Before we move to a more detailed recital of each problem and its solution – some allegations:
1. The technology of Direct injection is a piece of crap. No, technology is brilliant. Also, it’s realization is in high level. Unfortunately, most or service centers don’t understand it and quite often does more damage that reparation.
2. BMW significantly cheats with fuel consumption data for N43/N53 series engines. No, they don’t. Fuel consumption data are true for the engine, which works in normal (full functionality) operating mode. 99% of N43/N53 series engines, which have mileage more than 100’000 km, actually perform in emergency mode (but owners do not know it). Fuel consumption in emergency mode is 15 .. 25% higher than in full functionality mode.
3. Ignition coils are regularly “out of order”. Yes, it’s true, but only the part, that there are problems with ignition. In this case the problem is NOT with ignition coils, but in the way they are changed in service centers (more in topic “Ignition coils“).
4. Injectors are crap. Yes and no. Till 4-the generation (and with the exact coloration of the body) there was a withdrawal. After that the quality of injectors is tolerable. Unfortunately, when the engine runs in emergency mode (as 99% of them does), its self-diagnostic abilities are unsatisfactory level, reports of errors – delusive. The one to blame is subcontractor (German company), developer of software for MSD80/81 control unit. The total of all this is never ending the story – injectors, ignition coils, spark plugs. There is a solution – check our ‘Products‘ menu.
5. Injectors have to be changed all together at one time. Wrong. Except for some specific cases (mentioned before), the injectors DON’T have to be changed altogether. Only damaged ones have to be replaced – of course, at first the damaged one has to be diagnosed.
6. Spark plugs wear out quickly. Yes, they do wear out, if the engine performs in Stratified charge mode because they create up to 5 sparks in one cycle. Nevertheless, they serve 25’000 .. 40’000 km. If ~EUR 100 is too expensive for maintenance costs for each 30’000 km – N43/N53 series is not for you.
7. N43 and N53 series engines need high-quality fuel. Yes and no. This type of engine was not sold outside European Union (North America, Australia, Russia etc.) because the fuel in those regions has a high content of sulfur. Sulfur damages NOx catalytic converter. Accordingly – first 50’000 .. 100’000 km – yes, you have to use high-quality fuel with low content of sulfur. After – the same fuel as for “regular” engine. Yes, low-quality fuel forms burn on nozzles (it don’t happen with nozzles of “regular” petrol engines), but constructions of BMW engine nozzles is artful – nozzles clean themselves.
8. Error messages related to NOx sensor and/or NOx catalytic converter are nothing significant. FAIL. These errors are cause for a chain of serious problems – what exactly, You will find in a topic about N43/N53 hidden problems.
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