330ci some advice please
Discussion
I would go for sport; seats, better looks are 2 reasons. Mine had most issues over 100k. Nothing major, they are very reliable cars. But if you can get a lower mileage one by increasing your budget i believe you should as you would likely make the savings on less maintenance. But obviously check the car so it's lower mileage and still good contion / well maintaimed.
Hi,
Had a 325Ci Sport of 2002 vintage, so much of the same issues you would typically find. Go for post March 2001? Facelift model, revised suspension, front end etc.
Suspension and cooling system in a nutshell. Replaced water pump and hoses, along with RTAB's, drop links, wishbones, which really tightened things up.
Love the M54!
Had a 325Ci Sport of 2002 vintage, so much of the same issues you would typically find. Go for post March 2001? Facelift model, revised suspension, front end etc.
Suspension and cooling system in a nutshell. Replaced water pump and hoses, along with RTAB's, drop links, wishbones, which really tightened things up.
Love the M54!
These cars are prone to rusty arches, check them carefully, they may have been painted over to sell and in 6 months the rust is back.
Knocking back end, subframe mounting points can break.
Apart from that pretty solid cars, I went to look at a lot of these when a mate was looking for one, there's a lot of pup's out there, you have plenty to choose from, spend your money wisely!
Knocking back end, subframe mounting points can break.
Apart from that pretty solid cars, I went to look at a lot of these when a mate was looking for one, there's a lot of pup's out there, you have plenty to choose from, spend your money wisely!
Great cars. Nowt wrong with the SE. Flatter seats Than the Sport but v comfortable and there's no big bolsters to get worn out. Sport is just window dressing.
Agree with all of the above. In addition, Thermostats go (I'm on my third) and gear levers can go a bit slack. Not much else but shop around - there's plenty of munters around.
Agree with all of the above. In addition, Thermostats go (I'm on my third) and gear levers can go a bit slack. Not much else but shop around - there's plenty of munters around.
don't drop oil but check the back of the box for signs of weep... the m54 block loves valve cover gaskets and sometimes the odd oil filter housing gasket
the notorious ccv valve / cyclone valve is a sizeable labour bill but not impossible to do yourself - lift off the oil filler cap when the engine is warm for any suction or place finger over dipstick guide tube...
cam position sensors are also known to go but best to stick with original bmw replacements which are about 120 a pop
pas fluid reservoirs are known to leak due to bad hose clip design but new design hose pipe and clip can be retrofitted or jubilee clip solves the issue but looks a bit DIY
awesome cars and great engine but do your homework and take someone with your who knows their way around them to save nasty surprises
the notorious ccv valve / cyclone valve is a sizeable labour bill but not impossible to do yourself - lift off the oil filler cap when the engine is warm for any suction or place finger over dipstick guide tube...
cam position sensors are also known to go but best to stick with original bmw replacements which are about 120 a pop
pas fluid reservoirs are known to leak due to bad hose clip design but new design hose pipe and clip can be retrofitted or jubilee clip solves the issue but looks a bit DIY
awesome cars and great engine but do your homework and take someone with your who knows their way around them to save nasty surprises
Had my 330Ci from new and done 170,000 + miles.
Nothing major has gone yet.
1 bulb, 1 thermostat, 1 front calliper and 2 coil packs.
Exhaust started blowing last week and took it to quick fit who said they wanted £2K for a new one. My BMW indies fixed it for £50. New gasket and 2 new bolts.
Very reliable cars.
Mine has all the well documented age related E46 faults, Oil light stays on a few secs after start up, gear lever spring gone a little lose, Door rubbers come unstuck and a few rust spots around arches.
They are very good cars.
Hope you find one you like.
Edited: Oh and a cam position sensor. Forgot about that.
Nothing major has gone yet.
1 bulb, 1 thermostat, 1 front calliper and 2 coil packs.
Exhaust started blowing last week and took it to quick fit who said they wanted £2K for a new one. My BMW indies fixed it for £50. New gasket and 2 new bolts.
Very reliable cars.
Mine has all the well documented age related E46 faults, Oil light stays on a few secs after start up, gear lever spring gone a little lose, Door rubbers come unstuck and a few rust spots around arches.
They are very good cars.
Hope you find one you like.
Edited: Oh and a cam position sensor. Forgot about that.
Edited by Exige77 on Monday 29th September 13:40
I bought a 2001 Sport a couple of years ago and so far I've had to replace:
Thermostat (did the pump at the same time)
Coolant header tank (split)
Cam position sensor
2 x lambda sensors
Unfortunately, replacing one of the lambda sensors led to a cat/downpipe cracking so that was replaced with a s/h one
The biggest repair was the clutch and flywheel. It was on 175,000 miles with the original clutch, so I can't really complain but as it's best to replace the dual mass flywheel with the clutch, it can turn into a costly repair.
All in all, even though I've ended up spending more money on it than I expected, it's a great car and good spec. so I can't really think of anything I'd replace it with which would cost under £2500.
All I'd say is that any car of that age is likely to have seized/stuck bolts somewhere when you come to repair something on it and you need to be aware that can lead to seemingly simple maintenance work taking a lot more time and effort to get done.
It also might be worth you investing in an OBDII cable and software so you can take a look at any fault codes which may be stored in the ECU when you go to look at cars. A lambda sensor fault can turn into a £500 repair very quickly.
Thermostat (did the pump at the same time)
Coolant header tank (split)
Cam position sensor
2 x lambda sensors
Unfortunately, replacing one of the lambda sensors led to a cat/downpipe cracking so that was replaced with a s/h one
The biggest repair was the clutch and flywheel. It was on 175,000 miles with the original clutch, so I can't really complain but as it's best to replace the dual mass flywheel with the clutch, it can turn into a costly repair.
All in all, even though I've ended up spending more money on it than I expected, it's a great car and good spec. so I can't really think of anything I'd replace it with which would cost under £2500.
All I'd say is that any car of that age is likely to have seized/stuck bolts somewhere when you come to repair something on it and you need to be aware that can lead to seemingly simple maintenance work taking a lot more time and effort to get done.
It also might be worth you investing in an OBDII cable and software so you can take a look at any fault codes which may be stored in the ECU when you go to look at cars. A lambda sensor fault can turn into a £500 repair very quickly.
DavidLScott said:
I had an SE for 6 years (from 6000k to 60,000) and loved it.
When looking to buy, I found the Sport to be too crashy (and that was pre rft days!!).
Look out for big rims - they tramline horribly with anything bigger than 17".
We were advised that the tramlining on our M Sport would go if we had matching tyre brand front and back. We put a pair of Bridgestoness on the front to match the rears. It worked.When looking to buy, I found the Sport to be too crashy (and that was pre rft days!!).
Look out for big rims - they tramline horribly with anything bigger than 17".
One of the reasons I sold my SE previously was the lack of lateral support in the seats and roll. Each to their own
Thanks for all the replies got a golf as my daily run about hopefully the bmw can be used as a bit of niceness on weekends or going out don't mind buying a Haynes manual and abit of tinkering but by no means am I a mechanic think I'll have to test drive a normal one and a sport also try and find a looked after one thanks a lot guys
Sticks. said:
DavidLScott said:
I had an SE for 6 years (from 6000k to 60,000) and loved it.
When looking to buy, I found the Sport to be too crashy (and that was pre rft days!!).
Look out for big rims - they tramline horribly with anything bigger than 17".
We were advised that the tramlining on our M Sport would go if we had matching tyre brand front and back. We put a pair of Bridgestoness on the front to match the rears. It worked.When looking to buy, I found the Sport to be too crashy (and that was pre rft days!!).
Look out for big rims - they tramline horribly with anything bigger than 17".
One of the reasons I sold my SE previously was the lack of lateral support in the seats and roll. Each to their own
To be honest, I found the M Sport seats in my subsequent 130i less comfortable.
Just hang on tight!!!
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