[NjRep335i]

BACKGROUND:

JB4, DCI, Meth, RR DP, Mr.5 Exhaust-
My 2007 335i with 104,000 miles needed some TLC . However, I haven't had any show stopping issues with her since I purchased but some minor items due to a healthy use. My major issue was when my wastegates started to rattle; it was during the time BMW was getting ready to issue their extended warranty to remedy the issue. Unfortunatelyl, once they settled on their time frame I was already at 84,000 miles. Luckily for me JamesM3M5 had posted a short DIY on how to remedy this issue. Enough of the Background - onto the Fix and Performance Review.

Wastegate Adjustment:
84,000 mile adjustment:
I jumped into this thinking I would only have to make adjustments to the rear turbo since most members have reported this. Once I pulled the downpipes and tested both Wastegates, I found that the front was worse than the rear; the rear would fully close with 9.8In. Hg and the front wouldn't close with even 20In. Hg. I completed the adjustment front and back and ensured I had adjusted them to 5.9In. Hg as per the spec. Once I tested this I was completely happy. It felt as I was leaving WHP on the table for quite some time. Well. all good things come to an end and my clutch started to slip. (New Found Power)
104,000 Mile Checkup
I pulled my Downpipes to check my previous Wastegate adjustment and I was relieved that the adjustment was still perfect. Since I had pulled the DP’s from the car to check I decided to make some fine adjustments to the DP’s. I seemed to have a vibration from my DP’s when turning the wheel; I know it was because I pushed them so far towards the Driver side to ensure they didn’t hit the sub-frame. After racking up miles, eventually they would start to loosen from the stress incurred between the exhaust and dp’s not sitting in a natural position. So, I finessed the DP’s with a 3lb Hammer and gained enough clearance without forcing the pipes towards the driver side of the car. I also must admit that reinstalling the Exhaust was much easier than previous times.

Clutch Replacement:
104,000 Miles
Since My clutch started slipping it went from only 4th and 5th to 2nd and 3rd. During this degradation I followed these forums closely to pick my next clutch. I heard so many good and bad things across all clutch manufactures such as whether to go DMFW or SMFW. Decisions, Decisions, I ended up going with the Spec Stage 2+ and Spec Steel Flywheel. I followed the review from @Rudypoohchris and can say it was spot on.

I was lucky enough to use a friends shop for 3 days for my overhaul and performed it on jack stands. My good friend assisted me during these days and we drank plenty of good beer throughout the process. I also watched the HPF video for good measure and tricky bolt locations. I must say, aside from the HPF video being on a 135I and not a 335I, it was almost exact. The part that doesn't follow their video is removal of the top 2 bolts. I messed with this for 1 1/2 hours with multiple options of tools. You must remove the intake manifold from the 335I to access these bolts. Once all was unbolted I used a Harbor Freight Transmission jack to lower it down. Note: it didn't get pulled from underneath the car but sat far enough back in the tunnel with no interference. As things progressed on I found I needed to use a Press to push out the pilot bearing from the Stock DMFW. My friend has one across town so we made the trip and it came out smooth as can be. I was a bit nervous to install the new flywheel since I didn't have a flywheel holder and didn't want any flying projectiles when torqueing the flywheel. The solution: I found some angle iron stock with holes drilled into it - this worked flawlessly and was great for peace of mind.
After completing the Clutch/Flywheel install it was time for a simple test while the car was still jacked up. My first impression was the clutch grabbed very low, maybe a ½ inch off the floor and was very springy. I bled the clutch a couple of times to ensure everything was operational and continued to my next overhaul phase (Shocks and Struts).

Shocks, Struts and Tie Rod Ends:
104,000 Miles
My car had some serious front passenger tire shake when approaching 80mph and the all-around handling was just crap. I decided to go with the Bilstien Touring Edition shocks, they are a factory replacement and work great. I paid about $350 from Tirerack for all 4 pieces and the car feels brand new. The install was not hard at all and once you get past the learning curve for the 1st strut the rest are simple. The hardest part is making sure you’ve compressed the spring far enough down to do the re-install. I read some DIY that said to jack the car up and install the spring compressor. In my case this was not possible, I’m not sure if they had a different spring compressor but mine would’ve bottomed out on the strut mount if I drove it all the way up. I ended using the spring compressor outside the car and it took a couple times to ensure I was grabbing enough spring. Keep in mind most are using a universal spring compressor so they may not conform as well as to the BMW or higher priced units.
The Meyle tierod ends are great, I read about them from @robc1976 on N54tech.com and the install went just like his DIY.

Conclusion:
Wastegate- After adjusting the wastegates (84,000 miles) and ensuring they are still in tolerance (104,000 miles), I am certainly glad I tackled this job. The annoying rattle is completely gone and the boost response is instantaneous.
This is a must do if you have Rattle, low boost response and are out of warranty and the fix does last longer than perceived.

Clutch/Flywheel- I was a bit worried reading some recent reviews but held steady on the good reviews. I am happy I did so, and can say this clutch is very connected and worthy of the power and beating it’s about to receive. I am now at 500miles to break in and if it wasn’t snowing I would do the final break in process, launch and slip launches to smooth out the engagement shudders.
I would recommend this clutch and Flywheel setup but want people to know the following. There is some Flywheel chatter with the car in neutral and foot of the clutch. This sometimes gets worse going over speed bumps and on hills. 95% of the time you cannot hear anything and most of the time the average volume on the stereo will drown it out. Thanks again to @dzenno at Protuningfreaks for hooking this up.

Shocks, Struts, Tierods ends- I am extremely happy with this setup, the car tracks are straight and feels very solid around the turns and at high speeds (130mph tested). The Bilstien Touring shocks may not be the best performance upgrade but they are smooth, quiet and up to the task at hand. The meyle Tie Rod ends keep the steering very crisp and for the money and beefiness it’s a no brainer. I did have M3 upper and lower Control arms on order but Tischler was unable to meet my deadline. Next round of upgrades will include these as I’ve heard good things about them.

Future Plans:
I am currently happy with the setup I have. The car is an absolute BEAST again and I can’t wait until the spring track season arrives. In the next couple of month’s I may be leaning towards building a Single or Twin Turbo upgrade. A lot of my decision making will be based on the current kit’s that are hitting the forums, Garage built and professionally. I’ve been toying with an idea of twin turbo GTX28rs Top mount and bottom mount. This option leaves one with the ability to upgrade turbo’s with ease and no space constraints. Maybe I’m missing something from this idea but to me it’s best of both worlds (and you keep stock O2 placement).
P.S. I also moved my WW Meth kit to the Trunk during this shop session.