Fellow 320i Owners

[Karthik]

Congrats on the great car. You have a purist car with a purr that will leave you excited to floor it to the high revs. Very well built motors with bad cooling systems that I recommend you have redone. The water bottle is made of plastic and is utter useless. On my 2nd bottle in 50 000km. If you see leaking around the top its probably your vanos. They not very pricey to fix luckily.

I still love my e46 as if I got it yesteday. Many cars have come and gone but not many with a personality of a m54 e46.

 

[Dr Evil]

The only work i had to do on my car since i got it was rebuild the alternator, clutch and flywheel, power stering pump and i had the pulleys and belts changed as a precaution. I give it an oil service once a year since it doesnt do alot of mileage. I got it on 150k km and its sitting at 173k km due for an inspection 2 service soon

Sent from my S4 LTE using my finger

 

[GPGrobler]

They are wonderful cars! In not very experienced when it comes to DIY and sadly I don't have a garage at the moment so doing work on the car will only be possible on sunny weekends (should invest in some tools soon, and find a good mech in Pretoria).

If the oil in the car is 4 years old is it highly likely that sludge buildup is present? Does desludging form part of a regular service?

Sent from my GT-I9500 using Tapatalk

Desludging is quite easy, you just do two or three oil changes in a row, with filter changes, normally with only 500km between changes, that will mostly get rid of the sludge. I advise strongly against using any kind of engine flush stuff, I have heard more than one horror story of engines requiring a complete rebuild after it being used. All an engine needs is clean oil and a new oil filter. To back this up, I have seen engines being brought back from the brink with this treatment, engines smoking quite a bit, oil changed and replaced a few times the smoke was gone.

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They are wonderful cars! In not very experienced when it comes to DIY and sadly I don't have a garage at the moment so doing work on the car will only be possible on sunny weekends (should invest in some tools soon, and find a good mech in Pretoria).

If the oil in the car is 4 years old is it highly likely that sludge buildup is present? Does desludging form part of a regular service?

Sent from my GT-I9500 using Tapatalk

Desludging is quite easy, you just do two or three oil changes in a row, with filter changes, normally with only 500km between changes, that will mostly get rid of the sludge. I advise strongly against using any kind of engine flush stuff, I have heard more than one horror story of engines requiring a complete rebuild after it being used. All an engine needs is clean oil and a new oil filter. To back this up, I have seen engines being brought back from the brink with this treatment, engines smoking quite a bit, oil changed and replaced a few times the smoke was gone.

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Sorry this might be misread, I'm talking about the engine oil change treatment fixing the sludge and smoking problem. Please do not use any engine flush stuff, if you do, use it at your own risk and do not blame me if your engine develops problems after that.

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Congrats on the great car. You have a purist car with a purr that will leave you excited to floor it to the high revs. Very well built motors with bad cooling systems that I recommend you have redone. The water bottle is made of plastic and is utter useless. On my 2nd bottle in 50 000km. If you see leaking around the top its probably your vanos. They not very pricey to fix luckily.

I still love my e46 as if I got it yesteday. Many cars have come and gone but not many with a personality of a m54 e46.

Thanks Karthik, you have just solved my "water vanishing mystery" for me.

 

[LPM320]

I owned a 2002 320i f/l e46 for about 1 and a half years, and even after all the subsequent more powerful e46's that I have owned, I still miss this car.

It has a very pleasant torquey character and sounds nice and deep as well. It reminds me very much of a junior e46 330i. I never confirmed this, but I once read that the e46 330i and 46 320i f/l share the same engine block.

To be honest, the e46 325i I had not too long after this car left me disappointed when compared to the 320i.

 

[GPGrobler]

I owned a 2002 320i f/l e46 for about 1 and a half years, and even after all the subsequent more powerful e46's that I have owned, I still miss this car.

It has a very pleasant torquey character and sounds nice and deep as well. It reminds me very much of a junior e46 330i. I never confirmed this, but I once read that the e46 330i and 46 320i f/l share the same engine block.

To be honest, the e46 325i I had not too long after this car left me disappointed when compared to the 320i.

A coincidence or not? Your car and mine are the same colour.

 

[Philip Foglar]

I owned a 2002 320i f/l e46 for about 1 and a half years, and even after all the subsequent more powerful e46's that I have owned, I still miss this car.

It has a very pleasant torquey character and sounds nice and deep as well. It reminds me very much of a junior e46 330i. I never confirmed this, but I once read that the e46 330i and 46 320i f/l share the same engine block.

To be honest, the e46 325i I had not too long after this car left me disappointed when compared to the 320i.

Yep, for a 2.2 it has plenty of go and good torque character, pulls strongly and smoothly which is very nice, plus it sounds awesome - NA six FTW!! Junior E46 330i indeed!! :thumbs:

 

[FiRi@Rennzport]

We bought a 320i f/l in 2003 for my , scarab green with individual kit and tan leather seats. What a beaut. Loved this car from day one. The sound of the engine is fantasic because of the 6cylinder and she does well too.
The car was neglected from 2010 to 2012 due to my dad being ill and subsequently passing on, but since june 2013 ive been pumping money back into her to get her back to showroom condition.

 

[Philip Foglar]

Glad to hear she is being pampered again!! :thumbs:

 

[GPGrobler]

+1^

 

[Dbn540i]

Hey Guys,

Attached is a pic of my dads 2005 320i Speedo :rollsmile: a couple of months after he took delivery of the car. There are more pics of the car, just need to look for them

I remember this like it was yesterday, we were on our way to Cape Town on the N1 heading toward Beaufort West and 2 min later he was pulled over for speeding, 177 km/h
My dad paid a quick 'road side' spot fine :joy: and we were on our way again.

The car was a beaut and never gave us a day hassle. I reaaly do miss her.

Cheers.

 

[Philip Foglar]

LOL, my Wife often "complains" that the car runs away with her! :fencelook: :rollsmile:

 

[Cerberus]

LOL, my Wife often "complains" that the car runs away with her! :fencelook: :rollsmile:

Can't WAIT to experience this on a daily basis! Saturday 15th March I'm getting behind the wheel! :rollsmile:

 

[GPGrobler]

Just don't hammer the car until you are sure that the sludge thing is sorted out. First thing I'm doing is a full oil service. Also if the car does not perform as expected, service the VANOS (the next thing on my list after the oil service)

 

[Cerberus]

Just don't hammer the car until you are sure that the sludge thing is sorted out. First thing I'm doing is a full oil service. Also if the car does not perform as expected, service the VANOS (the next thing on my list after the oil service)

Duly noted :thumbs: I'm going to ask the garage for feedback on the condition of the oil and the VANOS.

It's going in on Saturday with SMG Pietermaritzburg.

 

[RAArmstrong]

Just don't hammer the car until you are sure that the sludge thing is sorted out. First thing I'm doing is a full oil service. Also if the car does not perform as expected, service the VANOS (the next thing on my list after the oil service)

Duly noted :thumbs: I'm going to ask the garage for feedback on the condition of the oil and the VANOS.

It's going in on Saturday with SMG Pietermaritzburg.

BMW will offer to replace the entire VANOS unit for you... The part alone I believe is well over R6k... Was in parts the other day when someone was ordering a new VANOS unit...

 

[Cerberus]

BMW will offer to replace the entire VANOS unit for you... The part alone I believe is well over R6k... Was in parts the other day when someone was ordering a new VANOS unit...

Over R6k...

Would it be cheaper to approach a reputable mechanic that can get the part for less? How long does a VANOS unit typically last?

 

[Kyle]

I regret selling mine every single day.

The build quality on the E46 is great, I owned the individual in scarab green, auto... so smooth...

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Do a good engine flush, with liqui moly engine flush... see if that helps, if not speak to the guys from Axis :thumbs:

 

[RAArmstrong]

BMW will offer to replace the entire VANOS unit for you... The part alone I believe is well over R6k... Was in parts the other day when someone was ordering a new VANOS unit...

Over R6k...

Would it be cheaper to approach a reputable mechanic that can get the part for less? How long does a VANOS unit typically last?

Like I say BMW will replace the unit. Because BMW are replacement specialists. Take a look at Phillip's thread, its generally Vanos seals that you need to replace after time :thumbs:

 

[Prev]

PM Moranor@Axis about having your vanos seals replaced. He stocks the aftermarket Beisen seals and anti rattle kit which will get your vanos operating properly again. I am surprised that BMW would sell the vanos for as little at R6k.

 

[Cerberus]

I regret selling mine every single day.

The build quality on the E46 is great, I owned the individual in scarab green, auto... so smooth...

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Do a good engine flush, with liqui moly engine flush... see if that helps, if not speak to the guys from Axis :thumbs:

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BMW will offer to replace the entire VANOS unit for you... The part alone I believe is well over R6k... Was in parts the other day when someone was ordering a new VANOS unit...

Over R6k...

Would it be cheaper to approach a reputable mechanic that can get the part for less? How long does a VANOS unit typically last?

Like I say BMW will replace the unit. Because BMW are replacement specialists. Take a look at Phillip's thread, its generally Vanos seals that you need to replace after time :thumbs:

Thanks guys :thumbs:

I have another question regarding insurance:

What coverage do I have when taking my vehicle in for a service at a BMW Dealership in South Africa? What risk do I bear if they test drive my car and have an accident or if they damage the car in any way?

I have comprehensive coverage for the vehicle but only when I or a secondary nominated driver is behind the wheel...

**EDIT:**

I can register the test driver/mechanic for a couple of hours to cover me, but what else is there?