E46 320d Turbo

Jerry_112

Member
Hi,

I am looking to purchase a 2005 e46 320d, want to know what the lifespan of the turbo is, and how much it will cost to repair or replace one when it deteriorates. The current mileage is 152000km.

Also, what should I look out for when test driving the car.

Advise would be much appreciated, thanks guys.
 

Solo Man

Well-known member
We got one (a 2002) for my son. It had on much the same mileage but the turbo was whisteling, so we got it for about R50k. Rest of car was in very good condition. I took out the swirl flaps, the cats and cleaned and blanked off the egr. Also, very important, i replaced the nearly rock hard toilet roll type oil seperator and replaced it with the standard and newer plastic oil seperator. The car has on about 220k kms now and the turbo is still whisteling when cold but you can barely hear it when the car is on normal operating temperature. We also replaced the front lower control arm bushes. I must say that the car still pulls like a train and every time i drive it i am surprised by the torque of that particular car (i have 3l diesels). If the price is right, go for it but do what i have done as described above. Oil seperator and swirl flaps is a must on these cars. Removing the cat and blanking off the egr are nice to haves. Good luck and enjoy! Btw., his is a auto and the gearbox is still going strong.
 

Jerry_112

Member
Solo Man said:
We got one (a 2002) for my son. It had on much the same mileage but the turbo was whisteling, so we got it for about R50k. Rest of car was in very good condition. I took out the swirl flaps, the cats and cleaned and blanked off the egr. Also, very important, i replaced the nearly rock hard toilet roll type oil seperator and replaced it with the standard and newer plastic oil seperator. The car has on about 220k kms now and the turbo is still whisteling when cold but you can barely hear it when the car is on normal operating temperature. We also replaced the front lower control arm bushes. I must say that the car still pulls like a train and every time i drive it i am surprised by the torque of that particular car (i have 3l diesels). If the price is right, go for it but do what i have done as described above. Oil seperator and swirl flaps is a must on these cars. Removing the cat and blanking off the egr are nice to haves. Good luck and enjoy! Btw., his is a auto and the gearbox is still going strong.

Wow R50k is a lot of money, more than half of the selling price. Is that how much it is just for a new turbo? Or for all those other things you mentioned as well?
 

AdiS

Well-known member
Jerry_112 said:
Solo Man said:
We got one (a 2002) for my son. It had on much the same mileage but the turbo was whisteling, so we got it for about R50k. Rest of car was in very good condition. I took out the swirl flaps, the cats and cleaned and blanked off the egr. Also, very important, i replaced the nearly rock hard toilet roll type oil seperator and replaced it with the standard and newer plastic oil seperator. The car has on about 220k kms now and the turbo is still whisteling when cold but you can barely hear it when the car is on normal operating temperature. We also replaced the front lower control arm bushes. I must say that the car still pulls like a train and every time i drive it i am surprised by the torque of that particular car (i have 3l diesels). If the price is right, go for it but do what i have done as described above. Oil seperator and swirl flaps is a must on these cars. Removing the cat and blanking off the egr are nice to haves. Good luck and enjoy! Btw., his is a auto and the gearbox is still going strong.

Wow R50k is a lot of money, more than half of the selling price. Is that how much it is just for a new turbo? Or for all those other things you mentioned as well?


R50k is how much he paid for te car.
 

Solo Man

Well-known member
Correct, that is what we paid for the car. Still has the same turbo to date. When i replaced the turbo on my previous E39 530d it was just over R10k for the turbo from Turbo Direct. The agents wanted twice that amount!! [/i]
 

Marchant-320d

///Member
I have a 2004 320d that I want to sell for 50k. It`s in very good condition and standing on 251 000km and still going strong. I must say, this is in my opinion probably the best bmw ever made. Still on original turbo but mine does not whistle and still has strong boost up till 6th gear.
 
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