E46 Sport & M Sport - fool proof way to tell the difference?

[dooosuk]

What's the easiest way to tell these apart? I'm assuming the log book will state explicitely but is there any way to tell from looking at the car as the Sport has some M badging doesn't it?

Just trying to pick my way through the minefield of adverts which seem to indicate Sport in the title but then say M Sport or M-Tech Sport in the blurb.

Thanks,
Andy

[dooosuk]

Vee said:

Sport and M sport are the same thing ?
E46s were Sport until around 2005, when BMW started calling them MSport.

Can anyone confirm this?

I'm new to BMWs but I'm sure I read somewhere that the Sport didn't have the M suspension.

Parkers also lists Sport and M Sport on this link http://www.parkers.co.uk/cars/specs/summary.aspx?m...

[dooosuk]

PartsGuru said:

dooosuk said:

Vee said:

Sport and M sport are the same thing ?
E46s were Sport until around 2005, when BMW started calling them MSport.

Can anyone confirm this?

I'm new to BMWs but I'm sure I read somewhere that the Sport didn't have the M suspension.

Parkers also lists Sport and M Sport on this link http://www.parkers.co.uk/cars/specs/summary.aspx?m...

I recently bought a 330ci 2000yr(I work at a BMW dealer) and was getting confused by the same problem. A trader that buys parts from me told me that the M sport didn't come in until 2001. All I did was put the reg number of anything I liked the look of thru the BMW system and checked the spec. If you see anything you like and you want to double check it I can do that for you.

Thanks PartsGuru, I might well be in touch or paying a visit to the local dealership to ask.

Andy

[dooosuk]

Thanks people.

[dooosuk]

Well, I found my way through all the mis-advertised ones and ended up with a 330 CI Sport, 02 plate with 64k miles on it for a few hundred quid under £7k. What do you think?





PartsGuru - can I take you up on that kind offer of a reg. check?

Thanks
Andy

[dooosuk]

Thanks, seemed to drive nice on my way back home last night. There's some slight bolster wear I need to sort out but hopefully that'll be it.

Thanks for the info again.

[dooosuk]

SJobson said:

Don't know if it's just the angle of the photos, but it looks like the rear wheels are the same size as the fronts when they should be staggered (wider rears).

Blimey, that's good eyes. On checking just now the tyres are indeed the same size 225/40/18's. I guess I'll have to check the size of the actual alloys sometime this week/weekend.

Should they be 8" at the front and 8.5" at the rear? Hoping they just have the wrong tyres on them.

Edited by dooosuk on Tuesday 29th September 09:15

[dooosuk]

fivesixseven8 said:

Thought I recognised that username You finally parted with the Golf then Andy? The 330 looks a nice buy.

Dave R.

Fingers crossed it turns out a reasonable buy...couldn't justify the 911 in the end with a possible move to London on the horizon and not knowing where I'll be living. Figured this should give me a little bit of fun for a few months.

I've still got the old Golf at the minute. Failed it's MOT on the exhaust downpipe, 1 front brake flexi hose and rusted rear suspension strut top caps. Don't fancy / probably can't do the downpipe myself and was quoted £250 labour for that and the manifold to be replaced (think there's a small crack in it since the 'ring trip). With 3 advisories on tyres etc and a water pump that sounds like it's probably on it's way out I decided its probably going to be scrapped/broken.