Stranger gave this guy a BMW 335i for free because it was broken and he fixed it for just $450
- An American YouTuber was gifted a BMW 335i to fix up
- The car had a misfire in one cylinder plus other system issues
- YouTuber Samcrac fixed the BMW for less than $500
Published on Feb 27, 2025 at 2:52 PM (UTC+4)
by Henry Kelsall
Last updated on Feb 28, 2025 at 12:47 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
After this American YouTuber was gifted a broken twin-turbocharged BMW 3 Series 335i, he was able to fix the car for less than $500.
YouTuber Samcrac is well known for fixing damaged or salvaged cars, and this car came to him with over 150,000 miles on the clock.
However, it suddenly developed an ‘engine malfunction’, prompting the need for a quick fix.
Thankfully, Samcrac is very good at this, having built up a reputation for fixing cars with unusual defects.
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Why the original owner gave it to Samcrac
The original owner had taken the car to a dealership to see how much they would give him for a trade-in.
However, the dealer annoyingly offered just $1,500 for the BMW.
This annoyed him because, despite the high mileage, he believed the car was in good condition.
That led to its owner, Scott, offering the car to the YouTuber for free.
Scott delivered the car to Sam before he even arrived at his hotel.
A quick inspection revealed a ‘Service Engine Soon’ warning, TPMS alert, and slight rough idle.
The engine does sound sweet enough, and amazingly, the BMW has driven a total of 185,000 miles.
Naturally, Sam took the BMW 3 Series out for a quick drive.
Following on from the drive, Sam did a diagnostic with the $80 Carly diagnostic tool.
With this, he discovered a misfire on the number one cylinder, a boost pressure control issue, plus a few system errors.
Samcrac gets to work fixing the BMW 3 Series
The YouTuber also met up with the owner, Scott, who happened to be a kidney transplant survivor.
He was more than happy to give his car away, aware that it was going to a good home.
Samcrac’s six-hour drive in the BMW to Chicago went smoothly, which confirmed that the BMW was fundamentally in good mechanical order.
But when diagnosing the BMW, we found a few other issues.
One was oil in spark plug wells, which was caused by a faulty valve cover gasket.
That likely contributed to the engine’s misfire, which is why a new valve cover assembly was needed.
Using a vacuum pump helped remove excess oil from the spark plug wells before they were replaced.
The misfire code for the single cylinder meant Scott and his friend could hone in on the issue immediately.
With all that work completed, the re-scans with the Carly tool confirmed zero issues, and the misfire was no more.
Sam was able to do all this and take ownership of the car for just $450.
Henry joined the Supercar Blondie team in February 2025, and since then has covered a wide array of topics ranging from EVs, American barn finds, and the odd Cold War jet. He’s combined his passion for cars with his keen interest in motorsport and his side hustle as a volunteer steam locomotive fireman at a leading heritage steam railway in England.
