TDIclub Secret Society of BMW Owners (SSBMWO)

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
I looked at Rheingold, but they don't seem to support the NA market 335d, last I checked. Wrote them multiple times with questions, no replies.
 

mjez

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2012
Location
Fox Lake, IL
TDI
00 Jetta
I bought a Carly dongle and app and it does the stuff I need / know how to do. I'm not a hardcore coder though.



I've read good stuff about something called a "rheingold" but don't know firsthand.
Besides coding, will it do other things like fuel filter change (priming fuel lines), rear brake service, etc?

Sent from my PH-1 using Tapatalk
 

PeteZ06

Veteran Member
Joined
May 16, 2012
Location
Algonquin, IL
TDI
E320 CDI
Last time I drove the 535D the CEL went off. Scanned it and looks like I'll be needing to drop the car off at the dealer to do the EGR recall.

Ended up with a new EGR Cooler, Intake Manifold and MAF sensor.

Saw the bill, $3200 parts and labor. Obviously covered by the recall.

Time to plug in the tuner again, definitely feels a bit sluggish without it.
 

Tin Man

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 18, 2001
Location
Coastal Empire
TDI
Daughter's: 2004 NB TDI PD GLS DSG (gone to pasture)
I wonder if that fault was caused by carbon buildup.
BMW 535d as well as gasoline models have an official EGR cooler recall. It has not been clear when to do the recall: before or after the thing fails. Dealers have not stocked parts at least in the recent past consistently.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
Yes, but why? Does the part break, or does it get jammed with carbon and fail? That's what I wonder.
 

Twinkieflyer

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 14, 2017
Location
Blacksburg, Virginia
TDI
2002 ALH 5spd
I have had my 535d for almost 10 months. Just found out I have a cracked wheel, not covered by the CPO warranty. No damage to the wheel. Never had a cracked wheel on any other car. Clearly defective.

I had a hard time deciding between this car or a Passat buy back fixed car. Starting to think I made a mistake.

Back in the Jetta full time until I get a wheel.

There is a very long list of exclusions on the BMW CPO warranty, including wheels and DPF.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
If you didn't know about BMWs and chronic wheel failure when you bought the car you didn't do a lot of research. The wheels aren't "defective," per se, it's the combination of low profile tires with run flats (read: stiff sidewalls) that stress, bend, and sometimes break the wheels. Find a matching set on CL or fb and buy them. You'll most likely be needing another at some point.

If it's any consolation, VW wheels bend pretty easily, too.
 

Tin Man

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 18, 2001
Location
Coastal Empire
TDI
Daughter's: 2004 NB TDI PD GLS DSG (gone to pasture)
After 175,000 miles on two diesel BMW's recently, I have had 4 wheels damaged from hitting a curb and later running over a large 4x4 plank dropped from an adjacent 18 wheeler at 70 mph. The curb caused suspension components to be damaged (I think a control arm and maybe a hub) while the wooden plank destroyed one RF tire as well as cracking two wheels. I'm not sure the wheels are any different than other cast aluminum wheels. I didn't experience any tire bubbling or damage to the RFT Continentals otherwise to my knowledge.
 

Tin Man

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 18, 2001
Location
Coastal Empire
TDI
Daughter's: 2004 NB TDI PD GLS DSG (gone to pasture)
Every time I change from old worn-out tires to new ones, whether RFT or not, the ride improves. Modern BMW's are designed for RFT's which are only slightly stiffer than "regular" tires in their latest generation.

Its more how much you don't want to be out in the dark on a busy street changing your tire on a Sunday... for some, this makes RFT's better.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
I put non runflats on my 335d when I bought it, never liked them. I think the suspension i designed for runflats, and felt sloppy with non runflats, regarless of pressure. Or maybe it just didn't like the Continentals I bought. I also didn't like losing a lot of the already limited trunk space for the spare. I went back to Michelin runflats and am, surprisingly, happier with the ride and handling.
 

Twinkieflyer

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 14, 2017
Location
Blacksburg, Virginia
TDI
2002 ALH 5spd
If you didn't know about BMWs and chronic wheel failure when you bought the car you didn't do a lot of research. The wheels aren't "defective," per se,.
As a design engineer, I would differ with that statement. I had no damage, didn’t hit anything, crack on inside flange.

I have thought about changing out the run flats if I can figure out a compact spare that will work. Forums are vague on which one.

And yes I probably didn’t research as much as I should have, but I probably would be happier right now with the buy back Passat. My trunk is enormous but I really don’t need it.

And on Friday the 13th I took out the oil pan on the Jetta! Down two cars.
 

jck66

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 4, 2001
Location
Greenwich, CT, USA
TDI
12 Passat SE / 14 BMW 535d
I had the pleasure of driving home with my wife late on a Sunday evening 42 miles on a blown RFT and bent wheel a while back. The experience was unpleasant enough that I made it a priority to locate a spare. Found a spare wheel/tire on ebay and cobbled together a toolkit from Harbor Freight that should work well enough - I throw them in my trunk when I know I'm going more than 50 miles. I feel like having the spare and a plan should be enough to ensure I never get another flat!

PS- I have 17" snows on the car now and I have to say that the ride is altogether more pleasant than the 18" RFT all-seasons that came with the car. I'm seriously considering going non-RFT summers for the next set, particularly since I have the spare (and snows) as mentioned above.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
As a design engineer, I would differ with that statement. I had no damage, didn’t hit anything, crack on inside flange.
I don't think it takes a lot to crack one of these wheels. I believe Ronal makes a lot of BMW wheels, and they're known to be pretty soft. I had to have three wheels straightened when I bought my used 335d.

What I'm less happy about with runflats (other than expense, ride, and wear) is that if one fails on an AWD BMW you may have to replace all four, depending on how worn the tires are on the car. At least I don't have to worry about that on the 335d.
 

Tin Man

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 18, 2001
Location
Coastal Empire
TDI
Daughter's: 2004 NB TDI PD GLS DSG (gone to pasture)
What I'm less happy about with runflats (other than expense, ride, and wear) is that if one fails on an AWD BMW you may have to replace all four, depending on how worn the tires are on the car. At least I don't have to worry about that on the 335d.
I believe the tire place will sell you a brand new one and have it shaved to match the other three in wear.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
That's pretty cool. I knew Tire Rack shaved tires, but I thought they were doing it primarily for track use. Didn't occur to me that this was an application for that as well.
 

mjez

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2012
Location
Fox Lake, IL
TDI
00 Jetta
I had the pleasure of driving home with my wife late on a Sunday evening 42 miles on a blown RFT and bent wheel a while back. The experience was unpleasant enough that I made it a priority to locate a spare. Found a spare wheel/tire on ebay and cobbled together a toolkit from Harbor Freight that should work well enough - I throw them in my trunk when I know I'm going more than 50 miles. I feel like having the spare and a plan should be enough to ensure I never get another flat!

PS- I have 17" snows on the car now and I have to say that the ride is altogether more pleasant than the 18" RFT all-seasons that came with the car. I'm seriously considering going non-RFT summers for the next set, particularly since I have the spare (and snows) as mentioned above.
What type / size spare did you get for your car? I'm assuming you have a 535d, right?

Sent from my PH-1 using Tapatalk
 

TOCleanDieselWag

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 14, 2010
Location
Stratford, Ontario
TDI
2017 BMW 328d M Sport Touring (Wagon)
I have a question about tires. Our 328d M-Sport wagon came with Pirellis. As the car was CPO, we got the car with just under 16,000 kms on it, or roughly 10,000 miles. Since then, we've split the mileage up as we bought winter tires and rims. I'd say we've added another 12,500 kms or 7,700 miles since then. We knew that the car should have had a wheel alignment as we have a slight scrub on one of the front tires. The dealer at the time thought that the tire would be fine, however last time we were in for the winter tires, we were told that the tires were at end of life. I realize that these are sport tires and they will wear faster than regular, but is there some other brand of tire that might have better wear characteristics than the Pirellis? This will be my spring project, so curious to know what others have experienced/done about it. Thanks!
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
I've read the Pirelli's have a poor reputation for longevity. I'd get Michelins next time.
 

TOCleanDieselWag

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 14, 2010
Location
Stratford, Ontario
TDI
2017 BMW 328d M Sport Touring (Wagon)
Just as a follow-up, the tire wear measurements taken by the dealer were (in MM) LF 4; RF 3; Rears 4.5. This with only roughly 17,700 miles on them. We've had the wheels aligned twice now...

Any thoughts? We're wondering if Michelins might be a better choice...
 

PeteZ06

Veteran Member
Joined
May 16, 2012
Location
Algonquin, IL
TDI
E320 CDI
Just as a follow-up, the tire wear measurements taken by the dealer were (in MM) LF 4; RF 3; Rears 4.5. This with only roughly 17,700 miles on them. We've had the wheels aligned twice now...

Any thoughts? We're wondering if Michelins might be a better choice...

A certain brand has nothing to do with how long the tire will last but the UTQG rating.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
A certain brand has nothing to do with how long the tire will last but the UTQG rating.
I don't agree with this. UTOG ratings of course are a good guide, but some tires wear faster (or slower) than their rating indicates. For example, I ran Bridgestone Pole Positions on my wagon years ago and found they wore quickly, despite the (moderately) high UTOG rating. Same with Ecopias. The Generals I have now are wearing much slower.

I think driving habits, factory suspension geometry, and climate are significant contributors to wear. Also, run flats are notorious for quicker wear regardless of rating.
 

jck66

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 4, 2001
Location
Greenwich, CT, USA
TDI
12 Passat SE / 14 BMW 535d
What type / size spare did you get for your car? I'm assuming you have a 535d, right?
Yes, 535dx (non-Msport if that's relevant).

The wheel is stamped with BMW part #6768861 (36 11 6 768 861 according to online lookup). It's a 5Jx18 offset 14. The tire is Maxxis brand 155/70R18. I believe it's intended for the X5/X6 cars but the diameter is perfect and it fits on the F10 just fine.
 

mjez

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2012
Location
Fox Lake, IL
TDI
00 Jetta
Yes, 535dx (non-Msport if that's relevant).

The wheel is stamped with BMW part #6768861 (36 11 6 768 861 according to online lookup). It's a 5Jx18 offset 14. The tire is Maxxis brand 155/70R18. I believe it's intended for the X5/X6 cars but the diameter is perfect and it fits on the F10 just fine.
Thanks for the info. I changed to summer non RFT and need to get a spare for a peace of mind.

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IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
Just filled the 335d. 502 miles of mostly highway, but lots of it in cold (some single digits) weather, and most at extra-legal speeds. Still got 33.9 MPG. Not bad for a car that's this powerful and comfortable with full emissions intact. Seems some folks are seeing that kind of FE on fixed 2.0l TDIs.

Merry Christmas everyone!
 
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