Driving 135i with N54 engine

[optimizer999]

I just purchased a 2008 135i Convert. This is my first turbo engine car and was wondering if there are some do's and don'ts that I should be aware of in order to prolong the life of the turbos.

Years ago a friend had a turbo Porche that had the bearings go on the turbo. The warranty covered the new install. The mechanic told him that when you cut the ignition, the engine stops but the turbos continue to freewheel for awhile. However, with the engine off there is no oil being delivered to the bearings. He suggested letting the engine idle for a minute or two so the turbo could cool a bit and come down to minimum rpm. My friend was a techno geek and rigged up a timer that shut down the engine after a 5 minute idle. This was even after the key was off and the car locked. Kinda cool setup but beyond my abilities. Maybe a bit overkill?

I figure that the last mile or two to my destination at a moderate speed would accomplish the same result.

The other concern was throttle control whilst motoring along, i.e. rapid application of throttle then a quick release. Would this create problems with boost pressure and possible engine damage? The way some of you flog your cars around the track maybe this isn't a problem. lol

Since I was six years old I have had the convertible bug. At 15 yo, I caught the sports car bug. Now at 67, I have finally fulfilled both dreams with my 135i. I live in Arizona so we have plenty of top-down days where the wind can blow through my hair. Both of them. lol

Any advice you may have will be appreciated. This is one awesome forum.

Thank you,

Jim

[Zombie1]

These cars turbos have a warranty for 10years/82k whatever comes first. Also these cars have an electric water pump that runs after the motor is off to help cool down the turbos. What your talking about with your friends device he had on his car is a turbo timer to cool the turbos down, that is outdated and not needed anymore on these motors. Like you said if you don't drive the car hard the last couple miles you drive it, you shouldn't have any issue with your turbos.

[optimizer999]

Thanks Zombie1. You reaffirmed my thoughts on the matter entirely. All I have left to do is drive and enjoy it.

[jsmonet]

Oil-cooled turbos required idling, but factory turbo applications have been, predominantly, water-cooled for a few decades. There has been a lot of work put into passively pumping coolant through turbos by way of evaporation forcing coolant into the turbo until it cools.

Cars with electronic water pumps simply run the pump a little longer after you shut off.

The skinny: drive it like you stole it and then soft pedal a couple minutes before you park. If you haven't been beating on it, park with no concern. Guys who road race will take the car for a little cool down sometimes, but that's as much for the brakes as anything, and you simply won't push the car that hard on the streets.

As for sudden throttle and let off... Some of us do that just to hear the bypass/blowoff valve (depending on what we are running). It's no big deal.

[optimizer999]

Originally Posted by jsmonet

Oil-cooled turbos required idling, but factory turbo applications have been, predominantly, water-cooled for a few decades. There has been a lot of work put into passively pumping coolant through turbos by way of evaporation forcing coolant into the turbo until it cools.

Cars with electronic water pumps simply run the pump a little longer after you shut off.

The skinny: drive it like you stole it and then soft pedal a couple minutes before you park. If you haven't been beating on it, park with no concern. Guys who road race will take the car for a little cool down sometimes, but that's as much for the brakes as anything, and you simply won't push the car that hard on the streets.

As for sudden throttle and let off... Some of us do that just to hear the bypass/blowoff valve (depending on what we are running). It's no big deal.

Thanks for the primer on modern turbo. That's one less thing to worry about.

Drive it like you stole it.... LOL. LOVE IT!

[Dackelone]

I would treat the turbos with respect and let the engine idle for a few minutes after a long drive or hard use. Even BMW guys at the Welt tell customer's this when you take ED. And change your oil often! G.L.

Dack

[Freon]

As mentioned above, all modern cars use water cooling for the turbos designed to use convection to circulate water after the engine is turned off, plus this particular car has an electric water pump that spins after the car is turned off. I think you are fine short of shutting the engine off as you coast off a 20+ minute track session. Driving the car for long periods is irrelevent. Once the car is warmed you can drive it for 10 hours on the highway without much changing.

You do NOT need to sit there and let the car idle every time you go to the corner grocery store, to and from work, or on the highway for 3 hours to grandma's. Seriously, just turn it off unless you were doing your Mario Andretti impression over the last 2 miles of your journey. You're just wasting time and gas.

Keep up on your oil changes. If you drive the car hard I would accelerate your oil changes to more frequent than the suggested 10k miles. It's not cheap. $70-80 for oil and filter if you do it yourself. Easiest bet is just to get the oil and filter from BMW, but you can also get another LL-01 certified oil like Castrol European formula.

If you modify the car, tune it up, you will likely increase the chances of a problem. Accept that responsibility. In particular you'll probably need to replace spark plugs MUCH more often than normal (I'd say every 30k miles if you have a tune, tunes eat spark plugs!). This is not hard to do yourself. You just need a special spark plug socket.

If you go with BMW parts in particular for your plugs, oil, filters, etc. and DIY I would shop around a bit. My local BMW dealer has horrible pricing. I've found getbmwparts.com is pretty good, but you can check around.

Be prepared to do the intake valve carbon cleaning. If you tune the car up and run it hard I think you may be looking at that every 40k miles. This will cost you several hundred dollars each time. It's possible to DIY but probably not for someone who isn't very comfortable turning a wrench as you can cause damage.

[mike@x-ph.com]

Change your oil a lot more frequently than BMW recommends ( 12 000 miles )

[Lexington]

Originally Posted by Zombie1

These cars turbos have a warranty for 10years/82k whatever comes first. Also these cars have an electric water pump that runs after the motor is off to help cool down the turbos. What your talking about with your friends device he had on his car is a turbo timer to cool the turbos down, that is outdated and not needed anymore on these motors. Like you said if you don't drive the car hard the last couple miles you drive it, you shouldn't have any issue with your turbos.

Thought the extension of the warranty on the turbos as a result of rattling waste gate problems was 8 yrs not 10.

[Zombie1]

Originally Posted by Lexington

Thought the extension of the warranty on the turbos as a result of rattling waste gate problems was 8 yrs not 10.

Sorry about that OP it is 8 years