[lawdude]

Limp modes, HPFP problems, waste gate malfunctions, turbos overheating, number 6 cylinders melting down, dealers looking for ways to void the warranty . . . is the 335i just a high priced bucket of bolts?

I had a brand new 2002 Acura TLS. Stories soon came to light that the trannys that would die without warning. When I got the 100,000 extended transmission warranty in the mail from Acura I figured there was substance to the rumor. I got rid of it ASAP before I wound up stalled in the middle of no where.

With 22,000 miles on my '07 335i I'm starting to get concerned that my unlimate driving experience is existing on borrowed time. Should I give my BMW the Acura treatment?

[Blue Streak]

Ha, ha, ha!!!! Take any car to use as an example and start tracking complaints and all the TSB's on it over the first couple of years. Tell me if you think your 3-series is any worse on average. You would be dumping every car you buy, if you're that worried about every problem that comes up throughout the entire world where your same model car has been sold.

In 22k miles, which of all these problems that you've heard about have you had to deal with so far? I've had a cup holder get stuck, a turn signal bulb had to be replaced after the first 200 miles, and then I just had my windshield replaced because rocks in Southern California seek out expensive cars on the freeways. This is basic stuff and some of the other things we read about are not a design flaw, but just part of that very small percentage of problems that "can" happen. Usually, as long as you always take good car of your car, the problems that are likely to occur, will happen well within the warranty period or within the first 10k miles or so. I've paid nothing on maintenance so far, except for the $50 insurance deductable for a brand new BMW windshield installed last week in my driveway. (Once again, USAA is awesome!)

So, I would say no, don't dump the car unless you're the guy who's had all the problems there could possibly be. If BMW is trying to find ways to void your warrenty, try other dealers or call BMW NA... they usually seem to be all about customer service to me.

[HyperM3]

Originally Posted by lawdude

Limp modes, HPFP problems, waste gate malfunctions, turbos overheating, number 6 cylinders melting down, dealers looking for ways to void the warranty . . . is the 335i just a high priced bucket of bolts?

I had a brand new 2002 Acura TLS. Stories soon came to light that the trannys that would die without warning. When I got the 100,000 extended transmission warranty in the mail from Acura I figured there was substance to the rumor. I got rid of it ASAP before I wound up stalled in the middle of no where.

With 22,000 miles on my '07 335i I'm starting to get concerned that my unlimate driving experience is existing on borrowed time. Should I give my BMW the Acura treatment?

Haha, I had a CL Type-S that had that happen to me. Within the matter of a day I went from driving normally to not being able to merge into traffic. Only gear it would work in was reverse. Luckily I was 3 miles from my Acura dealership when it decided it could go no further.

The issues you describe are 99% of the reasons I lease every car. I never run out of warranty and if there are problems that cant be resolved, I just give them the car back and its their problem at that point.

[Crazy Bimmer]

HyperM3, are you following me around? I had an TL-S, A4 and now the 335.



With the amount of cars that BMW makes there will be a few bad stories. I havent heard of turbos overheating though on here. Everything else on your list isnt very common if you are stock.

Only thing that there would be a concern is the HPFP but it seems that the story has been dying down on them.

With that said i still dont know of any other car I rather have in this price range.

[HyperM3]

Originally Posted by Crazy Bimmer

HyperM3, are you following me around? I had an TL-S, A4 and now the 335.

Guess we have good taste.

[Fraggy]

Like my wife said to me yesterday. If Id stay off the forums, I never hear about this stuff unless it happened to me.

[RRGOO7]

im not worried at all...thats what warranty is for....I havent had any of these problems on my car with 10k miles

[hotrod2448]

Yeah, it's just the forums making you paranoid. You've got to remember this is a very small sample group of people who are enthusiasts (read likely not stock, probably harder than most on vehicles) and that you always hear way more about the bad than the good.

Hell, with my Evo I was waiting for my clutch to catch fire, transfer case to start the death whine and my trans to just fall out any time I drove it from the forums. After 50K miles and no real problems I sold it and it's still going strong from what I hear (even with a 19year old owner).

Oh BTW, for what ever reason this forum seems to be more paranoid than most. I've never seen such wild swings of view point. Procede goes from great to crap, Shiv is our savior then he has abandoned us, terry was a dumb ass, now he's got a great product, etc... I've pretty much learned to filter out 95% of what I read on here.

[thekurgan]

Originally Posted by lawdude

Limp modes, HPFP problems, waste gate malfunctions, turbos overheating, number 6 cylinders melting down, dealers looking for ways to void the warranty . . . is the 335i just a high priced bucket of bolts?

I had a brand new 2002 Acura TLS. Stories soon came to light that the trannys that would die without warning. When I got the 100,000 extended transmission warranty in the mail from Acura I figured there was substance to the rumor. I got rid of it ASAP before I wound up stalled in the middle of no where.

With 22,000 miles on my '07 335i I'm starting to get concerned that my unlimate driving experience is existing on borrowed time. Should I give my BMW the Acura treatment?

I think people like yourselves should get Honda Accord sedans. Seriously, if you know much about BMWs history, they have NEVER been the most reliable cars, the most trouble free cars and have some of the worst electronics in the industry. I personally, don't care as long as the wararanty is stlll valid, but those that read these forums, see a few problems (yes the fuel pump, for what it's worth, has only happened to a few compared to the many vehicles sold), think the car is shit and that makes no sense. So if you're one of those, get a Honda Accord, it's probably the most reliable vehicle sold on the planet in mass production and you'll be able to sleep at night.

[Crazy Bimmer]

^ Actually the Accords used to have tranny problems as well. Go to their forums and they are complaining about their cars too.

All forums are the same in that way. Lets face it, they dont make cars like they used to.

[cooldude]

the failures are a little common in the whole industry.
bmw mercedes are the first to come out with new technologies every model change. the japanese look at these technologies keep a watch on market look at failure points of these bmw models and then come out with a much reliable version . Honda is one company that does this. the v8's are less fuel efficient and not reliable due to their heats so honda did not make one yet. they came out with TPMS after even GM took it and had their service centers working on TPMS on almost every car. this is the Honda strategy.

you want a reliable car buy the Honda accord, my first car was a 94 honda accord i bought it when i was a student for 4.5k with 120k mi, i drove it until 170k in 2 years without just only oil changes and changed brakes and tires once. not a single electrical failure. and when i sold the car was worth 3k

[mJ335]

Originally Posted by HyperM3

Guess we have good taste.

Count me in too then
I had a 2003 TL and I had the tranny failure at 95,000.
My warranty expired, but I talked it out at Cerritos Acura and they had my whole transmission replaced and also gave me a loaner!

[stressdoc]

If you run boost at 20+, then yeah, you might want to dump it.

[TheAcAvenger]

You TLers are crazy. I had 3 tranny failures before 70k!

[sparkyg]

lawdude

You've got over 1000 posts, surely you realize that the forums is the edge of the knife and not representative of the population of 335 owners.

I say don't worry and move on. Every car has a % of problems.

My 2004 TL had rumors of terrible tires, I never had one problem. Drooping headliner, never a problem, sqeaky brakes, never a problem.

Surf less, drive more.

[lawdude]

Originally Posted by thekurgan

I think people like yourselves should get Honda Accord sedans. Seriously, if you know much about BMWs history, they have NEVER been the most reliable cars, the most trouble free cars and have some of the worst electronics in the industry. I personally, don't care as long as the wararanty is stlll valid, but those that read these forums, see a few problems (yes the fuel pump, for what it's worth, has only happened to a few compared to the many vehicles sold), think the car is shit and that makes no sense. So if you're one of those, get a Honda Accord, it's probably the most reliable vehicle sold on the planet in mass production and you'll be able to sleep at night.

Honda made the Acura referenced in my first post.

[D0WNxiSH1FT]

Yea my Father had a 2003 TL-S that got a new tranny under warranty. Something about the welds i guess. The old MDX has the same tranny with the same issues.

[lawdude]

Originally Posted by sparkyg

lawdude

You've got over 1000 posts, surely you realize that the forums is the edge of the knife and not representative of the population of 335 owners.

I say don't worry and move on. Every car has a % of problems.

My 2004 TL had rumors of terrible tires, I never had one problem. Drooping headliner, never a problem, sqeaky brakes, never a problem.

Surf less, drive more.

Tires, cupholders, squeaky brakes, turn signal bulbs, headliners - you are correct, don't sweat the small stuff. Especially since none of those will strand you. The rest of it I might start sweating.

[thekurgan]

Originally Posted by lawdude

Honda made the Acura referenced in my first post.

Acura TL "is not equal to" Honda Accord

[Boost Gomez]

Honda = Acura - a few bells and whistles

[stressdoc]

The web does lead to a lot of chicken little sky is falling urban rumors...

[lawdude]

Originally Posted by thekurgan

Acura TL "is not equal to" Honda Accord

I mentioned I had a 2002 Honda product (Acura TL), a model with a tranny problem. You suggested I buy another Honda product (Accord). I pointed out that both cars were manufactured by the same company. You said they were not equal. I can only assume you meant that the Accord was better quality since you recommended it. Try Googling "2002 honda accord transmission failure" and see if you can figure out which is the "most equal" insofar as transmissions are concerned.

I don't quite understand the "if you're leery of a major component breaking on your BMW, then you're a perfect Honda candidate". Perhaps you traded up from an Accord to a BMW and maybe you're just trying to be helpful. If so, I understand your brand loyalty and appreciate the suggestion. However, why not recommend a comparable product such as the Nissan, I mean Infiniti, G37? (Been there done that with a 2003 G35). Or even a 2009 GTR (I'm really considering it if I can convince my wife). Or why not recommend an Audi or Mercedes product?

In any event, my wife is looking for a dependable midsize. I'll take your suggestion and look into an Accord for her.

Cheers