Need advice for my first car

[kilotango]

- definitely go for a 325, 328 or 330 if you can.
- stay far away from a 318 and a modified 320
- be careful of automatic gearboxes

please make sure to have the car inspected by someone who knows about e46's before you buy..because they will be a money pit if you get a lemon.

if there any signs of previous overheating or gearbox faults (if an auto), just walk away and dont look back.

e46's are documented extremely well online. and they seem to fail "reliably" in the sense that if you dont change part X, it WILL go by 1xx,000 kms.

the research and home work you do now on a potential buy will save you $$ in future. good luck! :coolShake:

 

[Dewald Basson]

Buddy of mine never got lower than 13.0l/100km in his 320i. Plus the lower torque more revs debate.


My 325 gives me 11-12l/100km. But I might just be driving like a box the whole time :grin:

So disregard my previous statement :hammerhead:

 

[Dr Evil]

I had an e46 320i facelift, fuel consumption in bumper to bumper traffic was 11l/100km. On the long road to Durban from Cape Town with cruise control on i got it down to +-7l/100km.
It was a beautiful car and very enjoyable to drive. If looked after they give great reward.

Sent from my G3 using my finger

 

[Staaldraad]

Jis guys thanks for the great advice

Sorry i didnt reply till now, was busy with work

Yes i might consider buying a 325i or 330i, the problem is I that I can't find any manuals. Have done a lot of searching.

Another question I want to ask, if you guys don't mind, what do you guys +- pay on maintenance yearly for the e46? I know everyone might not have the same but I just want to know an estimate.

I really appreciate your replies

 

[kilotango]

Yes i might consider buying a 325i or 330i, the problem is I that I can't find any manuals. Have done a lot of searching.

Another question I want to ask, if you guys don't mind, what do you guys +- pay on maintenance yearly for the e46? I know everyone might not have the same but I just want to know an estimate.

right now, i spend roughly USD$300 on filters, plugs, oil and other general maintenance stuff every 5 months or so on a 330Ci.. so its not too bad. HOWEVER, i've spent close to USD$5k the last 3 years on top of that because it was in a really bad shape when i first got it (cooling system overhaul, gearbox fluid flush+filters, tensioner and belt replacements, importing and coding a new spare key, new shocks all round, new tyres all round, new windscreen, new waterpump and thermostat, oil filter housing gasket and valve cover, new fuel pump, brake pads, front control arms etc) and this is with me doing all the work. so this is why you need to get a potential buy inspected thoroughly, because it can bite you in the ass later.

mine is an auto, and its been ok so far. only had one issue since i've owned it, and that was a faulty gear position switch which sits outside on the side of the gearbox. i did a fluid flush just to be safe before it turned to 160,000km. been running well for the last 40,000km's. as long as its in good condition and been look aftered, auto's arent too bad.

 

[Sabretooth tiger]

Jis guys thanks for the great advice

Sorry i didnt reply till now, was busy with work

Yes i might consider buying a 325i or 330i, the problem is I that I can't find any manuals. Have done a lot of searching.

Another question I want to ask, if you guys don't mind, what do you guys +- pay on maintenance yearly for the e46? I know everyone might not have the same but I just want to know an estimate.

I really appreciate your replies

The 330i I posted on pg1 of your thread, is a manual 330i

 

[sash]

if you are going for an e46 320i, just make sure facelift


i get very decent mileage on mine, the best i got out over the tank was about 900km's, yes you read that correctly, however this could have been greater on my 1 durban trip, relaxed drive

now i'm thinking if putting a Full Tank and doing a Range Test... Hmmmm....



currently i use the car for all my running around, and get about 750+ to the tank(mainly highway, and almost no traffic for the times i travel)

if the car is above 120km/h it's gets thirsty, but not bad, if you keep it at 100km/h for some reason, it get's very very light...


i've had the car now for 8 years, and it's still stock as anything... the biggest fuel saver for me was changing the rear tyre's from 225 to 205... the footprint drop was very noticeable on the fuel range...


service wise... usual stuff, very easy to service, just get a new Waterpump and Expansion tank..

i've only been through over 8 years..

1 set of brake discs ( front ) ( rears are currently due )
2 sets of pads front ( one set rear )
1 Set plugs ( i think R80 each from BMW )
2 or 3 Airfilters...
a few oil changes every 12500km's
1 Expansion tank ( R800 )
1 Water Pump ( R500 )
1 Powersteering pump ( R1500 )
A lot of speakers ( insert value here )
1 full set Tyre's ( using 16's 205/55/16 - 895 per Tyre )
Polish and Wheel Cleaner ( a lot )






.

What was the profile on the old tyre 225/50/16?

 

[Waseem 333i]

My question is what is your monthly budget to run the car. Will you be having a separate budget for fuel and maintenance? Do you have a budget for insurance?

I have an e46 330d it was auto. I made it manual. If i were you I would seriously consider a diesel 330 in manual. Please stay away from the auto. It is very very difficult to know the condition of the auto box when you buying second hand. Are you going to be doing DIY work on the car or will it be going in to a workshop for every little thing?

My diesel is not perfectly healthy but it will easily get 1000km from a tank on the open road and that is not with granny driving. With town driving only I can get 700km from a tank.

A service on a diesel is roughly R2000 for everything except labour. That has to be done at maximum every 15000km. every 10000km would be ideal.

With maintenance I would say you need to have R2000 kept aside just for emergency repairs. Hopefully you dont have any major issues. Be sure to buy a good car. There are plenty lemons out there. Another thing you should do is once you find a car take the vin number to a BMW dealership and get the service history. If there was alot of work done while in motorplan that will indicate a lemon however it wont give you the story of how the car was treated out of plan. Take someone who knows these cars when going to view.

 

[Spiro]

if you are going for an e46 320i, just make sure facelift


i get very decent mileage on mine, the best i got out over the tank was about 900km's, yes you read that correctly, however this could have been greater on my 1 durban trip, relaxed drive

now i'm thinking if putting a Full Tank and doing a Range Test... Hmmmm....



currently i use the car for all my running around, and get about 750+ to the tank(mainly highway, and almost no traffic for the times i travel)

if the car is above 120km/h it's gets thirsty, but not bad, if you keep it at 100km/h for some reason, it get's very very light...


i've had the car now for 8 years, and it's still stock as anything... the biggest fuel saver for me was changing the rear tyre's from 225 to 205... the footprint drop was very noticeable on the fuel range...


service wise... usual stuff, very easy to service, just get a new Waterpump and Expansion tank..

i've only been through over 8 years..

1 set of brake discs ( front ) ( rears are currently due )
2 sets of pads front ( one set rear )
1 Set plugs ( i think R80 each from BMW )
2 or 3 Airfilters...
a few oil changes every 12500km's
1 Expansion tank ( R800 )
1 Water Pump ( R500 )
1 Powersteering pump ( R1500 )
A lot of speakers ( insert value here )
1 full set Tyre's ( using 16's 205/55/16 - 895 per Tyre )
Polish and Wheel Cleaner ( a lot )






.

What was the profile on the old tyre 225/50/16?

Yep Sash

 

[momo1]

My first car was a VW Golf Mk3 GTi
I loved it but in the 3 years I owned it I spent more in repairs and maintenance than the actual purchase price.

My advice to you is look for a 2004-2006 BMW 118i E87
I purchase mine at 140,000km and sold it at 220,000km and the only issue I had was a small leak in the radiator, and only fixed it when I sold the car.
It was light on fuel, and annually services use to cost me about R2,000 at BMW or R1000 at a private mech, only expensive things are runflat tyres which you can avoid, and brakes with sensors are a bit pricey but equivalent to a golf.
it was light on fuel as well, I use to average 6.5l/100km in mixed driving traffic and open road.
I sold my 2005 model at the end of 2013 for R80,000 so im sure you can get one with mileage under 180,000km for the same money as a well maintained 2004 E46 320i.