e90 long term maintenance, issues, maladies

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sgoatley2001e46
Posts: 391
Joined: Thu Jan 10, 2008 4:49 pm

e90 long term maintenance, issues, maladies

Post by sgoatley2001e46 »

Long ago, a Bimmer Magazine article written by Mike Miller saved my neck, and made for an amazing ownership experience of my first BMW, a 2001 e46 325ci. It was a "buyers guide" of sorts that came out a month after I bought mine, and the timing was serendipitous. It helped me prepare for and address all is little faults and issues both in the short and long term. I sold the car after 7 years and at 152K miles, with no major issues. Last I'd heard, it was still on the road.

Having said that, I'm on to my 2nd BMW, a 2009 e90 328i. While not the fun little coupe the e46 was, it has served our family well.
I purchased it a little over 4 years ago as a CPO with 33K miles on it, and it has about 85K miles today. It's a pretty base car, rear wheel drive with an automatic, heated power seats might be the only significant option, besides the 17" wheels. Otherwise, no sport package, no nav, no leather, no rear folding seats, no bluetooth, etc. Like I said, as basic as I could find. It sees daily use up and down route 80 in Morris County dropping the kids off, getting groceries, and the occasional Sunday drive out toward Warren County. Save for swapping tires seasonally, the car is virtually unmolested. I had the transmission and rear diff fluids changed before I took delivery, and have done it every 30K miles since, and the next one at 90K is coming very soon. Oil changes approximately every 5K. Most recent major service issue was replacement of the oil pan gasket, and I'll be addressing the oil filter housing gasket here soon.

I guess what I'm looking to do, is address any issues that plague the e90. While not completely certain, the likelihood I keep this car until 150K or better is pretty good. Can anyone share their experiences with these cars as they approach the 100K mark, and what issues plagued them? I know my e46 had plenty, and being able to address them accordingly helped me prioritize, and enjoy the ownership experience rather than feel knocked down every time something would break.

Although I'd like to hear any and all information I can, I'd like to hear about things like sub par water pumps, or cooling system issues, oil separator/crank case vent issues, SULEV concerns, strut bearings, shock mounts, broken springs, transmission or other driveline maladies, engine issues, etc.

I guess in all, I'd like to stay on top of it. Ultimately, I'd like to start to have some fun and doing some upgrades, but not at the expense of maintenance, or prioritizing an upgrade over a part that in all probability will fail or require work in the very near future. I'd love to hear your experiences, advice, and knowledge. Thanks in advance everyone!

Scott

Allison
Posts: 38
Joined: Thu Jul 11, 2019 7:27 am
Location: Bergen County NJ

Re: e90 long term maintenance, issues, maladies

Post by Allison »

Hi Scott,

How are you? I am reviving this old thread as I have a higher-mile e92 328i xDrive (this thread was also started on my birthday, kind of neat). I see that you already sold your e90, but perhaps this will be useful to other members as these cars get older. I do know of two e9x owners but I'm not sure if I can tag them.

Context: I bought the car in the Summer of 2017 with 89,000 miles. Bimmerpost.com was my primary resource while shopping, as I wanted to find a car that had the sub-100k e9x issues addressed (water pump, oil filter housing, valve cover gasket). I found my car in NJ with all three issues taken care of by the previous owner, and now I'm here as the third owner. The car used to see 400-450 miles per week prior to the pandemic. I took it to Autocross in 2019, and will continue to drive it at our schools/events for as long as realistically possible.


Notable work
  • 93k - Control Arms replaced
  • 96k - Suspension was in bad shape, replaced with Bilstein B8s/H&R springs
  • 137k - Radiator + hoses + expansion tank replaced
  • 137k - Driver's side axle + motor mounts replaced Jan 2020 due to serious pothole damage (100% my fault), I am including here b/c it was ridiculous and caused me to miss a meeting. Thank goodness for AAA premium
  • 140k - Transfer Case Actuator + Flex Disc replaced

We are now at 149k and I will need to address the below soon
  • Valvetronic motor is on its way out. The car has a rough idle and will go into limp mode if I leave it idling for too long. It has never happened while driving
  • DSC pump possibly on its way out. Replacing wheel speed/steering angle sensors first to rule them out. The ABS/4x4/DSC lights come on while driving in heavy rain, and stay on until I clear them and/or replace another sensor. Been dealing with this for the past ~10k miles
  • Passenger side hood latch is rusted
  • A spider has taken up residence in one of my vents, saw it on the dash but couldn't get it in time. This is the most pressing issue
  • There is always the possibility that more things will go wrong with the Transfer Case. If you told me to buy another e9x right now, it would be RWD

Thanks for reading,
Allison
Last edited by Allison on Mon May 03, 2021 2:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
2009 e92 328i xDrive - Montego Blue
1995 e3(?) 325ti - Alaska Blue

Allison
Posts: 38
Joined: Thu Jul 11, 2019 7:27 am
Location: Bergen County NJ

Re: e90 long term maintenance, issues, maladies

Post by Allison »

Hi all,

A quick update to this list...my car is now on its third water pump. They were not built to last on these cars!!
  • Previous owner replaced original pump at 70k
  • Replaced again today at 151k
  • Valvetronic motor has also been replaced
2009 e92 328i xDrive - Montego Blue
1995 e3(?) 325ti - Alaska Blue

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