BMW 3 Series Convertible (2007 – 2012) Review

• March 2007
• March 2007
• July 2008
• July 2011

01-01-0001:

01-01-0001:

Several complaints that roof seals leak at A pillars.

Possible autobox software problem on 335i autos. Specifically, "When in manual the default position is always 2nd gear which suggests it is the same in drive. Then when accelerating from low revs the car stutters and jerks, again as if it is trying to find 1st gear."

Problem with 2.0 litre petrol engines. Two crankshaft sensors corrode and need replacing and ECU requires a 'V29' software upgrade.

Problem with new 335i single turbo engine not resolved by 21-7-2010. Some cars arrived at UK dealers and could not be delivered

If the car has Bluetooth and the owner has their Mobile phone synched to the car then if the car is not locked / all electrics shut down the car will keep trying to search for the phone and drain the battery.

22-01-2011:

Repeated coil and injector problems on 4-cylinder petrol engines from 2007.

07-03-2011:

Coil and injector problems reported on 6-cylinder petrol engines from 2007 as well.

06-12-2011:

Roof rattles reported.

03-02-2012:

Significant numbers of high pressure fuel pump failures on 330i and 335i in the USA. See link: www.n54tech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=14650 BMW initially "blamed" "ethanol" or "poor quality" gasoline in the U.S. for these failures. In fact, BMW HPFP failures are well documented in Germany (even with their "superior quality" gasoline), Australia, Asia, South Africa, etc. Some of these countries have never used ethanol in any of their gasoline..... HPFP Part Numbers 1. 13-51-7-537-320 2. 13-51-7-585-655 3. 13-51-7-592-881 4. 13-51-7-596-123 5. 13-51-7-594-943 6. 13-51-7-613-933 7. XX-XX-X-XXX-402 8. 13-51-7-616-170 9. 13-51-7-616-446.

12-04-2012:

Cold weather fault can develop with 'Active Steering'. There is a dealer TSB on this and it should be attended to during routine service. Otherwise, the cost is a stiff £1,750 + VAT for a new steering column, though BMW is aware and had been known to do the decent thing on 4 year old cars, even those serviced independently.

30-06-2013:

Report of DSC failure on 24k mile 2007/57 M Sport cabrio; quoted £2,000 ro replace. Could be that ECU Testing can help.

03-10-2013:

Report of 2008 Coupe Cabrio repeatedly leaking at the roof seals.

04-10-2013:

Diary of an ABS/ESP module repair that resulted in a saving of £1,700: On a 2007 E92 BMW 325 coupe the ABS warning light came on. The ABS system has a speed sensor at each wheel and the main unit, which has three parts. The metal manifold with the brake pipe to each wheel and the servo, the electronic control unit ECU and a Motor/pump. BMW can supply a new ECU for £940 inch vat or the whole unit with the three parts for £1850 incl vat. It takes about 1 hour to remove the unit and 2 hours to fit the new whole unit and bleed the brakes, which is a two man job - thus the labor cost will be around £300 + some brake fluid - total cost £2170. Another option is to send the ABS unit to a specialist repairer as recommended by Honest John (http://www.ecutesting.com or http://www.bba-reman.com) who will charge between £250 and £500 to repair the unit (if it can be repaired - not always possible) and post it back. This will take from 4 days to a week but save a lot of money. Since the car cannot be moved with no ABS/ESP module it's best to find a Mobile Mechanic or AutoElectrician to remove the old unit at your house, then re-fit it when it comes back (http://www.yell.com). Postage cost £25 including £500 insurance. Reader who tried this got a text at 9.02 the following morning from the repairer to say that the unit had arrived safely and they would test it and let me know if they could repair it and the cost. This turned out to be £195 + postage back + vat = £250. Then autoelectrcian charged me £200 for 3 hours labour so the total cost was:- Unit repair £250, postage £25, Labour £175, brake fluid £20, Total: £470. The saving was £1,700.

01-01-2014:

Problem of cracked wheels with rim sizes of 18" or more on cars 5 years old or more continues, with tyres losing pressure and the only solution a replacement set of wheels.

13-01-2014:

335i DCTs can develop a small oil leak from a transmission oil seal. Small, inexpensive part, but a big expensive job removing the engine/transmission to replace it.

20-04-2014:

High pressure fuel pump failed on 7 year old BMW 325i convertible 3 days after purchase from independent dealer. Dealer tried to flannel the reader that it was not his responsibility.

10-07-2014:

Report of two cracked rear wheel rims on a 2011 E93 320d fitted with unsuitable 19" wheels and 255/30 tyres. This does not leave enough rubber between the rims and the road for Britain's crumbling and hump infested roads. Nevertheless, the BMW dealer replaced the wheels.

04-11-2014:

Cracked rear alloys reported on 2009 BMW 320d Touring (presumed to be 18"). Good time to remind all E90 - E93 BMW 3-Series owners with 18" or 19" wheels to get them checked for cracks. Could save your life.

14-02-2016:

Report of water leaking into trunk of BMW 3-Series E93 coupe cabrio, probably through a failed or twisted folding roof seal.

17-03-2016:

Several reports of water pooling in BMW E93 3-Series convertible battery compartment. BMW dealer says not covered under warranty. Cost to replace all wiring to engine compartment £2,500 inc VAT.

20-03-2016:

Transmission warning light of E93 320d came on at 39k miles. B<W dealer said fluid was black and smelled burned, but cleard the fault code and told the owner to drive on. I advised a visit to a member of http://www.fedauto.co.uk and probably a change of transmission fluid by dialysis.

14-05-2016:

Owner of BMW E93 coupe convertible quoted £6,000 for a new hood motor. Sent him to Bristol Sunroofs

15-01-2018:

Report of 2009 BMW E93 325i needing 3 coil packs and injectors, 6 plugs, NOx sensor and high pressure fuel pump within 2 months of used purchase in 2013 at 38,000 miles. In January 2018 has misfire again: 2 coils and injectors replaces together with 6 plugs. Always run on Shell V-Power.

09-04-2018:

Report of timing chain failure in N47 engine of 2010 BMW E93 320d convertible at 93,000 miles. Car had been serviced every year by BMW dealers.

28-07-2018:

Report of thermostat and electric waterpump replacement in E93 BMW 320 M Sport convertible, at cost of over £900.

02-11-2018:

Report of engine problems with 2011 BMW E93 320i convertible with full BMW service history and timing chain TSB already carried out. Develped a misfire in May 2018 which was very intermittent. "Felt more like when a car is overfuelled." Not long after when pulling out of a side road the car ‘misfired’ horrendously and all manor of warning lights came on, and the car went into limp mode. BMW Assist recovered the car and BMW in Crewe diagnosed that all four coil packs needed replacing, which they did, they also “Advised long journey required to clear nox cat due to sulphurisation”. Car later driven to and from France 920 miles with no issues, then soon after developed slight misfire between 1700 - 1800 rpm in 4th gear. Specifically if accelerated in 3rd slowly changing into 4th at 2,500rpm, with light throttle, the car would ‘misfire’ on cue, which could be quite pronounced / violent. Owner noticed that the exhaust pipe was sooty and black. Dealer concluded that the catalytic converter was full of sulphur and that it was down to driving style, as the cat was not getting hot enough to burn the sulphur off (car does 30 miles a dayon a mixture of road and it normally get a longer run at the weekends. Told to "try driving at 70 mph in 4th or 5th to get it hot”. BMW performed a “de-sulphurisation road test 30min” after this the reading was still high so they carried out a “additional de-sulphurisation road test” which brought the reading down to within specification, over the phone I was told that the car “drove like a new car”. Owner collected car and fault was still present. BMW took car back. Two days later owner told that, there are no fault codes and they cannot replicate it so there is nothing they can do; even though three of there engineers have all felt it after it had been ‘fixed’. Owner advised that it could be sludge in the oil thats causing the vanos to work incorrectly (next service due in 10,000 miles), but the engineer was quite open that they just do not know what it is. After a couple of days of normal driving (with fault still present) owner used a phone app to read the fault codes. Three faults were present all of which relate to the nox sensor (002AF4, 002AF2, 002AF6) and had occurred after only 55 miles of the car leaving the dealer, after a conversation with BMW they agreed to have the car back to investigate this, although this time they said that these faults could be that the engine is not getting up to temperature. Over the last couple of days owner took it for a ‘spirited’ drive through the Peak District, and a round trip to York back (142 miles), after reading the fault codes now has 7 faults, 5 relate to the nox sensor (002AF4 twice, 002AF2 twice, 002AF6 twice, 2AF9 three times, 30E5 Once), DeNox catalyst (0030EA twice), Uneven running (3104 Three times).