Car Model Guide/ BMW/ 3 Series/ F30/ 335i

335i N55

The N54's replacement and the fix for most of its faults. Same output, one turbo, no fuel-pump epidemic. The obvious answer if the budget stretches.

Overview

The 335i is the N55 petrol version of the BMW 3 Series sedan (F30), sold 2012–2015 with 306 PS and manual or automatic. Demands diligence at level 3. Valve cover and VANOS faults are common and moderate, and nothing on the engine tends to total the car. 6 failure modes are recorded against its engine, gearbox, chassis and shared components. Prices on this page are illustrative placeholders rather than a sourced market sample. See the methodology for how the bands are derived.

BMW 3 Series sedan (F30) · photo BMW 3-Series F30 China 2015-04-12 by Navigator84 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Power306 PS

Torque400 Nm

Years2012–2015

Fuelpetrol

DriveRWD / xDrive

EnginesN55

Biggest risks

Ranked by probability × repair cost. 6 recorded in total.

64Demands diligence

Dual-mass flywheel and clutch wear€900–€1,600checkable
Carbon buildup on intake valves€400–€700not checkable
Electric water pump and thermostat failure€500–€800partly checkable

Risk level −22 · Likely spend vs price −14 · all issues →

System by system9 systems reviewed · 5 with no recurring fault reported

EnginewatchValve cover and PCV failure, €400–€700.+2 more in this system

Fuel system✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Intake & airwatchCarbon buildup on intake valves, €400–€700.

CoolingwatchElectric water pump and thermostat failure, €500–€800.

Emissions✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Transmission⚠ attentionDual-mass flywheel and clutch wear, €900–€1,600.

Electrics✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Suspension & brakes✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Body & interior✓ clearNo recurring fault reported for this system on this engine.

Pre-facelift or facelift, this engine spans both

The same badge either side of the changeover. Bands are split at the facelift year from the generation record.

Phase	Years	Low	Average	High	Good buy	What differs
pre Pre-facelift	2012–2014	€11,000	€15,500	€22,000	€13,250	The specification the car launched with.
LCI Facelift (LCI)	2015	€12,000	€16,900	€24,000	€14,450	B47 and B48 engines replaced N47 and N20; Revised lights and bumpers; Updated iDrive and interior trim

Known issues, ranked by expected cost

Faults recorded against this engine, its components and its chassis, ranked by likelihood × repair cost. Costs are indicative ranges with a stated labour basis.

Dual-mass flywheel and clutch wearGetrag six-speed manual€900–€1,600

Rattle at idle with the clutch up that disappears when you press it, judder on pull-away, gearbox rumble. The dual-mass flywheel's springs wear. Diesels and tuned petrols wear them faster.

Check: Idle in neutral with the clutch up and listen, then press the clutch. A rattle that stops when you press is the flywheel. Also check for judder pulling away in first.

TransmissioncommonDetectable at viewingevidence: documented130–250k km

Carbon buildup on intake valvesdirect injection€400–€700

Rough cold idle, slow throttle response, misfires, gradual loss of low-end response. Direct injection puts no fuel over the intake valves, so crankcase vapour deposits bake on undisturbed.

Check: Not visible without a borescope. Treat it as a service item that's due unless there's a receipt. It's not a fault, it's an unbudgeted maintenance cost.

Turbo & intakeuniversalNot detectable at viewingevidence: documented80–120k km

Electric water pump and thermostat failureelectric water pump€500–€800

Overheat warning with little notice, coolant temperature swinging, sometimes an immediate limp home. The electric pump's controller fails. It's a wear item with a service life, not a fault.

Check: Age and receipts matter more than symptoms, it usually gives no warning. Treat a car past 120,000 km with no pump history as owing €600.

CoolingcommonPartly detectableevidence: documented90–150k km

Valve cover and PCV failureN55B30€400–€700

Oil weeping down the back of the block, whistling from the engine at idle, rough idle, high crankcase vacuum pulling oil seals. The crankcase ventilation diaphragm is integrated into the plastic valve cover, so the whole cover is the repair.

Check: Listen for a whistle at idle with the oil cap on, then remove the cap, a strong change in idle points to the PCV. Look for oil residue at the rear of the head.

EnginecommonDetectable at viewingevidence: documented100–180k km

Oil filter housing gasket leakoil filter housing€300–€600

Oil pooling on the subframe, oil on the serpentine belt, drips on the driveway. The gasket between the filter housing and the block fails. Oil then lands on the belt, and a belt that shreds can be drawn into the front crank seal.

Check: Put the car on a lift. Check the belt itself for oil contamination. An oily belt is the version of this fault that ends badly.

EnginecommonDetectable at viewingevidence: documented90–170k km

VANOS solenoid and Valvetronic motor faultsN55B30€200–€600

Rough running, timing codes, occasional limp mode, tick from the top of the engine. Solenoids clog with oil varnish; the Valvetronic motor wears.

Check: Scan for VANOS and Valvetronic codes including pending ones. Listen for ticking at idle once warm.

EngineoccasionalPartly detectableevidence: documented120–200k km

Ranked by probability × repair cost, not by how loudly a failure is discussed. Inherited from the engine, gearbox, chassis and shared components, each written once.

Pre-purchase inspection

The same issue records, reordered into the sequence you can actually check them in: cold start, static, drive, paperwork.

6 checks · saved in this browser ·

1Static checksEngine off, ideally on a lift.

Valve cover and PCV failureListen for a whistle at idle with the oil cap on, then remove the cap, a strong change in idle points to the PCV. Look for oil residue at the rear of the head.Oil filter housing gasket leakPut the car on a lift. Check the belt itself for oil contamination. An oily belt is the version of this fault that ends badly.

2On the driveInclude low-speed manoeuvring, not just an open road.

Dual-mass flywheel and clutch wearIdle in neutral with the clutch up and listen, then press the clutch. A rattle that stops when you press is the flywheel. Also check for judder pulling away in first.

3PaperworkOn these cars the folder is most of the value.

Carbon buildup on intake valvesNot visible without a borescope. Treat it as a service item that's due unless there's a receipt. It's not a fault, it's an unbudgeted maintenance cost.Electric water pump and thermostat failureAge and receipts matter more than symptoms, it usually gives no warning. Treat a car past 120,000 km with no pump history as owing €600.

4OBD scanMandatory. A seller who refuses a scan has answered the question.

VANOS solenoid and Valvetronic motor faultsScan for VANOS and Valvetronic codes including pending ones. Listen for ticking at idle once warm.

Mileage and servicing

What the odometer does and doesn't tell you here, plus the service items whose neglect causes the expensive failures above.

The N55 handles mileage well when it's serviced, and the oil leaks it's known for arrive on age as much as distance. Look for a car that's had its valve cover done rather than one that's about to need it.

Service item	Interval	Cost
Engine oil and filter Turbo, valvetrain and VANOS protection on a hard-working engine.	15,000 km or annually	€140–210
Spark plugs and coils Misfires under boost start here and get blamed on the turbo.	60,000 km	€250–420

What to pay

What this engine sells for, against the median of every engine in the chassis. All figures are illustrative placeholders. See the basis chips.

median €16.2k

€11k€13.3k€24k

Cheapfind the reasonGood buyif it checks outFairnormal moneyOverpricedneeds justifying

Asking price (€)Mileage (km)

Enter an asking price to get a verdict against this variant's band: cheap, fair, good buy or overpriced.

United States vs Europe

1 EUR = 1.08 USD · 2026-07

🇪🇺 Europe · EUR€13,250band €11,000–€24,000

🇺🇸 United StatesNot sold335i N55 was never a US-market car

What that meansNo US band exists to compare. Any car you find there's a private import, parts and specialist knowledge are thinner, and the price says more about import cost than about the market.

US figures are the EU band converted at a stated rate. No US market differential is modelled: we hold no sourced US asking prices, and inventing one would be worse than saying so. What the comparison does show for real is availability. Most of this range was never sold in the US.

ModelBMW 3 Series 335i
ChassisF30
EngineN55
Years2012–2015
MarketCentral EU
Windowrolling 12 months to 2026-07

Good buy at or under the marker · Median asking price · bar spans the 10th to 90th percentile · dashed line is the f30 median, all 5 engines

Good buy isn't the same as cheapest. The good-buy figure assumes the known failure items are either done with receipts or verifiably not yet due. Full breakdown by facelift phase →

Buyer notes

Our judgement, kept separate from the records it's built on.

Our read, not a record

A single-turbo straight six gives the 335i a character the four-cylinders can't match, and it's quicker than most people ever need. The N55 fixed the earlier N54's fuel pump problem, which leaves the valve cover, the breather system and the VANOS solenoids as the recorded costs. Check for oil around the valve cover and a burning smell after a run. So price in tyres, brakes and fuel honestly, since those are what end ownership of these rather than any single fault.

Everything above this line comes from the issue and specification records. This paragraph is our judgement on top of them. See how we reach it.

Full specification

Manufacturer figures for this engine and body, as recorded in the variant and engine data.

Engine code	N55B30
Configuration	I6, single twin-scroll turbo · 2979 cc
Fuel / injection	petrol · direct
Model years	2012–2015
Facelift phase	Sold either side of the 2015 facelift, 2012–2014 pre, 2015 LCI
Power / torque	306 PS · 400 Nm
Transmissions	6-speed manual · 8-speed automatic (ZF)
Gearbox families	Getrag six-speed manual · ZF 8HP eight-speed automatic
Drivetrain	RWD · xDrive
Economy (real-world)	7.5–9.5 l/100 km mixed
Markets	EU