[oVeRdOsE.]

Just to get down from my comfy cloud, Id like to see what other member experience is with the N55.

Since I own it almost new, I almost did nothing on my N55, and wondering if it's a ticking bomb

170 000km (106 000 miles)

- no oil leak
- stock charge pipe
- stock coils
- stock injectors
- stock water pump

------Only repair : I put 50$ to change my cover valve gasket for a small leak, but OFHG and oil pan are OEM. And change intake air filter once.


It was piggytuned for a while with JB4 (removed since was useless for my use)

oil change every 8000-9000km, liqui moly.

using it almost everyday for short trip summer/winter, that normally bad for a engine.


impressed so far, still pushing strong.

[scotthilly]

Man, I wish I was that lucky. I bought mine with 83k miles, and the previous owner was meticulous on maintenance and never once got a CEL. In 14 months and 10k miles, I've had to replace:

-starter
-charge pipe (cracked and broke throttle body, too)
-valvetronic motor
-valve cover gasket
-two injectors
-oil pressure regulator
-water pump

Hopefully none of these happen to you. I would say I'm one end of the spectrum, and you're probably the other.

I would honestly replace the charge pipe and water pump anyways. Both fail at some point, without much warning, and require a tow. Both can be done for $1k for a indy.

[oVeRdOsE.]

great thanks for the review.


I simply realized this weekend speaking with friends , that a BMW is not that expensive, since I almost didnt put any money on this early N55.

the valvetronic motor did code once and engine was stalling, I didnt feel like doing this job, which is insane comparing to a N52, and someone told me to do a full test with ISTA.

The test was successful on the 1st try, no error.

Running like this since a year.



For the pump, on my N52 is lasted 270k km, and it DIDNT failed, I changed for preventive. And it was OEM, from 2008 !

I'm giving maybe to much luck for the N55, it surely run hotter, thus the pump runs more often.

Ill put charge pipe and pump on my list for this summer vacation

[bmw335ie90]

Originally Posted by oVeRdOsE.

Just to get down from my comfy cloud, Id like to see what other member experience is with the N55.

Since I own it almost new, I almost did nothing on my N55, and wondering if it's a ticking bomb

170 000km (106 000 miles)

- no oil leak
- stock charge pipe
- stock coils
- stock injectors
- stock water pump

------Only repair : I put 50$ to change my cover valve gasket for a small leak, but OFHG and oil pan are OEM. And change intake air filter once.


It was piggytuned for a while with JB4 (removed since was useless for my use)

oil change every 8000-9000km, liqui moly.

using it almost everyday for short trip summer/winter, that normally bad for a engine.


impressed so far, still pushing strong.

I would say you're for sure lucky you have no oil leaks. My OFHG gasket started weeping around 60k miles and the VCG at 80k miles, both were promptly replaced. My OPG is starting to weep at 98k miles and will likely address that soon.

The plastic charge pipe will likely last the life of the car if not tuned, I replaced mine with an aluminum one for MHD Stage 1.

Stock Coils, they last a long time if not tuned. I replaced all 6 of mine at 45k miles and again at 90k miles. Second replacement was free using FCP lifetime warranty. Plugs changed at the same time.

Injectors, these rarely fail on N55. It's possible to drop debris into them when doing the VCG and mess them up.

Stock water pump is just a personal risk tolerance. The PO replaced the original pump with BMW (Continental) at 35k miles under warranty. I was left stranded when that pump failed at 90k miles. Replaced it with an OE Continental and will plan to replace it every 50k miles for free through FCP.

[TheGoodTheBadTheUgly]

Before it got totaled, my 335 was at 173-175k km.

I was the second owner of the car and had it since it had 90k km.

Previous owner took extreme good care of it but when I got it, the OFHG was leaking so I did it ASAP.

It was probably MHD Stage 1+ equipped 3 month after I got it (ETS 7" FMIC, BMS Cold Air Intake, ETS Charge Pipe).

Then 1 summer later, around ~110k km, I was Stage 2+ equipped (VRSF Downpipe, PE Mod). I also got xHP Stage 3 as well as xDelete to be RWD every summer than AWD winters.

I had a compressor surge at some point so I had to change the diverter valve and upgraded for the GFB DV+. While I was down there, I changed the waterpump and thermostat since I thought it was worth it.

Since around 130/140k km, car has always weeped oil from the pan but I never really cared.

I would change coils and spark plugs every year with FCP lifetime warranty.

Minor stuff I changed along the way: Blower motor, tie rods, wheel carrier ball joint, expansion tank.

The major thing I had was the FRM3 bricked, but that was more due to an existing hidden issue than just the FRM itself. It happened 3 times to me. 1st time got it covered under the BMW extended warranty. Second time I bought a knock of xProg to unbrick it. 3rd time I figure out that these FRM3 bricking were all occuring because too much water would enter my passenger door and the power window connector would short and mess up the FRM so got all of that sorted.

Last major repair I had to do was replacing my wastegate actuator just last fall. The wastegate actuator was completly rusted in half hence no boost would build.

All in all, with everything I threw at the car, absolute unforgiving Canadian weather, I really can't complain with the issue of my car. Never had a valvetronic issue or anything valve cover related. Compression test every year when I changed my plugs and everything was always good. I did have slow cranks in the recent years and wasn't really able to pinpoint why. Wasn't HPFP it was super healthy but I tried to change fuel pressure regulator but that didn't do anything, maybe LPFP which I would have upgraded soon anyways.

Repair/Maintenance summary on the course of 90+k km mainly ECU OTS Stage 2+ and TCU Stage 3 tuned
Major Repairs: OFHG, Diverter Valve, FRMs, Wastegate Actuator
Major Maintenance: Thermostat, Waterpump
Minor Repair: Blower motor, Tie rods, Wheel Carrier Ball Joint, Expansion Tank.

[whyzee125]

You got a gem for sure! Must've been built on a Wednesday lol