Bmw e46 3-series 330 zhp reliabilty

PURPOSE: Each member provide a list of failures, they have experienced with the above mentioned vehicle. I am only interested in compiling a list of entries for someone doing research on E46. Lets all try to use a similar format, for ease of review.

INCLUDE: In addition to mechanical type failures, please list failures in electronics, trim, bodywork, etc. If you can include the approximate mileage at time of failure, that would be great but is not necessary.

DO NOT: List aftermarket (MOD) type failures.
DO NOT: List 3 Series ///M model vehicles. I am not interested.

Only one post per member...typically

2012 data begins on Page 8.

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I will go first.

1. DISA ~ 98k - Found butterfly valve broken while inspecting ICV. Found upon purchase. Trip wire - CEL
2. Lower Intake Boot ~ 98k - Found during ICV clean and inspect. Found upon purchase. Trip wire - CEL
3. Battery ~ 98k - Found upon purchase.
4. Drivers side, side mirror glass ~ 98k - Found upon purchase.
5. Rear Shock Coil Cracked at lower Spring Perch ~ 100k - Found during coilover install.

***Where I say "Found upon purchase" = This implies I do not have exact mileage of failure as it was that way when vehicle was purchased.***

1. Thermostat ~ 57k - Threw a stuck open code, checked and it was leaking a small amount of coolant. Replaced.
2. Lower & Upper Intake Boots ~ 58k - During CCV Update found both boots were torn. Replaced.
3. VANOS ~ 58k - VANOS Rattle apparent. Did both Seals and Rattle Kit. Rarely rattles now & seems to run better.

That's all for now. Will update. Something in the suspension is tweaked, haven't had time to diagnose.

1. Xenon headlight level sensor - found upon purchase
2. Front Control Arm Bushings - 75k

1. Noisy VANOS - 23k - Excessive "rattle can" chatter - fixed with Beisan kit - No CEL, just a lot of noise at around 2300 rpm

If I let the car sit for 5+ days, it will run choppy after startup for a couple minutes. Otherwise, no issues since the vanos rattle (43k now).

Maintenance items and Failure Items List

1. bremi ignition coils replacement 23921
2. inspection 1 26901
3. Hydrolic mount/ front axle control arm bottm leaking 41577
4. hydrolic mount front axle wishbone 41577
5. alternator drive belt. Ac drive belt 56534
6. Injection nozzles replaced. Cyclone separator replaced 72874
7. DISA valvel replaced 76611
8. Valve cover gasket replaced, Front lower control arm bushings replacedpower steering pump replaced, brake fluid
change 87,625

I bought car from brother in law here at 114,000 miles

9. ZKW Lights replaced Burnt Bowl Issue 116,000
10. Upper and lower intake boot replacement with Stett Perforamance silicon boots. Threw lean codes. Hole in upper boot. 118,000
11. washer fluid pump leaking out fluid 122000
12. driver window regulator using zip tie fix 125,000
13. passenger window regulator using zip tie fix 129,000
14. pully/belt tensioner replaced, delflection roller, drive belt tensioner. 129663
15. Thermostat replaced due to sticking open, water pump replaced PM 135,600

Mtn...were any of the above done in a preventative measure...or were they all failures?

Well, the water pump on the last line was PM cause i was doing thermostat so it just made sense, and I notated it there. The belt tensioners needed replacing, but were not catastrophoc failure..so i put them on here cause i replaced them......The others after 114k were all failures. Prior to 100k, PO had the car CPO, so all work was done at the dealer. I am assuming they were all failures, cause CPO dealer doesnt like to pay for PM necessarily..... I removed things like spark plugs at 100k, etc, that was routine. Should i remove some other items, Dane, or did i get the gist of this post?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mtnman

Well, the water pump on the last line was PM cause i was doing thermostat so it just made sense, and I notated it there. The belt tensioners needed replacing, but were not catastrophoc failure..so i put them on here cause i replaced them......The others after 114k were all failures. Prior to 100k, PO had the car CPO, so all work was done at the dealer. I am assuming they were all failures, cause CPO dealer doesnt like to pay for PM necessarily..... I removed things like spark plugs at 100k, etc, that was routine. Should i remove some other items, Dane, or did i get the gist of this post?

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Naaa...leave it. Its good dtat with the amplifying facts.

Vanos seal failure at 57k
HK speakers buzzing and distorted at 57k.

That's it for actual failures.

I did not have any codes related to these failures. However I did have quite a hesitation and power dip right around 3700-4000k rpms which I was told by the dealership was just "bad gas" and to use some fuel system cleaner. After much research on the forums and talking with Rajaie from Beisan systems,I figured out it was most likely the vanos seals. The seals were worn in spots and very weak and would not hold their shape or form when squished. It was obvious they were degraded. I put the new Viton o-rings in and followed the break in period. After 500 miles or so I did notice quite a difference torque throughout the power band and 1-2 mpg better.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ZHP-FTW

Vanos seal failure at 57k
HK speakers buzzing and distorted at 57k.

That's it for actual failures.

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Brutha.....can you do a short writeup in your post above to include....

1. Any codes.
2. Indications.
3. What the seals looked like when they came off the pistons.
4. Anything else.

It's just you're the first guy I have seen that admits "VANOS SEAL FAILURE". Thanks

Failures/Replaced Items:
DISA Valve replaced (Under Warranty) along with DME Re-flash due to 4k RPM stumble. 14,151 miles
DME Re-Flash (Sent to New Jersey) due to 4k RPM stuble. Under Warranty. 40,913 miles
Replaced Steering Wheel due to Alcantara balling up. Under Warranty. 40,913 miles
Steering Rack retrofit kit (Under Warranty). 46,518 miles
New Sunroof cassette (Under Warranty). 46,518 miles

Maintenance Items (Replaced prior to failure).
Cooling system-Water pump (showed signs of leakage), thermostat, expansion tank, upper hose, Idler pulley (sounded bad), Alt Belt & AC Belt (both showed signs of significant wear). 70,293 miles.
A/C tensioner/pulley replaced (really bad sound!). 79,826 miles.

I also have brake pads & rotors which were changed, but I don't think it would necessarily apply here.

Johnny

Thanks for that Johnny...great data....

When we get more posts...I plan to cypher through and come up with a consolidated list.

It was one of the other threads on here that got me to compile everything that was done on my car, dates, where, mileage etc. in an excel spreadsheet rather than a bunch of random receipts and papers in my filing cabinet.

'05 coupe (47.5K miles): PO hadn't driven it much in the last 3 months of ownership, 2nd day after I got it the battery warning light came on; checked and smelled an electrical burnt odor in the vicinity of the alternator; was still under CPO warranty, tried to make the 15 mile drive to the dealer, didn't make it; fried the battery, had to be towed, replaced both battery and alternator
(50K miles) serpentine belt is showing cracks, replacing both belts next week

'04 vert (9K miles): battery didn't sound right, put it on a trickle charger overnight, still not cranking quickly enough; replaced the battery, cranking sounded correct but immediately tripped the battery warning light, took it in for service and needed a new alternator

Dane, revised my original post with more details. Hope it helps.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ZHP-FTW

Dane, revised my original post with more details. Hope it helps.

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Thanks

86k Miles - Starter Died.

Bout it, been good to me so far.

P.S. I forgot the battery ended up dying on me last summer. Lasted 7 years though, the guy in the battery shop down the street couldnt believe it lasted that long.

Thanks for the data Acyd. Again...this data will be compiled eventually into a historical failure document, based upon our discoveries.

1) Battery - ~38K miles
2) Coolant Header Tank - ~39K miles
3) Resistor - ~40K miles; turns out a resistor was causing the car not to "shut down" completely and caused the battery to drain
4) HK Radio Head Unit - ~40K miles; known issue, would cause sound to surge in and out

Just as an FYI, all replaced under CPO warranty. John

John...how old in years was the battery?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by danewilson77

John...how old in years was the battery?

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I assume it was the first one, and my car was born March '06.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by johnrando

I assume it was the first one, and my car was born March '06.

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OK....so in the 5-7 year window. Got it.

Passenger window motor: 36k (Time of purchase)
VANOS rattle: 60.5k
HK Pass Door Sub Rattle/Death: 62k (Need to investigate)

2006 Vert born August

Thanks patter. Welcome to the site. Those are perfectly normal "abnormal" items.

Droid! Srs Legitness!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by grpatter

Passenger window motor: 36k (Time of purchase)
VANOS rattle: 60.5k
HK Pass Door Sub Rattle/Death: 62k (Need to investigate)

2006 Vert born August

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Yours was one of the last ZHPs to roll off the assembly line.

Welcome to the site.

Born Oct 2004

FCAB: Passenger side FCAB was rotten to the core and ugly to boot and drive side was just plain sloppy at 47,000 miles

Quote:

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Originally Posted by johnnyrad

Born Oct 2004

FCAB: Passenger side FCAB was rotten to the core and ugly to boot and drive side was just plain sloppy at 47,000 miles

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Can you speak to weather or not driving conditions were normal, rough, any track time, etc? Thanks.

Droid! Srs Legitness!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by danewilson77

Can you speak to weather or not driving conditions were normal, rough, any track time, etc? Thanks.

Droid! Srs Legitness!

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Driving conditions very normal. Not rough, no track, simply suburban jungle.

OK...thanks

Quote:

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Originally Posted by johnnyrad

Born Oct 2004

FCAB: Passenger side FCAB was rotten to the core and ugly to boot and drive side was just plain sloppy at 47,000 miles

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I'm left wondering if you East coast guys in general have more wear and tear issues with rubber and bushing parts than most because of the harsher winters and salty roads? Cause a rotten FCAB and boot at 47k seems a little abnormal.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ZHP-FTW

I'm left wondering if you East coast guys in general have more wear and tear issues with rubber and bushing parts than most because of the harsher winters and salty roads? Cause a rotten FCAB and boot at 47k seems a little abnormal.

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Some of the roads over here are absolutely atrocious. Think of the worse cobble stone road you've ever driven on, and multiply that by 2. Some parts are just that bad.

In my E30, I've driven through a pothole so bad, it destroyed my rear shock mount. Once that was replaced, it destroyed it AGAIN. Even with a bad quality part (*cough*URO*cough*), it shouldn't be that easy to destroy a shock mount.


When I was in Florida, there wasn't a single pothole in sight - ANYWHERE! It was heaven... too bad I was in a rental car and not mine.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by az3579

Some of the roads over here are absolutely atrocious. Think of the worse cobble stone road you've ever driven on, and multiply that by 2. Some parts are just that bad.

In my E30, I've driven through a pothole so bad, it destroyed my rear shock mount. Once that was replaced, it destroyed it AGAIN. Even with a bad quality part (*cough*URO*cough*), it shouldn't be that easy to destroy a shock mount.


When I was in Florida, there wasn't a single pothole in sight - ANYWHERE! It was heaven... too bad I was in a rental car and not mine.

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Then drive 70mph on it....for 50 miles.....every day...lol.

Droid + Tapatalk = FTW!

My FCABs were totally shot at 50k. I don't think it's so much the salt as it is the rough roads. PA in particular is terrible. Some of the worst highways I've ever driven on.

VANOS seals and rattle repair kit - 95k
CEL for lean mixture - lower intake boot. 96k
Failed rear LED tail light. Water got inside. Haven't replaced it yet though.

Another one to add.

105k miles - Fuel pump died.

Easy swap out for new one. Love how easy these cars are to work on. With the help of great forums of course =)

Good deal. Thanks for the data.

I guess mine is a rare occurrence. Driver side Mirror actuator failure which affects passenger controls as well due to memory seats.

Washer fluid pump leak -- about 59,000 miles. Replaced.

Both front window regulator @ 53k miles
Fuel level sensor @53k ( thinking of changing the other side too with the pump) it seems like the fuel gauge is still not right.
Control arm bushings @ 53k just because it's free lol

Thanks for the issues guys. Keep em coming.