discussion My Potential Buy- 5 speed Manual E46 330i

[Zee87]

Hello Everybody

Looking for some buying advice.

While looking for an E90 320d LCI, I came across an ad for a 2002 E46 facelift 330i and immediately my heart is telling me yes. The thing is, it's the 5 spd manual version though. It has 169k km and full service history. From the pictures he's sent the car looks extremely clean. The interior is fresh and engine looks good as well

The owner says while he has owned it (3rd owner) not a cent was spent on anything besides normal maintenance but a car that's 20 years old would at least have had some issues over the years right? How are the facelift E46 330's as they get to the higher miles?

His asking price, I feel is a bit high @R120k. What would be a good counter offer for a vehicle of this age/mileage? I know giving a proper value is difficult without actually seeing the car and driving it but if someone could kindly ballpark for me.

So basically what I need is advice on whether to listen to my heart and give this E46 some serious consideration or just keep searching for the E90 320d manual. If I were to bring him down on price would that be a reason to take it.

 

[Tinuva]

Try and get it for R85k. There is only one E46 330i that is worth 120-200k, and that is the one @AdiS sold to another forum member. The reason that car could ask that high a price, there is a detailed forum thread on all the extra money that was spent on the car, from suspension to brand new steering wheel and a-pillars and that car was in real mint condition.

The mileage is not the problem.

The BIG problem of the car you talk about, is summed up in the one sentence, unless its typed wrong:

not a cent was spent on anything besides normal maintenance

That means, that car either must have had lots of maintenance done by the 2nd owner, or it will need another R15-20k to bring it up to a good standard, aka it has a huge maintenance back log. Normal maintenance means oil intervals were kept by. Which is not enough for these cars. They will keep on running yes, but man they are so much better with a whole suspension refresh, cooling system refresh, and all the filters and brakes etc.

 

[VinceM]

E46s are old…2002 is a 21 years old car.
This means that a lot of stuff would need to be looked at (and possibly cost you money).

Please see if you can get your hands on the maintenance records to see what was done.

You are in for shocks and cooling system refresh at a minimum if all that was done is oil services. Someone already mentioned that being diy competent saves on labour costs but the real cost is in the parts themselves.

Old BMWs are also prone to oil leaks (oil
Filter housing gasket, tappet gasket rear main seal, and all other gaskets would need to be checked).

E46 is a great platform thats well put together (quality of materials used) and its a rewarding drive

All the best!


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[Zee87]

Try and get it for R85k. There is only one E46 330i that is worth 120-200k, and that is the one @AdiS sold to another forum member. The reason that car could ask that high a price, there is a detailed forum thread on all the extra money that was spent on the car, from suspension to brand new steering wheel and a-pillars and that car was in real mint condition.

The mileage is not the problem.

The BIG problem of the car you talk about, is summed up in the one sentence, unless its typed wrong:

That means, that car either must have had lots of maintenance done by the 2nd owner, or it will need another R15-20k to bring it up to a good standard, aka it has a huge maintenance back log. Normal maintenance means oil intervals were kept by. Which is not enough for these cars. They will keep on running yes, but man they are so much better with a whole suspension refresh, cooling system refresh, and all the filters and brakes etc.

Try and get it for R85k. There is only one E46 330i that is worth 120-200k, and that is the one @AdiS sold to another forum member. The reason that car could ask that high a price, there is a detailed forum thread on all the extra money that was spent on the car, from suspension to brand new steering wheel and a-pillars and that car was in real mint condition.

The mileage is not the problem.

The BIG problem of the car you talk about, is summed up in the one sentence, unless its typed wrong:

That means, that car either must have had lots of maintenance done by the 2nd owner, or it will need another R15-20k to bring it up to a good standard, aka it has a huge maintenance back log. Normal maintenance means oil intervals were kept by. Which is not enough for these cars. They will keep on running yes, but man they are so much better with a whole suspension refresh, cooling system refresh, and all the filters and brakes etc.

Yeah so he said he hasn’t needed to spend a cent on anything besides services since he bought it.

 

[Nikhil]

Try and get it for R85k. There is only one E46 330i that is worth 120-200k, and that is the one @AdiS sold to another forum member. The reason that car could ask that high a price, there is a detailed forum thread on all the extra money that was spent on the car, from suspension to brand new steering wheel and a-pillars and that car was in real mint condition.

The mileage is not the problem.

The BIG problem of the car you talk about, is summed up in the one sentence, unless its typed wrong:

That means, that car either must have had lots of maintenance done by the 2nd owner, or it will need another R15-20k to bring it up to a good standard, aka it has a huge maintenance back log. Normal maintenance means oil intervals were kept by. Which is not enough for these cars. They will keep on running yes, but man they are so much better with a whole suspension refresh, cooling system refresh, and all the filters and brakes etc.

Lol I should update that thread given that another 50k has been spent on it 🤣

 

[Zee87]

Lol I should update that thread given that another 50k has been spent on it 🤣

Please share a link to the thread

 

[Tinuva]

Lol I should update that thread given that another 50k has been spent on it

You better update your thread! Not another e46 330 in sa in the same condition that I am aware of.

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[Tinuva]

Yeah so he said he hasn’t needed to spend a cent on anything besides services since he bought it.

Yeah so I have my doubts. Maybe you can share the ad or photos. Get @Riaad input too.

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[TurboLlew]

There are no cars that we have owned in the past 10 years that didn't need some attention even bought from brand new... let alone a 20 year old car...

Sure motorplan pays, but they still need attention outside of basics. Even Toyota owners will tell you this. Getting the service book stamped and oil changed while ignoring issues causes them to stack, and then possibly cascade... many many examples of when and how this happens... Small seal for R50 and maybe R450 labour ends up costing you anywhere from failed sensors to scuffed cams or a full engine rebuild...

The same guy will tell you "these are old cars they make noises" or put "exceptional condition" (for its age) and it really means absolutely nothing without doing your due diligence.

 

[Zee87]

Yeah so I have my doubts. Maybe you can share the ad or photos. Get @Riaad input too.

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[momo1]

car looks great, if you do end up buying it and keeping it for a long time i suggest you do all required preventative maintenance, a refresh of all suspension components, shock and engine mounts, change out all fluids and take care of anything else worrying you in that engine bay.
I would budget at least 50k for all of this and have it done to give you that peace of mind, probably not immediately but over a year or 2. would be a nice mini project.

 

[Tinuva]

Looks like that is a 2001/10 model -> https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/select?vin=ng95086
At least all the airbag recalls have been done.
LAST SERVICED ON: 2017-03-08 at a BMW dealer.

Lets see if I got the vin correct. https://www.mdecoder.com/decode/wbaet56060ng95086

Now I can point out a few things that are not oem standard on this car.
* Interior trim was changed from wood trim to what looks like black.
* That fin above rear window is not standard. If the car had a phone, it actually lines right down to the window.
* The rear strip on the boot, is not even painted the same color as the car. Left unpainted, strange
* I want to ignore the angel eyes but people seem to like them
* Not a sport package sadly, but original buyer opted for sport steering wheel, electric seats and pdc

That said, the car looks neat in the photos. Some work done to make it look different from oem spec but a select few corners cut, like not painting the rear strip does mean you need to check everything. That said, usually the less done to a car, the better the chances its still in good condition, allowing you to either keep it like that and just maintain or do whatever.

I still think R120k is too high an ask for this car. R85k most.

 

[Riaad]

Yeah so I have my doubts. Maybe you can share the ad or photos. Get @Riaad input too.

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been on the market for some time now
the E92 m3 caught my attention

Not much to add to the comments already mentioned...Other than the wiring for the angel eyes is done quite untidily and the temp gauge seems to be sitting higher than it should be - which circles back to budgeting to have the cooling system redone (expansion tank, thermostat, etc)

In my opinion - at 120k ...its abit over priced, considering the extensive maintenance and mods that I had on my 330i which sold for similar monies.

 

[Tinuva]

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been on the market for some time now
the E92 m3 caught my attention

Nice, seller says its a 2002 while the official bmw website says its a 2001/10 car.

Why is the roof painted black

 

[Riaad]

Nice, seller says its a 2002 while the official bmw website says its a 2001/10 car.

Why is the roof painted black

Wraps...

*hopefully

 

[AshG108]

Damn,

This thing look sdamn clean, wanting a premium price but damn it looks too good to be true. Just go see it and make sure the pics match the real life condition then take into account anything needed after reviewing the maintenance list.

This is such a solid beaut!

 

[Zee87]

Looks like that is a 2001/10 model -> https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/select?vin=ng95086
At least all the airbag recalls have been done.
LAST SERVICED ON: 2017-03-08 at a BMW dealer.

Lets see if I got the vin correct. https://www.mdecoder.com/decode/wbaet56060ng95086

Now I can point out a few things that are not oem standard on this car.
* Interior trim was changed from wood trim to what looks like black.
* That fin above rear window is not standard. If the car had a phone, it actually lines right down to the window.
* The rear strip on the boot, is not even painted the same color as the car. Left unpainted, strange
* I want to ignore the angel eyes but people seem to like them
* Not a sport package sadly, but original buyer opted for sport steering wheel, electric seats and pdc

That said, the car looks neat in the photos. Some work done to make it look different from oem spec but a select few corners cut, like not painting the rear strip does mean you need to check everything. That said, usually the less done to a car, the better the chances its still in good condition, allowing you to either keep it like that and just maintain or do whatever.

I still think R120k is too high an ask for this car. R85k most.

Wow thanks for those details. I didn’t even see that in the pics. Goes to show how much I have to learn.

 

[Zee87]

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been on the market for some time now
the E92 m3 caught my attention

Not much to add to the comments already mentioned...Other than the wiring for the angel eyes is done quite untidily and the temp gauge seems to be sitting higher than it should be - which circles back to budgeting to have the cooling system redone (expansion tank, thermostat, etc)

In my opinion - at 120k ...its abit over priced, considering the extensive maintenance and mods that I had on my 330i which sold for similar monies.

Yes that’s the one. If it has been on the market for a while, isn’t that a red flag. If the vehicle was as clean as other members here have said, I think it would have been snapped up long ago. Maybe he isn’t budging on the price? I will go look at the vehicle after work and update. Please if I can have a list of things to look out for. In addition to what others have pointed out.

 

[DINODENASH]

do it !

 

[Zee87]

Wraps...

*hopefully

Yeah the roof, boot lip and mirrors were wrapped in black.


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