Hi guys, two years ago i wanted to get the e36 as my first beemer. After consideration i changed my mind to the E46.

Since those are very old models, i have saved up to get a E90 (petrol) LCI, in the range of 30k ++ and and additional 10k for surprises. My research is telling me that for an e90, i should skip the 318i and 320i due to the notorious N43.

Instead i should go for the 323i or 325i, which run the N52.

I cant go beyond those model, those are my target models as a beginner ( this is my limitation)

My question is: am i right in going for the N52, leave alone the power and being straight 6. My curiosity is, am i right in ignoring the N43 ?


My other problem, the E92 has been driving me nuts, in fact that is the reason i am still holding my purchase. Engine wise its going to be same as the 90, the extra dough is for the look it has

Those who have knowledge about the N43 and N52, please shed some light. I have a japanese make for running around. The beemer is not meant as a daily drive. Thanks



For those who wish to advise that i should not consider a beemer, pls stick to the thread. I have had such advises, turns out that one of them attempted to get a beemer but never managed to. The other guy, worked opposite a BMW service centre, and he says that he sees a lot of beemers coming in !

This post has been edited by LORD SK: Jul 20 2022, 07:25 PM

I drive the 320d e90. Love the torque and still running fine. Had one turbo issue but solved with a replacement.

The problem with the car is the engine and gearbox is pretty robust but internal plastics and linkages isnt. Just spent replacing all the bushing on the linkages to poly bush. Ride is harsher but hope it last longer. 215 hp and 450nm of torque is the only reason the car still with me

N52 was BMW global most used engine during the E90 era. It was very popular in the US and Europe. It was more heavily developed, a lot of references around the world. Straight 6 has been their trade for this generation of NA engines.

N43 was for certain market like us to introduce entry level model.

I was once wanted to get an E90 too, and done some research, even asking the local bimmer users. Almost all of the references that I got is to get the N52 over the N43.

There are 2 variant of N52, silver and black top.. you can do some research..

to drive a bmw.... you need to drive like you are stealing it... keeping it at home... it will cause more problems

Thats good to hear. Yeah i have heard about the black and silver top, i wonder which was assigned to asian countries, i shall check on that. Thanks.

Any old car will suffer if left untouched at home. Also no matter what car one drives, one has to blast and push it to its limit once in a while so that the engine does not become manja and suffer performance. I use to do it since my teen era.

Were the reference to N52 made because they are straight 6s or because the N43 were problematic ?

I think you meant N46. N43 is direct injected, and just like N53 wasnt officially brought in to our market due to high sulphur in our fuel back in the late 2000's to 2010

Regarding silver or black top, the valve cover is different where the silver has magnesium valve cover, where the black ones has plastic valve cover.

Silver one has an external PCV valve where the black one has PCV valve built into the valve cover itself, so if the built-in one is busted, you have to change the whole valve cover which costs around 1.6k for original

Black top N52's no longer has the lifter ticking noise, while the silver top still has a chance of it occuring. So both have its own pros and cons.

Anyway, just skip the N4x series. They're known to burn engine oil at crazy rate

Because N52 is made for global market. More development being done.

The 2L is made for those "low income countries" to capture these market, like Malaysia.

The moment my close friend's E90 320i went for engine overhaul, I step away from it .. it also makan engine oil..

No, just skip the petrol engine model and go for diesel. My father owns the e90 320d and until today engine issues is quite minimal compare to petrol engine equivalent. As my mechanic place also got few 320i with different generation engine, petrol also got a lot of problems from valvematic controller, ignition coil, sensor, electric water pump etc...

My mechanic personally feedback if want less issue and can accept the clutter sound of the high pressure fuel pump & injectors the diesel engine is way more reliable and less electrical part to worry about..

Besides that also higher torque fun..

This post has been edited by littlefire: Jul 22 2022, 09:06 AM

If i am not mistaken, N46 was ther earlier versions of the E90, it was replaced by N43. What i am not sure is, which was the exact models which were sold in Malaysia for 320i and 318i. If you know, pls let me know.

Yeah i did come across the sulfur thingy, but didnt read much on it.

Real good info on the black and silver tops. Appreciate the input. Will read about it.

So the N4x series are cumbersome. Thank you for the confirmation on this.

Another confirmation that 2L and below in the E90 series should be avoided. Thanks man.

Thanks for confirming the issues of 2L and below. Yes i read about all those problems with all the parts that you mentioned 😅. Those who bought would be cursing endlessly !

I do have an issue with the diesel engine sound, that is the reason why i am not considering the diesel version.

But what you say is true, the diesel version does seem to be a choice if many.

Btw, would uou know anything about the 323i or 325i ? Are these better then the 320i ? Thanks.

I am guessing N52 parts are more common than diesel one ..

Anyway the reason to choose diesel if you treat it as your daily work horse. But if the intention is to have a fun weekend car, straight 6 will be more fun with it's high revving engine..

Malaysian market E90 lowest spec is 320i, if you see 318i E90 its likely imported unit from either UK or JP.

Personally I'm driving an e60 with black N52. So far so good, its doesnt give much problem. Just remember the maintenance of 6 cylinder engines are more expensive. You need more engine oil, spark plugs and ignition coils than regular 4 cylinders

Also you cannot cheap out on engine oil on these. The vanos system in these are very sensitive to oil quality

Another thing to note is whether the E90 has ZF or GM gearbox. ZF seems to be better

Nop. There are CKD batch of official E90 & F10 diesel units in Malaysia thus got plenty of spare part availability. Besides that if any spare part no stock, nowadays can just wait 1~2 weeks ship from Germany. BMW spare part availability is way more common and faster even compare to Proton nowadays.

This post has been edited by littlefire: Jul 22 2022, 03:18 PM

For sure 323i/325i is more better compare to 320i from engine layout (4 cylinder vs 6 cylinder) to output.
If really want to drive petrol engine from BMW, the 6 cylinder engine is one of the best.

Wow, i didnt know about 318i being only imported. Good info.

Ahh you have the E60 ! 3.0 ? Actually a friend of mine has too, he told me that there was not much hassle from the car. He bougjt it from a used car, i didnt believe him, but he then explained that the bought 3.0, which less problems compared to the lower specs.

Yes i was told not to be stingy when it comes to the service. I estimate around 700-800rm for a normal service with engine oil, filter and plugs, would that be right ?

Yes the Gm and Zf, at this point i am not sure, which model useS which. That is another thing to research.

Really appreciate your input. Thanks.

Ok, i get it. But when it comes to engine issues, are the 323i and 325i as bad as the 320i ?

I am not looking to use it as a daily. Its just for weekends and random rides on week days !