I had an E90 with 328Xi with an N52N 6 cylinder engine. It had 130k miles and I was happy as could be until it was crunched last Christmas Eve. Not a bad collision just a car sliding on the ice bumped me into another car then slid back along side me. Front and Rear bumpers slight damage but all four doors were dented enough to require replacement. Needless to say it was totaled.....the car was mechanically just like it was before. The accident happened at a speed slower than you could walk. I now have an F30 328i Xdrive with the N20 4 cylinder engine. I needed a car and most seem to have the 4 cylinder. I drove it and it seemed to perform just fine. This one however sounds like a diesel....loud clattering noise that is unusually loud at times and can be heard inside the car. It doesn't matter whether or not it's cold or warm. I took it into the dealership and they told me it was normal. I went back when it was exceptionally loud and the technician took the oil filter out and said the was a small bit of metal in the filter and that he would open a case with BMW. I got a call and was told that BMW instructed them to replace the oil filter and return the car back to me. They didn't even drain and replace the oil in the engine. The whole thing makes no sense to me....BMW will have you replace bolts, nuts and washers when performing repairs. The dealer told me that there is some noise to be expected.....as for me....I don't want to drive a car that sounds like a diesel or a John Deere tractor. I have had BMWs for 25 years and absolutely frustrated here. I have found that many others have complained of this issue....is there any type of effort to have BMW figure out how to make a 4 cylinder engine that you won't hear from down the street ? Has anyone had experience with this at all or is it just my luck of the draw. Thank you, Steve
17,000 miles and yes....still under warranty until November 2016, Then it's a CPO car that was purchased in February 2016
The notion of metal in the oil filter, eek! Don't like the sound of that at all. Hopefully Charlson will have some thoughts, I just don't have any experience on that engine at all. Frustrating situation - you shouldn't be anything out of pocket here, never mind the effort, but you'd probably have to pay to have them change the oil, and pay for a 5-gal. pail to hand over with the demand they let you see them drain the oil into the pail so you and the tech can check it for metal, and so a sample might be sent to someplace for oil analysis which you'd also have to pay for, just to see if something's amiss by the most obvious, simplest, & least-expensive means, and insisting on being in on the whole process rather than just take their word for it (some dealers are better than others) - ugh. My admittedly extreme, last-resort, throw-the-baby-out-with-the-bathwater suggestion would be to ditch it while it's still under warranty with higher book value for something else you like. There may be a problem, maybe not (I presume you've google-searched and checked the other main BMW forums like bimmerforums.com, bimmerfest.com, bimmerpost.com, etc.), but, if there is a fatal problem looming for that engine, once you're out of that CPO & original warranty, you'll have a real uphill struggle to get any appropriate accommodation. I don't know the specifics of the 4-cyl turbo, but, geez, 17k mileage should be _nothing_ for a BMW engine, compared to it's expected lifespan, & it's hard to imagine that metal in the oil filter is normal. Sounds like you were the John-Cleese-equivalent in the dead parrot sketch in your exchange with what they told you... "No, no, that engine's not dead, it's resting. It's just pining for the Bavarian Alps." Un-amusingly though, as fixing engine problems is far more costly than dead parrots. FWIW, last year in Jan., found for my mom a '11 328xi w/ only 22k miles at local dealer, they negotiated down more than expected, traded-in her old E38 740il with it's slew of problems, ended up a bit over $24k out the door w/ taxes, registration, etc., 7 mos. of factory warranty left, non-CPO. So, as of a bit more than a year ago, the last of the non-turbos w/ low mileage were still out there - not that any BMW's are perfect mind you, the N52's with their relatively short-lived electric water pumps & other issues, but, maintenance stuff like that beats big engine problems anyday. Even if the 4-cyl's are noisy, seems like what you're describing is louder than what' would reasonably be expected.
Thanks.....yes I'm going to drain the oil myself just to get it out. I'll keep it and probably have it checked. It's embarrassing to drive the car....people ask me if its a diesel. Sad that BMW produces such a horrible engine and puts a Roundel on it. Here are a couple You Tube vids.....mine is st least as noisy. I want BMW to publicly say that they are incapable of building a four cylinder that's quieter than this. I'm also curious it'd the club knows of any times where this had been fixed. https://youtu.be/0fgHoLlkdw0
https://youtu.be/4gzJi_cJXDc The dealer tried to say it was the waste gate making the noise.....engine is idling...should be no waste gate sitting still. It will make it cold or hot. BMW needs to own this. I may be looking for a 6 cylinder or even a different brand.
Supposedly it's because of the direct injection used....very high pressure causing the noise. The engineers need to figure out a solution. Even filling the engine bay with sound deadening foam
Do me a favor can you take a video of your engine warm at idle and doing quick stabs up to 2500 rpm. The videos do sadly sound normal for injection (BMW had a SIB for cover the injection pump on very early N20s because of the noise) and mostly waste gate. The waste gate on the early versions of the engine use something called a floating waste gate which in design vibrates around instead of being fixed in one place helps with wear on the gate. The draw back obviously is very loud noise that is suppose to be considered normal. The newer N20 engine no longer use the vacuum actuated waste gate, they use a electronically controlled one which helps with the noise (not sure on why just is). The metal in the oil depending on the level and size of the metal flakes could be a alarm. Oil will have some metal in it under a normal wearing engine but if it gets to large or to much then it will indicate a internal issue with the engine. So remove the filter and see if you can find any metal flakes in the filter or in the filter housing.
I can do that.....I've actually tried feathering the throttle to see if it's a piston slap kind of sound. I have heard this on occasion. I'll give it a shot later. Thanks
If you drain the oil yourself, you might want to video record the entire process so you can prove that whatever's found, if anything, is from your car, and that the oil that's from your car is what's going into an oil analysis sample container & then out for analysis. If you can get someone to record while you're doing it, then you'll have video & actual witness proof, just in case it's questioned.
#Charlson89 Thanks for the reply......do happen to know the number for the SIB you mention below? My car is a 2013 with a build date of 09/2012. I am curious to read it to see what it all entails ? Thanks so much.....I do know that the loaner they gave me also had a 4 cylinder and it was NOTHING like what mine is regarding noise. "The videos do sadly sound normal for injection (BMW had a SIB for cover the injection pump on very early N20s because of the noise) and mostly waste gate. The waste gate on the early versions of the engine use something called a floating waste gate which in design vibrates around instead of being fixed in one place helps with wear on the gate."
///MGarrison...... I did figure on documenting the whole process and you are correct in pointing it out ....thank you. I still can't believe the dealership didn't do this when they had it.
SIB 130512 but your build date is to new for the SIB so you should already have the cover on the high pressure fuel pump.
Thanks for the info charlson89. I am curious.....when did this noisy engine first find it's way in a BMW ?