My E90 320i Repair Journal

[delrosa81]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Hi bro,

I did mine last month and witness the whole thing. They really drop the transmission and it's a half day job. Cuz I was watching the whole process.

Did mine at my regular JB workshop, parts I brought myself S$22 (OEM), labour RM200. They even did cleaning for the tranny housing and flywheel.

So if you can do it for S$160 here, it's a steal so go for it.

Hi bro,

Thanks for the advise, right now Im monitoring the engine oil level drop. Spent quite a fair bit of repairs for the past few consecutive months, so now gotta rest abit first before doing more repairs lol. 1st 3 years smooth and nice. now 4th year onwards start to have all the problems coming in....headache lol....

 

[delrosa81]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Me stayin ard Sin Ming ...

Pls PM me the contact info also.

TIA...

PM Sent. Please check ur PM.

 

[canuck78]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Hi bro,

This is normal wear and tear for continental esp the leaks, tranny problems etc is quite common in the E90 near 100k or 4/5 years.

I also spent quite a sum on doing all the seal / gasket / hose replacement etc but it drives great now, so it's all good esp if it can last for few more years till COE drops

Heard someone mention cuz i always see different oil levels when i check. The trick is to check in the morning, say 10-15 min after you started the car.

Mine shows full 15 min after driving, other times it show mid, or sometimes even at the min level.
Our oil sensor uses temp sensing (how long it takes to heat up the oil) as a gauge, which IMO quite high tech but not accurate.

Prefer the old dipstick method, which is a lot more reliable.

Hi bro,

Thanks for the advise, right now Im monitoring the engine oil level drop. Spent quite a fair bit of repairs for the past few consecutive months, so now gotta rest abit first before doing more repairs lol. 1st 3 years smooth and nice. now 4th year onwards start to have all the problems coming in....headache lol....

 

[TohTo]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

After all this oil leak gasket/seal replaced at around 100k, will it last another 100k before same problem appear again?
With current COE price, have to drive the car till 10yrs already.

 

[delrosa81]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Hi bro,

This is normal wear and tear for continental esp the leaks, tranny problems etc is quite common in the E90 near 100k or 4/5 years.

I also spent quite a sum on doing all the seal / gasket / hose replacement etc but it drives great now, so it's all good esp if it can last for few more years till COE drops

Heard someone mention cuz i always see different oil levels when i check. The trick is to check in the morning, say 10-15 min after you started the car.

Mine shows full 15 min after driving, other times it show mid, or sometimes even at the min level.
Our oil sensor uses temp sensing (how long it takes to heat up the oil) as a gauge, which IMO quite high tech but not accurate.

Prefer the old dipstick method, which is a lot more reliable.

Yup true and agreed bro. Will monitor the oil level in the mornings. Thanks!

After all this oil leak gasket/seal replaced at around 100k, will it last another 100k before same problem appear again?
With current COE price, have to drive the car till 10yrs already.

I should think so ba. Hopefully can last.....

 

[delrosa81]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

By the way, I notice a strong gunpowder smell from the exhuast if I rev up the engine. No high revs or whatsoever, just normal less than 3k revs. Any idea whats the matter? Im tinking it might be the cat that has gone....?

 

[Hangloose]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Looks like you are unlucky with your ride.
Is there anyone else having so much problems as TS?

 

[cyrus271]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Looks like you are unlucky with your ride.
Is there anyone else having so much problems as TS?

Unlucky or E90 not really suitable as a high mileage work horse? Guess with the launch models at 6 years old, can start to see what common problems there are now.

 

[delrosa81]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Looks like you are unlucky with your ride.
Is there anyone else having so much problems as TS?

Unlucky or not, Im not sure. But when you are considering to buy a BMW E90 320i, you cannot have the reliability mindset of a Japanese make.

This is what you will encounter if you purchase one that is approx. at this mileage or if you buy new, once the car is around this mileage and age, these items will require replacing.

Its not that the car is not reliable, its simple the design of the sealing solutions used. I was told by my mechanic, mercs use gaskets for almost all sealing applications but BMW still use rubber oil seals. Rubber after exposed to much heat and after some time will harden, this is when the oil starts leaking.

No big issue if U ask me. But if you are worried of the hassle and downtime of such repairs, then I would think that this car is not suitable for you.

Do speak to a few more owners before making the decision.

 

[cyrus271]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Unlucky or not, Im not sure. But when you are considering to buy a BMW E90 320i, you cannot have the reliability mindset of a Japanese make.

This is what you will encounter if you purchase one that is approx. at this mileage or if you buy new, once the car is around this mileage and age, these items will require replacing.

Its not that the car is not reliable, its simple the design of the sealing solutions used. I was told by my mechanic, mercs use gaskets for almost all sealing applications but BMW still use rubber oil seals. Rubber after exposed to much heat and after some time will harden, this is when the oil starts leaking.

No big issue if U ask me. But if you are worried of the hassle and downtime of such repairs, then I would think that this car is not suitable for you.

Do speak to a few more owners before making the decision.

Agree - just have to price in the maintenance requirements and factor in the time and effort. As there are so many cars on the road, there should be a lot of information to make it more predictable. Worry-free (relatively) means you have to buy at less than 3 years old I guess.

 

[Hangloose]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

But when I ask in this forum, many say no problems or they will juz make fun of u. Seems like they dun want to share their experience. How to know then? Sigh

 

[delrosa81]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

But when I ask in this forum, many say no problems or they will juz make fun of u. Seems like they dun want to share their experience. How to know then? Sigh

Haa haa yeah, I understand what U mean.

Anyways the E90 you are thinking of buying is brand new or used? Im tinking used cos now F30 come out, shouldnt have any more brand new right?

Honestly, once you have reached 3 years or 100,000km of mileage, you have to start replacing all wear and tear items like oil seals, etc.

Brake Pads are usually replaced together with the brake rotors. Unlike most other cars where you can use ur rotors for a few cycles of brake pads change.

Installation of electronic items for eg, u wanna change from halogen headlight to original bmw hids, you need to purchase the light module and get PML to do coding and stuff. I tink nowadays outside workshops are able to do but the hassle of getting things done.

Auto transmission is another issue that you may need to be concerned about. There will be jerks and other anomalies with the transmission as the car ages, repairing it is in the region of 4K ++ upwards.

Radiator hoses, radiator might need replacing.

The above are some items that require replacing at the above mentioned age and mileage.

I have since spent approx. S$5000 for the repairs and I still have some other stuff yet to be replaced or repaired.

But my case maybe abit different from others, I run around Singapore with my E90, my mileage is higher than the average driver, therefore mine may not be accurate.

You can base on my above info to make ur decision.

Happy Shopping!

 

[pabloiceman]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Thanks Delrosa81 for the very detailed write-up. Some of the repairs i've gone thorough are similar.

About a month ago had to replace my Burnt starter, wiring/cable and battery (as the burnt wiring was touching the body causing the battery to discharge) as i got stuck at a carwash in JB. Luckily the workshop which did beemers was just 3 doors away.

 

[delrosa81]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Thanks Delrosa81 for the very detailed write-up. Some of the repairs i've gone thorough are similar.

About a month ago had to replace my Burnt starter, wiring/cable and battery (as the burnt wiring was touching the body causing the battery to discharge) as i got stuck at a carwash in JB. Luckily the workshop which did beemers was just 3 doors away.

You are most welcome. I guess for maintain the car properly, needs time, money and effort to make the car run well and smoothly. There will be fustration sometimes when things keep failing and the car needs to be sent for repairs, inconveniencing your schedule, repeated repairs for the same problem, etc.

We need to have patience and know who to go to for the problem identification and rectification. So we have to be prepared.

 

[pabloiceman]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

ohh, forgot to mention that i driving a Dec '05 E90 320i with mileage presently at 105k. The above costs about sgd 760 (after conversion). That also solved my problem with my jerky engine (due to slight misfiring of the injectors) and the smoky exhaust (which i initially thought to be the oil seal leak - due to crazy amounts of Lube oil i had to top up every week). It was all the wiring.

 

[delrosa81]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

ohh, forgot to mention that i driving a Dec '05 E90 320i with mileage presently at 105k. The above costs about sgd 760 (after conversion). That also solved my problem with my jerky engine (due to slight misfiring of the injectors) and the smoky exhaust (which i initially thought to be the oil seal leak - due to crazy amounts of Lube oil i had to top up every week). It was all the wiring.

Oic, so U mean u replaced the injectors? Did U also replace the ignition coil as well?

So I tink the misfiring caused the exhuast to smell like gunpowder also?

 

[pabloiceman]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Oic, so U mean u replaced the injectors? Did U also replace the ignition coil as well?

So I tink the misfiring caused the exhuast to smell like gunpowder also?

Yes, exhaust was sometimes white and sometimes black ... Nope, no injectors but the ignition coil was replaced. After that i didn't have to top up my Engine Oil. Already 1 month. Have been monitoring the level since then and so far just average normal drop but still above the low level alarm. Using the Mobil 1 oil.
Previously was on Shell and thought also because of the viscosity but after changing to Mobil 1 also saw the same. Then read up forums and all say oil seal leak, here and there leak but couldn't see anything even in the morning cold start and warming up. Starting was difficult but when the engine started, sometimes at standstill, engine rev like almost stop sometimes.
Before the coil totally burnt and grounded, my ABS warning lights come on -off and over-rev lights sometimes came because when accelerating, full current not going.

Until the coil/cable replacement did i see the difference. Still monitoring but i think my problem is solved.
Any Beemer service centre can check your diagnostic if your car was misfiring which doesn't show up on your dash. I am no pro is problem solving but just sharing what i went through ... Later i talk about a more expensive repair ...that one really heart pain ..

 

[delrosa81]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Yes, exhaust was sometimes white and sometimes black ... Nope, no injectors but the ignition coil was replaced. After that i didn't have to top up my Engine Oil. Already 1 month. Have been monitoring the level since then and so far just average normal drop but still above the low level alarm. Using the Mobil 1 oil.
Previously was on Shell and thought also because of the viscosity but after changing to Mobil 1 also saw the same. Then read up forums and all say oil seal leak, here and there leak but couldn't see anything even in the morning cold start and warming up. Starting was difficult but when the engine started, sometimes at standstill, engine rev like almost stop sometimes.
Before the coil totally burnt and grounded, my ABS warning lights come on -off and over-rev lights sometimes came because when accelerating, full current not going.

Until the coil/cable replacement did i see the difference. Still monitoring but i think my problem is solved.
Any Beemer service centre can check your diagnostic if your car was misfiring which doesn't show up on your dash. I am no pro is problem solving but just sharing what i went through ... Later i talk about a more expensive repair ...that one really heart pain ..

Swee thanks bro! I will go check it out!

 

[pabloiceman]

Re: My E90 320i Repair Journal

Swee thanks bro! I will go check it out!

Ohh, for the other heart pain experience, i posted in another thread. U can have a look there.

 

[ryan75]

Very informative thread!

Just took over a Dec 2005 320i myself. Previous owner did many repairs in a short span of 1 year, the amounts on those receipts are scaring me. Hopefully the car stays as good as it is now for the remaining 3 years.