Is a 325i risky?

[Zigs]

Hi All,

I found a 325i, ex-demonstrator, 2006, 1300 miles on the clock. The dealer is asking around £22K for it, which is a lot more than you can pick up a similarly torqued 2ltr diesel for. The main question is, is a 325i just a stupid choice of car? I mean if you want something economical and comfortable get a 320d, if you want something fast but still affordable get a 330i. I am worried that getting this will prove nearly impossible to sell / trade in in 3 years time. What are your thoughts or advice please.

Zigs

[[TW]Fox]

What I've found with BMW 6 pots is that the fuel economy is largely the same across the board, and running costs/servicing costs/repair costs are absolutely identical.

A 325i would annoy me as deep down I'd know that if it was a 330i it wouldn't be costing me anymore to run.

[Zigs]

Didn't think about running costs, however (with the exception of petrol) yes I would expect them to be the same (between a .25 and .30). I am not after a sporty car, so the slowness of a 320d is actually a good thing (read - this is for the wife). Grrrrr, anybody know of any good 320d's going with leather and a sunroof closeish to London?

Zigs

[sparkythecat]

Zigs, in your previous thread about your wife's new car , you said that as well as a sunroof and leather she also wanted GAH.

We still don't know what GAH is

[B17NNS]

My girlfriend has just ordered a new 325i M-Sport coupe (she previously ran a 320d saloon).

The 325i is plenty quick enough for her - 0-60 in 6.6 seconds, 155mph.

It's got a lovely sweet straight six and offers reasonable economy. Combined is 39.8mpg.

Agreed it is a bit of a compromise car in that it is neither dead quick (335i) or dead economical (320d) but you could argue that it srikes a nice balance between the two.

[[TW]Fox]

Combined economy of the 330i is 39.7 mpg - just 0.1 mpg less than the 325i.

Whats the point?

[B17NNS]

[TW]Fox said:

Whats the point?

330 is £3k more than a 325.

As far as I am aware they share the same 3.0 engine (325 is just detuned)

If the 325 is quick enough for your needs whats the point of the 330?

Edited by B17NNS on Monday 18th February 23:12

[davidd]

also it it is just a tuning issue can it not be 'adjusted' to recover the power to the same levels of the 330 ?

D

[Zigs]

GAH is an expression of frustration because if you want fancy options, it makes it harder to do a good deal.

I didn't realise the 330i was so efficient, I will check the engine specs and see what the CO2 is like as I live in London and paying £25 a day to fund the Brown's next holiday is not my idea of fun.

This all bodes poorly for the 325i however, damnit, I really don't want to spend 3K more for a 330i

Thanks for the advice

[[TW]Fox]

Why not simply buy a loaded 6 month old 330i for the same price as the new 325i?

[clonmult]

If you haven't had a chance to check the CO2 levels are hardly any different - 170 (325) and 173 (330). No surprises as they're basically the same engine.

[Zigs]

may actually start looking at the 330i, sounds like the best bet. I really don't want my wife having too much fun because then there is less reason for me to buy something stupid with next years bonus, like a TVR or Lotus for instance... Damn sunroof, GAH GAH GAH!!!

[Zigs]

Based on the advice here I just got a dec 06, black, 330d with 7K miles on the clock. Beautiful machine and am very happy. Just a plug for Reading Cooper BMW, fantastic sales person, no crap and excellent service. Also gave me a very good price on the old mini.

cheers

Zigs