E46 6 Cylinder Drivers

[AdiS]

I appreciate the input guys. I agree that diesels and FI are better suited to every situations and it seems like this is the route all major manufacturers are beginning to take.

I've driven an F10 530d, didn't expect to be blown away like I was. The 8 speed constantly keeps it in the right power band...it just pulls and pulls.

First time I drove an f10 530d I was also astounded


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[LPM320]

When I bought my now ex e46 325i I was quite disappointed (coming from an e36 328i). I found it was quite sterile below 4000 r/min, and only really started hauling in the last 1000 r/min. I also listened to people say that the e46 325i is more or less the same as an e36 328i, only to find that the 325i was quite abit ''muted''. I dont like revving the nuts off a motor to maintain rapid forward motion. When im trying to extract maximum performance, yes, otherwise I enjoy a car that feels strong all through the rev range as well as at high rpm. I dont think that the e46 325i is a bad motor at all, just that its peaky nature combined with a heavy body dumbs it down alot. Theres no denying that a 325i sounds magnificent at high RPM though.

I became so frustrated with the e46 325i power delivery, that I have since gone back to an e36 328i and have not looked back. Just enjoying that creamy solid torque all day every day. Changing gears between 2500 - 3000 r/min will see me keeping well ahead of traffic, even up inclines. Althogh my car does have a couple of mods...

I recently drove a 1993 e36 325i non vanos, and that felt more lively than my e46 325i. Maybe its the vanos seals as moranor said, but I still prefer the feel of the bigger motors in the respective ranges.... They always seem to have that little bit extra...

 

[moranor@axis]

my car gained about 20Nm when i changed seals :rollsmile:

I never go over 3000 Rpm when the engine is warming up and no issues getting ahead with traffic...

ok the short ratio diff and NF helps... also Im at about 700m above sea level so dont suffer that badly with altitude loss...

 

[Yuben]

Would love to see a 325 go up against a 328, funny that the latter only has one more horsepower, but again, torque should make a difference - gearbox as well.

Although the 328 has only 1kw more than the 325, its the 35nm more that makes the difference.
Due to the weight of the E36, it is quicker than the E46 328.
If u check out you tube, there's not much between the 330i and E36 328

 

[OppositeLockMT]

I wonder why they made the difference between the E36 and E46 328 so minimal, ofcourse all the refinements were welcomed but someone coming from an E36 328 to an E46 328 would probably feel slightly underwhelmed.

 

[Sankekur]

Have you considered swapping the diff to a 3.38 or a 3.46? Won't give any improvements performance-wise, but it will improve the feel of the car in everyday driving, of course would will be changing gears more often.

 

[LPM320]

I wonder why they made the difference between the E36 and E46 328 so minimal, ofcourse all the refinements were welcomed but someone coming from an E36 328 to an E46 328 would probably feel slightly underwhelmed.

I think its because they always had the M54 range of motors in mind, and just used the M52TU as a ''stop gap'' until they were ready to drop the M54 in.

Similar I feel to what they have done with the e90/f30 335i...

 

[moranor@axis]

M52Tu and M54 are almost exactly the same motor... only real difference is the M54 got a different intake, exhaust and software thats about it...

the 330i also got a new intake cam... but really they the same engines...

 

[OppositeLockMT]

Have you considered swapping the diff to a 3.38 or a 3.46? Won't give any improvements performance-wise, but it will improve the feel of the car in everyday driving, of course would will be changing gears more often.

I haven't considered it before, my car is an automatic by the way, would it make much of a difference?

 

[Kerrits]

Before I got my 325ci, I had only owned a 1.6 corolla before that and I thought I'd better not get a 330i because it'll be too much power for me....

HAH.

I went from a 1.3 Tazz to a 135i

I knew I would only be able to get one car upgrade for the next 7 or so years (I drove my Tazz for 7 years), so I had better make it count.

 

[Yuben]

I wonder why they made the difference between the E36 and E46 328 so minimal, ofcourse all the refinements were welcomed but someone coming from an E36 328 to an E46 328 would probably feel slightly underwhelmed.

The E36 328 and E46 328 had the same motor iirc. The E46 was heavier.
E36 rocketed to 100 in 7.19s, E46 in 7.69s. I suspect the E46 had better aerodynamics cos the E46 topped out at 238km/h vs 234km/h for the E36.
But bear in mind this was individual tests 4 years apart and under different driving conditions. We cant say what the condition of the test cars were.

 

[moranor@axis]

m52tu has more in common with the m54 than the :fencelook:M52b

the only physical difference between the M54b25 and the M52Tub25 is the intake and exhaust... but the M52b25 (e36 engine) has a completely different head with only single Vanos...

think of the M54 as a slight upgrade from the M52Tu...

 

[LPM320]

What I cant understand is that the m50b25 vanos and m54b25 make the same power. 141kw. . .

In 7 years, with all the technical updates and the introduction of double vanos, they gained 0kw?

Unless they choked the m54b25 on purpose?

 

[moranor@axis]

same power but torque curve is much flatter on the M52tu/m54 making you have more torque over the rev range... also means that you get better fuel consumption for daily driving...

M50b25 makes peak torque @4200 rpm
M54b25 makes peak torque @3500 rpm

peak torque also does not tell the full story because the torque curve is flatter on the e46 you have access to more torque over the rev range this is why the e46 despite a heavier body can get 0-100 in 7.2 and the e36 does it in 7.5 while they have the same peak figures...

this is also why its important to keep the Vanos healthy as it is responsible for doing this magic :rollsmile:

 

[Sankekur]

Have you considered swapping the diff to a 3.38 or a 3.46? Won't give any improvements performance-wise, but it will improve the feel of the car in everyday driving, of course would will be changing gears more often.

I haven't considered it before, my car is an automatic by the way, would it make much of a difference?

:sorry:
The auto already has a 3.46 diff, you would only see a change if you go for something higher still, like a 3.64, but I think that would be pretty horrible to drive.

 

[OppositeLockMT]

Have you considered swapping the diff to a 3.38 or a 3.46? Won't give any improvements performance-wise, but it will improve the feel of the car in everyday driving, of course would will be changing gears more often.

I haven't considered it before, my car is an automatic by the way, would it make much of a difference?

:sorry:
The auto already has a 3.46 diff, you would only see a change if you go for something higher still, like a 3.64, but I think that would be pretty horrible to drive.

:bangdesk: I really need a manual

 

[ChrisBrand]

Send me your 3.46 diff and ill source a manual gearbox here :rollsmile:

 

[Divio]

after a really long 85 Days got my 325 Back! and am LLLovvvvinggg it! :inlove:

I realllly missed it!

More than Sufficient for now....! :thumbs:
(Maybe having a 3 pedal helps? :dunno: )

 

[bimmer330]

Would love to see a 325 go up against a 328, funny that the latter only has one more horsepower, but again, torque should make a difference - gearbox as well.

Although the 328 has only 1kw more than the 325, its the 35nm more that makes the difference.
Due to the weight of the E36, it is quicker than the E46 328.
If u check out you tube, there's not much between the 330i and E36 328

Agree, I raced the kak out of E46 330i ' s with my E36 328i ( with M50 Intake ) back in the days LOL ! Now I have a E46 330i myself and actually miss the E36's power to weight...

 

[OppositeLockMT]

Send me your 3.46 diff and ill source a manual gearbox here :rollsmile:

Sounds tempting, but I would have to drive the car down. No worthy mechanics over here :bangdesk:

---

after a really long 85 Days got my 325 Back! and am LLLovvvvinggg it! :inlove:

I realllly missed it!

More than Sufficient for now....! :thumbs:
(Maybe having a 3 pedal helps? :dunno: )

Glad you've got your car back Divio :thumbs:

I think having 3 pedals really helps, Autos feel too sluggish. DS mode helps a little, but I find myself driving in manual mode 80% of the time.