N53 330i NOXEM review
Discussion
Hi all,
I decided to get a NOx emulator from http://bimmerprofs.com/ to replace the failed NOx sensor on my N53 330i. My 330i is on 172k with an aged NOx cat but I wanted the more economical lean burn modes back. This sensor works as advertised, the car is now running in (comparative) eco mode at low to mid load.
Real world MPG is up from ~26 MPG (300 miles, mix of 5-10 mile journeys and 50+ mile motorway jaunts in a typical week) to an easy 35 MPG with bursts of full throttle and motorway cruising around 80 MPH. Tank range on super unleaded is up from 380 miles to 520 miles (!!!) and on a journey back from Wales tonight after taking it really easy 43 MPG over 80ish miles each way (160 miles round trip) was achieved.
The sensor cost £300, was delivered from Latvia in four days and will pay for itself in saved fuel. It's recommended and considering the mileage on my engine and associated components I'm delighted.
I decided to get a NOx emulator from http://bimmerprofs.com/ to replace the failed NOx sensor on my N53 330i. My 330i is on 172k with an aged NOx cat but I wanted the more economical lean burn modes back. This sensor works as advertised, the car is now running in (comparative) eco mode at low to mid load.
Real world MPG is up from ~26 MPG (300 miles, mix of 5-10 mile journeys and 50+ mile motorway jaunts in a typical week) to an easy 35 MPG with bursts of full throttle and motorway cruising around 80 MPH. Tank range on super unleaded is up from 380 miles to 520 miles (!!!) and on a journey back from Wales tonight after taking it really easy 43 MPG over 80ish miles each way (160 miles round trip) was achieved.
The sensor cost £300, was delivered from Latvia in four days and will pay for itself in saved fuel. It's recommended and considering the mileage on my engine and associated components I'm delighted.
Badgerboy said:
How did you find the install process? Relatively straight forward?
I asked my independent mechanic to install it whilst it was in for a service. He had no problems encoding the NOx sensor and catalyst replacement, reseting adaptations and clearing codes using the universal third party programmer. Only painful bit was getting the undertray off after nine years and 172k miles, "persusaion" was needed.The site includes all sorts of information about using INPA to encode yourself. It might give better results doing this but all I've done is had it installed as above and driven for 200 miles to allow it to bed in.
I installed the NOXEM 3 months ago and it was well worth it.
Achieving over 40 mpg on the motorway is easy and the car now idles as it should on cold startups.
Installation was fairly easy and took about 2 hours. I then had to create the new adaptations by doing 4-5 journeys, each 10-15 min long.
Achieving over 40 mpg on the motorway is easy and the car now idles as it should on cold startups.
Installation was fairly easy and took about 2 hours. I then had to create the new adaptations by doing 4-5 journeys, each 10-15 min long.
Long term update after a few thousand miles.
Round town / urban only is 32 MPG.
Real world mixed driving is around 35 MPG.
100+ miles of motorway use is an easy 40 MPG.
This was my return trip of 240+ miles, including spending one hour in stop start traffic on the M5 and at least half an hour in the same joy on the M42. 42 MPG! Car had four people in and loads of luggage too. I reckon 45ish MPG would be the best effort.
Interestingly, 68 MPH / 110 KPH @ 2,350 RPM seems to be the sweet spot in mine for economy, 60 MPH / 70 MPH were slightly worse and 75+ MPH goes off a cliff (18" wheels, super unleaded).
I can wholeheartedly recommend NOXEM. Installation and adaptation process works as described, and my car is fault code free.
Round town / urban only is 32 MPG.
Real world mixed driving is around 35 MPG.
100+ miles of motorway use is an easy 40 MPG.
This was my return trip of 240+ miles, including spending one hour in stop start traffic on the M5 and at least half an hour in the same joy on the M42. 42 MPG! Car had four people in and loads of luggage too. I reckon 45ish MPG would be the best effort.
Interestingly, 68 MPH / 110 KPH @ 2,350 RPM seems to be the sweet spot in mine for economy, 60 MPH / 70 MPH were slightly worse and 75+ MPH goes off a cliff (18" wheels, super unleaded).
I can wholeheartedly recommend NOXEM. Installation and adaptation process works as described, and my car is fault code free.
bmwmike said:
Fair play!! Good to see. I'll definitely get one when my OE one plays up.
The n53 gets knocked on here quite a bit but they are a good engine when running right.
How is your oil consumption at that mileage?
Over the years I've replaced my injectors with the later index 11 variant, replaced coils and now the NOx sensor. As you said, when running right the N53 really is a great engine. Rewards you for driving carefully and for driving quick! They suit a manual gearbox and are very underrated engines. The NOx sensor has been on my fix list for ages, but it looks like injectors / coils / NOx together make for a happy (and hopefully long term reliable) car. On reflection, the NOx sensor is worth doing very early on as it will pay for itself.The n53 gets knocked on here quite a bit but they are a good engine when running right.
How is your oil consumption at that mileage?
Oil consumption is around 1 litre every 3,000 miles, it can vary by ~500 miles either side depending on the sort of driving that I do. It was down to 1 litre every 800 miles when the CCV membrane failed, replaced that myself without replacing the valve cover. My DIY is at https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=16.... Car wears its mileage well, the giveaway is the number of stone chips on the bonnet, but it's rattle and knock free and belies its age (2009/59) and mileage.
I plan to keep my N53 330i for as long as possible. The car has been pampered by me, it's sat on Bilstein struts and Eibach springs, new discs, everything replaced underneath and plenty of preventative maintenance. It's a curiosity now, at the risk of tempting fate, how long will it go on for! Hopefully it'll last until I can afford a tidy E39 M5.
Edited by SoupAnxiety on Monday 6th August 18:50
Edited by SoupAnxiety on Monday 6th August 18:50
SoupAnxiety said:
Over the years I've replaced my injectors with the later index 11 variant, replaced coils and now the NOx sensor. As you said, when running right the N53 really is a great engine. Rewards you for driving carefully and for driving quick! They suit a manual gearbox and are very underrated engines. The NOx sensor has been on my fix list for ages, but it looks like injectors / coils / NOx together make for a happy (and hopefully long term reliable) car. On reflection, the NOx sensor is worth doing very early on as it will pay for itself.
Oil consumption is around 1 litre every 3,000 miles, it can vary by ~500 miles either side depending on the sort of driving that I do. It was down to 1 litre every 800 miles when the CCV membrane failed, replaced that myself without replacing the valve cover. My DIY is at https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=16.... Car wears its mileage well, the giveaway is the number of stone chips on the bonnet, but it's rattle and knock free and belies its age (2009/59) and mileage.
I plan to keep my N53 330i for as long as possible. The car has been pampered by me, it's sat on Bilstein struts and Eibach springs, new discs, everything replaced underneath and plenty of preventative maintenance. It's a curiosity now, at the risk of tempting fate, how long will it go on for! Hopefully it'll last until I can afford a tidy E39 M5.
I'm thinking of doing CCV as a preventive measure followed by the replacement of all injectors with index 11.Oil consumption is around 1 litre every 3,000 miles, it can vary by ~500 miles either side depending on the sort of driving that I do. It was down to 1 litre every 800 miles when the CCV membrane failed, replaced that myself without replacing the valve cover. My DIY is at https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=16.... Car wears its mileage well, the giveaway is the number of stone chips on the bonnet, but it's rattle and knock free and belies its age (2009/59) and mileage.
I plan to keep my N53 330i for as long as possible. The car has been pampered by me, it's sat on Bilstein struts and Eibach springs, new discs, everything replaced underneath and plenty of preventative maintenance. It's a curiosity now, at the risk of tempting fate, how long will it go on for! Hopefully it'll last until I can afford a tidy E39 M5.
My 330i is now on 87k and still on original injectors with index 08 and I've recently noticed lumpy idle on startups.
So far the only codes were 3104-Rough running and 2A2C-Fuel mixture control 2 so my guess would be a leaking injectors.
SoupAnxiety said:
Long term update after a few thousand miles.
Round town / urban only is 32 MPG.
Real world mixed driving is around 35 MPG.
100+ miles of motorway use is an easy 40 MPG.
This was my return trip of 240+ miles, including spending one hour in stop start traffic on the M5 and at least half an hour in the same joy on the M42. 42 MPG! Car had four people in and loads of luggage too. I reckon 45ish MPG would be the best effort.
Interestingly, 68 MPH / 110 KPH @ 2,350 RPM seems to be the sweet spot in mine for economy, 60 MPH / 70 MPH were slightly worse and 75+ MPH goes off a cliff (18" wheels, super unleaded).
I can wholeheartedly recommend NOXEM. Installation and adaptation process works as described, and my car is fault code free.
I didn't see a huge difference in changing my NOx sensor. - Maybe +1 or 2 mpg.Round town / urban only is 32 MPG.
Real world mixed driving is around 35 MPG.
100+ miles of motorway use is an easy 40 MPG.
This was my return trip of 240+ miles, including spending one hour in stop start traffic on the M5 and at least half an hour in the same joy on the M42. 42 MPG! Car had four people in and loads of luggage too. I reckon 45ish MPG would be the best effort.
Interestingly, 68 MPH / 110 KPH @ 2,350 RPM seems to be the sweet spot in mine for economy, 60 MPH / 70 MPH were slightly worse and 75+ MPH goes off a cliff (18" wheels, super unleaded).
I can wholeheartedly recommend NOXEM. Installation and adaptation process works as described, and my car is fault code free.
I still get around 15mpg around town, and 30mpg on the motorway. Never ever seen 40mpg avg on my 330i N53 2010 (even if I reset it on the motorway). Maybe if the whole motorway stretch is down hill I might.
I know my injectors need sorting... did they make a big difference to your MPG after they were sorted?
PSDM3 said:
I didn't see a huge difference in changing my NOx sensor. - Maybe +1 or 2 mpg.
I still get around 15mpg around town, and 30mpg on the motorway. Never ever seen 40mpg avg on my 330i N53 2010 (even if I reset it on the motorway). Maybe if the whole motorway stretch is down hill I might.
I know my injectors need sorting... did they make a big difference to your MPG after they were sorted?
The injectors didn't really help. Are you using NOXEM or a BMW original replacement sensor? Fault codes? It might be worth following the advice at http://bimmerprofs.com/, your MPG doesn't sound right at all.I still get around 15mpg around town, and 30mpg on the motorway. Never ever seen 40mpg avg on my 330i N53 2010 (even if I reset it on the motorway). Maybe if the whole motorway stretch is down hill I might.
I know my injectors need sorting... did they make a big difference to your MPG after they were sorted?
SoupAnxiety said:
The injectors didn't really help. Are you using NOXEM or a BMW original replacement sensor? Fault codes? It might be worth following the advice at http://bimmerprofs.com/, your MPG doesn't sound right at all.
BMW original - £430.If the injectors didn't make a big difference, then I am out of ideas. No fault codes come up in relation to the engine, just one in regards to iDrive. Fuel or air filter? Doubt it. I'll have a look at the bimmerprofs site
Edited by PSDM3 on Wednesday 8th August 13:37
PSDM3 said:
BMW original - £430.
If the injectors didn't make a big difference, then I am out of ideas. No fault codes come up in relation to the engine, just one in regards to iDrive. Fuel or air filter? Doubt it. I'll have a look at the bimmerprofs site
Depending on mileage your NOx cat may be the issue. The original sensor may report that the cat has aged. This is what NOXEM overcomes, it restores full functionality by emulating NOx cat OK status.If the injectors didn't make a big difference, then I am out of ideas. No fault codes come up in relation to the engine, just one in regards to iDrive. Fuel or air filter? Doubt it. I'll have a look at the bimmerprofs site
Edited by PSDM3 on Wednesday 8th August 13:37
SoupAnxiety said:
Hi all,
I decided to get a NOx emulator from http://bimmerprofs.com/ to replace the failed NOx sensor on my N53 330i. My 330i is on 172k with an aged NOx cat but I wanted the more economical lean burn modes back. This sensor works as advertised, the car is now running in (comparative) eco mode at low to mid load.
Real world MPG is up from ~26 MPG (300 miles, mix of 5-10 mile journeys and 50+ mile motorway jaunts in a typical week) to an easy 35 MPG with bursts of full throttle and motorway cruising around 80 MPH. Tank range on super unleaded is up from 380 miles to 520 miles (!!!) and on a journey back from Wales tonight after taking it really easy 43 MPG over 80ish miles each way (160 miles round trip) was achieved.
The sensor cost £300, was delivered from Latvia in four days and will pay for itself in saved fuel. It's recommended and considering the mileage on my engine and associated components I'm delighted.
Hi. Thanks for the write up - the info you have posted is great feedback about Bimmerprofs' NOX Emulator. I have a dead BMW NOx sensor for the second time + also the dreaded "NOx Catalyser Ageing" fault code, so am almost certainly going the route of fitting a NOXEM.I decided to get a NOx emulator from http://bimmerprofs.com/ to replace the failed NOx sensor on my N53 330i. My 330i is on 172k with an aged NOx cat but I wanted the more economical lean burn modes back. This sensor works as advertised, the car is now running in (comparative) eco mode at low to mid load.
Real world MPG is up from ~26 MPG (300 miles, mix of 5-10 mile journeys and 50+ mile motorway jaunts in a typical week) to an easy 35 MPG with bursts of full throttle and motorway cruising around 80 MPH. Tank range on super unleaded is up from 380 miles to 520 miles (!!!) and on a journey back from Wales tonight after taking it really easy 43 MPG over 80ish miles each way (160 miles round trip) was achieved.
The sensor cost £300, was delivered from Latvia in four days and will pay for itself in saved fuel. It's recommended and considering the mileage on my engine and associated components I'm delighted.
Can I ask - Is all still going well with your NOXEM, i.e. is it proving reliable and still enabling stratified charge mode etc?
Thanks
mahoone said:
I installed the NOXEM 3 months ago and it was well worth it.
Achieving over 40 mpg on the motorway is easy and the car now idles as it should on cold startups.
Installation was fairly easy and took about 2 hours. I then had to create the new adaptations by doing 4-5 journeys, each 10-15 min long.
Hi. It is good to see another endorsement for NOXEM. Can I ask you the same question I asked SoupAnxiety - how are you finding the reliability of NOXEM? Is all still going well?Achieving over 40 mpg on the motorway is easy and the car now idles as it should on cold startups.
Installation was fairly easy and took about 2 hours. I then had to create the new adaptations by doing 4-5 journeys, each 10-15 min long.
Thanks
Olson said:
Hi. Thanks for the write up - the info you have posted is great feedback about Bimmerprofs' NOX Emulator. I have a dead BMW NOx sensor for the second time + also the dreaded "NOx Catalyser Ageing" fault code, so am almost certainly going the route of fitting a NOXEM.
Can I ask - Is all still going well with your NOXEM, i.e. is it proving reliable and still enabling stratified charge mode etc?
Thanks
All going well - ~7 months in and it's working perfectly. Zero fault codes (as in no fault codes at all, NOx or otherwise), all burn modes working and vastly improved MPG round town and under cruising loads. Would recommend it to anybody, as I've said my only regret is not doing it sooner and saving £££ on fuel. At the risk of making a Brexit reference, there are no downsides to NOXEM, only upsides.Can I ask - Is all still going well with your NOXEM, i.e. is it proving reliable and still enabling stratified charge mode etc?
Thanks
bmwmike said:
So the opposite to Brexit then.
Good to hear it's still working well for you. Presumably those ebay injectors are still going strong too?
Agree completely about Brexit. NOXEM promises no downsides and delivers no downsides, Brexit promised no downsides and instead delivers *only* downsides.Good to hear it's still working well for you. Presumably those ebay injectors are still going strong too?
eBay injectors have been installed since February 2017, for 20k miles. Still going strong. They've been running with NOXEM for around 4k and haven't lunched themselves yet. You can hear them switching modes after installing NOXEM and it's quite futuristic (or as futuristic as a 10 year old engine design gets).
SoupAnxiety said:
Agree completely about Brexit. NOXEM promises no downsides and delivers no downsides, Brexit promised no downsides and instead delivers *only* downsides.
eBay injectors have been installed since February 2017, for 20k miles. Still going strong. They've been running with NOXEM for around 4k and haven't lunched themselves yet. You can hear them switching modes after installing NOXEM and it's quite futuristic (or as futuristic as a 10 year old engine design gets).
Phew, agree on the B word, after I'd written my post I realised it could have been taken either way!! Right nuff said about that I think. eBay injectors have been installed since February 2017, for 20k miles. Still going strong. They've been running with NOXEM for around 4k and haven't lunched themselves yet. You can hear them switching modes after installing NOXEM and it's quite futuristic (or as futuristic as a 10 year old engine design gets).
Switching modes - interesting - really? The only thing I don't like about my n53 f10 is the idle noise some times sounds like a brake disc lip rubbing, metallic a little like a scrape sound. And at idle, after idling for a while.. something clicks and it stops. Is that it?
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