E46 320d

[Proxy]

Hi guys,

Going to look at an E46 320d tomorrow, was wondering if anyone on here has/has had one and if there's any common faults/things I should look out for?

Any help would be much appreciated!

Cheers

[RedWhiteMonkey]

There's been lots of previous threads asking this question, try the search facility.

[Patrick Bateman]

Swirl flaps and turbos would be the 2 most serious.

[Tea Pot One]

Patrick Bateman said:

Swirl flaps and turbos would be the 2 most serious.

Totally agree .... swirl flaps !! If not removed they need to be to avoid potentially a bill for a new engine.

[Proxy]

Been having a browse on t'internet about these Swirl Flaps now that you guys have mentioned them.
Looks like a pricey fix.

Definitely something I'll be looking for.

Thanks guys

[Tea Pot One]

They are cheap to remove ... they don't really pose the same problem on the later E90's ... but on the E46 they are definitely a big issue.

[mjcneat]

I've owned mine for around 18 months, only things to let me down were a fuel filter (leaking fuel underneath car), £50 to fix, rear exhaust hanger (google it) cheap fix and one of the parking sensors went a couple of weeks ago but not got around to it yet, does look easy to replace though, DIY job.

It has just failed it's MOT this afternoon though due to rear nearside coil spring being snapped, apparently it's a common problem after a quick search online but again, not too expensive a fix.

[garymorgan]

Proxy said:

Been having a browse on t'internet about these Swirl Flaps now that you guys have mentioned them.
Looks like a pricey fix.

Definitely something I'll be looking for.

Thanks guys

My mate and I have just done these on his E60 530d and were not that tricky. The inlet manifold was a bit of a pain to remove but nothing a handy amatuer couldn't handle.

Give me a shout Proxy if you do get one and I'll be happy to give you a hand FOC.

I live in North Lanarkshire