E90 335i

[MattTheHat325]

Thanks mate, it's doing me well so far! Resisting the urge to mess with it any more for the time being, the rest of my flock are feeling neglected

[bss325i]

One of the techs i work with at ML has recently bought a lemans blue E91 335i wagon.

An awesome spec of being a facelift car but still with the N54 engine, M sport black electric leather, DSP and pro nav.

Bought it from Birds and it also has a Hartge map.

[MattTheHat325]

Sounds lovely that! I had considered a touring but I've got no need for the extra space really, as nice as they are aesthetically! I've got my Datsun for load lugging

These last few mornings leaving for work at 05:30 have seen me wishing mine had heated chairs mind you!

[bss325i]

That's the one thing his wagon doesnt have and the one thing that's a must have for me!

[MattTheHat325]

It's manageable, it warms up quite quickly in there! I had it serviced at Cotswold a short while ago, as much as it pained me to pay £200 for an oil and micro filter change!!! Needs must for the stamp, and the conditions of the extended warranty. They gave it a full clean bill of health, and were quite thorough in fairness. They even washed it for me

[pony]

Yeah, probably it would be a good idea to find out from BMW what kind of cars they can insure first, before you start day-dreaming on eBay/Autotrader

And obviously you have to ease down your requirements a bit, otherwise you'll be a driving an E30 for longer than you think...

P.S. With regards to age, I wouldn't bother much getting a facelift just for the sake of the year, because it seems like the facelift models didn't have any major technical improvements - just visual, like bumpers, lights, grill, nav, etc.

Here > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMW_3_Series_(E90)

Scroll to the bottom for the info about facelifts.

Warranties
Only ones worth considering are BMW AUC or BMW Insured Warranty Comprehensive
AUC covers slightly more than Insured Warranty I think is just the battery

There are 3 tiers of cover for insured warranty
Driveline (cheapest)
Named compenent
Comprehensive (expensive)

Then can choose level of excess to pay

Vehicles with over 60k mileage warranty costs increase quite a bit
So sub 60k mileage is better
Pay monthly on rolling policy and warranty costs don't go up post 60k mileage apparently
Pay annually and they do

Requirements for BMW Insured Warranty
FBMWSH
Serviced in accordance with BMW requirements
When you buy you have 1 month "waiting period" which you cannot claim.
After that you can claim.
I did and they paid although just for differential seal

Beware warranties don't cover everything such as trim, SMG etc

Get pre-purchase inspection

Be patient the car is out there
Took me a while to find Manual CS

Also give your man at Cotswolds a heads up on your requirements and he may be able to source you one

Or just get a nice E46 M3 and be happy

[pony]

Just seek you bought one
Congratulations nice car

[pacerpete]

Just seek you bought one
Congratulations nice car

Spesh alert !

[MattTheHat325]

Yeah I bought it in January pony, just haven't been on here for an age! Mine is a driveline warranty, I pay £50 monthly which is just a rolling contract. It covers the aspects of the car I was panicking about such as engine, gearbox, turbos, fuel system etc, that's all I need!

[pony]

With a remap these things are supposed to be QUICK
Real wolf in sheep clothing stuff
U not getting a Quaife LSD ?

[MattTheHat325]

Yeah they do go well! Even n standard form it pulls like a train. I'm resisting the temptation to go too far with it, but if anything else happens I like to keep things in-house, so a visit to Mr Bird could be the order of the day at some point down the line, it's proving to be quite a strong well kept example so I'd feel comfortable about doing a bit of tweaking despite it's ever climbing mileage!

[MattTheHat325]

So, holy thread revival time! I thought I'd update on my non-e30 shenanigans since the arrival of the e90.

The 335i indeed served me well. Not so much as a peep of trouble out of it beyond general servicing etc. I used it every day without fail, several 'road trips' including one to holland. I never did get round to any sort of tuning, I didn't feel the need for it in the end. I did however continue nailing council tat to it

The mileage was climbing, and with the e90 entering its most savage stage of depreciation, the sensible thing to do was quit while I was ahead. I reverted it back to standard with the exception of the billies, rejuvenated the mv3s, painted both bumpers to remedy a couple of light scuffs and sold it to one of my best mates for £5900 with a valiant 158,000 on the clock. Maybe I could have achieved a few more notes out of it, but the joy of not having to advertise it and deal with the tirade of ex e46 owners was worth the loss!

Here's a few shots of it in full on chav mode before it was returned to Q car status. I have to say I'm glad I owned it, and even more pleased I washed my hands of it while it was still in rude health!

[MattTheHat325]

Obviously, prior to serving 'The Gunship' as it was affectionately known, the search was on for a replacement. My stab at modern motoring was pleasant and numbing in equal proportions and I was aching for that 'connection' with a slightly more raw driving experience yet again.

I'd since moved in with my other half who lives a damn sight closer to my place of work, so worries of mini-cab levels of commuting mileage weren't such a concern. I needed something old enough to satisfy my perversions, relatively comfy/nicely equipped, up to the task of being used every day if needed, something that could get out of its own way would be a bonus, but most of all something which would at the very least hold its value for the next 3-4 years-ish.

I had it narrowed down to two box-tickets, the first of which being an e36 M3. Wow. Another minefield of molested scrap, hilariously overpriced 'minters' and seemingly no middle ground? Again, I'm unrealistically picky about specs, colours etc and it soon became apparent that a search for the 'right' M3 would be more laborious than first anticipated. I've got a soft spot for the M division's underdog so I'll never say never!

The second candidate was the good old e28. Old, cantankerous and probably rusty, but with a hardy reputation and timeless aesthetics, it was starting to appeal. I set about finding a big six'd, three pedal car with as much of its shell intact as possible. There were plenty for sale, and plenty were surprisingly good! Not necessarily in m30 5 speed form but their apparent longevity was encouraging.

I'd always had a hankering for an e28, a seed which was planted when I was embarking on a short lived valeting/detailing career about 10 years ago. A local mechanic and friend of a friend owned a 1986 M535i in zinnobar, which he brought to us for a spruce up. I vividly recall just sitting behind the wheel in awe of what felt to me at the time like a time warp. During my search I even joked with my mate about trying to track it down (it had been sold 3 years previously after he cherished it for 11 years) as we knew how meticulously it had been maintained by him.

The only time I've ever felt 'fate' regarding a car..... a few weeks into my search I came across a familiar registration on eBay of all places! You couldn't write it, the very same zinnobar M535 was on the market again. I'd never have forgiven myself had I missed the opportunity to own the same car I sat in as a wash mitt wielding pup. A viewing was arranged and the seller soon took a back seat as he realised we knew more about the car and it's history than he did. A deal was done.

It's an '86 D, factory 5 speed manual. It's not the highest spec out there, but has a few nice trinkets. It has a power moon roof, HLWW, rear blind, heated washer jets, the leather was added by the chap I bought it from, which I initially found a bit of a shame but I've grown to like it! Obviously all the usual M535i stuff, electric mirrors, 4x electric windows, 13 button obc, PAS, LSD etc make it all together a pretty well specced motor for its vintage. It has all the original sale paperwork from Mill Garages Sunderland, comprehensive service record, dealer accessory pamphlets, signed letters from the sales exec, even a cassette tape with commentary instructing me how to run in my new BMW



The running in sticker is still present in the windscreen and it has the original dealer fitted Pioneer front and rear speakers. Unfortunately the original head unit is long gone, it was fitted with a gash JVC CD player which I promptly binned and replaced with an immaculate Woodstock SQR88 I'd been hoarding. I have a NOS Blaupunkt BEA80 for it also but I've yet to fit it.

I replaced the front door rubbers with good used ones as they had torn, same with the handbrake console as it slight glue damage and four screw holes from some previous installation. The worn and faded gear knob was replaced with a new genuine one courtesy of the E28 specialist in the Netherlands and a full dealer homopackage was bought from our resident plate peddler/stickermeister/coont

Mechanically the car has proved to be a stalwart as expected. Since collecting it in May '16 I've covered just over 2000 miles taking it to 130,000. I've given it an oil service and plug change with genuine oil and air filter, fitted a pair of reconditioned front calipers, clutch slave and an intermittent 'crank, no fire' condition was remedied by replacing both reference sensors in the bellhousing.

Unfortunately it's not all gravy! One of the rear beam mounting areas has deteriorated so the rear axle will be coming out in order to sort it. As a silver lining I've recently taken delivery of a new genuine guibo and CSB, which is a no brainer while the prop is apart. A replacement of gear shift bushes is also on the cards while the exhaust etc is out of the way.

All in all I'm chuffed to bits with it, I love driving it and I'm confident that my money is reasonably safe for the time being. This car is my first shark, but it won't be my last for sure!

Pics to follow...

[Simon13]

an old square rigger

[MattTheHat325]

[MattTheHat325]

an old square rigger

It is a handful on a windy motorway I'll give it that!

[Simon13]

looks ace

[tha881]

Nice motor. That paint can't be 30+ years old surely!?

[MattTheHat325]

Cheers Simon.

No it's not mate, it had a blow over in 2004. It had its jacking points welded at the same time. It has a tiny area of bubbling around the front and rear screen so it will need a bit more TLC in the next 2 or 3 years, but it still presents beautifully in fairness. To me a few minor imperfections make it feel more useable if that makes sense.

[tha881]

Looks great especially for zinnober as they are prone to fading. Car looks very nice and only getting rarer. The prices can only go one way!

[MattTheHat325]

The market seems to be quite strong for them at the moment, I think I got in one at the right time!

[Splondike]

Very nice. Was this car at Gaydon ?

[MattTheHat325]

Very nice. Was this car at Gaydon ?

It was indeed, with the zone. I think I spoke to you and the other e28 crowd! Yours is the green one?

[Splondike]

Sorry, I am terrible with remembering names but always remember the cars lol. Yes the green turd in the sig is mine

[MattTheHat325]

I certainly know the car! Mine's still going strong, still looks the same as when you saw it