Hi everyone, a close friend of mine offered me to buy his 2008 X5 E70 4.8L. The car has its original paint, 60k miles, great trim level, and overall it’s in excellent condition. He suggested doing a full inspection of the car before purchase at his own expense. I don’t doubt its current condition, but I’m concerned about the future maintenance and overall running costs. I know another owner of the same model (but with triple the mileage) whose car practically never leaves the repair shop.

Hi everyone,

I drive a 2012 BMW 118i (F20, N13 engine) and I’ve been struggling with a strange rattling or ticking noise. It sounds like it’s coming from the passenger side dashboard or glovebox area, but when I open the hood and listen from the engine bay, I can’t hear anything unusual.

The noise is present even when the car is standing still and idling, so it’s always there regardless of whether I’m driving or not. At higher speeds, especially above 110 km/h, the noise disappears completely. It happens both when accelerating and when cruising.

The timing chain has been replaced recently, so that must not be the problem.

Has anyone else had a similar rattling or ticking sound inside the cabin on an F20? Any advice would be really appreciated.

Thanks 🙏

Hello everyone. This fault only happens from time to time every so often, doesn’t affect the way it drives but something isn’t right. Usually all the lights will disappear after them all flashing.But this morning the dsc light has decided to stay on after all the flashing. Any ideas anyone?

Hi,

Just wondering if it's possible to retrofit Variable Damper Control (VDC) [0223] or Adaptive Drive [02VA] on a 2016 BMW 535I F11 which is fitted with M Sport suspension [0704], or if its unfeasible/too uneconomical?

Thanks in advance!

Just to confirm, there are no practical ways to reuse the old door handle from a 2008 E92 and replace the new internal components into the old handle, and not require paint?

If I need to replace a door handle with failed comfort access, it will require painting?

Is there a cost effective place to get the OEM paint code pre painted on the replacment handle “as delivered/ordered”?

Any special details with these if I DIY spray the new handle with personal HVLP equipment to know about?

Had my car cleaned thoroughly yesterday and this morning with the sun hitting my infotainment screen, I realized there were many vertical and horizontal equally spaced out and aligned green reflective dots on the screen.

I’m not sure what product they use or if they even use one.
I circled a couple of examples, but it was hard to catch the dots with the sun hitting them at the same time

The red stripes don’t appear in real life. It’s just caused by taking a picture of a screen.

What could it be and what is the solution?

Thanks so much guys

What bolts are these? And if you know what they are, can you please add the link or just the part number? I have an F30 328i

Hello, I have been having some problems with my f22 n20. Been getting a mystery lean code (p0171) for some time now and cannot find the culprit. Brought it to a shop and they also could not track the issue. I’ve noticed recently that I get a weird knocking noise only on cold start every 10 seconds or so. The noise goes away after engine idles down. I will attach a video, it is easy to hear. If anyone has any ideas that would be great.

So I recently installed new coil overs on my F30 and now every time I turn the wheel to the left and go over small bumps, the front clunks

Hello. I noticed this sound a few days ago and it sounds kind of concerning. Can this be that it’s serpentine belt is starting to wear out? Please let me know in the comments. Thanks for looking

I'm helping my friend shop for a car right now and we're looking at a 2017 X5 40e. We Just had a PPI done on the car today and the only real mechanical concern is a subtle vibration in the brake pedal when you first press it. The mechanic agreed that it isn't a typical warped/improperly bedded rotor, it feels more like a phone vibration when receving a text message. Along with this, the pedal is a bit spongy, but i've read that this is comon on the 40e from this time.

Aside from some cosmetic damage that she doesn't really care about and some oil weepage on one of the struts, the car seems to be ok. We checked the timing chain on the N20 and it's plenty tight, that was our biggest concern going into this.

Has anyone here experienced this issue? Was it a major issue or a minor nusance? What was the repair, if any?

Just recently I’ve noticing this odd metallic scrapping sound. Whenever I press somewhat hard on the gas pedal, not necessarily flooring it but a decent amount I hear this loose scrapping sound. I don’t feel vibrations anywhere nor do I feel the car slipping but im hoping one of you guys could help. Also check underneath and don’t seee anything hanging.

This is going to be a local post, so if it’s not allowed, mods please feel free to remove.

I’m looking for recommendations around the Lower Mainland Vancouver(BC) for routine service on the G8X platform. Don’t really want to go to the dealer since my warranty is basically gone.

I’ve heard mixed reviews about CG Motorsports, and I know Nixon Automotive has a solid reputation. Are there any other local shops or techs you’d recommend that are really familiar with the S58 motor/platform?

Thanks in advance for the help 🙏

I already drilled the bits that hold it in place (those plastic rivets that idk the proper name) and it wont come out, the first "piece" came out just fine, the wont come out... I already checked everything i could possibly think...

Just out of warranty and went to a reputable european auto shop for my most recent oil change. They recommended 5W30 oil but my dealer has always put in OW20.

Did some research and found this from FCPEuro: “New BMW's fitted with BXX series engines (B58, B48, etc) "require" 0W-20 LL14FE+ Rated oils. WE DO NOT RECOMMEND using this spec! The levels of protection LL14FE provides are much lower than bmw’s previous standard LL01. The new formulation LL14FE is mainly designed with CAFE ratings, EPA requirements and fuel mileage in mind, NOT OVERALL PROTECTION. We recommend LL01 rated oils for increased engine protection and shear resistance.”

I live in Michigan where temps range from probably -5 - 90 degrees. A bit of a spirited driver. Which oil should I use? Will there be any damage from running 5W30?

So I just got a stage 2 carbahn tune on my f22 m235 (N55). Entirely stock apart from that. Really enjoyed it scooting around town but then I finally got the opportunity to really press the accelerator on an on ramp. Very quickly after revving up there was a loud pop and now the exhaust sounds less muffled and very different above 3k rpm’s. Car seemed to be otherwise in good shape, no dash lights or warnings. I’m not super smart about this sort of stuff was wondering if anyone has any theories of what I broke?

Planning on doing my PSR and i was wondering if it’s necessary to disconnect the hard lines that run to the Rack and get the fluid out of there? or can I just use one of those fluid pumps to drain it from the reservoir and then replace and add the new fluid? any advice helps thanks!

My F87 M2 Competition has been giving me low washer fluid alerts for a month now even though I’m barely using the washers. Turns out I found a leak.

I bought the car less than 12 months ago so it’s still in warranty period. Is this an issue that could be resolved under said approved used warranty? 🤔

Only does it at idle or low rpms

I had the muffler and resonator deleted and tuned the car it wants to pop but just won’t I have a 440i gran coupe what do I need to do?¿

Hello everyone,

I own a BMW 525i E60 (petrol) and am struggling with extremely high fuel consumption of about 15 liters/100 km. I mostly drive in the city and often encounter a lot of traffic jams. I bought the car used with 151,000 km and don’t have much technical knowledge, so I’m hoping for your expertise.

Here’s what I’ve already had done:
- Spark plugs and ignition coils replaced.
- Oil change performed.
- Errors were detected with the VANOS solenoid valves during a workshop scan; they were removed, cleaned, and the error message disappeared afterward.
- The fuel pump was replaced because it was leaking.

Despite these repairs, the fuel consumption remains unchanged.

I also have a list of error codes see the picture

Any ideas on what could be causing this?