First! i know I made a thread about the s2k and Z, but obv. it wouldn’t be my daily, and I’m not looking for those until spring, but what I’m looking for now is a cheap DD, so read on:
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I’ve been looking at high mileage e46’s. I’m talking 323/325/330i. My criteria is must be 5spd and a sedan (hence 325i) I’d really like a 325iT (wagon) but I cannot find them in a manual transmission.
I’d prefer to buck up and get the 330 for the motor… My ideal would be a White 330i 5spd with black interior… around $10k.
What am I looking for as far as maintenance and reliability with these motors 100k+? What about wheel bearings…and electrical issues…and things that will nickel and dime me.
This car would be a mileage whore, as I do drive a lot, that’s why I don’t really care if it is a higher mileage car.
I could pick up a jetta or civic or the like for a nice daily…but I figure if i’m going to drop the coin, I want something a bit more exciting and i’ve always enjoyed bmws. Also, if anyone knows a good deal at a dealer, let me know, as I need to trade my WRX in on this… As it’s impossible to sell a car right now…
Cooling system sucks, make sure you change water pump, t-stat, ect. Rear coil springs break. Oil separator freezes causing the motor to hydrolock with oil or the valve cover/gasket fails due to pressure buildup (during these cold winter months). Xi’s front cv boots tear frequently. Thats just off the top of my head from what I see on most days. Overall they are pretty solid vehicles. Get a service history if you can to make sure it was taken care of.
fuck that shit, sounds like a maintenance nightmare. Might as well by a DSM. Why get rid of the WRX? If anything, trade your current WRX in on an 09. Way funner car.
lol, the 09 has like… 30 more hp… i’ll buy a downpipe and reflash my car and be faster…
The whole this is, i’d rather just get something much cheaper and have no payments…
I know a $25k car isn’t really that expensive…but I’d rather take my money and save it for a DP on a house in the future…
not just about the HP. So what are your plans? Buy a BMW now, and buy a 350z/s2000 in the summer? Own both? Sell the BMW in spring? I don’t really understand what your plan is?
I don’t disagree with trading out and spending less money. However, a high mileage BMW driven a lot of miles is going to require a decent amount of maintenance.
Buying a BMW AND another 12k sports car is just retarded.
Yeah, that’s pretty much my plan. I’d rather own 2 $10K cars that have pretty much depreciated 90% rather than drive a $25K car that is still going to depreciate heavily the next 4 years.
I’d really like to get some more info from people who actually own the car in question…
2 of my friends have a 325 and a 330xi…and between the 2 of them the only things they’ve replaced were an alternator and a window regulator
Can you just explain something? Why do you want a high mileage bmw and an s2000/350z and a motorcycle?
Isn’t it just overkill? You are going to get killed on insurance and you are still going to have to make payments on one of the cars. If you are not proud, you are probably ashamed. So why not just make a change and stop being stupid about it?
I have a 2002 525i 5-sp sport/prem and I love it soooooo much as a daily driver. I know you asked about E46 but I just thought I would share. I have owned it for almost a year and not a single problem and I simply love the car. Hell its the reason I bought an M5 I never ws interested in them at all before I fell in love with my 525i. Also if you get a 325/525 in 5-sp with sport package it is plenty entertaining to drive for a daily.
I have been a member there for like 7 months and havent made a post, idk why. I just read a lot. I have been planning on getting a 3 series, but that got pushed back with plans to go to England for a semester or so.
I’ve got…ok, actually, my wife has an '00 323i 5-speed sedan.
Here are a couple of shots on the Summer package:
Anyway, it’s got about 135k on it. Had 120k when we bought it. If you’re looking for an early car, make absolutely sure that the rear subframe mounts are not tearing out of the unibody. VERY common problem. This car had the problem, and it’s a fairly extensive job to repair it. It would retail for around 12-1400 to get this done at a dealer. Now, with that said, don’t be too concerned about maintenance. It’s no better/worse than any other Euro car. This car has been pretty solid, and I worked on this particular one for two years before I bought it from my customer.
Right now, the only downside is that performance exhaust is EXPENSIVE. Kind of a shame, since that’s the next mod she wants to do on the car, other than coilovers.
Feel free to stop by/call, and I can give you more info.
lies! when I worked at holtz we had to do 2 of them for ‘free’ (bmwna paid for them, e46fanatics.com has many documented results of ppl getting them paid for) but def should have it checked out regardless
I wish I knew I would fall in love with e46’s after I quit there, as I would have done the repair for the experience. but its a shit ton of work so I stayed away, lol.
auto body wise these cars are cake to work on, right after any mercedes.
