e46 330D yay or nay?

[Dirtydeedsman]

Good day to all,

I am big BMW fan looking to get my first BMW, currently I have a very reliable VW Polo that has never skipped a beat in the 2 years I have it, bought it as kinda of a safe bet as it was my first car and didn't want any troubles. During a recent trip from DBN the car performed well but I just felt I needed more comfort and bit more power especial coming out of PMB towards Howick.

So decided it was time to get a new car, now boxes that have to be ticked must be

Sunroof
Arm rest
Electric Windows
Manual
Msport
and most important.....Diesel.

Been looking at the E90 pre LCI and its hard to get a 320D Msport with manual gearbox around the ZAR135k mark.

Then I saw this beauty just the other day

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One thing you will notice off the bat is its not an E90 its infact a e46 330D AUTOMATIC with 180xxxkm on the clock

No sunroof
No Msport package

On sale for ZAR70K. Drove the car and it feels healthy and ready to go. Few cosmetic issues and the roof lining is coming apart but overall seems like a good deal.

Is this a good idea? Does anyone know any history of that specific car? what must I look out for?

 

[Nick]

^^ That is not an Msport.

 

[Sabretooth tiger]

PM Coisman on the forum, he can do the e-natis check for you.

As you say its not a Msport, but it does look very nice.

 

[Nick]

Front suspension bushes/control arms normally need to be replaced, you will feel them knocking when going over bumps.

 

[NtandoN]

From your list:
Sunroof - NO
Arm rest - YES
Electric Windows - YES
Manual - NO
Msport - NO
and most important.....Diesel. YES

In essence you have half of things you are looking for in this specific car. I would recommend that you take a bit more time and look around.

If you do decide to buy it check for FSH. Also get the VIN and check if there are any comments on it.

Check this out
http://www.gumtree.co.za/a-cars-bak...0-sport-auto-low-km/1001699653840910820040609

 

[Donovan2412]

E46 Yay

This specific E46 Nay

:rollsmile:

 

[Blert]

off the bat on gumtree for a little more you get what you want except sunroof

http://www.gumtree.co.za/a-cars-bak...330d-e46-individual/1001673351230910790259509

as its been said take your time

 

[FastCarFan]

If you don't mind me asking, why are you looking at a car half of what you are willing to spend, that does not match much of you search criteria?
E90 X
Manual X
M-Sport X
Sunroof X

 

[AdiS]

off the bat on gumtree for a little more you get what you want except sunroof

http://www.gumtree.co.za/a-cars-bak...330d-e46-individual/1001673351230910790259509

as its been said take your time

High mileage E46 autos are a risk, though.

I love the E46, but I feel like getting an E90 320d will be less problematic.

 

[Blert]

off the bat on gumtree for a little more you get what you want except sunroof

http://www.gumtree.co.za/a-cars-bak...330d-e46-individual/1001673351230910790259509

as its been said take your time

High mileage E46 autos are a risk, though.

I love the E46, but I feel like getting an E90 320d will be less problematic.

mine has almost 230k km on the clock and hasnt skipped a beat. so that misconception is so outdated. if the car has been taken cared of and not been driven as a scrap heap then as with its petrol counter part will last and give you miles of smiles

 

[AdiS]

off the bat on gumtree for a little more you get what you want except sunroof

http://www.gumtree.co.za/a-cars-bak...330d-e46-individual/1001673351230910790259509

as its been said take your time

High mileage E46 autos are a risk, though.

I love the E46, but I feel like getting an E90 320d will be less problematic.

mine has almost 230k km on the clock and hasnt skipped a beat. so that misconception is so outdated. if the car has been taken cared of and not been driven as a scrap heap then as with its petrol counter part will last and give you miles of smiles

I don't disagree with you, but its harder than you think to find an E46 these days that HAS been well taken care of.

 

[Dirtydeedsman]

If you don't mind me asking, why are you looking at a car half of what you are willing to spend, that does not match much of you search criteria?
E90 X
Manual X
M-Sport X
Sunroof X

I have always had a soft sport for the e46, they just look good. E90 would be a safe bet as it is newer but..
E90 would be an economic and sound decision
E46 would be an emotional buy

 

[FastCarFan]

From your list:
Sunroof - NO
Arm rest - YES
Electric Windows - YES
Manual - NO
Msport - NO
and most important.....Diesel. YES

In essence you have half of things you are looking for in this specific car. I would recommend that you take a bit more time and look around.

If you do decide to buy it check for FSH. Also get the VIN and check if there are any comments on it.

Check this out
http://www.gumtree.co.za/a-cars-bak...0-sport-auto-low-km/1001699653840910820040609

I'm sorry, I did not mean to duplicate your post.
We must have posted the same time.

 

[AdiS]

I have always had a soft sport for the e46, they just look good. E90 would be a safe bet as it is newer but..
E90 would be an economic and sound decision
E46 would be an emotional buy

With you on this, the E90 does nothing for me emotionally. I much prefer the E46.

 

[FastCarFan]

I have always had a soft sport for the e46, they just look good. E90 would be a safe bet as it is newer but..
E90 would be an economic and sound decision
E46 would be an emotional buy

E46 is nice, I especially like the facelift, like this one.

 

[Dirtydeedsman]

Is there companies that do 3rd party warranties on the e46 models?

 

[sash]

most companies would give a warranty if vehicle is under 10 years and under 200000km, not sure if its either or....

 

[Omar HS]

I would stay away from the m sport one from gauteng motors. They have a reputation for selling crap cars

 

[FILV]

you already have a reliable car that you trust, so why not take your time until you find exactly what you looking for?

i waited 2 years until i found a car with the spec i was looking for.


i personally i would have bought this one:
http://www.gumtree.co.za/a-cars-bakkies/centurion/bmw-320d-msport/1001673670720910173352109

here are some other examples:

http://www.autotrader.co.za/used-ca...r-l-6sp--fpa-8a81836e50af21410150d2579fc07e6d

http://www.autotrader.co.za/used-ca...f-per-l--fpa-8a81835d50b437630150ba552ada3c54

http://www.autotrader.co.za/used-ca...ve-auto--fpa-879dbe9f738343229f231e0421f0e77c

they are both M sport and mileage is not that high.

and if you want power, but not M sport:
http://www.autotrader.co.za/used-ca...es-330d--fpa-8a81b54e4f895558014f8d1777590788



take your time, and you will knwo when you have found 'the one'

 

[KidB]

It's easy to buy a car but hard to sell one. Rather find one that you are happy with, will leave you with no regrets and put a smile on your face everytime you drive it

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