[glitdi]

Hey peeps glad to be a member here hoping to help out in anyway I can.
Located in the G.R.V.D. West Coast of British Columbia Canada, and am looking at pulling the trigger on a 335D sedan pretty soon and looking for information.

About me I maintain and repair a fleet of German made mobile hydraulic cranes for a living and have been pulling wrenches on a variety of different German auto's for years. I am hoping my experience with electronics and everything diesel related will be an asset to the club. I can/have fixed almost anything with wheels but I prefer German and I prefer Diesel. Thus the interest in the 335d, tq/hp arguably the best quickest diesel in the market especially after I am done with it....
I am hoping with this thread to avoid asking silly newbie questions that take time and clutter up a board. So please link to old threads that anyone new to 335d ownership should read....

Interested in common problems to look out for...

Really need to know what obd scan tool works the best for codes, regens of dpf etc and for coding instrument clusters, enabling different features etc....

Maintanace Schedule..

Special tools....

Cheap parts hause for parts... Must ship to Canada Eh!


Anything else that will help me.. I want to learn please help me!

Will post a pic of the car when I pick it up next couple of weeks. Looking at two options right now.. Kind of a rare bird....
Let me know how can I help.

Thanks in advance!!!!

[glitdi]

Reserved for pics....

[floydarogers]

Originally Posted by glitdi

...
Really need to know what obd scan tool works the best for codes, regens of dpf etc and for coding instrument clusters, enabling different features etc....

BMWhat, Torque and BavarianTechnic seem to be the most popular. BT doesn't actually work on post 2009/diesel cars but they're supposed to have an update out "soon".

[allotherareused]

Mine is M47 and there is really not so much of maintenance to do on this engine, what you would pay attention on is :

1. Buy ODB interface and try to find seller who will sell you DIS and SSS with this, I've bough few years ago from nice Romanian guy who have sent preset configuration for my car because first version I've received wasn't working
(like 50-100 US$)

2. turbo filter, until some year there was some old type, after that vortex is replacing old one. Check it (recommended on each 3rd air filter replacement) and if your is not vortex buy one and replace, else, just clean it.
do search : "VORTEX ENGINE BREATHER VALVE" or "OIL SEPARATOR" here or on ebay
(50-80 US$)
(1-2 hr)
DIY level : 2

3. (optional) do search here : "EGR VALVE" to clean it
(2-3 hr)
DIY level : 2

3. (optional) do search here : "SWIRL FLAP" to remove this if you want to (don't do it yet on your 5 year old car but think about this in future)
(4-6 hr)
DIY level : 3

4. (optional) do search here : "MAF sensor" to clean it
(less than 1 hr)
DIY level : 1

[Yozh]

Welcome glitdi,

Nice to see someone local and an enthusiast. You shall find a lot of good information around this little sub forum, and generally on the forum. In some cases you may have to sift through a lot of fluff and drama, unfortunately. But, info is there and some good one.

I do not know if you had considered one thought, but you may wish to look for good used example of a 335d south of the border. Financial considerations are one big plus, but these cars are fairly rare and if you want somewhat of a choice in colours and options. Here, there will be a few for sale and that's all you are gonna have to play with. Of course the above works well for off-warranty non-CPO considerations.

For OBD scanners there will be a few choices. Personally, I have found BMWhat to be a great coding and scanning tool with decent parameters readout. Torque is great for parameter monitoring as well. Good if you have an Android based phone/tablet already.

If I would be buying this car all over again, I would bring the BMW specific scanning tool (such as BMWhat) to see what's in the background. You may even be able to see if any of the harnesses/connectors been disconnected to do with bodywork, if it is not disclosed by the seller.

Maintenance schedule is a common discussion. I think most agree that oil gets changed every 10K, fuel filter 20-30k, transmission fluid/filter 100k or sooner (or never if you listen to BMW).

Special tools, you will need the diagnostic/coding tools/app. Get yourself a good set of male/female torx sockets.

Common problems are all over on this forum: boost hose leaks, scr/urea tank issues (in theory should be easy to fix), injector codes (yet to see a failure). These cars are full of sensors and some of them are gremlin possessed (may be a reason for odd errors). And of course the famous carbon build-up, lots of threads dedicated to this one (some had proven that meth injection fixes this one fairly easy). There are a few things that one may/should do to make this car fairly bulletproof. EGR block, CCV oil catch can, meth injection, DPF delete, tune, etc. Many choices, some are simple, some are more complicated and more expensive. Good thing you do not need to worry about the Air Care any more.

For parts, getbmwparts.com is a good source. They do not ship to Canuck-land though. Get yourself a mailbox in Blaine, WA and save a lot of money in shipping, duties, taxes and headaches (except border line-ups). ECS Tuning is another, some are at Pelican Parts, there are many others though.

Welcome and good luck.

[austinla335d]

I would add that husker BMW has better pricing than any other online site and I believe they do ship to Canada... But it's still a better bet to have a mailbox in the US.

I would also buy your car in the US and road trip it back up!

[TDIwyse]

Originally Posted by floydarogers

BMWhat, Torque and BavarianTechnic seem to be the most popular. BT doesn't actually work on post 2009/diesel cars but they're supposed to have an update out "soon".

I've been using the Bavarian Technic on my 2011 for several years. You need to choose the DDE7 N47/N57 module to access many of the engine parameters. See attached for a quick screen shot. The BavTech gives access to a huge amount of information (although I don't believe everything is there with this module): IAT's, EGT's, DPF stuff, injector info, desired and actual boost/fuel/etc... Way more data than I can see with BMWhat or Torque. You can also reset service reminders and clear adaptations for the trans and injection system.

[glitdi]

Originally Posted by TDIwyse

I've been using the Bavarian Technic on my 2011 for several years. You need to choose the DDE7 N47/N57 module to access many of the engine parameters. See attached for a quick screen shot. The BavTech gives access to a huge amount of information (although I don't believe everything is there with this module): IAT's, EGT's, DPF stuff, injector info, desired and actual boost/fuel/etc... Way more data than I can see with BMWhat or Torque. You can also reset service reminders and clear adaptations for the trans and injection system.

Can I change country codes in the display? Us vs Canada vs Germany?
Also has anyone retrofitted the hands free phone controller?
How difficult/expensive is it?
Anyone know the part number.
Car is prob going to be a 2009 335d With very little options...
Cant argue with the price since the one I was looking at was a year newer with 50xxx kms less, loads of features but a 10k spread... 10 k buys a lot of modifications....

[allotherareused]

Originally Posted by glitdi

Can I change country codes in the display? Us vs Canada vs Germany?
Also has anyone retrofitted the hands free phone controller?
How difficult/expensive is it?

I am not sure what you are referring to "Country Code", do you want to change language ? Also, there are different options and different display, on mine E90 (2005) this is on radio (radio is considered as interface). Change language, and few other settings, clock, ml/km. Pay attention : this is personalized settings, you need to repeat this for EACH key.

Hands free is how expensive you find some used. Go to http://www.realoem.com/bmw/select.do put your vin and browse parts fo find part number. When I was installing few years ago wasn't able to find acceptable bluetooth module, price for new was like 600-1200 US$ if I remember and instead bough parrot with additional interface/harness to control this from steering wheel, like 350 US$ total.

About original interface installation difficult : no idea, some car have this behind rear seat (left rear), some in truck (near cd changer), depends of exactly model, should not be the problem, car should recognize and enable options. Parrot with all harness ready : like 1 hr, only one complicated part is to choose best position for microphone and display, all other is connect and enjoy.

One detail about parrot :
As this interrupt direct communication with radio SSS software (which is rarely needed) won't be able to read data from radio, so, if you need to use this you may need to temporary shutdown parrot.

[Hoooper]

Originally Posted by floydarogers

BMWhat, Torque and BavarianTechnic seem to be the most popular. BT doesn't actually work on post 2009/diesel cars but they're supposed to have an update out "soon".

yeah, I wouldnt count on "soon". They said it was coming out "soon" a year and a half ago.

[Nushibo]

Originally Posted by Yozh

Welcome glitdi,

Nice to see someone local and an enthusiast. You shall find a lot of good information around this little sub forum, and generally on the forum. In some cases you may have to sift through a lot of fluff and drama, unfortunately. But, info is there and some good one.

Welcome and good luck.

Originally Posted by glitdi

Car is prob going to be a 2009 335d With very little options...
Cant argue with the price since the one I was looking at was a year newer with 50xxx kms less, loads of features but a 10k spread... 10 k buys a lot of modifications....

+1 Basically everything Yozh said and welcome to the club. 10k sheesh the things i would do... lol but the cost to do performance engine mods as Yozh mention is about 3-4k ish or less. DPF pipe 1k, EGR block/Delete 50-100$, Meth anywhere from 3-900$ depends on which setup you prefer, Catch can, 1-300$ depends on the setup, tuning 1.2k or less. 2.5k for and LSD and you have extra play monies! You can probably do all this yourself with the right tools. Since you seem like the DIY kinda guy haha. Good luck and keep us posted!

[glitdi]

Does anyone know if I need the pro tool of bavarian technic to do coding and commands?
Or can this be done with enthusiast kit..

[allotherareused]

Originally Posted by glitdi

Does anyone know if I need the pro tool of bavarian technic to do coding and commands?
Or can this be done with enthusiast kit..

I don't know what is supposed to do this "pro" tool but that also depends of model. Before you buy anything for sure need to do search by

DIS (very useful for any diagnostic, idiot proof) <- you should start from here
SSS (very useful for maintenance coding, almost idiot proof)
Ediabas (required)
INPA ("lite version", read codes, clear, etc ... useful for fast review)
NCS Expert (advanced, coding)
WinKFP (advanced, coding)
...

You may find online that people are selling this software but don't buy it, this is mostly service software not available for public and anything you can pay for it is just to pay wareze, as I said in some answer already : find seller for interface which will give you all this software included, maybe already setup for your car.

first result I've got on google :

http://www.ebay.com/bhp/bmw-inpa

and by following link for 35 US$
http://www.ebay.com/itm/BMW-USB-OBD-...-/271476322678

[Yozh]

Originally Posted by glitdi

Can I change country codes in the display? Us vs Canada vs Germany?
Also has anyone retrofitted the hands free phone controller?
How difficult/expensive is it?
Anyone know the part number.

What do you mean the country codes in the display? Like temperature: F to C, and Distance: miles to kilometres, and Mileage: mpg to l/100km? If you have the navi option, you can easily change those in the interface.

Hands Free Phone Controller? Do you mean bluetooth? or the actual phone interface for music, google, messages?

[glitdi]

Car was originally an american car and the distance till the ad blue comes up in miles...
A bit of a nuisance since I am used to the metric system..
By country codes I meant most German cars, equipment etc programs all clusters with all variables. You can alter country codes to display miles, kms, 24h clock vs 12 hr, language etc.. I was using a generic term. (apologies)
Dont know the difference between the hands free phone controller and the phone interface.
The first 335d I drove had hands free device and a usb jack in the centre console.
The Second one ergo the one I am drivin only has an aux jack and no blue tooth phone feature. One of my first things to change will be encoding a bluetooth module.
I would much prefer oem instead of a aftermarket piggyback system, dont mind putting in the time and effort to install the system as per factory spec. Just need to do some more research on what I need and what coding is needed. Thus the need for a scan tool that will allow me to alter a few parameters etc.
Ideally I want a blue tooth system that I can answer calls with and stream music wirelessly.. Dont know if Bmw offers one or more interface options...
Help woudl be greatly appreciated.

[floydarogers]

All US cars had phone Bluetooth standard. Check to see if you can pair your phone...

[Yozh]

Originally Posted by glitdi

Car was originally an american car and the distance till the ad blue comes up in miles...
A bit of a nuisance since I am used to the metric system..
By country codes I meant most German cars, equipment etc programs all clusters with all variables. You can alter country codes to display miles, kms, 24h clock vs 12 hr, language etc.. I was using a generic term. (apologies)
Dont know the difference between the hands free phone controller and the phone interface.
The first 335d I drove had hands free device and a usb jack in the centre console.
The Second one ergo the one I am drivin only has an aux jack and no blue tooth phone feature. One of my first things to change will be encoding a bluetooth module.
I would much prefer oem instead of a aftermarket piggyback system, dont mind putting in the time and effort to install the system as per factory spec. Just need to do some more research on what I need and what coding is needed. Thus the need for a scan tool that will allow me to alter a few parameters etc.
Ideally I want a blue tooth system that I can answer calls with and stream music wirelessly.. Dont know if Bmw offers one or more interface options...
Help woudl be greatly appreciated.

If I may give you my humble suggestion. Find a car with the Navigation option. I think it is always easier to have factory stuff than trying to retrofit and encode various features. In the used market, there should not be much of a price difference between a fully loaded and not so. People spend so much time an effort to get various features where you could have just got all that in the original car (ex: M-sport). Just a suggestion.

For the wireless telephone connection, there are several options that these cars came with. I also thought that they always had bluetooth at the minimum. But this also may vary from the year of production/build date. In 2009 you may have had different options than in 2011. I can not recall what specific options may give you what, you may look at the audio or coding sub forum, but this little website : http://www.bmwarchive.org/vin/bmw-vin-decoder.html
should help you to see what options your car had when it was built.

For example my car came with:
-S609A Navigation system Professional
-S620A Voice control
-S639A Preparation f mobile phone cpl. USA/CDN
-S6AAA BMW TeleServices
-S6ABA Control for Teleservices
-S6FLA USB/Audio interface
-S6NFA Music interface for Smartphone
And others. I know that to have one you need another, codes, comboxes, hardware, etc. I am sure all the info is on the appropriate sub forums though.

For a US-spec car, even if you change all your parameters to metric, your 999miles to no start (urea fill) and your digital cruise control setting (in the instrument cluster) will still come up in miles. Trust me on that one. And I am not sure it can be coded otherwise. All your other read-outs: odometer, trip, temperature (both on the cluster and hvac module), distance to empty, avg. fuel consumption, and optionally coded instant fuel consumption and digital speedometer - all will come up metric. If you do not have a navi option, you should still be able to change from imperial to metric via a BC button. But this I can not confirm.

The other item for you to consider is this. If you a test driving a car that has a 999miles till no start warning on the dash, you may think it is just easy - fill with urea. May not be so. Let them fill with urea and see if warning will go away (may not be so right away). If it does not after a bit, you may have other problems with the urea tank/SCR system. Just something to watch out for.

Good Luck.