[KRS_SN]

Originally Posted by 454697819

Updates in first post so it reads as one generally

52k and 55k miles iirc

oops didn't realise that
great job writing up a detailed review
I have an f34 gt 335d and acs abd bilstein b8 combination with Michelin pilot sport 4 tyres and its great and only a year since i bought it and i have put 17k miles
its been a labour of love and money and nice to read your detailed observations. Averaging 33mpg but i do a lot of bumper to bumper traffic driving after the school run.

[454697819]

So, 60 000 mile update.

Just before CV19 halted everything the car had reached 60K miles, and really had begun to feel bedded in.

I have had one front shock replaced under warranty and discussions are ongoing with doing the other side given how close to the cut off I am with the 62k mile minimum to replace both.

It doesn't need its 3rd BMW service until 63000 miles which is consistent with me getting 21k miles between BMW services, but the oil is still changed about every 10-11k.

Now it reached the 60k mile mark I decided to also change the gerbox oil, I do not subscribe to leaving gearbox oil for life and 60k miles is about right when you look at the ZF Guidance.

I procured the ZF genuine kit and oil from Autodoc for £166 which was a good price and it took me, without a lift or very tall axle stands about 2 hours of messing about but the results are pleasing.

No photos of doing the work as that's detailed in many youtube videos but some photos of the aftermath so to speak and equipment needed.

Note i got 4.5 litres out (ish) and struggle to get the same back in but managed in the end by tipping the car away from the fill side to allow it to fill up and by running through the gears a few times.

The Box with the sump and 7 litres of oil, new bolts and fill plug.



Tools you need (impact driver not required and ONLY FOR UNDOING THE SUMP BOLTS) New bolts are only 12nm as its a plastic sump.





New 500ml syringe - Worked well to be fair and only £10



Old 5l screen wash bottle for confirming volume removed from gearbox.



New ZF Fluid is green



Old oil was not completley toast but toast enough for sure.



Sludge traps had worked well, slight silvery paste on both but nothing to be too concerned about, I have to remember this is a hard working gear box



Yes I ran out of gloves and no I cant get any on amazon...



Remember to tip up the sump into your pan as the filter is filled with oil too, and here you can see the film on the larger filters too - looking like silver paste!



And down here is the filter element, I might when I can be bothered, cut it open and inspect the filter as it looks like it is post fitted into the sump, but today was not the day to be arsed...



Always helpful to have a big old barrel to keep old oil in.



I stuck to to the instructions most of the way but as I cant get a 100% level drive, I focused on getting back in 4.5l as a priority, and it seems good.

I acknowledge this is best done on a proper lift but it is a straight forward job for a competent DIYer (helps if your skinnier to get under the car or can stick it on 4 tall jack stands.

Note - The under tray comes of easy, also best to remove the bracket on the side of the gear box but I didn't bother as my 8mm allen key could get in a ok and with an extender bar on it worked well.

Outcome... Nice smooth shifts again and a peace of mind, it's probably psychosomatic but it feels like its no longer spinning in porridge, but nice new fluid. its similar to the feeling after the old DSG was changed every 40k miles.

Ill do it again at 100k but might pay someone else to do it who has a lift. especially as in September its getting the Steinbauer box

Total cost - £166 kit - + £10 syringe and some skin of my knuckles!

Any questions please ask.

[Fudz]

Did you just change the oil based in volume removed or did it get it up to temp and cycle gears etc?

[454697819]

Originally Posted by Fudz

Did you just change the oil based in volume removed or did it get it up to temp and cycle gears etc?

I did both - it’s common to struggle
To get the same Volume back in even with cycling through the gears.

I followed the instructions which detail the cycling procedure.

If 4.5 litres came out it needs to go back in!!

[454697819]

First page updated with recent activities and expenses.

[otee10]

This was a hugely engaging read, thanks for your time and effort. Would love to know your thoughts on whether or not Millers has yielded any noticeable changes?

[454697819]

Originally Posted by otee10

This was a hugely engaging read, thanks for your time and effort. Would love to know your thoughts on whether or not Millers has yielded any noticeable changes?

Morning, Using millers did yield a couple of noticeable improvements -

1.) Engine was quieter at low revs,
2.) minor improvement in fuel economy,

It is my humble opinion that it is is worth using if you plan to keep the car for a long time, but not if you are leasing and will change every 2-3 years as I don't think you will see the benefit.

Cheers

[Pobsey]

Cracking thread, I did one for my 120d blow by blow up to 195,000miles

[454697819]

Originally Posted by Pobsey

Cracking thread, I did one for my 120d blow by blow up to 195,000miles

I read a lot of that - was a good read!

[Kermit]

My 335d Shadow is the first car I've ever considered keeping once it's time is up. Love everything about it.

[Soul_Glo]

Originally Posted by 454697819

So, 60 000 mile update.

Just before CV19 halted everything the car had reached 60K miles, and really had begun to feel bedded in.

I have had one front shock replaced under warranty and discussions are ongoing with doing the other side given how close to the cut off I am with the 62k mile minimum to replace both.

It doesn't need its 3rd BMW service until 63000 miles which is consistent with me getting 21k miles between BMW services, but the oil is still changed about every 10-11k.

Now it reached the 60k mile mark I decided to also change the gerbox oil, I do not subscribe to leaving gearbox oil for life and 60k miles is about right when you look at the ZF Guidance.

I procured the ZF genuine kit and oil from Autodoc for £166 which was a good price and it took me, without a lift or very tall axle stands about 2 hours of messing about but the results are pleasing.

No photos of doing the work as that's detailed in many youtube videos but some photos of the aftermath so to speak and equipment needed.

Note i got 4.5 litres out (ish) and struggle to get the same back in but managed in the end by tipping the car away from the fill side to allow it to fill up and by running through the gears a few times.

The Box with the sump and 7 litres of oil, new bolts and fill plug.



Tools you need (impact driver not required and ONLY FOR UNDOING THE SUMP BOLTS) New bolts are only 12nm as its a plastic sump.





New 500ml syringe - Worked well to be fair and only £10



Old 5l screen wash bottle for confirming volume removed from gearbox.



New ZF Fluid is green



Old oil was not completley toast but toast enough for sure.



Sludge traps had worked well, slight silvery paste on both but nothing to be too concerned about, I have to remember this is a hard working gear box



Yes I ran out of gloves and no I cant get any on amazon...



Remember to tip up the sump into your pan as the filter is filled with oil too, and here you can see the film on the larger filters too - looking like silver paste!



And down here is the filter element, I might when I can be bothered, cut it open and inspect the filter as it looks like it is post fitted into the sump, but today was not the day to be arsed...



Always helpful to have a big old barrel to keep old oil in.



I stuck to to the instructions most of the way but as I cant get a 100% level drive, I focused on getting back in 4.5l as a priority, and it seems good.

I acknowledge this is best done on a proper lift but it is a straight forward job for a competent DIYer (helps if your skinnier to get under the car or can stick it on 4 tall jack stands.

Note - The under tray comes of easy, also best to remove the bracket on the side of the gear box but I didn't bother as my 8mm allen key could get in a ok and with an extender bar on it worked well.

Outcome... Nice smooth shifts again and a peace of mind, it's probably psychosomatic but it feels like its no longer spinning in porridge, but nice new fluid. its similar to the feeling after the old DSG was changed every 40k miles.

Ill do it again at 100k but might pay someone else to do it who has a lift. especially as in September its getting the Steinbauer box

Total cost - £166 kit - + £10 syringe and some skin of my knuckles!

Any questions please ask.

How did you monitor the gearbox temperature when changing the oil?

[454697819]

Originally Posted by Soul_Glo

How did you monitor the gearbox temperature when changing the oil?

IR Thermometer, plus using my finger and going - feels about right.

Cheers

[Pobsey]

Originally Posted by 454697819

I read a lot of that - was a good read!

Just updated it for the final time

[peetee]

Hiya mate. This is a fantastic thread! I've booked my F31 335d for ACS springs at Mallory Performance in Leicester.

Do you have any before and after pics of your car with ACS Springs ?

[454697819]

Originally Posted by peetee

Hiya mate. This is a fantastic thread! I've booked my F31 335d for ACS springs at Mallory Performance in Leicester.

Do you have any before and after pics of your car with ACS Springs ?

Hey good choice,

Honestly I don’t think I do, I have never been concerned about the look just the handling which coupled with non runflat tyres is now ace !!

Enjoy the springs and plenty of pics on here if others with acs as I can’t help!

[454697819]

So, late update but still thought I would post a 3 year end of warranty update.

63K miles or there abouts, circa 10k less than planned mostly because of 3 months of working from home.

3 years old 2nd September, MOT - Nothing to report except it was free because either they really like me or, it was free on my service plan, either way bit of a result.

Secondly the end of warranty check picked up a minor battery fault explained by my dashcam.

The car on the whole has been excellent over the three years, I have another three to go with it. I have chosen not to take on the BMW warranty as over 60k miles it gets silly expensive.

So warranty claims over the three years extend to

1 - Steering wheel (leather failure)
2 - Gear stick (got a bit floppy) but honestly I think they all do that.
3 - Drop links and roll bars (to aid diagnosis of knocking front)
4 - Steering rack fix - (Also to aid diagnosis of knocking front)
5 - Two front adaptive shocks due to knocking (I had over 60k on the car when claimed so both were eventually replaced.)
6 - Battery - Again to try and fix a low battery warning but it was my dash cam draining it!
7 - Rear wheel replaced due to minor corrosion.

Honestly other than the shocks, the others whilst irritating are me being super super fussy and BMW being willing to stick most things through warranty.

Does this detract from the ownership, not really, all have been dealt with free courtesy cars, and mostly whilst in for servicing etc etc so cant really complain.

Well on to another 70k miles (CV19) dependant of course!

Stay safe and well all.

[Mylo]

great read. Thanks for sharing. Should be collecting my 68 plate shadow in the same colour this week. I now know what to look out for

[454697819]

Originally Posted by Mylo

great read. Thanks for sharing. Should be collecting my 68 plate shadow in the same colour this week. I now know what to look out for

No worries, hope you enjoy the new motor they are good machines for sure.

Just to clarify I am running AC Schnitzer springs which whilst I don't believe contributed to the shock failure, might have contributed and either way it was overlooked by BMW on the change as each shock is £700+ to replace!

[RhysoTDI]

Just spent some time reading through this; great write up

It’s threads like these that interest me. Real world experiences and ownership ��

[454697819]

70k Update & More Vroom

Well as with most people my millage has taken a significant dive in the last 12 months and the car has only covered 7k since its last service, in June last year. I was expecting it to have somewhere in the region of 90k on it by now.

No bad thing but it meant I put off and off getting the brakes done, but they weren't critical.

However I finally dropped the car off yesterday at my independent to have new discs and pads on the front, and new pads on the rear, I bought the Brembo gear at a cost of about £390 for the parts and I reckon labour will be about 3 hours but I haven't seen the bill yet!

More Vroom

I also finally had the Steinbauer box fitted and holy poop its a tad quicker than it was.
Its not smack you in the face do a little dance quicker but it has significantly more grunt and its not really turned up to 11 yet either.

So, Brembo brakes - Well recommended, just bedding them in might take a while.

Steinbauer, so far so good, - I didn't pay full price for it so cant comment if its worth the new cost, and it also was a pig to fit apparently so I don't look forward to the bill but the install is flawless and I cant even see its fitted, the ooomph is worth it though :-)


On a different note, I am changing jobs in a couple of months which will see my millage drop from 25k a year to about 8k. So the intergalactic millage expected over 6 years will be significantly less but i'll still update this from time to time as I will be keeping the car at least till its 6th birthday if not much longer.

Safe driving all.

[g9icy]

What made you go with a tuning box instead of an ECU tune?

[454697819]

Originally Posted by g9icy

What made you go with a tuning box instead of an ECU tune?

Cost,

I picked up the box for shy of £100, and ability to remove at my decision.

Quite happy with it for the moment.

Cheers