rape you on repairs.
Xanadu603
> dumpsterfire!
11/03/2019 at 15:45 |
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Deine first born kinder
Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
> kanadanmajava1
11/03/2019 at 22:20 |
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Enjoying the thread, but cringing at the thought of trusting all of this work and money to a $200 kit from Amazon...
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Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo
> Snuze: Needs another Swede
11/03/2019 at 22:21 |
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There are many good reasons. Except maybe one of those early 3-series sedans; very handsome little cars, those.
bob and john
> dumpsterfire!
11/04/2019 at 03:10 |
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9K is stupid, go fuck off i’m not going this price.
I’m willing to be a dealer isnt that bad for hours......
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y_chromosome
> dumpsterfire!
11/04/2019 at 06:57 |
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How much would an LS swap cost? Seriously. If you’re basically going to have to pull out the engine anyway...
I gave up on my 335i after it lost my trust by blowing the water pump, then killing the ECU, then the footwell module, then the SOS system, etc. Now it won’t talk to any emissions test station I take it to and I can’t fix it. R epair costs are more than the car is worth, even though it still looks and runs like new. I’m sick of it!!