RE: Alpina D3 | The Brave Pill
Discussion
BigChiefmuffinAgain said:
I seem to remember that the reason the cars are pretty much all basic spec is that, to keep costs down, they were all pre ordered like that.
From memory they were based on base spec SE cars, not M Sports, so the standard spec was much lower, no anthracite headcloth etc.Nice car though it is, i'd find it hard to walk past a 330d M Sport to buy one of these.
E9x's are sh!t, regardless of model. I test drove one of these and my a3 2.0tdi at the time was superior in every way.
Ended up with a e90 335d for f#ck knows what reason and it was a bag of w@nk. Fuel leaks, diff leaks, engine leaks, brake judder and scumbags constantly looking round it.
Put me off BMW's for life, used fords and Vauxhall's are better than these things, I'd even expect to have less issues with a 15 year old discovery and that's really saying something
Ended up with a e90 335d for f#ck knows what reason and it was a bag of w@nk. Fuel leaks, diff leaks, engine leaks, brake judder and scumbags constantly looking round it.
Put me off BMW's for life, used fords and Vauxhall's are better than these things, I'd even expect to have less issues with a 15 year old discovery and that's really saying something
As the owner of a 2009 D3 Bi-Turbo Touring you really do have to go for a drive in it. Suspension set up is perfect for what it is, an autobahn cruiser with torque to spare. The fact that Alpina wouldn't put run flat tyres on because they ruin comfort says it all. It's not about POWWWEEEERRR, it's about pace.
tim-jxv5n said:
E9x's are sh!t, regardless of model. I test drove one of these and my a3 2.0tdi at the time was superior in every way.
Ended up with a e90 335d for f#ck knows what reason and it was a bag of w@nk. Fuel leaks, diff leaks, engine leaks, brake judder and scumbags constantly looking round it.
Put me off BMW's for life, used fords and Vauxhall's are better than these things, I'd even expect to have less issues with a 15 year old discovery and that's really saying something
Conversely my E91 330D was essentially perfect for the 90k miles I drove it for, the EGR valve went but otherwise it was just regular servicing. Probably the best car I’ve ever owned. Ended up with a e90 335d for f#ck knows what reason and it was a bag of w@nk. Fuel leaks, diff leaks, engine leaks, brake judder and scumbags constantly looking round it.
Put me off BMW's for life, used fords and Vauxhall's are better than these things, I'd even expect to have less issues with a 15 year old discovery and that's really saying something
AlmostUseful said:
tim-jxv5n said:
E9x's are sh!t, regardless of model. I test drove one of these and my a3 2.0tdi at the time was superior in every way.
Ended up with a e90 335d for f#ck knows what reason and it was a bag of w@nk. Fuel leaks, diff leaks, engine leaks, brake judder and scumbags constantly looking round it.
Put me off BMW's for life, used fords and Vauxhall's are better than these things, I'd even expect to have less issues with a 15 year old discovery and that's really saying something
Conversely my E91 330D was essentially perfect for the 90k miles I drove it for, the EGR valve went but otherwise it was just regular servicing. Probably the best car I’ve ever owned. Ended up with a e90 335d for f#ck knows what reason and it was a bag of w@nk. Fuel leaks, diff leaks, engine leaks, brake judder and scumbags constantly looking round it.
Put me off BMW's for life, used fords and Vauxhall's are better than these things, I'd even expect to have less issues with a 15 year old discovery and that's really saying something
DoubleD said:
AlmostUseful said:
tim-jxv5n said:
E9x's are sh!t, regardless of model. I test drove one of these and my a3 2.0tdi at the time was superior in every way.
Ended up with a e90 335d for f#ck knows what reason and it was a bag of w@nk. Fuel leaks, diff leaks, engine leaks, brake judder and scumbags constantly looking round it.
Put me off BMW's for life, used fords and Vauxhall's are better than these things, I'd even expect to have less issues with a 15 year old discovery and that's really saying something
Conversely my E91 330D was essentially perfect for the 90k miles I drove it for, the EGR valve went but otherwise it was just regular servicing. Probably the best car I’ve ever owned. Ended up with a e90 335d for f#ck knows what reason and it was a bag of w@nk. Fuel leaks, diff leaks, engine leaks, brake judder and scumbags constantly looking round it.
Put me off BMW's for life, used fords and Vauxhall's are better than these things, I'd even expect to have less issues with a 15 year old discovery and that's really saying something
DoubleD said:
AlmostUseful said:
tim-jxv5n said:
E9x's are sh!t, regardless of model. I test drove one of these and my a3 2.0tdi at the time was superior in every way.
Ended up with a e90 335d for f#ck knows what reason and it was a bag of w@nk. Fuel leaks, diff leaks, engine leaks, brake judder and scumbags constantly looking round it.
Put me off BMW's for life, used fords and Vauxhall's are better than these things, I'd even expect to have less issues with a 15 year old discovery and that's really saying something
Conversely my E91 330D was essentially perfect for the 90k miles I drove it for, the EGR valve went but otherwise it was just regular servicing. Probably the best car I’ve ever owned. Ended up with a e90 335d for f#ck knows what reason and it was a bag of w@nk. Fuel leaks, diff leaks, engine leaks, brake judder and scumbags constantly looking round it.
Put me off BMW's for life, used fords and Vauxhall's are better than these things, I'd even expect to have less issues with a 15 year old discovery and that's really saying something
smithers-jones said:
....the M47 is ' kin gruff, hence i didn't buy one and had a from new D3biturbo with its far superior N47 base lump.
The M47 may be gruff but compare it to, say, a VAG 2.0 tdi of similar age and it's leagues ahead in terms of noise and refinement. I'm not sure I'd call the N47 superior what with the cam chain issues they have, in my experience the older M47 engines are nigh on indestructible. I know of a 320d that is on nearly 250,000 miles, I also know the current and previous two owners of it and none of them have had any problems whatsoever with it.I had a D3MT touring from new and did 30k happy miles in it. the handling was fabulous as was the build quality of the E9x cars, The engine was incredible in what they managed to get from it, but the gearbox was totally wrong, the ratios - especially 2nd-3rd were unchanged from stock and bore no relation to the power band of the engine they were now married to. It ruined the rest of the driving experience somewhat.
The article is a bit erm. under researched, but it is a friday afernoon article. The cars had a standard spec, the D3MT had climate control, but no idrive and half leather. It was spartan, but that was sort of the point. The D3BT had more interior comforts, but no climate, and most people didn't change the standard spec because it cost £2k just to make changes, before the cost of the changes.
Now they're Pill money, they're a bargain whose flaws can be overlooked, but beware those wheels, they're made of lurpak.
The article is a bit erm. under researched, but it is a friday afernoon article. The cars had a standard spec, the D3MT had climate control, but no idrive and half leather. It was spartan, but that was sort of the point. The D3BT had more interior comforts, but no climate, and most people didn't change the standard spec because it cost £2k just to make changes, before the cost of the changes.
Now they're Pill money, they're a bargain whose flaws can be overlooked, but beware those wheels, they're made of lurpak.
smithers-jones said:
Having owned a multitude of 4 and 6 cylinder BMW'S and Alpina (currently own a 6pot petrol E91alpina and have owned a 4pot D3biturbo) the question of why no 6 cylinder is part answered in the article. Weight. Those 6 cylinder lumps destroy the E9x handling. The D3 and the far superior D3 biturbo ( by dint of better brakes from 330i/d, better LCI build and a smoother twin turbo lump) handle like go carts....with magical springs and dampers. Compare the ride with standard BMW fayre and you'd get it. My d3biturbo could keep up with far faster in theory BMW's on welsh mountain roads as it could corner where they were being plucked from hedges. My 400hp B3sBiturbo has brutal performance and is massively faster than one of these, but nowhere near the fun on UK roads. (I don't find overpowering a car a turn-on, btw, or bleet on to friends about POWA!!!! as I have got plenty/ too much available and yes, haters, I can drive quickly and slowly in them equally well).
Secondly as to why the D3 and D3biturbo were made. Alpina were financially stricken, and not being VAG, Peugeot, BMW, or that Merc tribe etc they are true independent and need to sell cars to survive and not run on government bailouts, shifty shareholders and similar. The D3 quite simply saved Alpina by shifting these at low profit margins, whilst their other more expensive cars could be developed and sold in mediocre numbers. Checkout the worldwide and UK build numbers on the alpina archive and you'll see what it did for them. And that in turn gave BMW some proper r&d input for the other models you may think so superior: the backbone of many is alpina r&d.
Thirdly: the article mentions a turbo taken from elsewhere in BMW range. It wasn't: it's a hybrid/ mongrel made up of various off shelf and Alpina special parts and a pita to repair if it fails. Beware.
Fourthly: all D3 are manual and standard 320d. All are prone to crank oil leaking into clutches, bearing failures chucking grease into clutches, clutch judder and flywheel cracking. And the brakes from the 320d are marginal at this power output, so pushing too hard is for the foolhardy.
Buy one. Then get it. Superb.
I’d rather get it before I buy it. I’m looking at a 4 cylinder diesel with dated looks and I’m not turned on Secondly as to why the D3 and D3biturbo were made. Alpina were financially stricken, and not being VAG, Peugeot, BMW, or that Merc tribe etc they are true independent and need to sell cars to survive and not run on government bailouts, shifty shareholders and similar. The D3 quite simply saved Alpina by shifting these at low profit margins, whilst their other more expensive cars could be developed and sold in mediocre numbers. Checkout the worldwide and UK build numbers on the alpina archive and you'll see what it did for them. And that in turn gave BMW some proper r&d input for the other models you may think so superior: the backbone of many is alpina r&d.
Thirdly: the article mentions a turbo taken from elsewhere in BMW range. It wasn't: it's a hybrid/ mongrel made up of various off shelf and Alpina special parts and a pita to repair if it fails. Beware.
Fourthly: all D3 are manual and standard 320d. All are prone to crank oil leaking into clutches, bearing failures chucking grease into clutches, clutch judder and flywheel cracking. And the brakes from the 320d are marginal at this power output, so pushing too hard is for the foolhardy.
Buy one. Then get it. Superb.
Edited by smithers-jones on Saturday 17th October 07:44
Court_S said:
Another fan of Le Mans blue. Thought my E90 looked great in it.
Absolutely lovely colour. My brother (him again) had an e46 individual in Le Mans blue. It really does suit this type of car well. Not boring. Not too shouty. Most new stuff is obligatory white or grey. Shame. cerb4.5lee said:
Same and covered over 150k miles in a E90 330d without any issues whatsoever. It was a cracking all round car I thought. I ended up actually preferring it to the E90 330i I had after it(which was also faultless for the 4 years I had it).
Yeah another ownership that was pretty much unremarkable from reliability point of view. It had the remote locking/immobiliser updated as per them being easy to pinch. Reluctor rings on the drive shafts rusted and threw a fault code. Needed replacing. Nothing more to say. It had an updated inlet manifold with no swirl flaps too. My 120d and 530d did not and both needed doing but again didn’t fail just changed for piece of mind. 
just found the pic of mine. As a previous poster mentioned balance over power which is fine if this is your thing, it’s your only car and you drive on perfect public roads of known quality & quantity however in the real world power out of the corner wins. At this mileage Vs a lower mileage, lower priced 320d Msport or 330d Msport - why? Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff