I'm looking at purchasing a 2011 335d with 16,000 miles on it. The history on this car is it was a dealer car, then sold at auction. I'd like to know what to look for in this car. Pros and cons of a 335d, thoughts. Any concerns? Mechanical issues? how reliable is this engine? Thanks for any advice, info, etc. Should I wait for the new BMW diesel? Motivation for buying this is fuel mileage. I've owned VW's and they are great cars. I'm thinking of a BW Jetta Hybrid, but am consdeirng the BMW 335d as I will be doing about 22,000 miles of driving a year for the next 8 years and it seems ot me the 335d will do better on the lon term.
The diesel is never a bad choice, in my opinion the diesel is one of the most over looked vehicles. Mainly because of what people believe a diesel is, a loud, smelly, only used in trucks for heavy hauling. When in reality they are really efficient with fuel and heat usage. The engine your looking into is called the M57y and has been around for quite awhile since it was first used in Europe. That engine is one of the simplest engines BMW makes there is no vanos (variable valve timing) no valvetronic (uses intake valves as throttle valves), no electrical water engine water pump. So far the only concerns I have seen with these vehicles is emission devices recalls I'm sure you have heard about them. Even if you do have a concern you still have BMW warranty for those issues. As for the new diesel thats coming it is a new engine design that has been used in Europe for awhile so I'm not sure about issue yet but it is using some technology that other diesel manufactures have had issues with in the past. But the fuel saving is quite impressive at 55 mpg. I personally never get the first year of anything new so they can work out all the issues first. One draw back to the 335D is if you live in an area with snow, because of all the torque they really don't get around good on stock tires. With snow tires I heard they are good so you may want to look into getting a set. Another draw back is they require more maintenance costs then other BMW's, such as you need to fill the SCR (selective catalyst reduction) with DEF (diesel exhaust fluid) every oil service. This is covered by BMW maintenance but once thats over you will have to pay extra for this service . Oh and sneaky BMW fact if you require DEF in between oil services thats not covered by BMW warranty. Also the fuel filter needs to be replaced every second oil service again covered but after warranty. Hope this helps with your decision.
I drove both the Jetta Hybrid and the 335d I was looking at. Cross out the Jetta Hybrid. Get ok fuel mileage, but the seat is God awful painful for me. VW has once again, cheapened a car which really makes me angry. The 335d appears to be a good car, but I still have some concerns with the history of the car, and need to get a atraight story on it. i think with careful driving the bmw will get over 40 mpg. When you say maintenance costs are higher, so how much higher? $50? $100?? I also felt the 335d was a bit chinzy. The steering wheel not as thick as my friends 328xi (2008) and I felt there was more plastic in it. Also, the trunk has no space, but that is really not a concern, but was very disappointed the wheel well for the spare tire (none as there are run flats) was missing.........that was a nice place to story snow brushes, etc. Does this engine have an oil cooler? And thank you for the info.
Now there a different versions of the E9x platform you are looking at. Your friends 328xi may have a thicker wheel because it has the M package on it and one of those upgrades is the steering wheel, same with the plastic. The maintenance cost is dependent on where you live and your dealer or shop that does the work. What I mentioned above is just a comparison to the non diesel BMW's. I have heard of people who drive these diesels a lot and properly can get up to 43-45 mpg which is big for this size vehicle. And yes most BMW's come with runflat tires, there are a love hate relationship, hard and ruin the ride quality, dont last as long, but save you from the hassel of being stranded. Yes they do have an oil cooler system. Do make sure you get a good history on this vehicle before you purchase, auction cars are a big coin flip sometimes you get a great deal and sometimes you get one in rough shape. Good luck with your purchase.
IME, you will average 30-32 mpg. If urban only you will get 25-30, if highway up to 38-40. However, highway mileage is highly dependent upon speed (best around 55mph-60mph) and hills. The DEF tank for the SCR is under the trunk floor - as mentioned, it is not big enough for a spare in any model in any case. If you want to see more discussions, the two most active forums are on http://www.e90post.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=377 and http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&daysprune=-1&f=154 Almost all problems have been related to EGR & SCR. There is speculation that original EGR programming and short-trip use is causing valve deposit problems (YMMV, but the internet forums seem to be easy to start a panic on some issues). Many people (and it's possible that I was one of the ones starting this rumor) have speculated that BMW has been using the 335d and x5d as a beta-test site for their new emissions controls on diesel engines. It might explain the recent emissions recall for EGR/SCR/DDE programming. As slightly mentioned, the new 3-series diesel may be a better choice for mileage, as it will have the 4-cylinder N47 engine (likely badged a 328d and 328xd) and should get substantially better mileage than the 335d. As far as snow, I've got Blizzak LM60's on mine at the moment, and have not had problems getting where I want to go (and I'm a serious snow person - ski/sb instructor 4 days a week). Here's a picture of my tracks in 4" on a 10% 100 yard drive to our vacation house (which isn't as serious as other places I drive, btw.) Be sure to engage DTC.
If it's MPG's that you're concerned about then I would agree and opt for the 328d. If you want a ridiculously high power diesel that will go crazy fast a get good mpg's in the process then opt for the 335d. As far as maintenane costs go, the UREA os very inexpensive and you would need to add approx 5 gallons every 10k-16k miles. Usage depends on how much fuel you're burning. The only "issue" with the 335d has to do with excessive carbon build up within the cylinder head and the intake. Quite a few vehicles under 50k miles have had to have the head pulled and sent out for cleaning along with replacing the intake manifold. That's a $7k+ bill but BMW has been covering it. Supposedly a "fix" is in the works where the carbon can be cleaned at the dealerships using a process that is similar to what they use for the DI gas engines. FWIW my vehicle has 60k miles on it and has not had the carbon issue, but I just had the entire emissions system replaced (OEM extended warranty) which included the SCR catalyst, NOX sensors, Urea reservoir. My car had been rock solid until this emissions issue appeared in December and it required multiple visits to the dealer. Good Luck.
I just bought a 2011 335d and am averaging 40 mpg on the highway with the cruise control set on 68. I am very impressed as I got 500 miles on 3/4 of a tank of fuel.
