E36 M3 vs E46 330ci

[BountyHunter]

hi guys wonder if you can help.

a friend is looking for a new car around the £5k mark.
he was going to go for a nice E36 M3 3.0 (vanos worries him too much to have a 3.2) but now someone else has suggested an E46 330ci

ive driven loads of M3's but have little experience with the 330ci


does anyone know how they compare, what mods can be done to the engine/running gear on a 330 etc.

thanks

[Cliffv8]

can you even get a 330ci for 5K?

[CampDavid]

Not one taht you'd want to have

The older 328i would be the choice. Horses for courses on that one

[CampDavid]

I take that back, you can get a decent one for 4k!!!

[paul328m3]

A good 330ci is a cracking car. A lot more modern than the E36 and feels more solid and relaxed. An E36 M3 will bankrupt you if you get a bad one. But get a good one and they're amazing. An underrated car IMO. Performance wise the E36 M3 will have the 330ci's pants down.

[agent006]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

What he said.

Have driven a friend's 330i quite a lot and it's a great cruiser but lacks the feel and raw pace of an M car.

[dxb335d]

Depends what he really wants. Best advice to him is to test drive the two cars back to back or at least on the same day.

I would say overall the e46 is a better car. But if performance is the be all and end all then the E36 m3 is quicker.

[[TW]Fox]

I wouldnt touch a £5k 330i.

[Bill Carr]

[TW]Fox said:

I wouldnt touch a £5k 330i.

Out of interest, why not? There seems to be a lot of them about at around this price level (ok, give or take a grand!) - mostly saloons and/or Auto's. The earliest models were 2000 X-regmaking them an 8 year old car and to me, £5k seems to be about the right price-point.

Just interested as I'm considering one as my next car (in the next 6-8 months) or maybe an E36 328.

[daveco]

I was in a similiar predicament to the op, and I bought a '00 330ci in February this year. It has 90k on the clock, and apart from a few small problems (PCV valve, oil level sensor, O2 sensor) it's been fine. Taking into consideration how hard I drive it, it's been an absolute bargain thus far.

For reliability and city driving the 330 beats the M3 hands down. It really isn't that much slower than the M3, unless you're approaching crazy speeds or decide to track it. I will admit it is a less visceral experience in the 330, but if you push it there is plenty of power and the torque arrives low in the rev range making town driving a doddle (i.e. pulling off in 2nd gear is fine).

[Welshbeef]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

You must cover VERy few miles to even be considering a NA 4.0 V8

[[TW]Fox]

Bill Carr said:

[TW]Fox said:

I wouldnt touch a £5k 330i.

Out of interest, why not? There seems to be a lot of them about at around this price level (ok, give or take a grand!) - mostly saloons and/or Auto's. The earliest models were 2000 X-regmaking them an 8 year old car and to me, £5k seems to be about the right price-point.

I was more thinking Coupes - Coupes have a price premium on them becuase they are 'cool' whereas a saloon is not, a £5k 330i saloon is probably fine - but I'd be wondering why a 330Ci was only £5k.

[agent006]

Welshbeef said:

anonymous said:

[redacted]

You must cover VERy few miles to even be considering a NA 4.0 V8

The price premium for a 530d will buy an awful lot of fuel for a 540.

[Welshbeef]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

Yes but say you buy a 7 year old 530d your probably going to keep it until it dies so its that extra premium over many years.

Also with TDI's there is no ignition system to play up as the car gets older.

[agent006]

Welshbeef said:

Also with TDI's there is no ignition system to play up as the car gets older.

There is, however, a forced induction system to play up.

[BountyHunter]

Cliffv8 said:

can you even get a 330ci for 5K?

yes.

cheapest ive seen (that appears legit) is £4k

how about this (mate would have it if he was buying today instead of in a few weeks)
http://search.autotrader.co.uk/es-uk/www/cars/BMW+...

[BountyHunter]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

makes me wish i had £5k atm.
id be sorely tempted myself.