Advice on buying an E90 330d

[GonzoTho]

Hi

Im looking at buying a car and would really appreciate some advice.

I went to test drive a 330d yesterday and I loved it. The dealer is offering a pre facelift 2008 model with 95000km (motorplan till July/105k) for R190000. It has sunroof and xenon's and "exclusive package" (not sure what this is) Is this a good price? And am I likely to find another one soon if I let it go? I need to buy a car fairly quickly as mine has been written off. It's from auto Atlantic and the salesman said he checked the history of the car and that there were "no issues". Can I assume this means no accident damage or should I insist on seeing some proof.

I would really like a 330d and I don't know if I can pass. The car seemed perfect but I didn't like the salesman. Any reasons to pass?

 

[Die_Miek]

In my opinion the price is fair, take the vin to bmw and ask them for a motorplan history printout. They will also be able to tell whether the car was in a accident.
Good luck

 

[prospect]

I think the price is high and no BMW looks good without an M-Sport kit IMO. Edit: Seems fair even though I sold mine for R190k in 2011 and trade was R180k then

If you decide to go for a non M-Sport 330d consider this 2009 LCI.

 

[GonzoTho]

That looks tempting. But its more than my budget will allow. I would prefer an M sports kit as well. It would be ideal if I could wait a couple of months but I need to buy a car soon and I really liked the 330d.

Now I just have to find a finance deal. Hoping BMW finance will give me a good offer. I got screwed by the banks when financing my first vehicle.

 

[GonzoTho]

I have been offered a 2 year extended warranty for 13k. Is this worthwhile? What are the chances of something major going wrong in the next 2 years (I'd imagine it's pretty small)? Should I look for specific items to be covered?

 

[DieselFan]

I have been offered a 2 year extended warranty for 13k. Is this worthwhile? What are the chances of something major going wrong in the next 2 years (I'd imagine it's pretty small)? Should I look for specific items to be covered?

Yes look what items are covered. I paid R7 000 for mine and the only thing I think thats going to be replaced under that POS warranty is the control arms.

EDIT: I guess you have some peace of mind over not having such a big blow to the wallet if a turbo pops, but in my case I'd still have to fork out R5k as the warranty only covers R7k. But I drive my cars in such a manner I doubt the turbo will go anytime soon.

 

[Die_Miek]

I have been offered a 2 year extended warranty for 13k. Is this worthwhile? What are the chances of something major going wrong in the next 2 years (I'd imagine it's pretty small)? Should I look for specific items to be covered?

13k sounds way too much for a extended warranty, it should be around R7000

 

[DieselFan]

I have been offered a 2 year extended warranty for 13k. Is this worthwhile? What are the chances of something major going wrong in the next 2 years (I'd imagine it's pretty small)? Should I look for specific items to be covered?

13k sounds way too much for a extended warranty, it should be around R7000

I'm sure it will all depend on coverage.

 

[GonzoTho]

Thanks for the advice guys. I decided to pass, mainly due to the attitude of the salesman. I'm going to see what SMG in Cape Town gets in next week, else I'm going to fly up to Gauteng soon to look for a car.

 

[herr bmw]

check with GA-3M here on the forum,he was selling his 330d

 

[RAArmstrong]

check with GA-3M here on the forum,he was selling his 330d

Should still be up for sale :thumbs:

 

[GonzoTho]

Anyone know if I can get BMW finance on a private sale? The bank screwed me with the interest on my previous loan (14.5%), due to it being my first finance application. I'd like to prevent something similar again.

 

[prospect]

Anyone know if I can get BMW finance on a private sale? The bank screwed me with the interest on my previous loan (14.5%), due to it being my first finance application. I'd like to prevent something similar again.

Yes you can :=):

 

[SP33DYV]

Anyone know if I can get BMW finance on a private sale? The bank screwed me with the interest on my previous loan (14.5%), due to it being my first finance application. I'd like to prevent something similar again.

Yes you can :=):

But only if you've been a BMW Finanace customer in the past.

 

[Yulz9081]

Anyone know if I can get BMW finance on a private sale? The bank screwed me with the interest on my previous loan (14.5%), due to it being my first finance application. I'd like to prevent something similar again.

Yes you can :=):

But only if you've been a BMW Finanace customer in the past.

Or if the seller was a customer. :thumbs:

 

[MaseehaGP]

Thanks for the advice guys. I decided to pass, mainly due to the attitude of the salesman. I'm going to see what SMG in Cape Town gets in next week, else I'm going to fly up to Gauteng soon to look for a car.

330d in Gauteng in neat condition and under 100 000 km with M kit very hard to come by, I gave up looking when I found a E60 530d while searching.

Guys are reluctant to sell as its expensive to replace.

 

[Iceman007]

Thanks for the advice guys. I decided to pass, mainly due to the attitude of the salesman. I'm going to see what SMG in Cape Town gets in next week, else I'm going to fly up to Gauteng soon to look for a car.

Very Wise

I also nearly bought a 2009 330d with 76k on the clock from them. the car was even in my name but ended up with another dealer buying an f30 320d demo and I am enjoying every moment of it with No Regrets:thumbs:

 

[GonzoTho]

So, I've been borrowing a car from my brother while I search for the right BMW. I've seen one that I am very interested in. It's a 2004 E46 (I preffer the looks of these to the e90) 330d with 75000km. I've pm'ed some forum members with the VIN number to see what I can find out about the history but assuming everything is fine I want to try and arrange to meet the owner ASAP.

The only issue for me at the moment is that the car has an auto box, and from what I have read these boxes are prone to failure. I have read that an auto to manual conversion is possible, does anyone know what the cost of this would be?

The car seems almost exactly what I'm looking for (except for the gearbox thing) and comes in quite a bit below budget, so I thought it might be a good idea to buy it and then spend some money at promotec and maybe fit a manual gearbox straight from the get go.

What would you guys offer him for the vehicle (assuming everything is in order)?

 

[AdiS]

Gizmo seems to have a knack for doing these manual conversions on E46s.

Here's a thread on an E46 330d manual conversion that was done not to long ago.

http://www.bmwfanatics.co.za/showthread.php?tid=44042

A manual conversion is not a bad idea, but yes, the auto boxes have a finite lifespan, so you can expect them to fail at some point.

 

[DieselFan]

I think Gizmo charges about R22 - 25 000 (cant remember the exact figure). And that is with a brand new clutch and flywheel.

Might be better to do it from the get-go so you can sell the autobox in working condition