BMW E46 330dA Touring

[helix402]

Sadly the 330 is no more. I won’t go into details but it was written off following an accident.

Temporary replacement is an Audi. Long term replacement is being collected tomorrow. The 330 died at 250000 miles and 18 years old so didn’t have a bad innings.

[CornedBeef]

Thats really sad mate, a lot of work went into that and it was a solid car. Crap end for it too. Will you be doing a similar write up on the Audi?

[helix402]

Thanks, the Audi won’t get a write up as it’s a temp replacement. The long term replacement from Munich may get a write up.

[markirl]

Is it properly written off or is there an opportunity to buy it back?

[helix402]

In theory it’s repairable and possible to buy it back but I don’t have the time or inclination to do so.

[Barchettaman]

Sorry to hear that, Helix, I hope it was just the car that got damaged and not you!

[helix402]

The car did exactly as it was supposed to in the crash and no one was injured.

[JakeT]

What a big load of wk. Glad all are well and the car did as it was supposed to. Glad you're not keeping the Audi, too.

What are you thinking of for a replacement?

[helix402]

The replacement will be announced shortly, it’s from Munich and has no rust!

[JakeT]

From the look of the plate plinth, it's another E46?

[helix402]

Correct! Just got an E65 to fix then I pick the new E46 up.

[JakeT]

Is it another 330dA SE touring in titan silver?

It makes sense though, when you end up with a stock of parts and knowledge.

[helix402]

All will be revealed.........but I’m starting with a manual this time.

[helix402]

Here it is: (library pic as I don’t collect it till tomorrow)



2002 330d SE Touring. 126k miles, 1 owner, fsh. Comes with all keys, full folder of invoices and gen BMW roof bars. It cost £200 more than my insurance payout. Needs a clutch as the release bearing is noisy and a pair of rear tyres. I’ll cover it in more detail when it gets it’s own thread. I’ll be glad to be out of an Audi!

It’s got Xenons which is nice.

[Sf_Manta]

Shame Helix, , take it it's beyond worth salvaging for the parts alone.

The new one looks good, the colour's a good change as most cars these days are silver or white.. much like a damned washing machine!

[helix402]

Ideally I would have stripped the old 330 for parts. It had some very rare and expensive parts on it, such as Nappa electric seats, Bilstein B8 dampers, Individual sill trims, Eibach rear arb.

However it wasn’t the right occasion to do so, it was a great car and served me well.

[JakeT]

I like the colour and 330 specific 17 inch wheels. Xenons are so much better than the halogen ones, and as I am sure you are aware of, bi-xenon too! Hopefully the clutch isn't too much of a pain to change.

[helix402]

I quite like the wheels too, not quite as much as Style 68s but enough to keep them.

Clutch change is straightforward, I’ve got the aligning kit and BMW clutch grease from the last one I did. Also got use of a workshop to do it in. I’ll start a new thread for the new 330 soon.

[helix402]

Please see new post for new car details.