Brave Pill - E92 335i N54 - Montego Blue

[84Reasons]

I've wanted a 335i in coupe format for a while now and after owning my convertible 325i for 4 years I decided I wanted something a little lighter and faster.

The coupe shape wins compared to the vert for me and with the rough 200kg weight saving it's a completely different driving experience.

The goal was to find one highly specced and well looked after, the must haves were; sunroof, any interior colour other than black, blue or red exterior, heated seats, M Sport, iDrive & the Hifi/logic 7 speaker system.

After around 1-2 years looking I found my current car (picked up Sunday): 2007 E92 335 SE in Montego Blue, Cream interior on walnut trim, heated seats, all parking sensors, usual auto wipers and lights, m sport suspension and seats (standard on 335i), iDrive, Hifi/Logic 7 speakers are the stand outs plus a few more I've listed below.

I have to say I'm in love! The car is at 102k miles, which is fairly high however with full service history and what looks like an extended warranty on it previously, it wants for nothing, much of the suspension has been replaced along with the HPFP & all the injectors. Turbo is original I think however I'm not planning on mapping it. Drives really smoothly and the ride is great even on the run flats although my previous car was lowered so coming from fairly terrible ride comfort.

The car handles a lot better than my vert and the power delivery is addicting, amazing torque throughout!

Little photo of the service station stop back from York! Below I've posted the full spec list from factory, the previous owner who had it for 10 years fitted the 313Ms (genuine) as well as the BMW aero kit. I will be posting short updates here and there with some more photos, I plan on servicing the gearbox soon once we have got it up on a ramp for a proper check over.



Comfort And Interior Equipment
S403 Glass Roof, Electrical
S428 Warning Triangle And First Aid Kit
S430 Interior/Outside Mirror With Auto Dip
S431 Interior Mirror With Automatic-Dip
S459 Seat Adjustment, Electric, With Memory
S470 Isofix-System
S481 Sports Seat
S494 Seat Heating Driver/Passenger
S4AB Fine Wood Trim Burr Walnut
S4AE Armrest Front, Retractable

Multimedia
S609 Navigation System Professional
S612 BMW Assist
S620 Voice Control
S633 Preparation, Mobile Phone, Business
S654 DAB Tuner
S672 CD Changer For 6 CDs
S677 HiFi System Professional DSP

Driver Assistance And Lightning
S502 Headlight Cleaning System
S508 Park Distance Control (PDC)
S520 Fog Lights
S521 Rain Sensor
S522 Xenon Light
S524 Adaptive Headlights
S534 Automatic Air Conditioning
S544 Cruise Control With Brake Function
S563 Light Package

Wheels And Drive
S205 Automatic Transmission
S226 Sports Suspension Settings
S2R4 BMW LA Wheel, Star Spoke 230
S2XA Sport Leather St. Wheel W/ Shift Paddles

Environment And Safety
S302 Alarm System
S812 National Version England / Ireland
S850 Dummy-SALAPA
S853 Language Version, English
S863 Dealer List Europe
S877 Omission Of Non-Combined Operation
S880 On-Board Literature, English
S8S3 Automatic Locking During Starting
S8SM Car Ident. Number Visible From Outside
S8SP Control Unit COP

Individual Equipment
S760 High Gloss Shadow Line

[d_a_n1979]

That's a gorgeous colour

[MDMA .]

Very nice. I’m also close to getting my first BMW (in E91 guise).

[84Reasons]

Thanks all!

Had it over the MOT bay today and found an oil leak (what a surprise) looks like the culprit is the rocker cover gasket, I had the same issue on my n53 e93 so not surprised at all.

Easy enough fix so got it booked in for that along with a full service plus a gearbox service. Should set it up nicely for a while.

Some interior pics for you and a rear shot!

[cerb4.5lee]

I love the colour and I've always really liked these.

Enjoy it.

[anonymous-user]

Great car! I don’t get why people describe these as brave pills. It’s an old mass produced 3 series (I have 2 of them) and there’s masses of knowledge online, parts support, all sorts. Sure some things can go wrong on them but that’s to be expected of an older, complex German car. It doesn’t make it a brave pill! Just enjoy it, maintain it and fix it when it needs it.

Hope it treats you well.

[84Reasons]

Thanks both!

Brave pill is just the reputation online, I don't believe it personally I think a lot of people don't service these enough and just go straight to remapping hence issues!

With regular servicing and care taken, fingers crossed I don't wake up to any nasty bills!

[Liokault]

84Reasons said:

Thanks both!

Brave pill is just the reputation online, I don't believe it personally I think a lot of people don't service these enough and just go straight to remapping hence issues!

With regular servicing and care taken, fingers crossed I don't wake up to any nasty bills!

I had one, it lasted about 4 months before it’s electric water pump failed, then it burnt out it’s wiring harness whilst in having the water pump fixed.

I moved it on, after a 5 month tussle with the insurance company, to a guy from on here who took the risk that the wire harness damage was just the harness and not more.

He did email me with a list of the work he had to do to get it going again, I’m glad I didn’t try.

I’m still on several Facebook groups…the poor rep is far from a myth…I loved the miles I did in mine, but wouldn’t buy another.

[anonymous-user]

Have just seen what you do and who you’ve worked for, Liokault!

[Liokault]

RelentlessForwardProgress said:

Have just seen what you do and who you’ve worked for, Liokault!

I have been doing this more or less my whole life, but after starting out bashing metal with a hammer I’m now making lasers.

[Court_S]

84Reasons said:

Thanks both!

Brave pill is just the reputation online, I don't believe it personally I think a lot of people don't service these enough and just go straight to remapping hence issues!

With regular servicing and care taken, fingers crossed I don't wake up to any nasty bills!

Snap…I’ve not long taken the plunge with an N54 powered 335i. I put mine back under BMW warranty for the next year.

Mine has thrown up it’s first issue there’re weeks in; boost solenoids look to be shot given it craps itself under hard acceleration and I get the yellow engine management light. The solenoids were less than my excess so I’m trying them first.

Car looks great in blue with the beige. More interesting than my car.

[Mr Tidy]

84Reasons said:

Some interior pics for you and a rear shot!

Stunning colour combination.

FWIW I think that may be Le Mans Blue, but whatever it looks much better than my E90 in Sparkling Graphite with Beige!

[84Reasons]

Liokault said:

I had one, it lasted about 4 months before it’s electric water pump failed, then it burnt out it’s wiring harness whilst in having the water pump fixed.

I moved it on, after a 5 month tussle with the insurance company, to a guy from on here who took the risk that the wire harness damage was just the harness and not more.

He did email me with a list of the work he had to do to get it going again, I’m glad I didn’t try.

I’m still on several Facebook groups…the poor rep is far from a myth…I loved the miles I did in mine, but wouldn’t buy another.

We'll just have to see, I don't know the history of your car as well as many other cars that have issues down the line. Only n54's I've ever heard of having issues are American's who try to put 600hp in them and a people over here who don't service them.

[84Reasons]

Court_S said:

Snap…I’ve not long taken the plunge with an N54 powered 335i. I put mine back under BMW warranty for the next year.

Mine has thrown up it’s first issue there’re weeks in; boost solenoids look to be shot given it craps itself under hard acceleration and I get the yellow engine management light. The solenoids were less than my excess so I’m trying them first.

Car looks great in blue with the beige. More interesting than my car.

Great choice with the warranty, I don't have that luxury because of the mileage. I hope you get that issue sorted.

Thank you!

[84Reasons]

Mr Tidy said:

Stunning colour combination.

FWIW I think that may be Le Mans Blue, but whatever it looks much better than my E90 in Sparkling Graphite with Beige!

Thank you, I checked the BMW spec sheet and it is Montego Blue, however still looks great IMO!

[Court_S]

84Reasons said:

We'll just have to see, I don't know the history of your car as well as many other cars that have issues down the line. Only n54's I've ever heard of having issues are American's who try to put 600hp in them and a people over here who don't service them.

I think owners are often the big issue. The 1M don’t seem to suffer with so many issues as the 135/335. Perhaps because they’re owned by grownups who don’t sling a JB4 on and how for the best.

The only real worry I have on mine is the injectors because they’re an early index. HPFP and at least one turbo have been done. Hopefully the injectors will die whilst under warranty.

[84Reasons]

Court_S said:

I think owners are often the big issue. The 1M don’t seem to suffer with so many issues as the 135/335. Perhaps because they’re owned by grownups who don’t sling a JB4 on and how for the best.

The only real worry I have on mine is the injectors because they’re an early index. HPFP and at least one turbo have been done. Hopefully the injectors will die whilst under warranty.

Exactly this, N54 are known for tuning and so many buy just to map them instantly and wonder why they break down.
Fingers crossed for the injectors, even so you should hopefully not have issues with them unless you start mapping.

[Court_S]

84Reasons said:

Exactly this, N54 are known for tuning and so many buy just to map them instantly and wonder why they break down.
Fingers crossed for the injectors, even so you should hopefully not have issues with them unless you start mapping.

I don’t think I’ll be going down that road…they’re not exactly slow in stock form and I can’t really be arsed with the issues that follow.

[MarkJS]

Congratulations. They’re fantastic cars and my E92 was a pleasure to own with no trouble over the 60k miles I put on it - although the one I had was powered by the lowly 20d. Same goes to CourtS too as I’ve seen yours in the other thread.



I really hope you both enjoy your cars.

[84Reasons]

MarkJS said:

Congratulations. They’re fantastic cars and my E92 was a pleasure to own with no trouble over the 60k miles I put on it - although the one I had was powered by the lowly 20d. Same goes to CourtS too as I’ve seen yours in the other thread.



I really hope you both enjoy your cars.

Thank you! Great colour 😉