Pitfalls of 10-15yr old higher milage 2hnd BMW?

[Blueskys]

Manual boxes are bullet proof. If you do have issues they are so abundant in scrapyards across S.A. R2500 on average for a 5spd manual gearbox.
Auto box is in the region of R35k to rebuild.

In that case definitely manual box, what a pleasure. How much would an aftermarket clutch typically set you back?

I'm assuming there must be a relative abundance of E46 spares at scrap yards?

So many of them were sold new and not the most popular car brand once over a certain age, your typical BMW driver also not apt to rummage around scrapyards looking for parts so also less demand from that perspective.

Are there any other e46 petrol power plants that are relatively bulletproof but smaller than the 6 piston engines?

That 3l 325i in town driving will probably hover at around 12L/100km?

 

[Gizmo]

NA cars don't drink fuel like turbo cars around town. I average about 9.5 around town. On the e46 touring the S.A. market only got 2 options. 318i and 325i. Unfortunately the 318i has the worst engine ever fitted to a BMW so stay away from it. You want the 325i trust me.

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You would stick with the stock 325i LUK clutch and flywheel as it is perfect for daily driving. Aftermarket clutches are for race cars. Brand new LUK clutch and flywheel will set u back around 8-9k.
325i never came with a 3.0lt motor, they had a 2.5lt motor.

 

[Blueskys]

NA cars don't drink fuel like turbo cars around town. I average about 9.5 around town. On the e46 touring the S.A. market only got 2 options. 318i and 325i. Unfortunately the 318i has the worst engine ever fitted to a BMW so stay away from it. You want the 325i trust me.

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You would stick with the stock 325i LUK clutch and flywheel as it is perfect for daily driving. Aftermarket clutches are for race cars. Brand new LUK clutch and flywheel will set u back around 8-9k.
325i never came with a 3.0lt motor, they had a 2.5lt motor.

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How long do the 325i clutches last with a normal(ie not a robot racer) driving?

That seals it if the 318i is a dog 325i Touring it is, 9.5 around town is fine. I'm very light on the pedals, I prefer having a bigger engine, 2.5L straight 6 no need to rev the engine to get anywhere, just let that clutch out :rollsmile:

Had a look on gumtree and plenty E46 touring 325i around R60k, so it looks promising. This example looks good 184000km and a "lady driver" :https://www.gumtree.co.za/a-cars-ba...series-stationwagon/1002021605840910166526109

At that price there is probably an unmentioned "surprise" awaiting when you go view it, also I swore never to get a black car again, leave it in the summer sun for an hour and its like a blast furnace inside. But it has the chrome trim and nice mags, I messaged the seller and asked about a FSH, maybe it is legit and the seller is just trying to get a few thousand above trade-in, book value seems to be around R45k.

 

[Gizmo]

Leave it. It's listed a 2002 but clearly a pre facelift. Those beige interiors don't wear well either so if it's toast then you know its not truly 184 000km. I made the mistake of buying a black car once, NEVER AGAIN!

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Not sure if auto or manual.
http://www.junkmail.co.za/motoring/bmw/gauteng/pretoria/2002-bmw-325i-touring/66978296

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Most listed will be auto so if you find a clean auto with transmission issues then buy it and swap in a manual 6spd box so you can keep using the 3.46:1 auto diff. With the overdrive of 6th gear the car will be fantastic on efficiency on the open road and zippy around town.

Let me build your dream E46 touring, PM me.

 

[Blueskys]

Leave it. It's listed a 2002 but clearly a pre facelift. Those beige interiors don't wear well either so if it's toast then you know its not truly 184 000km. I made the mistake of buying a black car once, NEVER AGAIN!

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Not sure if auto or manual.
http://www.junkmail.co.za/motoring/bmw/gauteng/pretoria/2002-bmw-325i-touring/66978296

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Thanks for refreshing my memory, no black cars!

Ideally I'd prefer white or some other solid colour but what is the factory clearcoat like on BMW mettallics, does it often start hazing flaking like say Opel's are prone to?

The vehicle in the Junk mail link looks good but isn't 255k km a sign the engine and drive train must be getting a little worn out?

What useable mileage can you expect on a 325i engine that's been well maintained and moderately driven?

 

[Gizmo]

Clutches can easily last +150 000km as the engine isn't a high torque motor (245nm). The 325i motor does like to rev though so it's going to be hard not to do that.

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I am suspect of any E46 advertised with less than 200 000km given their age seeing as the used car market is rife with mileage tampered cars so when you do see a higher mileage car there is a good chance it's an honest motor. 255km is nothing for these cars is maintained. My last touring build I did had 414 000km on it's unopened 325i motor. See the thread: https://www.bmwfanatics.co.za/showthread.php?tid=79058

Here is my 1st touring build for a close friend: https://www.bmwfanatics.co.za/showthread.php?tid=27341

Here is my personal touring build: https://www.bmwfanatics.co.za/showthread.php?tid=18724

 

[Blueskys]

Some awesome threads there, thanks, going to be some enjoyable reading!

Can the mileage be turned back with a suitable diagnostics interface, ie not much fiddling needed?

Can the E46 use normal ODB2 diagnostics tools for reading codes etc?

Great news hearing how solid these engines are, 400K+ km mileage means they are truly bulletproof, I can see why they are so much more desirable for the wise than the E90 engines with their turbos and all kinds of other nonsense to breakdown and ruin the relationship :blueCry:

Does the e46 325i come with cast iron or aluminium blocks in Sa?

 

[Gizmo]

M54B25 is aluminum block.
OBD2 tools yes.
I don't know what is involved in mileage tampering nor would I want to know.

 

[individj]

alu

 

[Blueskys]

Had a quick look on Google, mileage tampering on BMW(most models it seems) is as easy as having the correct diagnostic tool, plug and play, which makes a FSH at the agents or some kind of paperwork indicating mileage at regular intervals quite an attractive feature of a potential purchase.

How easy is it to change from auto to manual?

Say you find a really nice vehicle but with an auto box, you take the chance and 5000km later the box breaks, Gizmo mentioned the manual boxes are cheap and plentiful, R2500 for the box + R8k for the clutch + say R4k for labour?

You'll probably need to also find a new shift rods/stick/interior housing?

 

[individj]

i bought a donor vehicle to do the conversion

 

[Gizmo]

You don't need a donor car for the conversion, the parts are readily available in scrapyards.

Bluesky its a little more involved than that, manual pedals and lines need to be installed which means dashboard out. Wiring for reverse lights needs fabrication. Propshafts are different lengths. Shifter stuff needs to be sourced too.
My first touring build was auto to manual conversion and you can see the process on that thread.

 

[individj]

You don't need a donor car for the conversion, the parts are readily available in scrapyards.

Bluesky its a little more involved than that, manual pedals and lines need to be installed which means dashboard out. Wiring for reverse lights needs fabrication. Propshafts are different lengths. Shifter stuff needs to be sourced too.
My first touring build was auto to manual conversion and you can see the process on that thread.

i know i didn't need to buy a donor car but i got it for a steal & needed a few other parts

 

[Gizmo]

Got ya. I prefer the donor car route myself, if the price is right then you can strip off what you need and still sell it for what you paid, essentially getting free spares. Sadly most people don't have the space or capital to buy donor cars for conversions.

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So OP if you can, you buy a clean 325i touring auto and a mechanically decent 330i sedan manual at the same time. Swap entire drivetrains between both cars, end up with a 330i touring manual and a 325i sedan auto. Sell the 325i sedan auto to recoup a large portion of the costs. Drive 330i touring until the end of time because you won't need another car.

 

[Blueskys]

I can see there's alot more to the box conversion than just the box and linkages/stick, I'll make my life easier and just buy a manual is the first place. I'm a big fan of diy but I would certainly choke trying to do that job, never mind the space to have two cars out of action for a good week or 3.

Is the 330i so massively powerful/well engineered that if you drive it sedately it'll just about never wear out?

 

[Gizmo]

I can see there's alot more to the box conversion than just the box and linkages/stick, I'll make my life easier and just buy a manual is the first place. I'm a big fan of diy but I would certainly choke trying to do that job, never mind the space to have two cars out of action for a good week or 3.

Is the 330i so massively powerful/well engineered that if you drive it sedately it'll just about never wear out?

Well everything on the 330i is bigger or beefed up in some way due to it having a more powerful motor. There is no comparison between 325i and 330i in terms of performance. If you don't like to rev out the motor then the 330i is the one to have as they produce oodles of low end torque. There is a reason why all my touring project build end up with a 330i motor, the touring is heavier than the sedan so the extra torque of the 330i motor negates the extra weight of the touring. Fuel consumption between 325i and 330i has been a difference of 0.5lt per 100km which is such a small price to pay for all the extra power and torque the 330i puts out. 330i also brilliant to tow a trailer, you don't even notice it's there.

 

[Blueskys]

How do the towbars work on these vehicles and BMW's in general, is the towbar mount integrated and you just need to get the detachable tow ball gooseneck or is the complete towbar an aftermarket item?

 

[Gizmo]

On E46 (if not all models) the best to have is the OEM removable type as you don't always need a towbar so fit it when you need it. Takes 10seconds to fit/remove.

I find and install used OEM detachable towbars for my customers which costs less than one of those permanent horrible bosal units that are hacked onto your car.

 

[osiris]

Rather just buy a manual....I have had an auto to manual conversion done twice and I won't do it again......EVER!!!

Nothing to do with Gizmo's workmanship or anyone who does the conversion for that matter but its a BIG job, it's a long wait and when it comes time to sell you will struggle, not to mention it did not come without its issues.

It was the deal breaker for my sale almost every single time, Doesn't matter what you say about why you did it people are skeptical of an auto to manual conversion vehicle not to mention the car papers say the car is an auto so that brings up other issues too.

Personally I won't buy a car either if I know it has had an auto to manual conversion.

You might think that it's a car you will keep for long or wont sell but one day you will sell it and it wont be great when you want to sell and it sits for months as no one is interested, plus your going for a touring, the market for those cars is tiny so you will have that against you too.

Just my 2c

On a side note, My dads second car is a FL E90 320d. He has had it for around 3 or 4 years I think and what a car! I won't touch an E46 diesel as long as I live again especially not an auto. But a low mileage E90 320d is a flipping awesome car as a daily, the economy and awesome power of that car is great. As long as you keep the car stock and look after it they seem to be very reliable, Plus the FL had a upgraded turbo as far as I know so the turbos seem to just go on forever.

 

[Blueskys]

Thanks for those good points Osiris, didn't think about the resale aspect.

On E46 (if not all models) the best to have is the OEM removable type as you don't always need a towbar so fit it when you need it. Takes 10seconds to fit/remove.

I find and install used OEM detachable towbars for my customers which costs less than one of those permanent horrible bosal units that are hacked onto your car.

How easy is the oem detachable towbars to fit DIY, any drilling or bumper removal to fit?

How much do they generally sell for 2hnd?