The 130i Thread

[Hutty008 49]

3 minutes ago, Vass said:

Looks to be worth well beyond asking price in parts still. I've seen people sell 135i calipers alone for like $1.2k.

Would be lucky to get 800 for the calipers as they are very chipped and rusted. Have to remember that car has 200kms on it. Yest I do think you can make money on it but not a lot. He had it listed for 2k when I saw it and I offered him 1.5k and he accepted it but I still didn't end up taking it.

[VADER 7]

Thats on fb is it .. whats the best way to search / view offerings like this online exactly ?

[Hutty008 49]

43 minutes ago, VADER said:

Thats on fb is it .. whats the best way to search / view offerings like this online exactly ?

Scroll on Facebook marketplace for 2 hours a day 😂.

[elias 428]

2 minutes ago, Hutty008 said:

Scroll on Facebook marketplace for 2 hours a day 😂.

Can confirm 3+ hours on marketplace a day is how deals are found 

[Danch 45]

There was a 135i brake caliper set sold by $1 reserve and it went for 550ish. I doubt even a good set would get 800 nowadays. 

[elias 428]

3 hours ago, Danch said:

There was a 135i brake caliper set sold by $1 reserve and it went for 550ish. I doubt even a good set would get 800 nowadays. 

I sold mine for $950 a few years ago, must’ve been lucky. That was calipers only. 

[Jacko 2296]

My full conversion, including rebuilding the calipers and new pads, seals, pistons and disks cost about 3.5k starting from $900 calipers  

[M3AN 4160]

Wow ^... my set of 4, including near new BMW pads, cost ~NZ$750 landed from the UK. I'm talking the blue M-Lite (M135i/M140i) Brembo from the F series though, they look better (IMHO), and are much lighter, than the E series performance brakes. A little more complicated to fit though.

If you're looking for used parts, it's a good idea to also peep at the for sale section of m3cutters in the UK, it's very active and covers everything BMW, not just M3's. Even better if you know someone in the UK that's willing to act as a freight forwarder.

Edited July 24 by M3AN

[Brianr70 94]

On initial start up get a mild oil smell emitted from engine area, if you stop 5 mins afterwards you can see I am guessing is brief puff of oil fumes from engine bay. However no oil leaks, wondering would this be the oil breather ?  Any thoughts/comments appreciated. Note not using oil either,

[M3AN 4160]

Not strictly a 130 but a pretty well sorted E87 135i+

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/cars/bmw/135i/listing/5400153803

 

[Jacko 2296]

1 hour ago, M3AN said:

Not strictly a 130 but a pretty well sorted E87 135i+

https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/cars/bmw/135i/listing/5400153803

 

I know the guy that built it Tauranga, will be done well. 

[eski 3]

On 7/22/2025 at 11:30 PM, Danch said:

Water leak!

Has anyone experienced water pooling underneath rear seats and in wells underneath rear lights? (where PDC module is if you have one)

I pulled out 100ml of water from the rear seatbelt bolt holes and emptied the wells (the driver side was a lot worse). The rear rail seems to be wet inside.

I searched online and people suggest it's either coming from the rear light gasket, or the rear vents in the wells, or the bumper mount gasket.

The rear light gasket and rear vents seems ok - I just can't imagine that much water collecting in the rails because of those leak points 😕

Maybe I'll hose down from the top and see if there are any obvious leak points...

Did you also drain the rear rail? Had the same issue a couple years ago and my rear rails were full of water and leaking up through the seatbelt bolts, there's a plug on the underside of the rail that's not too bad to access with the battery tray out. As others have mentioned, retorquing the taillight and adding drain holes to the plugs in the wells helps (fixed my problem at least, only place water gets in now is my badly leaking cowl (anyone got any pointers for that...))

[M3AN 4160]

And if you ever have the front bumper off, drill some drainage holes in the bottom of the plastic boxes that house the ballasts, astonishing the BMW can't waterproof (or drain adequately) sensitive parts of a car that are, well, exposed to water (whether that be directly or via routing). I'm sure it's not a problem unique to BMW but, come on.

[Danch 45]

5 hours ago, eski said:

Did you also drain the rear rail? Had the same issue a couple years ago and my rear rails were full of water and leaking up through the seatbelt bolts, there's a plug on the underside of the rail that's not too bad to access with the battery tray out. As others have mentioned, retorquing the taillight and adding drain holes to the plugs in the wells helps (fixed my problem at least, only place water gets in now is my badly leaking cowl (anyone got any pointers for that...))

I drained the rear rail after reading this post: E91 rear seat wet / water in battery compartment / water ingress search (picture below is from the post)

There was quite a bit of water in there.

I tried to take the battery tray out, but something is stuck - maybe some clipping mechanisms? I didn't want to damage anything, so I left it there.

I've drilled drain holes to the plugs in the wells and retorqued the taillight after noticing some water marks underneath it. 

However, despite having sunny days, I noticed some droplets of water in the driver side well today. It was in the corner next to the wheel arch. Maybe it's seeping from the seams? not sure.

The passenger side rear seat carpet is still damp - again, not sure if it's just from previous leak or not. 

Looks like we've got some heavy rains forecasted so I'll keep an eye on it to see if it leaks again. 

[Danch 45]

There was a random taillight bolt in the well quietly rusting away. It suggests that the leak has been happening for a while. I took the bolt out but it left that rusty looking area. I could scratch if off a bit so it could be surface rust but I bought some rust converter just in case..

 

[eski 3]

2 hours ago, Danch said:

I drained the rear rail after reading this post: E91 rear seat wet / water in battery compartment / water ingress search (picture below is from the post)

There was quite a bit of water in there.

I tried to take the battery tray out, but something is stuck - maybe some clipping mechanisms? I didn't want to damage anything, so I left it there.

I've drilled drain holes to the plugs in the wells and retorqued the taillight after noticing some water marks underneath it. 

However, despite having sunny days, I noticed some droplets of water in the driver side well today. It was in the corner next to the wheel arch. Maybe it's seeping from the seams? not sure.

The passenger side rear seat carpet is still damp - again, not sure if it's just from previous leak or not. 

Looks like we've got some heavy rains forecasted so I'll keep an eye on it to see if it leaks again. 

Could have been the ground/battery cables on the underside of the tray stopping you from pulling it out?

Doesn't happen to be a sunroof car does it? If so, front & rear sunroof drains are a pretty likely culprit...

[BreakMyWindow 1984]

Check the vent gasket in that area….

 

[Jacko 2296]

For shits I thought I take a punt on these - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005001544037965.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.41.4e641802ZLscJA

Theyre genuine units, looking at them in my hand right now.

[TPO130i 13]

With the new Pagid pads I've fitted, I've managed to warp the front disc's at the Taupo Dual Sprints. Any recommendations for replacement discs? Cheers.

[Hutty008 49]

21 minutes ago, TPO130i said:

With the new Pagid pads I've fitted, I've managed to warp the front disc's at the Taupo Dual Sprints. Any recommendations for replacement discs? Cheers.

I have had good experiences with DBA and they are well priced when on sale at supercheap. Let me know if you need help with DBA part numbers and finding them on supercheap as it can be a pain.

[BreakMyWindow 1984]

On 7/28/2025 at 9:40 AM, Jacko said:

For shits I thought I take a punt on these - https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005001544037965.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.41.4e641802ZLscJA

Theyre genuine units, looking at them in my hand right now.

Decent improvement over the stock units ? 

[Jacko 2296]

1 hour ago, BreakMyWindow said:

Decent improvement over the stock units ? 

Havent tried, but be hard to be much worse!

 

[Driftit 2222]

On 7/26/2025 at 1:31 PM, Brianr70 said:

On initial start up get a mild oil smell emitted from engine area, if you stop 5 mins afterwards you can see I am guessing is brief puff of oil fumes from engine bay. However no oil leaks, wondering would this be the oil breather ?  Any thoughts/comments appreciated. Note not using oil either,

Likely.  Is your 07 an LCI?
The PCV is built into the cam cover.  One of the dumbest decisions BMW has ever made on an engine IMO.
When the PCV fails or begins to fail it can pressurize the crankcase and you will start to smell oil.  Leave it long enough and you will start getting leaks.

Are you sure you don't have a small leak that is dripping a small amount onto your exhaust?

[Driftit 2222]

On 7/28/2025 at 1:57 PM, Hutty008 said:

I have had good experiences with DBA and they are well priced when on sale at supercheap. Let me know if you need help with DBA part numbers and finding them on supercheap as it can be a pain.

Just be aware that sometimes DBA is replaced by Brembo at Supercheapauto.  And they are not great.  I especially wouldn't want them on a tracked car.