E46 330ci Sport - any advice?
Discussion
It's over a decade old, so unless there's plenty of paperwork to show that the common wear points have been addressed you will need to look for evidence that they are failing. So:
Check that the temperature gauge reaches the mid point in normal running. Stuck thermostats aren't difficult to replace (unless the bolts have suffered electrolytic corrosion), but the resulting cold running will likely have blocked the CCV. Ask how much oil it uses.
Check the radiator is free of bulges (they rot from the inside).
How bad is the handbrake? Budget for new rear disks and shoes if it doesn't hold properly.
Look for signs of uneven tyre wear, and check for tram lining on the test drive. Any of the above suggests you'll need to do the FCABs and RTABs.
The intake hose is likely to be split at the lower end.
Mismatched and worn tyres will do weird things to the handling in addition to the points about suspension bushes.
The interior isn't very robust. Make a note of all scratches on the centre console, tears and scratches to the seats and door cards.
The front wheel arches will rust. Slight bubbling is a SMART repair, anything else is new wings. If the rear arches are rusty, it's probably best to walk away.
Oh, the bonnet release cable snaps. Make sure it works...
Check that the temperature gauge reaches the mid point in normal running. Stuck thermostats aren't difficult to replace (unless the bolts have suffered electrolytic corrosion), but the resulting cold running will likely have blocked the CCV. Ask how much oil it uses.
Check the radiator is free of bulges (they rot from the inside).
How bad is the handbrake? Budget for new rear disks and shoes if it doesn't hold properly.
Look for signs of uneven tyre wear, and check for tram lining on the test drive. Any of the above suggests you'll need to do the FCABs and RTABs.
The intake hose is likely to be split at the lower end.
Mismatched and worn tyres will do weird things to the handling in addition to the points about suspension bushes.
The interior isn't very robust. Make a note of all scratches on the centre console, tears and scratches to the seats and door cards.
The front wheel arches will rust. Slight bubbling is a SMART repair, anything else is new wings. If the rear arches are rusty, it's probably best to walk away.
Oh, the bonnet release cable snaps. Make sure it works...
Edited by ftypical on Saturday 28th February 11:42
For my money unless that is a very well cared for and very well specced model I'd say the price was a little high. I'd prefer a newer model, mileage doesn't bother me all too much.
Great cars though, I loved mine.
As with anything you'll find a long list of things that can go pop at certain mileages, I believe the water pump is most often singled out but I went to 163K on my car without any issue - however it was a considerably younger model which may have an impact.
Great cars though, I loved mine.
As with anything you'll find a long list of things that can go pop at certain mileages, I believe the water pump is most often singled out but I went to 163K on my car without any issue - however it was a considerably younger model which may have an impact.
ftypical said:
....How bad is the handbrake? Budget for new rear disks and shoes if it doesn't hold properly.......
You forgot to add:Edited by ftypical on Saturday 28th February 11:42
And don't be too surprised if it still doesn't hold that well after changing the shoes and discs!
On all of the E36's and E46's that I've ever driven, the handbrakes have always been pretty poor, even with everything replaced! (They do the job - just!, but they're not brilliant!)
(BTW, the first thing to try before replacing everything is to drive the car slowly with the handbrake slightly set for a short distance to wear off any corrosion in the handbrake drum. The owners manual advises owners to do this every so often but most owners never bother. Next, see if the handbrake can be adjusted up further)
4rephill said:
You forgot to add:
And don't be too surprised if it still doesn't hold that well after changing the shoes and discs!
On all of the E36's and E46's that I've ever driven, the handbrakes have always been pretty poor, even with everything replaced! (They do the job - just!, but they're not brilliant!)
(BTW, the first thing to try before replacing everything is to drive the car slowly with the handbrake slightly set for a short distance to wear off any corrosion in the handbrake drum. The owners manual advises owners to do this every so often but most owners never bother. Next, see if the handbrake can be adjusted up further)
So much this. I don't know what it is with German cars and handbrakes but my E46, E63 (645) and both 911s had rubbish handbrakes, even after adjustment.And don't be too surprised if it still doesn't hold that well after changing the shoes and discs!
On all of the E36's and E46's that I've ever driven, the handbrakes have always been pretty poor, even with everything replaced! (They do the job - just!, but they're not brilliant!)
(BTW, the first thing to try before replacing everything is to drive the car slowly with the handbrake slightly set for a short distance to wear off any corrosion in the handbrake drum. The owners manual advises owners to do this every so often but most owners never bother. Next, see if the handbrake can be adjusted up further)
My Z4 seems good though.
Thanks for the comments and advice.
Here's the ad: http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...
Seems to be well taken care of going by all that, might see if there's a chance to look at it over the next few days.
Here's the ad: http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...
Seems to be well taken care of going by all that, might see if there's a chance to look at it over the next few days.
I'm looking for one of these as well, same sort of price. This one seems to have had some maintenance done, a lot of the ones I have been looking at don't have much evidence of this.
As other people have said, you want to see such things otherwise you will have some big bills coming.
As a side note, does anyone have one that they want to move on?
As other people have said, you want to see such things otherwise you will have some big bills coming.
As a side note, does anyone have one that they want to move on?
I had a 330ci about the same age (quite a while ago now), its a very capable car.
Mine had problems with the window regulators, make sure the windows drop then return when you close the doors. They also have that era voltage regulator that can cause the heater to do some odd things. My handbrake was also crap even after being replaced.
Would this age of car have the boot floor cracking that effects the M3?
Mine had problems with the window regulators, make sure the windows drop then return when you close the doors. They also have that era voltage regulator that can cause the heater to do some odd things. My handbrake was also crap even after being replaced.
Would this age of car have the boot floor cracking that effects the M3?
Lol you can replace the whole braking system on an E46 and I still wouldn't both with the handbrake, they are s
te, park it in gear wheels turned to kerb, means you don't have to feck about adjusting it every year for the MOT.
The only handbrake I remotely trusted was my E34, still parked in gear into kerb.
E31, 39, 46 I just either left in park or first.
te, park it in gear wheels turned to kerb, means you don't have to feck about adjusting it every year for the MOT.The only handbrake I remotely trusted was my E34, still parked in gear into kerb.
E31, 39, 46 I just either left in park or first.
jayemm89 said:
Someone will come along soon who knows for sure but I believe although the regular e46 could suffer from the same problem, in reality only the M3s had the issue.
It's not just the M3 that suffers with this, although they may be more prone. My brother's 328Ci had a cracked boot floor which was replaced by BMW free of charge. I've had mine for 8 months now, it's a similar age, mileage and condition, and I paid £2600 for it. I'm really glad I bought it!
When I bought it I knew there would be few things to do, notably rear tyres (it came with cheap rubbish, clearly put on to get through the MOT and then sell it), rear brake lines had been an advisory for the last few MOTs and the front side windows were obviously tinted far too dark. The rest of the car was spot on, paint in very good condition, very little rust, no signs of rear subframe issues, plenty of service history and drove like a much younger car.
Replacing the rear tyres transformed the handling, I thought the alignment was out as it tramlined constantly but changing the rears to the same Pirellis as the front has got rid of it almost completely. Going to get a check on the alignment soon just to be sure it's all OK.
Rear brake lines were done by a local mechanic for not a lot of money and removing the window tints took a couple of hours on the driveway to get rid of all the residue after peeling the film off. It then sailed through its MOT in January with no advisories.
The only unexpected issues have been the thermostat and an O2 sensor going at roughly the same time, causing my mpg to drop a fair bit. The parts were surprisingly cheap for decent brands and took the mechanic a couple of hours to fit. I'd have done both myself if it wasn't for the snow, couldn't be bothered with being freezing under the car for half a day.
It's an amazing car for the money. I'm getting just under 30mpg (calculated rather than from the slightly optimistic dash display) from pretty mixed driving, without trying to be super economical too.
Fast enough to not get boring and the sound of the straight 6 is brilliant. Swallows loads of kit with the back seat down and refined enough on longer motorway journeys too.
They're probably not far from going the way of the e36 and becoming cheap enough to be used as track/drift cars so decent ones will get harder and harder to find. I'm not expecting to make any money on mine when the time comes to sell it but it probably won't lose much value either.
If you can get the price of that one down slightly then I'd say its a good buy.
When I bought it I knew there would be few things to do, notably rear tyres (it came with cheap rubbish, clearly put on to get through the MOT and then sell it), rear brake lines had been an advisory for the last few MOTs and the front side windows were obviously tinted far too dark. The rest of the car was spot on, paint in very good condition, very little rust, no signs of rear subframe issues, plenty of service history and drove like a much younger car.
Replacing the rear tyres transformed the handling, I thought the alignment was out as it tramlined constantly but changing the rears to the same Pirellis as the front has got rid of it almost completely. Going to get a check on the alignment soon just to be sure it's all OK.
Rear brake lines were done by a local mechanic for not a lot of money and removing the window tints took a couple of hours on the driveway to get rid of all the residue after peeling the film off. It then sailed through its MOT in January with no advisories.
The only unexpected issues have been the thermostat and an O2 sensor going at roughly the same time, causing my mpg to drop a fair bit. The parts were surprisingly cheap for decent brands and took the mechanic a couple of hours to fit. I'd have done both myself if it wasn't for the snow, couldn't be bothered with being freezing under the car for half a day.
It's an amazing car for the money. I'm getting just under 30mpg (calculated rather than from the slightly optimistic dash display) from pretty mixed driving, without trying to be super economical too.
Fast enough to not get boring and the sound of the straight 6 is brilliant. Swallows loads of kit with the back seat down and refined enough on longer motorway journeys too.
They're probably not far from going the way of the e36 and becoming cheap enough to be used as track/drift cars so decent ones will get harder and harder to find. I'm not expecting to make any money on mine when the time comes to sell it but it probably won't lose much value either.
If you can get the price of that one down slightly then I'd say its a good buy.
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