Ooonst 4 Report post Posted September 3, 2022 (edited) Hi Guys, Noob to the forums. Gidday!! I'm looking to buy an '06 N54 335i and took it for a test drive today. All seemed pretty straight aside from I noted a weird feeling in both the Steering and brake pedal seemed to be picking up vibrations from the Windscreen wipers!? The guy said that he had one of the wiper motors replaced recently but wondering if this makes any sense to any of you and if this could indicate a more serious problem? The other thing I noted was that there appeared to be a very small amount of oil on some metal tray near the top left of the engine just below where the injectors are maybe?? I'm pretty sure I read in another forum or website somewhere this is indicative of some slightly serious problem but can't locate that original post. Anyway, Greetings and I'm sure to be posting a bit more once I obtain my 335 in whatever shape it ends up being... Whoops, probably should have posted this one to "Quick Questions"... Edited September 3, 2022 by Ooonst Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ooonst 4 Report post Posted September 4, 2022 Went for a second look at this one https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/cars/bmw/335i/listing/3705021862 and walked away as I'm thinking it might have the wastegate rattle... OBD2 Scan was clean, has a needs service flag. If anyone else in Wellington end's up going to have a look, please let me know if you think it has the wastegate rattle? Sounds like a sowing machine on the down rev. Now this thread probably needs to move to the Trade me section.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jon dee 500 Report post Posted September 4, 2022 (edited) FWIW my 335i had both turbos replaced (by the previous owner) at around 85,000km because of "wastegate rattle". Apparently it brought up a boost leak trouble code and the mechanical insurance paid. The other big ticket maintenance items are the electric water pump and thermostat, and the high pressure fuel pump. At 120,000km you are getting into the zone where the original parts frequently fail, so worth asking if either of these have been replaced. Regarding the sound, I read this... "the noise is described as a clanking noise occurring up to six or seven times in a row during a deceleration from approximately 3,500 RPM, or during a heavy application of the accelerator without a drive gear being engaged". Also this... "It is a rattle under moderate load, for me the sweet spot was around 2k rpm with little throttle. You'll hear it from outside the car too. Won't even need to pop the hood". Otherwise looks pretty tidy for the money. Cheers... Edited September 4, 2022 by jon dee More info Stephanie.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
smiddy 76 Report post Posted September 4, 2022 Welcome Ooost, looks a nice example with low ks in relation to age. The 2006 335i, was the first release year of the 335i. 06-07 variants had issues with all forms of faulty/ fault causing gremlins, both electrical and mechanical. As Jon states, many issues maybe, almost certainly are around the corner. Mid 2008+ models had many upgraded parts, waste gates, fuel pumps, injectors, DME etc. Not knowing your purchase budget, but myself now, with the "change it out" while in there mentality, while not cheap, is the go with this model of car. IMO, a well maintained serviced 2008+ car with 140 ish ks, would be a more suitable and reliable ride for the $. Without doubt, one of the best bang for buck performance BMW cars going, if maintained properly. Good luck. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ooonst 4 Report post Posted September 5, 2022 Hey, thanks very much guys!! Much appreciated. There were a few other things that turned me off, some bits not clicked in where they should have been in the engine bay and some serious mould on one of the rear passenger seatbelt! I've done a reasonable amount of reading up but still fairly new to all of this. I heard that the 2009/2010(pre N55) ones might be slightly better in terms of reliability but still one of the most unreliable cars in it's class?! I'm asking questions about the water pump/thermostat, and the HPFP, Also hear that the Injectors can be pretty pricey to replace. I'd plan to upgrade the HPFP anyway so no biggy if that one leaves me on the side of the road (depends where I'm at I guess!?) Going to look at another one this afternoon... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
str8_6 270 Report post Posted September 5, 2022 (edited) I must have got lucky with my 07 335i. I certainly wouldn’t call it any more unreliable than the other BMW’s I’ve owned. In fact it only ever had the bonnet up for regular oil changes and servicing in my 50k of driving and another 15k when I on-sold to a family member. I still get to drive it from time to time and still can’t understand why I sold it. The other car I had the N52 motor in was however an oil leaking mess of a thing, plus coolant leaks, vanos solenoid failures, starter motor, water pump, transmission pan gasket and it had half the mileage. Edited September 5, 2022 by str8_6 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KwS 2376 Report post Posted September 5, 2022 The previous owner of my old one got unlucky lol. At 150k it'd had turbos, injectors, hpfp, lpfp, coils, sump gasket and the trans wasnt too happy. It did have a stage 2+ tune though which stresses everything. They arent a cheap car to own, but they are an older high performance european car, so expect some decent stacks of cash for maintenance. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Neal 512 Report post Posted September 6, 2022 Ironically I sit 3 meters away from @Ooonst during the day, small world this community 😀 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
