E46 330i Touring
Discussion
Having been dailying this 530d for a couple of years, I began to get an itch for something new.. Also, rose tinted memories of older BMW's (in particular), that are easier to look after than modern stuff.. Having run an E46 320d ES Touring for 5yrs. I'd also thought about AMG Wagons and nearly pressed go on a nice C43 Wagon and a few E55's..
I'd just spent £800 odd fitting new Koni Actives and H&R Springs to this, and then this popped on FB Marketplace..
330i M-Sport Touring.. 6 speed manual! (A unicorn!)
With pretty much all the spec needed for me..
Xenons
Heated Sports leather (Exclusive leather at that)
Climate
4x electric windows
Harmon Kardon
Auto lights are
Are the highlights..
It was also a genuine 1 lady owner car until Feb 2020, when it was sold to a wannabe dealer who unfortunately put it in his name, then a young guy bought it off him, where it sat on his drive whilst he decided he would rather keep running about in his current 330i M-Sport Touring (5 speed).
I agreed a sale over Messenger and sent a deposit after a walk around video and some more pics/details. With the agreement I'd pick it up within the month. In true Petrolhead complete opposite way you should buy a car style..
I'd just spent £800 odd fitting new Koni Actives and H&R Springs to this, and then this popped on FB Marketplace..
330i M-Sport Touring.. 6 speed manual! (A unicorn!)
With pretty much all the spec needed for me..
Xenons
Heated Sports leather (Exclusive leather at that)
Climate
4x electric windows
Harmon Kardon
Auto lights are
Are the highlights..
It was also a genuine 1 lady owner car until Feb 2020, when it was sold to a wannabe dealer who unfortunately put it in his name, then a young guy bought it off him, where it sat on his drive whilst he decided he would rather keep running about in his current 330i M-Sport Touring (5 speed).
I agreed a sale over Messenger and sent a deposit after a walk around video and some more pics/details. With the agreement I'd pick it up within the month. In true Petrolhead complete opposite way you should buy a car style..
Edited by Jhonno on Friday 29th January 21:50
I made the trip up to Dudley from Essex to pick it up, my old man kindly offering a taxi service up there..
Arrived, and low and behold, it was pretty much as described, somewhat of a novelty in today's car purchasing experience! The only real issue that wasn't described was the fog lights weren't working and one was missing it's trim and it was low on oil.
Oh, and when I went to move it off the drive for a test drive, the brakes were stuck on, they released with a bang and all the ABS & TC lights came on and wouldn't switch off.. It drove OK on the test drive though, so payment made, paperwork signed and the journey home begun, via the nearest petrol station..
Upon fuelling up and getting to the outskirts of Dudley it was feeling a bit like there was a sticky brake, it would come to stop by itself when coasting to a halt.. Then as soon as I hit the motorway and went above 45mph the car started shaking. Balls. A brake was stuck or something. Having radio'd ahead to my old man, it then released off and I was able to continue at motorway speeds, albeit I had to drive from Dudley to Essex without using the brakes..
Other than that the journey was uneventful and the car returned 36.5mpg..
Parked up, and took stuff out of it and started checking things over and found a love note behind the driver's sun visor.
Parked up with the 5 and a mate's VX I'm babysitting..
Arrived, and low and behold, it was pretty much as described, somewhat of a novelty in today's car purchasing experience! The only real issue that wasn't described was the fog lights weren't working and one was missing it's trim and it was low on oil.
Oh, and when I went to move it off the drive for a test drive, the brakes were stuck on, they released with a bang and all the ABS & TC lights came on and wouldn't switch off.. It drove OK on the test drive though, so payment made, paperwork signed and the journey home begun, via the nearest petrol station..
Upon fuelling up and getting to the outskirts of Dudley it was feeling a bit like there was a sticky brake, it would come to stop by itself when coasting to a halt.. Then as soon as I hit the motorway and went above 45mph the car started shaking. Balls. A brake was stuck or something. Having radio'd ahead to my old man, it then released off and I was able to continue at motorway speeds, albeit I had to drive from Dudley to Essex without using the brakes..
Other than that the journey was uneventful and the car returned 36.5mpg..
Parked up, and took stuff out of it and started checking things over and found a love note behind the driver's sun visor.
Parked up with the 5 and a mate's VX I'm babysitting..
peterjfox said:
Nice car, all ok with it? I'm just about to pick an Auto on 56K which is mint. Really wanted a 6 speed manual but the condition of the Auto is like new with FSH. Most manuals I've seen are a bit ropey unfortunately.
Overall, it is fantastic.. Just needs a couple of little bits.Upon viewing in the daylight in my own time, nothing major came to light.. Other than an OCD upsetting mix of tyres. 2 Continentals, 2 Pirellis.. Except.. One of each on each axle, with the NSR being a Wintersport, OSR being a P Zero, NSF being a P Zero and OSF being a ContiSport runflat.. What sort of psychopath does this?! Also the 2 keys, turned out to be one for the door, one for the ignition..
Both front arches rusted (standard E46), little spot on the OSR arch. Also the dash is constantly warning me the tailgate is open, when it isn't (even the boot lights go out).
It only had a short MOT, so first things first was to get it ready for that, and go from there..
First up, the sticking caliper was established as being the OSF. Up in the air it went, caliper off, thinking I could clean up and be on my way. Sadly, the piston boot was shagged. Upon looking for rebuild kits and new calipers I came across some B Stock front calipers for £29. No brainer really. Ordered, arrived, fitted. Problem gone.
To placate my tyre OCD I took the fronts along to my local ProTyre whilst waiting for the caliper to arrive, and had a pair of Goodyear Asymmetric 5's fitted. 225/40/18 is a wonderfully cheap flavour after the boots on my E61..
Next on an idle Sunday, I thought I'd tighten the handbrake as it was a bit weak. Standard E46 affair really, but a bit odd perhaps considering it has new shoes in it's recent history.. Now I know all E46 owners and anyone who looks after them knows what is coming next, when I couldn't find the adjuster and spotted a loose pin in the bottom of the drum.
That's it.
The backplate was rusted out, allowing the handbrake securing pin to pull through and therefore the handbrake half rattles about in the drum waiting to get all caught up and perhaps lock the wheel up.. Perhaps pulled through as I unstuck the brakes on the seller's drive. A job which requires the removal of the hub to replace the back plate.. Well. It should, but I'll slit the old and new ones and twist them off/on over the hub.
So I ended up here for the evening, or until the new back plates and handbrake gubbins arrived.
Gave the arch and underside a pressure wash whilst I was there.. I don't think it had been done before.
Thought I'd go for a small win at the end, went to pull the foglight bulbs to check fitment.. Only the bulb was seized into the front fog housing.. At that point I packed up my tools and went in..
Both front arches rusted (standard E46), little spot on the OSR arch. Also the dash is constantly warning me the tailgate is open, when it isn't (even the boot lights go out).
It only had a short MOT, so first things first was to get it ready for that, and go from there..
First up, the sticking caliper was established as being the OSF. Up in the air it went, caliper off, thinking I could clean up and be on my way. Sadly, the piston boot was shagged. Upon looking for rebuild kits and new calipers I came across some B Stock front calipers for £29. No brainer really. Ordered, arrived, fitted. Problem gone.
To placate my tyre OCD I took the fronts along to my local ProTyre whilst waiting for the caliper to arrive, and had a pair of Goodyear Asymmetric 5's fitted. 225/40/18 is a wonderfully cheap flavour after the boots on my E61..
Next on an idle Sunday, I thought I'd tighten the handbrake as it was a bit weak. Standard E46 affair really, but a bit odd perhaps considering it has new shoes in it's recent history.. Now I know all E46 owners and anyone who looks after them knows what is coming next, when I couldn't find the adjuster and spotted a loose pin in the bottom of the drum.
That's it.
The backplate was rusted out, allowing the handbrake securing pin to pull through and therefore the handbrake half rattles about in the drum waiting to get all caught up and perhaps lock the wheel up.. Perhaps pulled through as I unstuck the brakes on the seller's drive. A job which requires the removal of the hub to replace the back plate.. Well. It should, but I'll slit the old and new ones and twist them off/on over the hub.
So I ended up here for the evening, or until the new back plates and handbrake gubbins arrived.
Gave the arch and underside a pressure wash whilst I was there.. I don't think it had been done before.
Thought I'd go for a small win at the end, went to pull the foglight bulbs to check fitment.. Only the bulb was seized into the front fog housing.. At that point I packed up my tools and went in..
Edited by Jhonno on Friday 29th January 10:40
bucksmanuk said:
BMW do a full service kit for the E46 handbrake, which is brake shoes, adjusters, a set of all the spring clips, and the handbrake actuators. I think its only £55. Its money well spent.
The back plates need replacing; they are £38 each and brace yourself for a FULL day swapping them out. To do the job properly the half shafts have to come out as well, and they may require some force. My spare axle set required 18.5 tonnes on the press…. Lots of nuts and bolts have to be disturbed. While you are there CV boots may as well be done and so it goes on!
I may be able to help you with almost a full set of the correct fasteners for the various tasks on the rear suspension. PM me for further details.
You are correct.. However.. It recently had shoes, and the adjusters and actuators were all good, so I bought a spring and pin kit off eBay for £8.The back plates need replacing; they are £38 each and brace yourself for a FULL day swapping them out. To do the job properly the half shafts have to come out as well, and they may require some force. My spare axle set required 18.5 tonnes on the press…. Lots of nuts and bolts have to be disturbed. While you are there CV boots may as well be done and so it goes on!
I may be able to help you with almost a full set of the correct fasteners for the various tasks on the rear suspension. PM me for further details.
That is the correct way to do it, but I didn't have the time/money/inclination in the middle of winter on the drive, to deal with what would end up being a full rear end strip and rebuild, especially when I have other cars needing attention. So I bought a pair of backplates for £35 and put a slit through them to twist them on.
Whilst waiting for Postie to deliver the goods, a quick win for an evening.. Car came with 2 different keys where a specialist had just put a new lock and key in, I'm guessing after the E46 broken lock syndrome. Why they didn't rebuild it and keep the same key is beyond me.. Kits are like £6 and take 10 mins to fit.. Anyway.. Luckily they left the original barrel in the door pocket so I rebuilt the lock with the original, so back to 1 key for the door and ignition. Aaahhh.. Satisfying! Just need to work out if the key battery is dead or the boot loom broken stopping the remote working. Oh, and order another key.
PurpleTurtle said:
Buckling in for the thread!
I love an E46. I had a 330Ci from new, and now run an M3 as my daily. I say run, it has barely moved since Xmas. only 85k miles but needs a new front wing. Currently baulking at prices - the M tax on these is horrendous, compared to the regular E46.
Loving the look of your car OP, it's just the kind of thing I would like as our second family wagon. For me they just do everything, and hit that sweet spot of performance/economy/reliability where nothing is going to be too eye-watering, and have a decent level of tech on board, but not so much that you can't spanner one at home. I'd happily run one until the end of time.
Love an E46 M3! It's on my list.. M Scene tax can be horrendous.. I love an E46. I had a 330Ci from new, and now run an M3 as my daily. I say run, it has barely moved since Xmas. only 85k miles but needs a new front wing. Currently baulking at prices - the M tax on these is horrendous, compared to the regular E46.
Loving the look of your car OP, it's just the kind of thing I would like as our second family wagon. For me they just do everything, and hit that sweet spot of performance/economy/reliability where nothing is going to be too eye-watering, and have a decent level of tech on board, but not so much that you can't spanner one at home. I'd happily run one until the end of time.
The only bit of tech missing is i-Drive, so I'll fit an Android unit at some point..
Usget said:
That really is a unicorn. A mate has been looking for a 330i manual touring for a while now so I keep an eye out, except there are hardly any!
I can't find a manual for sale atm.. Nevermind a 6 speed. E46's are at a funny point atm, some nice stuff is rare, and some don't seem to accept that they will cost a bit more! Nice 330i M-Sport Touring automatics are rare even. Big engine, small car, manual is a big hole in the market these days.
I wasn't even looking to buy, just stumbled on it, asked a few pertinent questions and next thing I knew I was leaving a deposit. I knew I couldn't turn down a nice 6 spd 330i M-Sport Touring as I'll probably not see another.
Sf_Manta said:
Good to see another E46 Touring being saved. Feel free to drop any queries and we can help 
Have got my own, which was a 5 speed manual now convered to 6 speed (M3 box). It's currently awaiting to have it's engine refreshed.. though has been extensively reworked into a bit of a fast road / track tool. Also sounds a bit fruity these days
Nice! Like the colour! Have got my own, which was a 5 speed manual now convered to 6 speed (M3 box). It's currently awaiting to have it's engine refreshed.. though has been extensively reworked into a bit of a fast road / track tool. Also sounds a bit fruity these days
Edited by Sf_Manta on Friday 29th January 14:37
Edited by Sf_Manta on Friday 29th January 15:14
smn159 said:
Nice find - I must get around to updating the thread on mine. still going strong and has had a new wing and fuel pipes since I last updated
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
I like the headunit! Can't decided where to go for a branded one like yours or a Chinese Android unit.https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Falcuono said:
Nice car and love the unique color.
Have mine for 9 years now and they are great do it all cars.
Personal the best upgrade was using oversized tires : 245-40 on 18 square.
Front and overal grip improved a lot, better balanced car.
I do live in neighborhood with lots of speed bums so the extra road clearance came in handy.
Still think it looks good.
I like the wheels.. I was probably going to go 225/40/18 square as it is a nice cheap and available size.Have mine for 9 years now and they are great do it all cars.
Personal the best upgrade was using oversized tires : 245-40 on 18 square.
Front and overal grip improved a lot, better balanced car.
I do live in neighborhood with lots of speed bums so the extra road clearance came in handy.
Still think it looks good.
smn159 said:
Jhonno said:
smn159 said:
Nice find - I must get around to updating the thread on mine. still going strong and has had a new wing and fuel pipes since I last updated
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
I like the headunit! Can't decided where to go for a branded one like yours or a Chinese Android unit.https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Next up.. Fog lights.
They weren't working when I picked it up. Assumed bulb. It was also missing the trim on the OS and it was letting moisture in, so I took the plunge/risk on some after market new ones that came with trims. They were half the price of a bare new OEM unit.
They arrived and the quality seems OK, adjuster is the other way round, but I can't see it being a big issue.
We shall see how they stand up to being on the car..
The trims however, didn't feel like they fitted all that well, so I only used the OS one to replace the missing one.
Went to turn them on and nothing.. Turns out the first stop of checking fuses was as far as I needed to go. The fuse had been removed out some point!
I also invested in some LED bulbs to match the xenons from Horizon LEDs.
Obligatory 50:50 shot..
Then all done.
I bought some sidelight bulbs too.. Well.. Thought I did.. 1 arrived. Apparently they don't come in pairs.. So left the halogens in for now..
It's a subtle difference, but looks much better with the clean lenses and trims all in place.
They weren't working when I picked it up. Assumed bulb. It was also missing the trim on the OS and it was letting moisture in, so I took the plunge/risk on some after market new ones that came with trims. They were half the price of a bare new OEM unit.
They arrived and the quality seems OK, adjuster is the other way round, but I can't see it being a big issue.
We shall see how they stand up to being on the car..
The trims however, didn't feel like they fitted all that well, so I only used the OS one to replace the missing one.
Went to turn them on and nothing.. Turns out the first stop of checking fuses was as far as I needed to go. The fuse had been removed out some point!
I also invested in some LED bulbs to match the xenons from Horizon LEDs.
Obligatory 50:50 shot..
Then all done.
I bought some sidelight bulbs too.. Well.. Thought I did.. 1 arrived. Apparently they don't come in pairs.. So left the halogens in for now..
It's a subtle difference, but looks much better with the clean lenses and trims all in place.
Handbrake sorted..
New backing plates arrived. The only way to replace the backing plates properly is to pull the hub and do the bearing at the same time. Couldn't be arsed with that. The bearings are good, so I slit the new backing plates and twisted/slid them into place instead. Problem solved. Handbrake rebuild with new springs/pins and greased all moving parts. Must be one of the best E46 handbrakes in the country now.. Also ordered and fitted new caliper bracket bolts as the ones on there were getting a bit sketchy to undo..
New backing plates arrived. The only way to replace the backing plates properly is to pull the hub and do the bearing at the same time. Couldn't be arsed with that. The bearings are good, so I slit the new backing plates and twisted/slid them into place instead. Problem solved. Handbrake rebuild with new springs/pins and greased all moving parts. Must be one of the best E46 handbrakes in the country now..
Also ordered and fitted new caliper bracket bolts as the ones on there were getting a bit sketchy to undo.. Front wings were rusted. Standard E46 affair.
Managed to source a pair locally in the right colour so swapped them on..
Someone mentioned to me they collect mud at the base of the a-pillar.. He wasn't wrong!! All cleaned out and zero rust.
All done..
The difference in shade is because the wing was clean and the car isn't.. The arches were mint, but to make sure, I cleaned up behind the lip, applied Aqua Steel and then primed and painted them to make sure. They shouldn't rust for many many years now..
MOT ready.. Still dirty, other than the new wings
Managed to source a pair locally in the right colour so swapped them on..
Someone mentioned to me they collect mud at the base of the a-pillar.. He wasn't wrong!! All cleaned out and zero rust.
All done..
The difference in shade is because the wing was clean and the car isn't.. The arches were mint, but to make sure, I cleaned up behind the lip, applied Aqua Steel and then primed and painted them to make sure. They shouldn't rust for many many years now..
MOT ready.. Still dirty, other than the new wings
Edited by Jhonno on Sunday 31st January 20:53
On the MOT ramps..
For those sat waiting with baited breath.. It passed with a clean bill of health and a compliment on it's condition. Chuffed with that after my efforts.
A couple of quick improvements after I ended up with a "free" afternoon this weekend..
The seller said he'd send some dealer plates as part of the deal.. He actually came through, and they arrived this week.
Old plates were shot..
Old plates removed, quick clean up behind..
On...
Next up, at some point a dog had chewed various bits of trim in the boot including the seat backs.. Which aren't available as a separate item..
The breaker who sold me the front wings also sold me a rear seat back with the correct anthracite carpets on the back, and trims in place. Que an hour of carefully unsticking/peeling the backs off the donor seats.. A quicker removal of the chewed ones in the car due to knowing how to remove trims, and less care taken not to damage the trims. Some extra sticky trim adhesive, and a bit of wiggling later and..
Ahhh.. So much better. You'd never know! Bloody lucky it didn't chew the exclusive leather headrests!!!
Random shot of the C10 I sold over first lockdown..
I have a constant itch for new cars! Absolutely need another daft V8 Yank Tank on the drive again at some point.
For those sat waiting with baited breath.. It passed with a clean bill of health and a compliment on it's condition. Chuffed with that after my efforts.
A couple of quick improvements after I ended up with a "free" afternoon this weekend..
The seller said he'd send some dealer plates as part of the deal.. He actually came through, and they arrived this week.
Old plates were shot..
Old plates removed, quick clean up behind..
On...
Next up, at some point a dog had chewed various bits of trim in the boot including the seat backs.. Which aren't available as a separate item..
The breaker who sold me the front wings also sold me a rear seat back with the correct anthracite carpets on the back, and trims in place. Que an hour of carefully unsticking/peeling the backs off the donor seats.. A quicker removal of the chewed ones in the car due to knowing how to remove trims, and less care taken not to damage the trims. Some extra sticky trim adhesive, and a bit of wiggling later and..
Ahhh.. So much better. You'd never know! Bloody lucky it didn't chew the exclusive leather headrests!!!
Random shot of the C10 I sold over first lockdown..
I have a constant itch for new cars! Absolutely need another daft V8 Yank Tank on the drive again at some point.
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