[shrimpvende]

Hi all,

Just joined as I'm hopefully going to be picking up a 325D M Sport on Thursday. I had a 118D M Sport and loved it but was unfortunate enough to get the beginnings of a noisy timing chain, so traded it in. I decided I couldn't be without another Beemer so set my sights on the more reliable 3 litre, hoping not to have any more costly nightmares! As I didn't want to pour loads more cash in on top of the 1 series this new car has 96,000 on the clock, which is fair bit higher than I would normally be comfortable with, so I was wondering what sort of problems this could bring?

What should I be looking out for when I go and see it? It has full BMW service history which I will check out on that premium rate line tomorrow, and is fully hpi checked and from an independent dealer. My current list is:

- MV3 alloys - check for cracks
- oil around the turbo/engine bay
- clutch judder (had a bit of this in the 1 series)

Any other advice would be greatly appreciated. I plan to have the EGR cleaned/blanked, DPF gutted and a remap in the near future, but want to get used to the standard car first. Could any of these present a problem due to the high mileage?

Also it has standard pro headunit, no iDrive. Do these come with USB/Bluetooth or was it an option? Is cruise control standard on the M Sports? All of them I've seen advertised have it but not sure if this one does.

Cheers, and sorryf for all the questions!

[M4rius]

since when 96k considered high for a diesel ?

[Digitalize]

96k is not high. With regular servicing there's no reason these engines will ever go wrong.

EGR is a common problem no matter the mileage, other than that these engines are fairly bullet proof.

Clutch Judder is fairly standard for all BMWs tbh.

[shrimpvende]

That's what I was hoping to hear. I think it's because I'm still getting over my N47 experience, lots of them go pop even at fairly low mileage - fair few cases over on babybmw.

Are there any other consumables that may wear out, engine/drivetrain aside? Bushes, suspension parts etc?

[shrimpvende]

To update this - I went to see the car and bought it. Fantastic condition for its age and felt great to drive. Only things that made me slightly weary were the really long oil service intervals in it's history - up to 25k - and an overdue brake fluid change, although all services have been done by BMW. I'm going to get both those sorted, and do oil every year/10k from now on as at £60 from National Tyres there really is no excuse!

a couple of questions:

I want to change the (manual) gearbox oil as the change isn't as good as my 1 series - which oil and how much of it do I need for this?
Is it worth doing Diff oil at the same time?
I have bluetooth and voice phone with the option to fit a cradle, but no USB. I have what I believe to be a MULF unit in the boot - can I retrofit USB to this? I've searched around google but can't find a standard answer
I want to get the EGR/manifold cleaned and have the swirl flaps checked at the same time - how much should I budget for this? My local indie charges £40/hour labour

Fingers crossed this ownership will be more enjoyable than the 4 pot 1er, I can't get over how smooth the engine is or the noise it makes - almost forget its a diesel!

cheers

[shrimpvende]

As for the car:

Previous 1 series





New E92









Plans are as follows:

- EGR/manifold/swirlflap clean
- oil and gearbox oil service
- respray steering wheel trim with plasti-kote
- wrap interior brushed aluminium with either aluminium again or piano black to hide damage/wear
- Potential DPF removal and remap depending on insurance (I'm only 20)

[Digitalize]

From what I can tell, the easiest way to add USB is to get a head unit which has the USB built in, rather than messing around with the separate boxes etc. The later cars offered this and you see them for sale on here for around £300.

EGR you can do yourself if it's in the same place as on my 320D, literally right on top of the engine, super easy. Swirl Flaps requires taking the manifold off, and I wouldn't bother, I haven't heard of anyones going. The problems were sorted before the E9X was introduced.

Gearbox/Diff I can't help, been trying to work it out for mine as I'd like to change it being on 170k, but they're technically both sealed for life units.

[David c]

Welcome mate. If you've got a mulf unit in the boot then you just need the parts fitted and then someone to code it mine came with USB and no bluetooth and I just retrofitted it.

On the egr side of things just make sure it's nice and clean as mine had to be replaced and that was when it was on the 38k mark.

[shrimpvende]

Thanks for the advice - I'll have a look and see if I can find a guide for the EGR. I didn't like the idea of having the manifold off and the potential for dropping stuff or allowing stuff into the engine. How would I go about cleaning the EGR? I'm guessing there are cleaning fluids available.

I know they say they're sealed for life but I really don't trust BMW's longlife stuff. My 325 has only had 4 oil services in 96k (although its about due now) which doesn't sound right to me at all! On google there are lots of people saying it transformed the feel of the box, but no one specifically said which oil to use or how much

[shrimpvende]

Originally Posted by David c

Welcome mate. If you've got a mulf unit in the boot then you just need the parts fitted and then someone to code it mine came with USB and no bluetooth and I just retrofitted it.

I've got the unit in the boot but not sure if there are any connections free that could be used for USB, I read somewhere that some of these boxes could only handle Bluetooth/voice control but not USB.

On the side facing the rear of the car there is only 1 input/output which a cable is connected to, I'm not sure if there should be some more inputs here for USB?

[Jase 320d]

Dpf removal is an MOT fail wouldn't waste my time

[shrimpvende]

Originally Posted by Jase 320d

Dpf removal is an MOT fail wouldn't waste my time

I think the MOT is only a visual inspection currently? If the DPF is removed from the pipe and the pipe put back on there would be no way to tell.

I'm happy to be corrected if wrong as I havn't done this yet!

[Jase 320d]

The black soot gives it away. They are looking at ways to prove it currently so may be an expensive reversal in the future

[Vish8895]

Sorry for the thread revival here folks but I figured if I open a new thread I'll get told to search so am jumping on this one!

I too have found a nice clean low mileage 325D m sport. I am looking to buy it this week but just wondered if you guys had anything to add with the checks?

I had a 335i E92 earlier in the year and loved it!

Thanks
Vish