[nobelium27]

I was thinking about what to do with my daily driver 2014 228i m-sport before the CPO warranty runs out in 2020 June. I know, 1.5 years left and the car only has 28k miles, and this dude is already thinking about selling it?! I don't particularly want another car, in fact, I love this car. But it's missing a few things. I want bigger engine, louder exhaust, more this and that. But is there really anything worth upgrading to? m235i and m240i exist, but are they really worth going through the hassle of selling my car, then doing all those research and waiting to get one of those? I'd preferably sell it prior to the warranty expiration so the buyer wouldn't be scared away by "existing problems" fear.

My biggest concern is reliability. Reading timing chain issues on 2014 n20 is one thing, but I'm more worried about electronics failure as my navigation system occasionally cuts out. Being infamous for its lack of reliability and costly parts, even when I tell myself it will all be okay as long as I keep up with the maintenance, I'm afraid it'll happen. I'm committed to do all maintenance myself as I enjoy working on my car, but that doesn't mean I will prevent all failures. Even more so if I keep the car past warranty - which means mods. I'm waiting patiently to add tunes and performance exhausts when the warranty runs out. But if I'm spending money on that, would it be better to just get an upgrade?

What would you do?

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by nobelium27

What would you do?

I'd get the upgrade.

[hwntime]

Originally Posted by nobelium27

I was thinking about what to do with my daily driver 2014 228i m-sport before the CPO warranty runs out in 2020 June. I know, 1.5 years left and the car only has 28k miles, and this dude is already thinking about selling it?! I don't particularly want another car, in fact, I love this car. But it's missing a few things. I want bigger engine, louder exhaust, more this and that. But is there really anything worth upgrading to? m235i and m240i exist, but are they really worth going through the hassle of selling my car, then doing all those research and waiting to get one of those? I'd preferably sell it prior to the warranty expiration so the buyer wouldn't be scared away by "existing problems" fear.

My biggest concern is reliability. Reading timing chain issues on 2014 n20 is one thing, but I'm more worried about electronics failure as my navigation system occasionally cuts out. Being infamous for its lack of reliability and costly parts, even when I tell myself it will all be okay as long as I keep up with the maintenance, I'm afraid it'll happen. I'm committed to do all maintenance myself as I enjoy working on my car, but that doesn't mean I will prevent all failures. Even more so if I keep the car past warranty - which means mods. I'm waiting patiently to add tunes and performance exhausts when the warranty runs out. But if I'm spending money on that, would it be better to just get an upgrade?

What would you do?

You should've received a letter regarding the timing chain. Warranty was extended to 7 years or 70,000 miles, whichever comes first. This current F22 is my third consecutive BMW and although I love the way it drives, there have been many nagging issues and ongoing issues that BMW cannot figure out. It seems the quality of materials has drastically dropped off from my E92 335i. Materials seem very cheap and there are a lot of squeaks and creaks I've never experienced before in a BMW or my wife's Audi's. I will probably keep my 2014 for another year or two but I don't see myself having it long term because of the quality issues.

As far as wanting a bigger, louder motor; you could always go FBO and tune. FMIC, intake, downpipe, chargepipe, cat-back, and a good tune should get you to stock M235i speed/power territory while making your car very loud. You should consider that if you want to keep your car and save money.

[XutvJet]

Given that it's an N20, yeah, I'd unload prior to warranty running out. If that chain fails, it essentially takes the whole motor and you're looking at a 5 figure repair. If it were an N55 car, I'd say keep it. The N55 is pretty glorious and reliable motor, especially for a BMW.

[XutvJet]

Originally Posted by hwntime

You should've received a letter regarding the timing chain. Warranty was extended to 7 years or 70,000 miles, whichever comes first. This current F22 is my third consecutive BMW and although I love the way it drives, there have been many nagging issues and ongoing issues that BMW cannot figure out. It seems the quality of materials has drastically dropped off from my E92 335i. Materials seem very cheap and there are a lot of squeaks and creaks I never experienced before in a BMW or my wife's Audi's. I will probably keep my 2014 for another year or two but I don't see myself having it long term because of the quality issues.

What issues are you having that BMW can't address?

[nobelium27]

Sounds like you guys are more on about m235i as expected. That's what I've gathered from reading through the forum. Only problem is that those will be costly and will have the same reliability question in the end, even when n55 is more reliable than the n20.

Originally Posted by XutvJet

What issues are you having that BMW can't address?

Not a lot of issues thankfully. But the navigation cutting off happens so rarely that the dealer can't replicate it - which mean it doesn't exist (to them).

Stop and go has been awful. It shuts down the engine when I try to "go" so I have to start the engine with the button, which is not fun at the lights. This happens much more frequently to the point I turned it off entirely. But it didn't happen when the dealer test drove it, so "it doesn't exist" either.

[hwntime]

Originally Posted by XutvJet

Given that it's an N20, yeah, I'd unload prior to warranty running out. If that chain fails, it essentially takes the whole motor and you're looking at a 5 figure repair. If it were an N55 car, I'd say keep it. The N55 is pretty glorious and reliable motor, especially for a BMW.

I mentioned it in another post, my iDrive screen keeps blacking out and rebooting. I had it in 4 times for the issue. On the second visit they replaced the screen itself. Third visit they replaced the head unit. This past visit last week they said they can't figure it out and it may be the USB drive. So, just drive it and if it blacks out again, remove flash drive and see if that fixes it. I also posted about my clunking from the suspension. They had it on 3 occasions for that and on the final visit, they basically tore the car down and had it for 8 days. Found out it was the hood hinge and some components around it. My driver seat squeaking/creaking was very irritating. Had it 3 times for that issue and finally figured out it was the seat back frame which they replaced. I have this irritating ticking sound coming from the rear deck which sounds like a nail tapping on a table. They supposedly can't replicate it so I've just been dealing with it by turning up the radio. Too many small nagging things which shouldn't happen to a "luxury" sport coupe which comes at a premium.

As mentioned, it's my third BMW (all purchased new) and I've never had issues like this before. My E92 335i was a tank and I loved it. I regret selling it off now. The only problem I had with that car was the known Bosch coil pack failures. I personally replaced that 5 years into ownership after warranty ran out and that was it. Never into service for any issues.

The N20 is a decently reliable motor now. I think the major issues are the timing chain (which now has an extended warranty) and of course the chargepipe, which is an easy fix. Older N20's had oil pump failures if I remember correctly but that's been remedied since. Other than that, it's a reliable motor with potential for a 4 banger.

[Kevinduma]

You still have a good amount of time left on your warranty, and as you said it has low miles so it sounds like it's really a question if you want to upgrade or not. Next logical step would be an M235/240i, maybe find one for a good price and see how much the trade in is and how much more you'd have to put on top? If the price is too much to justify, I would just do some subtle mods ie. an exhaust. Mods like that won't affect your warranty.

[Avex]

If you had to upgrade, get a M235i for the n55 engine, instant classic. The M2C is a great car but so much buyer remorse when it comes to engine sound coming from people wit deep pockets trading their M2 for the M2C. The b58 is comparable and is more fuel efficient but doesn't have the heritage the n55 has.