The E46 325ti Appreciation Thread

[MRyan99]

chillbill said:

MRyan99 said:

Nice, always loved those wheels. What tire sizes are you running?

I'm back on Style 97's (boot's full of wheels, hence a bit rakey):

Thanks, I think they’re perfect. They’re 225/45 on the fronts and 245/40 on the rears as I opted for a larger profile due to the crap local roads. I can’t remember what the offset is but they sit perfectly flush with the arches. I was running the standard style 97s but I’ve been looking for a set of style 216s that hadn’t been welded nor refurbished and had the ‘bmw motorsport’ lettering painted over and came across this set last week. An expensive trip to my tyre shop for a pair of Eagle F1s on the fronts and Conti Sport 5s for the rears and it’s one of the best purchases I’ve made this far!

Edited by MRyan99 on Monday 26th April 22:14

[MRyan99]

Mr Tidy said:

MRyan99 said:

Little update on my 03 6 speed 325ti. After 12 months of searching I’ve finally sourced a set of BMW Motorsport Style 216’s to finish off my little project along with a pair of Eagle F1 asymmetric 5s on the front and Conti Sport 5s for the rear. They really finish the car off nicely. Since I bought the car in February of last year I’ve carried out every preventative maintenance item and completely refreshed all bushings and suspension and the car never fails to amaze me. (Ignore the faded pollen cover in the engine bay pic that’s now been replaced with a brand new item due to my OCD when it comes to my cars) Thankfully she’s just a weekend car as it’s one I never plan on selling and should only increase in value as they’re becoming rarer. (Not sure if I’ve actually posted my car on here so there’s some more pictures:

Edited by MRyan99 on Thursday 22 April 22:40

Your car would have been my ideal 325ti - it's stunning.

Sadly my Imola Red was a pre-facelift with a black interior!

Thank you, I never gave the compacts any interest or knew about the 325TI until last February when I was on the hunt for an E92 335i and I stumbled upon my one for sale just 2 miles up the road and just had to buy it. I’ve replaced everything preventive maintenance item now along with all new bushings, suspension, rubbers and new paint. All that’s left now is the bmw performance air intake (overpriced I know but I think it’ll finish off the engine bay perfectly) a scorpion exhaust, an M3 rear end and potentially a supercharger down the road. I don’t plan on ever selling her as she’s just a weekend car and too unique to be replaced so I’d imagine the forced induction won’t be for a while if I do decide to do it. I’ve never been a big fan of red cars either until I had a red VR6 Golf and then this compact. It suits it perfectly

[MRyan99]

anonymous-user said:

Looks very nice! Did you just rub back the side strips and have them sprayed?
Also mind taking a photo of how you've blanked where the wiper went? cheers

The side strips were painted at my go to body shop and the wiper delete was filled with a plastic bung which was then sprayed to match the car, I don’t have a picture at hand but will get one tomorrow. The plan is to have it filled so that it is completely flush

[MRyan99]

chillbill said:

Krikkit said:

Have you any spacers on the back, or is that the natural width & offset?

Thanks. Style 67-s are 18x8 ET47 and 18x9 ET26. So no spacer in the back, would need some 15mm-s for the front...

MRyan99 said:

Love the red interior and do agree in that the M-Sport bumpers make it a lot more visually cohesive. Does the Xtrons stereo work with the steering wheel controls out of the box?

Thanks, yes the stereo works fine out of the box with the steering wheel controls

[MRyan99]

dubster2007 said:

MRyan99 said:

Hi all,

thought I’d revive this old thread after it was what persuaded me to pick up a 325ti as my weekend toy. This is my 2003 6 speed Sport. It’s got everything except the upgraded sound system, Xenons(which I’m adding soon) and the sunroof. I absolutely love it. Only thing I’ve done so far is add the Xtrons oem look Nav so I have all the modern amenities, colour coded the side strips, got rid of the horrible back wiper and the horrible mirrors for some M3 style ones specific to the compacts as I think it compliments the curvy sport bumpers much better than the horrible rectangular ones. (My other weekend toy making an appearance in the last image there too)

Nice! but not a big fan of red on red and the mirrors aren't my cup of tea, prefer the standard ones but you cant go wrong with a shiny red car

Thank you. I was 50/50 on the red leather for a while as I didn’t think it would look right and look a bit ‘tacky’ being red on red but for me I think it works being a much darker shade of red to the exterior. As for the mirrors I think they suit the more curvy sport bumpers and make the car look a little more modern....

[Muzzman]

Well here she is, I present 'Von stter'

- M54b30 from 74k 330i Conv
- S50b30 exhaust manifold
- ECU mapped by Enda at End Tuning - EWS Delete
- COMLINE COMPLETE CLUTCH KIT
- GAZ Gold Pro with adjustable top mounts
- 330i Calipers
- 330mm Brembo brakes
- Mintex 1144 brake pads
- Braided hoses
- Style 22 wheels 7.5" square
- Nangkang NS2R 180 compound

To fit:
- M Sport Bodykit
- Bimarco Expert bucket seat
- Rear Roll Cage

To purchase:
- Gripper LSD

I have Goodwood, Brands Hatch and Anglesey booked in the next 3 months, really looking forward to getting the old girl on track.


[url]

|https://thumbsnap.com/12AmTKeF[/url]

[Url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/qAQijPPU[/url]

Edited by Muzzman on Sunday 2nd May 07:09

[Krikkit]

Looks really good, what power did it make?

[Muzzman]

Krikkit said:

Looks really good, what power did it make?

Not sure yet, I'm going to book a dyno and will let you know

[Chiefbadger]

Mines got to go if anyone wants one. Feels like it’s been clocked the wrong way as doesn’t look or feel like it’s done 170k!


https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/80795131...

[grahamgraham]

I've just picked up this beauty...



Pistachio green over half yellow leather.. mmmm. and only 172k

Hilariously, the last post on this thread was the seller posting about the very car i've bought. Hi chiefbadger! lol!

Plan is to drive it, do some track days to improve my skills. Any top tips for getting it ready for track action?
I'll get a build thread set up at some point.

Took it for a Sunday morning blast yesterday and first impressions are great - these are a proper hoot. I've previously had a 330i touring (manual) and i've got to say the 325 wasn't noticeably slower - the back end is definitely more playful tho.

[grahamgraham]

Chiefbadger said:

Mines got to go if anyone wants one. Feels like it’s been clocked the wrong way as doesn’t look or feel like it’s done 170k!


https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/80795131...

fancy seeing you here, haha :-)

[Krikkit]

To my eternal shame, first oil change on the Ti today.

The filter in the housing had plastic caps top and bottom, but the new one didn't. Went to ECP, they had 3x more all without caps. Fitted it and it seems fine, but is it a ticking time bomb?

Had another one from Opie and that was just paper but didn't fit as the internal diameter was wrong, so it seems like 3x different filters encountered in one day.

[Mr Tidy]

Muzzman said:

Well here she is, I present 'Von stter'

- M54b30 from 74k 330i Conv
- S50b30 exhaust manifold
- ECU mapped by Enda at End Tuning - EWS Delete
- COMLINE COMPLETE CLUTCH KIT
- GAZ Gold Pro with adjustable top mounts
- 330i Calipers
- 330mm Brembo brakes
- Mintex 1144 brake pads
- Braided hoses
- Style 22 wheels 7.5" square
- Nangkang NS2R 180 compound

To fit:
- M Sport Bodykit
- Bimarco Expert bucket seat
- Rear Roll Cage

To purchase:
- Gripper LSD

I have Goodwood, Brands Hatch and Anglesey booked in the next 3 months, really looking forward to getting the old girl on track.

That looks great, and a 330i engine is a bonus. It sounds like you are going to have some fun!

Your plate jumped out at me - my Imola Red Compact was ST52 PVU.

[josh-cg608]

Hi guys, i am regrettably having to get rid of my compact. I need somehing a bit bigger and have found a nice 130i locally. Having just brought my 1st house i can justify keeping this aswell as much as id love too

Its a 330ti please see my thread which ive added everything i have done to the car. I have sorted it in mind to keep but its a bit small. Would love it to go to someone who will appreciate it and look after it likw i have.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

[RSTurboPaul]

josh-cg608 said:

Hi guys, i am regrettably having to get rid of my compact. I need somehing a bit bigger and have found a nice 130i locally. Having just brought my 1st house i can justify keeping this aswell as much as id love too

Its a 330ti please see my thread which ive added everything i have done to the car. I have sorted it in mind to keep but its a bit small. Would love it to go to someone who will appreciate it and look after it likw i have.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

If I had any money at all, I'd be all over that!

[MRyan99]

Hi guys, I forgot to mention I run a compact page on Facebook if anyone fancied joining it and posting their cars etc or interested in meeting up at all. On 5.1k members now, I’ll leave the link below.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/221030174761065/?r...

[Mr Tidy]

I thought car prices had gone as mad as they could get since the first lockdown last year - I was wrong!

I sold my 2002 Imola Red Sport in 2018 and a year and a bit later the guy who bought it contacted me to see if I was interested in buying it back, but I had moved on.

Then yesterday he sent me a message with a link - it's advertised by a trader on FB for £5,995!

That's 3 times what I paid for it in 2014.

They are great, but for that money I'd buy a 130i.

[MRyan99]

Yeah they’re silly money now. I bought my 6 speed Imola Red 325TI back in Feb 2020 for £2250 and I’ve had offers of £8000 so far! I’ve been in touch with BMW UK who told me today that mine is one of 17 6 speed Imola Red Sports ever sold in the U.K. which makes it that bit more special to me

[danp]

MRyan99 said:

Yeah they’re silly money now. I bought my 6 speed Imola Red 325TI back in Feb 2020 for £2250 and I’ve had offers of £8000 so far! I’ve been in touch with BMW UK who told me today that mine is one of 17 6 speed Imola Red Sports ever sold in the U.K. which makes it that bit more special to me

Wow, what year/mileage/spec is yours? Must get mine back on the road!

What is the 171 referring to? Facelift Sports?

[JakeT]

This does not help the fact that I’m thinking of parting with my 325ti. Owned since 2016, and it’s rarely used now. Need to replace the water pump and the brake fluid and then it’s thinking time. Nice that they’re not totally worthless now though.