School Me on E46

[Andrew325is]

My opinion:
They are a good car, much improved compared to the E36, but from an economic viewpoint they are a bad investment in the long term. Most are becoming worth less than E30's now. E90's are beginning to follow. They are therefore becoming prime candidates as E30 parts cars. :)

The electronics is actually what makes the E46 great, so don't be afraid of that. Start navigating through the WDS to familiarize yourself with the systems. http://wds.spaghetticoder.org/
And build yourself a DIS machine for diagnostics at home. No need to waste money at a shop for silly things. http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum....php?t=1297683 Also, install TIS either separately under 32-bit windows or within DIS for factory correct maintenance procedures with proper torque values. Pick up an E46 Bentley manual too for something nice to read, but make sure you verify with TIS before you do anything in case what it says is wrong. Then you'll be ready to install your E46 engine and electronics into an E30 so you'll have the best of both worlds.

[Herr Faust Schinken]

yeah unfortunately my mom bought a Chrysler 300 which is not that great of a car

[Wh33lhop]

I think they gave you a tax break or something if you bought them new. At this point they are just liabilities.

[Herr Faust Schinken]

well that sucks my parents were looking into an E91 328i wagon and half them were SULEV cars and i read that the sulev cars had different cooling systems, different fuel systems and the parts and repairs for the SULEV cars were more expensive

[Wh33lhop]

Zhp!!!!!!

Awesome cars, but they have a few problems that the "normal" E46s do not. Because of the aggressive cams the Vanos tends to fail more frequently and rattle. It's likely it's not working in E46s anyway so not a huge deal. Also they sometimes have some weird idle and power loss issues that IIRC is software related, and the alcantara interior tends to deteriorate. Still, awesome cars.

what does SULEV stand for Super low emissions vehicle? isnt that what a prius or a volt is

Yes and probably. They had a crazy sealed fuel system that fails all the time and basically gives you no benefit.

[Herr Faust Schinken]

what does SULEV stand for Super low emissions vehicle? isnt that what a prius or a volt is

[R3Z3N]

^^^Replace entire car.

[wholethingoff]

Crash course: ...

I'd love to read one for the F02 when it gets old enough to run out of warranty.

[JBird]

Zhp!!!!!!

[aablown]

your question is subjective depending on how well the car was taken care of. I have roughly 60k on mine. Nothin mechanical or electrical has ever failed. Although im anal about maintenance and keep a binder with everything that was ever done or bought for all my cars. One of my techs has the same E46M3 vert with about 110k, nothing has ever went wrong with his either. All good points to check out above if you dont know the maintenance history though. I would watch out for the earlier model E46s, if you are interested in one, check the recall history. Do maintenance ahead of schedule and youll be okay.

[Bimmerman325i]

Just a side note: ONLY California 325i models came with the SULEV option, they were not offered elsewhere. If you do manage to find one outside of CA, buy a non-sulev. You'll be glad you did when you realize it's $3k to replace the fuel system when only the pump went out.

[Wh33lhop]

-Rear subframe issues were mostly taken care of in later model years, but it's always a possibility. My car has no issues there.

The late models had an improved support, but it is still insufficient. It is less common but not nonexistent. I went into my E46 expecting to reinforce the subframe anyway (I drive hard and want the peace of mind) so it was not such a huge deal when I found a crack as I didn't have to change plans.

Bottom line, the best way to feel the car is dependable is if you replace and fix everything that fails before it does. If you don't want to be left stranded, replace the cooling system and fuel pump. If you don't want the subframe to rip out of the car (this does not just happen overnight but still) check it and have it reinforced. If you want the car to be running tip top, do Vanos seals, CCV, fix vacuum leaks, replace air and fuel filter (FPR is integrated into it), change trans fluid, etc.

Also, do NOT buy a SULEV car. Only the 325i's came in SULEV but they are problematic and completely nonmoludlar. Half the solutions to problems that arise in that car are to replace the (very pricey) fuel tank.

[broke30]

I think cheapthrills and wh33lhop hit on just about everything. My girlfriend has a 2001 325i that was overheated and I had to rebuild the head but luckily the block (being aluminum), didn't warp. Other than that, window regulators, entire cooling system, ccv, transmission flush (hers is an auto) have all been done. One thing not yet mentioned is that the GM5 module (lock module) is another common failure. The remote on the key will not work as well as other small quirks. However, I just picked up the replacement for my last e30 which I love, its a 2005 330i ZHP 6spd with alcantara interior. Its a fantastic car that was well maintained and is my daily driver. As stated above, so long as you aren't frightened of quirky failures, they're great cars.

Max

[cheapthrills]

Crash course:

Agree with all of the above. To reiterate: if you are not comfortable doing all the work yourself, this car will destroy your wallet. Parts aren't crazy expensive, but there are lots of jobs that'll cost you tons in labor.

My E30 is a rollcaged (still street legal) track car, and my DD is an '04 330ci 6-speed coupe. I believe it to be one of the greatest daily drivers I'll ever own. The facelifted coupes and convertibles ('04-'06 non-M) are, IMO, the best-looking modern BMWs. The interiors are extremely nice as well (though most have wood trim which I hate; my car is black leather with aluminum trim). Highway ride is quiet. 6-speed cars get really good highway gas mileage: I get 31-33 mpg.

If you're going to buy one, don't cheap out. Spend an extra $1-2k for a well-maintained one. I bought mine 10 months ago with 130k miles and some serious neglect, and have spent a good amount of time and about $1500 in maintenance and repairs (plus $950 for a set of snow tires). It has about 157k miles now.

Common issues I've dealt with:
-Rear subframe issues were mostly taken care of in later model years, but it's always a possibility. My car has no issues there.
-The bearing on my water pump failed, causing a mean leak through the weephole. The rest of the cooling system has been fine.
-Vacuum leaks are common. My car had several, which threw check engine codes.
-Oil leaks are also common. My car had the valve cover gasket (slow drip onto exhaust manifold), and oil filter housing gasket (slow drip that then developed into a quart-a-day spray onto the serpentine belt).
-Differential mounting bushings all crack. Driveshaft guibo and CSBs fail the same way E30s do.
-The sunshade often breaks and causes the sunroof to go all kaput.
-Many people have ABS/DSC problems. I've never had any issues, and personally love the system.

The engine bay is a lot tighter, has covers over everything, and uses a lot of plastic that gets brittle. The car is much more of a pain to work on than the E30.

The electronics were intimidating coming from the world of E30s and 90's Japanese cars. Do some reading about the CanBUS system and get a basic grasp. There are no simple switch/relay/motor circuits: everything is controlled by modules that all talk to each other in a very complicated way. This makes things scary but also allows many really cool features to work.

Connecting a computer to talk to newer BMWs is a well-documented and free process. The factory software is readily available and extremely useful. My car had a bad engine stutter that I solved by updating the DME software. I can pull and clear engine, airbag, ABS/DSC, and other error codes; view live sensor data; and avoid going to the dealership.

[slammin.e28]

Replace timing belts, adjust valves, change oil and invest in a drip pan.

This should be a sticky, mandatory for newblets to read.