[AustinJerry]

The sound from the turbo wastegates is getting pretty bad on my 2008 coupe (audio file attached). I don't drive the car that hard, and only have 45,000 miles on it, so it is somewhat of a surprise that the turbos will need to be replaced. I do have the Dinan chip, if that makes any difference.

I took it by BMW of Austin last week, and they immediately said to bring it in for warranty repair. I wonder if the wastegate issue has affected performance?

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/...%20Flutter.m4a

[Dark_Knight_335]

Are you sure there's something actually wrong? I know with my DINAN III flash my turbo makes this "shimmery" sound every now and then, but the car pulls and is perfectly functional otherwise.

Nice to see a fellow DINAN guy representing in TX!

[AustinJerry]

My service appointment is tomorrow, so I will find out then. Did you listen to the audio clip?

[Dark_Knight_335]

Ah yes, certainly sounds like the wastegate. Should be fine though, I think they cover it for as long as the turbos. Good luck and let us know how it goes.
My sound happens during gradual acceleration, as opposed to the waste-gate sound, which seems to happen when coming off turbo spool. From what I hear waste-gate issues are not nearly as common with the N55, and I've been told it isn't "abnormal," so meh

[John 070]

Interesting to happen at such low miles....I know that everybody wants new turbos (I did), but after seeing some of the hack jobs with bolts and what not missing, not sure which is better. But from my experience, the revving from idle, and stopped, is a tell, and that sound clip does imply the wastegate rattle...

[twin3]

Also interested in the question does it affect performance ? . I'm at 49k miles now and I'm also having the infamous waste gate rattle

[AustinJerry]

BMW finished the turbo replacement today. While the actual turbo work was under warranty, they also recommended replacing a number of vacuum hoses while they were in there, for $350, which I authorized.

Here are the differences I noticed. Of course, the waste gate noise is gone, replaced by the silky smooth sound I remember. Second, I definitely notice a performance improvement. The turbo lag has all but disappeared again, and I especially notice that the engine pulls better in 3rd gear.

The waste gate issue is a slow deterioration, and a gradual loss of performance over time is not as noticeable as an overnight failure, of course. But getting it fixed is an immediate change, and I am happy to report that it is a very positive result. Big smile back on the face!

[XM_Rocks]

Congrats on the new turbos under warranty!