The E46 325ti Appreciation Thread
Discussion
BigTom85 said:
Just before anyone else replies, please let's not turn this into another tyre thread 
Regarding the wheels, you need to check that they are staggered sizes. Did your car leave the factory on those wheels? The sizes are stamped/cast into the rear face of the wheels. It may well be that you have 4 front wheels, or maybe replicas (this may or not bother you).
I hope to change to a 'square' set up (probably 17s) as the wider rears will offer increased rear grip at the expense of the adjustability you enjoy. I have the stock 255 rear 225 front set up on mine, and it definitely has a tendancy to understeer at the limit.
Having said that, if you have the genuine staggered wheels I'd stick to staggered tyres, if for no other reason than having stretched tyres at the rear will look rubbish and your rims will be much more vulnerable to damage.
Hmm, I think you may be correct that it has 4 front wheels. They all look of the same vintage but there is no discernible VWvortex-style stretch, which I had put down to there only being 0.5" in it. In which case happy days, I just need a couple of new tyres! Regarding the wheels, you need to check that they are staggered sizes. Did your car leave the factory on those wheels? The sizes are stamped/cast into the rear face of the wheels. It may well be that you have 4 front wheels, or maybe replicas (this may or not bother you).
I hope to change to a 'square' set up (probably 17s) as the wider rears will offer increased rear grip at the expense of the adjustability you enjoy. I have the stock 255 rear 225 front set up on mine, and it definitely has a tendancy to understeer at the limit.
Having said that, if you have the genuine staggered wheels I'd stick to staggered tyres, if for no other reason than having stretched tyres at the rear will look rubbish and your rims will be much more vulnerable to damage.
Fred1975 said:
Quick query for other -ti owners.
I have a 325ti m-sport. The PO stuck Goodrich G-Grips on it, which seem to have lasted ages and work very well indeed. The rears are now getting down towards the wear bars, so will need replacing soon.
However, despite it being an m-sport with the style 135s and presumably (also according to the door plate) therefore running staggers, the PO has put 225/40s on both axles.
This is excellent fun in the damp or cold, as you would imagine, but I'm wondering if going back up to the regulation 255 rears will improve lateral grip on a neutral throttle without otherwise altering the handling, or whether that will just spoil the fun (i.e. eliminate lift-off and power-on oversteer) for no real benefit. Back in the day I had a B30 engined coupe with style 68s which I remember being far too grippy and much less willing to rotate than the -ti, and I don't want to go back there.
I'm thinking I should just stick with 225s but was wondering if anyone has tried both and has an opinion?
I've tried a few different sets of wheels tyres - 16s with 205/55s all round, 17s with 205/50 x 17s all round and the staggered 17s.I have a 325ti m-sport. The PO stuck Goodrich G-Grips on it, which seem to have lasted ages and work very well indeed. The rears are now getting down towards the wear bars, so will need replacing soon.
However, despite it being an m-sport with the style 135s and presumably (also according to the door plate) therefore running staggers, the PO has put 225/40s on both axles.
This is excellent fun in the damp or cold, as you would imagine, but I'm wondering if going back up to the regulation 255 rears will improve lateral grip on a neutral throttle without otherwise altering the handling, or whether that will just spoil the fun (i.e. eliminate lift-off and power-on oversteer) for no real benefit. Back in the day I had a B30 engined coupe with style 68s which I remember being far too grippy and much less willing to rotate than the -ti, and I don't want to go back there.
I'm thinking I should just stick with 225s but was wondering if anyone has tried both and has an opinion?
Personally i think the feel/handling feels nicest to me on the 205/50 x 17 set up.
The staggered set up tends to snatch over longitudinal ridges/cambers more. The 16s feel nice but there's a bit too much 'squelch' in the set up when it's warm and dry ( although it was a set of Michelin Primacys Iwas wearing out before fitting winters in the same size - Conti Winter Contacts - so I might need to try a better set of non-winter tyres to affirm ) compared to the 17s
gregs656 said:
I have been watching the market for these for at least a year now. I'm looking for a tidy manual sport, pref 6 speed and I don't want a grey or cream interior.
If any of you see anything let me know. I am on the south coast but willing to travel.
FWIW I was searching for a while before I found mine.If any of you see anything let me know. I am on the south coast but willing to travel.
I put an alert on AutoTrader and it popped up on a Saturday morning at a dealer, I went to see it a few hours later and put down a deposit straight away!
Mine is a pre-facelift Sport in Imola Red with full black leather, but having found a facelift SE for my nephew I would have preferred a 6-speed. His has the electric sunroof too which is a bonus, but finding a 6-speed Sport with full leather, sunroof and upgraded stereo could involve a long wait! Plus ideally Xenons, TPMS, CD Changer......the list goes on!
Good luck anyway - still have the alert set so if anything pops up will PM you!
Mr Tidy said:
FWIW I was searching for a while before I found mine.
I put an alert on AutoTrader and it popped up on a Saturday morning at a dealer, I went to see it a few hours later and put down a deposit straight away!
Mine is a pre-facelift Sport in Imola Red with full black leather, but having found a facelift SE for my nephew I would have preferred a 6-speed. His has the electric sunroof too which is a bonus, but finding a 6-speed Sport with full leather, sunroof and upgraded stereo could involve a long wait! Plus ideally Xenons, TPMS, CD Changer......the list goes on!
Good luck anyway - still have the alert set so if anything pops up will PM you!
I have been looking for a long time, and have had some annoying near misses, avoided a Cat d shed with 11 (!!) previous owners and negotiated with a bloke who turns out had had his eBay account hacked and it was a con artist on the other end. I put an alert on AutoTrader and it popped up on a Saturday morning at a dealer, I went to see it a few hours later and put down a deposit straight away!
Mine is a pre-facelift Sport in Imola Red with full black leather, but having found a facelift SE for my nephew I would have preferred a 6-speed. His has the electric sunroof too which is a bonus, but finding a 6-speed Sport with full leather, sunroof and upgraded stereo could involve a long wait! Plus ideally Xenons, TPMS, CD Changer......the list goes on!
Good luck anyway - still have the alert set so if anything pops up will PM you!
I accepted that I was never going to find the perfect car, on 12 year old used cars you have got to pick your poison and decide what matters the most and what can be changed.
Put a deposit down today on an '03, 6 speed SE - black leather, xenons, FBMWSH and 44k on the clock. Will start a thread once I pick it up.
gregs656 said:
I have been looking for a long time, and have had some annoying near misses, avoided a Cat d shed with 11 (!!) previous owners and negotiated with a bloke who turns out had had his eBay account hacked and it was a con artist on the other end.
I accepted that I was never going to find the perfect car, on 12 year old used cars you have got to pick your poison and decide what matters the most and what can be changed.
Put a deposit down today on an '03, 6 speed SE - black leather, xenons, FBMWSH and 44k on the clock. Will start a thread once I pick it up.
If the one you put a deposit on today is the blue one I'm thinking of, it looked great. If I hadn't just put a deposit on a 130i I'd have snapped it up! Hope it's a good one. Looks like identical spec to the 130i I'm buying but with fewer miles (and owners) and just over half the price! Good luck with it.I accepted that I was never going to find the perfect car, on 12 year old used cars you have got to pick your poison and decide what matters the most and what can be changed.
Put a deposit down today on an '03, 6 speed SE - black leather, xenons, FBMWSH and 44k on the clock. Will start a thread once I pick it up.
gregs656 said:
I have been looking for a long time, and have had some annoying near misses, avoided a Cat d shed with 11 (!!) previous owners and negotiated with a bloke who turns out had had his eBay account hacked and it was a con artist on the other end.
I accepted that I was never going to find the perfect car, on 12 year old used cars you have got to pick your poison and decide what matters the most and what can be changed.
Put a deposit down today on an '03, 6 speed SE - black leather, xenons, FBMWSH and 44k on the clock. Will start a thread once I pick it up.
B****R - I was really tempted to upgrade mine when I saw that one as it is a facelift so has the 6 speed box - more than half my driving is on NSL roads/Motorways and my 5 speed pulls 3,000 rpm at 70!I accepted that I was never going to find the perfect car, on 12 year old used cars you have got to pick your poison and decide what matters the most and what can be changed.
Put a deposit down today on an '03, 6 speed SE - black leather, xenons, FBMWSH and 44k on the clock. Will start a thread once I pick it up.
Clicked on the link again today and it was gone - to you obviously! Some nice extras too, Xenons, CD Changer and 18 inch wheels.
Look forward to the thread - lovely car, well done!
gregs656 said:
I accepted that I was never going to find the perfect car, on 12 year old used cars you have got to pick your poison and decide what matters the most and what can be changed.
Totally agree with this - I had a small budget and the one I bought was far and away the best one for sale at the time for <£2k without having 140k+ on it or having (IMO) a dodgy coloured interior.In my case I had to overlook the lack of official service book and bought on condition/owner count and other history it came with.
Picked the car up today, it is the mystic blue one that was briefly on AT.
The car is good and honest but does need a few quid spending on it; one of the wheels is badly curbed and lets the car down, it would benefit from discs all round, the tracking is not quite right and the air conditioning doesn't work. I went into the deal with my eyes open on these points and negotiated a deal based on them.
On the up side, it drives well and has obviously been well looked after. The MOT is 2 weeks old, it had an inspection 2 about 5k miles a go, new tyres about 4k miles a go - so lots of jobs are taken care of.
Those things ^^ are the 'needs' the 'wants' list is:
Alcantara interior - this is the interior I wanted but it's an easy thing to change
Change wood trim
Do something about the shift
Sport steering wheel
Sport bumpers
Possibly a wheel change (for another OEM set)
I already have a Parrot Asteroid Smart with the steering wheel controls connection to be fitted to the car, but need to get the heater relocation panel and need the surround etc I have ordered to turn up in the post.
Also I wasn't expecting the rear wiper to work, but it currently it does. I was planning to remove it and have the hole filled, flatted and painted. Still tempted to do that as I think it would smarten up the back end.
The car is good and honest but does need a few quid spending on it; one of the wheels is badly curbed and lets the car down, it would benefit from discs all round, the tracking is not quite right and the air conditioning doesn't work. I went into the deal with my eyes open on these points and negotiated a deal based on them.
On the up side, it drives well and has obviously been well looked after. The MOT is 2 weeks old, it had an inspection 2 about 5k miles a go, new tyres about 4k miles a go - so lots of jobs are taken care of.
Those things ^^ are the 'needs' the 'wants' list is:
Alcantara interior - this is the interior I wanted but it's an easy thing to change
Change wood trim
Do something about the shift
Sport steering wheel
Sport bumpers
Possibly a wheel change (for another OEM set)
I already have a Parrot Asteroid Smart with the steering wheel controls connection to be fitted to the car, but need to get the heater relocation panel and need the surround etc I have ordered to turn up in the post.
Also I wasn't expecting the rear wiper to work, but it currently it does. I was planning to remove it and have the hole filled, flatted and painted. Still tempted to do that as I think it would smarten up the back end.
gregs656 said:
Picked the car up today, it is the mystic blue one that was briefly on AT.
The car is good and honest but does need a few quid spending on it; one of the wheels is badly curbed and lets the car down, it would benefit from discs all round, the tracking is not quite right and the air conditioning doesn't work. I went into the deal with my eyes open on these points and negotiated a deal based on them.
On the up side, it drives well and has obviously been well looked after. The MOT is 2 weeks old, it had an inspection 2 about 5k miles a go, new tyres about 4k miles a go - so lots of jobs are taken care of.
Those things ^^ are the 'needs' the 'wants' list is:
Alcantara interior - this is the interior I wanted but it's an easy thing to change
Change wood trim
Do something about the shift
Sport steering wheel
Sport bumpers
Possibly a wheel change (for another OEM set)
I already have a Parrot Asteroid Smart with the steering wheel controls connection to be fitted to the car, but need to get the heater relocation panel and need the surround etc I have ordered to turn up in the post.
Also I wasn't expecting the rear wiper to work, but it currently it does. I was planning to remove it and have the hole filled, flatted and painted. Still tempted to do that as I think it would smarten up the back end.
That looked like a good one - congrats. The car is good and honest but does need a few quid spending on it; one of the wheels is badly curbed and lets the car down, it would benefit from discs all round, the tracking is not quite right and the air conditioning doesn't work. I went into the deal with my eyes open on these points and negotiated a deal based on them.
On the up side, it drives well and has obviously been well looked after. The MOT is 2 weeks old, it had an inspection 2 about 5k miles a go, new tyres about 4k miles a go - so lots of jobs are taken care of.
Those things ^^ are the 'needs' the 'wants' list is:
Alcantara interior - this is the interior I wanted but it's an easy thing to change
Change wood trim
Do something about the shift
Sport steering wheel
Sport bumpers
Possibly a wheel change (for another OEM set)
I already have a Parrot Asteroid Smart with the steering wheel controls connection to be fitted to the car, but need to get the heater relocation panel and need the surround etc I have ordered to turn up in the post.
Also I wasn't expecting the rear wiper to work, but it currently it does. I was planning to remove it and have the hole filled, flatted and painted. Still tempted to do that as I think it would smarten up the back end.
If you do decide to remove the rear wiper and want to sell the motor please PM me - mine doesn't work!
Just curious, but does your tailgate open from the key? Mine had the struts replaced with some cheapo c**P from Euro Car Parts that only support it rather than open it! But I got quoted £140+ for a pair of genuine ones, so not sure how badly I want them!:scratching:
Anyway enjoy it!
The struts are a bit hit and miss, I am vaguely hopeful that a clean and grease (struts and hinges) may sort it out, as the struts them selves seem to have a good amount of shove.
It's a handy feature.
Much, much more useful than the rear parcel shelf compartment - what is that all about?
edit: reading back on this thread has reminded me about Vanos. I think I will probably get on and change my seals sooner rather than later, as this seems like an issue that is going to crop up sooner or later and I have the time at the moment.
It's a handy feature.
Much, much more useful than the rear parcel shelf compartment - what is that all about?
edit: reading back on this thread has reminded me about Vanos. I think I will probably get on and change my seals sooner rather than later, as this seems like an issue that is going to crop up sooner or later and I have the time at the moment.
Edited by gregs656 on Friday 2nd October 22:02
gregs656 said:
The struts are a bit hit and miss, I am vaguely hopeful that a clean and grease (struts and hinges) may sort it out, as the struts them selves seem to have a good amount of shove.
It's a handy feature.
Much, much more useful than the rear parcel shelf compartment - what is that all about?
Your struts are probably the proper spec ones in that case, but even they get a bit lazy when it's really cold.It's a handy feature.
Much, much more useful than the rear parcel shelf compartment - what is that all about?
But the rear parcel shelf is wonderful! I've got a couple of Hi-Vis and a road atlas in mine - stops all that sort of stuff sliding around the boot when I chuck it round a corner! Really missed that when I changed my 320td for a 123d back in 2008.
s m said:
Mine still works - they last longer if you refrain from using the rear wash facility
I know - mine is probably fubard because the previous owner paid his local "garage" to fix the rear washer!! So the wiper motor is doubtless full of water from the "fixed" washer!! British workmanship of the highest order.....!Same "garage" that seems to have put a 22 inch wiper blade on the driver's side as Unipart presumably don't do a 21 inch one, so first time after I buy it and it rains the blades get in a tangle - t*ats!
That is why if you don't mind no main agent stamps a marque specialist is the best option by far! And maybe best option all round to be fair!
Still front wipers work OK now I have sorted that problem and I don't really need rear vision unless I am reversing, which is surely what PDC is for....!
Mr Tidy said:
Your struts are probably the proper spec ones in that case, but even they get a bit lazy when it's really cold.
But the rear parcel shelf is wonderful! I've got a couple of Hi-Vis and a road atlas in mine - stops all that sort of stuff sliding around the boot when I chuck it round a corner! Really missed that when I changed my 320td for a 123d back in 2008.
Yes, even brand new ones look a bit lethargic when it's very frostyBut the rear parcel shelf is wonderful! I've got a couple of Hi-Vis and a road atlas in mine - stops all that sort of stuff sliding around the boot when I chuck it round a corner! Really missed that when I changed my 320td for a 123d back in 2008.
Saw a really hi-spec'd white one ( 6-sp Sport, sunroof, Xenons, black heated leather, satnav, TPMS, staggered 97s ) in a local car park a week or so ago. Was quite tempted to leave a cheeky note asking if the owner wanted to sell as it was a 54 reg - quite fancy a white one and haven't seen many with a sunroof apart from Alex Gs who had one from Norfolk area a while back.
The black does look nice in the weather at the moment though as it's stayed clean and relatively dust-free
BMW do sell a blanking plug for the rear wiper. I don't think it looks as good as it could, though it does have the benefit of being reversible.
I'll get some phots up later when I'm home.
I need the cube trim in my life, and a sport wheel . . .
I'll get some phots up later when I'm home.
I need the cube trim in my life, and a sport wheel . . .
Edited by gregs656 on Saturday 3rd October 11:10
A warning re the rear wiper and repairing it. There are replacement plastic wheels on eBay advertised for BMW's, as this is the part that fails as the wheel struggles to turn with all the rust building up inside and starts to strip all the teeth of the plastic drive wheel and not engaging it, while the motor still works fine.
I bought one of the replacement wheels but they seem fractionally smaller than original, as when fitted and the motor replaced, they don't mesh together properly and don't work. I had to add metal under where the motor mounts to the body to tip it towards the gear, tested it on the bench and all seemed fine, so can be fixed in a way. Put back on the car and it doesn't work properly. Probably not related to the wheel, but it starts going every time you start the car and doesn't park in the correct position half the time car.
I bought one of the replacement wheels but they seem fractionally smaller than original, as when fitted and the motor replaced, they don't mesh together properly and don't work. I had to add metal under where the motor mounts to the body to tip it towards the gear, tested it on the bench and all seemed fine, so can be fixed in a way. Put back on the car and it doesn't work properly. Probably not related to the wheel, but it starts going every time you start the car and doesn't park in the correct position half the time car.
wjb said:
I don't think the rear wipers worked from the factory on the compact!
That is harsh - I bought a March 2004 registered 320td in January 2005. Kept it until January 2008 and rear washer and wiper both worked fine throughout. But then it was entirely in warranty (I extended it) 
Magic in action probably!BTW I had an AutoTrader alert today for a 325ti with 122K miles for £1,500 - maybe seems pricey, but silver with red leather - lovely!
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