BMW 3-Series 2005 and earlier

erickpl · November 2003

Thanks... that was the filter that I thought it was. No biggie. I will be going to my dealer next week to get oil, filter, a/c filter, wiper fluid (man that stuff works great).

As for wiper blades, do you guys use BMW blades or some other make? My BMW blades worked great when they were new, but that was almost 2 years, a cold winter, and 120 degree summers with 100% sun ago.

-Paul

memphis10 · November 2003

I have been browsing quite a few BMW boards and I have seen no evidence of people reporting South African build quality being any different from German built quality. You can search this site to get the JD Power survey where they had reported that the BMW SA plant had fewer build defects than most of their German plants. Though I got my car ordered from Germany I know a few people who have SA cars and they are just as good.

brave1heart · November 2003

Correction: the filter cover does not say "36 mm 16 Nm" as I thought. It says "25Nm" only - I am sure we are talkikng about the same one:

http://www.bmw325i.net/maint_oil_extractor.shtml

bluegray330 · November 2003

I found the answer myself. All E46 330i are built in Germany, a break down of the VIN number says that mine is in Regensberg, Germany. The e46fanatics website has quite a lot of info.

topspin628 · November 2003

I am interested in hearing from anyone who has SMG. Now that it is an option on all 3's with sport package (except ZHP for some reason)it may become a bit more common.

I would love to hear what you like about and dislike about it. Do you keep it in "auto" mode mostly and if so how does it perform? Or are you more likely to "shift" yourself.

And finally, would you order it again if given the chance.

Thanks

motenor1 · November 2003

HELP!!! I am torn on what to get between the two. The interior will be black leatherette with titanium trim and navigation. Any pointers/suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

kennynmd · November 2003

I say silver gray because its a newer color and looks awesome. I saw a M3 with that color and it looked really good.

div2 · November 2003

I use the BMW wiper refills. They are a bit fiddly to install but they work great. I change the blades on my cars every year or so.

blueguydotcom · November 2003

I have it! Get something else. Like blue.

nohash1 · November 2003

I was looking into purchasing a dinan system for my 330i and needed to know if they were actually worth it.

abcnyc · November 2003

I only drive about 11,000 miles per year. I've had the oil change at 15,000. Should the Inpection I or II be perform strictly on the mileage or time ? It would take me 3 years for Inspection I and 6 years for Inspection II. I thought the computer also tracks your driving conditions to determine the time for inspections.

dbs8 · November 2003

Getting ready to order 2004 325ci. I want the PP & SP as well as H/C system and Zenons. The only way I can get the car to my "target" price is by deleting the leather. Does anyone have experience with the fake stuff? How does it look/smell in comparison to leather?? I know that vinyl usually keeps it's original appearance longer.

jim1395 · November 2003

looks and feels like leather. doesn't smell like leather but it doesn't smell like vynl either. imo you wouldn't be able to tell the difference unless you did a side by side comparison. even then its hard to tell. and in 3 yrs it'll still look new.

dbs8 · November 2003

After much consideration I am going with silver-gray. The titanium silver is nice but so common. If I go with leatherette, I will get black interior. I my check out the natural brown if I go leather. The steel blue looks really good too, IMO.

Also..I see on this site that satellite radio is an optional accessory. Does anyone have this in a new BMW? If so, how is it?

eve123 · November 2003

I also debated . I was ready to purchase a titanium because I liked that colot the best. However, when I saw the silver grey I thought it looked very elegant and it blended in very nicely with the black interior. I also chose the leatherette over the leather simply because of the titanium interior. I velieve it looks much nicer against the black than the wood trim; sportier looking. The M3 in the showroom also was a silver grey with black leather and the aluminum...looked real sharp. I understand that more than half the cars sold are titanium or black, so they really don't stand out. I think you'll be happy with your choice.

brave1heart · November 2003

BMW wiper blades are ~ $6. I get a pair at least once a year (20K+ miles for me).

Silver gray: it's down to personal choice but I would not get any car in silver/gray. Over 25% of ALL cars sold in the U.S. are silver. Another quarter is black. Blue is a very good alternative.

Dinan: only get it if you like and own Rolex watches. Most of what they sell has an equivalent product from another shop that is cheaper and usually works at least as well. Their honored by BMW warranty is great for marketing Dinan products but not worth it and good luck figuring out who's reposnisble for what.

Oil change - I thought it was whatever the OBC determines or 1 year, whichever comes first. I am not entirely sure, although oil does get old over time even if you don't drive too many miles. FWIW, all the OBC uses is strictly fuel consumption, not time...

Leather: I was planning on getting it until the night before I put in the order. I couldn't bring myself to spend that kind of money on such a small difference in feel and looks, so I passed on it. I'm glad I did. After 57K miles, the vinyl still looks great and smells neutral at worst.

kennynmd · November 2003

with the silver gray. If that color was avalable when I got my car I would've got it.I ended up with steel blue with sand leather.

motenor1 · November 2003

There is an elegance with silver gray that I just couldn't find in titanium silver. True, the titanium accents with black interior looks high tech and sportier. I choose not to get the wood trim because i feel it is for a more "mature audience (lol)."

ksoman · November 2003

everything is white, black, silver or gray variations, sometimes with champagne/gold muddled in it.. lately even the burgundy reds are seen everywhere...
there are about 500 million colors that the human eye can see with about 96 prominent segregates... can we not have some more cars that are not in the boring mainstream?

blueguydotcom · November 2003

Go back to reds! Or yellows.

BTW, I'd have gone leatherette on my car had it been an option. Unfortunately, BMW insisted either leather or that crummy Alcantra stuff. Oh well, at least it's not cloth.

ponytrekker · November 2003

are all easier to keep clean. You can only tell my steel blue needs a wash by looking at the wheels.

Leatherette is easier to keep clean than leather. Leather isn't worth it.

andergtr · November 2003

i have a 2002 325ci in black sapphire metallic with the sport and premium packages. as such, it's got the tan leather. my brother has a '95 325i with the leatherette.

honestly, you can't tell the difference. the 3-series (i think the M3 is different) leather is pretty average. i think the leather in infiniti and lexus is light years better, and if i could have ordered a car--instead of buying one off the lot--i would have gotten the leatherette. the leather isn't worth the upcharge.

white6 · November 2003

I originally ordered my 2004 330Ci in jet black/black 'ette; then recanted and changed it to silver gray with natural brown leather. Cost me an additional $2,000 (had to upgrade to leather and metallic paint) and after swapping out the titanium trim for birch, I really like the look. After six months, I still occasionaly wish I had stuck to the jet black, though. Especially after spying a spotlessly-clean black 3-series on the road. Jet black paint is a lot easier to match if something happens, too. The new silver gray actually has a blue cast to it and, like all metallics, requires an accomplished pro to match in the event of damage.

blueguydotcom · November 2003

honestly, you can't tell the difference. the 3-series (i think the M3 is different) leather is pretty average.

Honestly, you must have a really poor sense of touch then. I wish I had the leatherette (and an extra 1400 bones) but I can tell a marked difference between my leather and my bro-in-law and friends' Bimmers with the leatherette.

I still wish I had that but it definitely feels different. The material just feels rougher and also it's softer than my leather seats.

erickpl · November 2003

Thanks for the pricing on the BMW wipers. I have to go pick up some other maintenance stuff from them (filter, wiper fluid, etc) so I'll add the wipers to the list.

-Paul

mxpro738 · November 2003

Thank you for the feedback to my question on snow tires (#24654). After back-burner-ing the that purchase (along with a number of other things) due to a crazy set of deadlines at work, I've finally reconnected with this discussion group.

I read your posts, Tire Rack and CR, and just ordered a set of Dunlop Winter Sport M3's. Here's hoping I have good luck with them!

One of the things which helped me to decide was a recent test drive. I have a friend who just mounted some Blizzak WS-50's on his '03 325i. I did not have the benefit of driving in the snow or on the ice, but I have to say the the dry road performance was an eye-opener. During modest or agressive cornering, the tires would "wander" on the road - considerably. Any quick movement of the steering wheel (even slight ones) would result in the same.

I've had winter tires before, and do not recall having that much of an "issue".

I'll be throwing on the Winter Sport M3's before you know it. It'll be interesting to get a good side-by-side comparison between the Blizzak and the M3's, since both are class leaders, but never tested against each other. Apples and oranges, as they say.

Who knows, I might even order the Dunlops for the wife's Odessey.

mxpro738 · November 2003

I was wondering if any of you have converted your 3-series 5 or 6 speed with a short-shifter kit? Are you happy with it? Is there product advice to share?

Also, how does that impact the warranty? My car is only a few months old and it's probably even less of an option for me since I am leasing (though I may buy it out at the end).

Also, anyone here feel that their '03 330 6-speed is a little notchy as compared to the 5-speeds? I have a friend whose 325 has the 5-speed, and that is much more smooth than my 6-speed... especially for 1st and 2nd gears.

Thanks!

mxpro738 · November 2003

I am accustomed to having a cold engine (e.g. on 25 degree mornings) idle high until the engine warms up part way. I don't know if that is stilled called a choke with EFI carbureted engines, but Im guessing you know what I am talking about.

No matter how cold the weather or my engine is, my car always idles the same (low) when I start-it. Is that normal with these engines? (This is my first BMW.) Its an 03 330i.

Thanks!

blueguydotcom · November 2003

Also, anyone here feel that their '03 330 6-speed is a little notchy as compared to the 5-speeds? I have a friend whose 325 has the 5-speed, and that is much more smooth than my 6-speed... especially for 1st and 2nd gears.

I find all BMW manuals atrocious (yet own one...go figure) but most definitely the 6 speed manny is notchy and more mercurial than the 5. All told, that's the one thing BMW does poorly. If only they had honda manuals...ahh

andergtr · November 2003

and they had comparable mileage, too, at the time. you couldn't really tell much difference between the two.

maybe i'm no leather connoisseur, but i'm not the first guy to say this.

andergtr · November 2003

i'm gonna go out on a limb and suggest that maybe you don't know how to drive a stick.

in the past i had an acura integra and a toyota corolla (both sticks), and i have the BMW and a scion xB now (both sticks). the BMW stick is very smooth and very forgiving--you'd really have to not know how to drive stick to screw up on this one. the clutch has a fair amount of travel and doesn't engage until the end of its release.

i'd say it's as forgiving as the clutch in my acura. it just has a different action.

i dunno...maybe all the car magazines that love the bimmer sticks are wrong.

blueguydotcom · November 2003

<I<i'm gonna go out on a limb and suggest that maybe you don't know how to drive a stick.

Out on a big limb as I've been driving stick since I was 10.

in the past i had an acura integra and a toyota corolla (both sticks), and i have the BMW and a scion xB now (both sticks). the BMW stick is very smooth and very forgiving--you'd really have to not know how to drive stick to screw up on this one. the clutch has a fair amount of travel and doesn't engage until the end of its release.

i'd say it's as forgiving as the clutch in my acura. it just has a different action.

I'm not talking about forgiving. I'm talking about sloppy linkage, bad clutches, notchy feel, vague gates and an all around feeling of garbage. My 6 speed binds when pushed and so does my bro-in-law's five speed. I've not driven a bimmer yet with a good stickshift.

i dunno...maybe all the car magazines that love the bimmer sticks are wrong.

To each their own. I feel honda sticks are lightyears beyond BMW. The miata too has a stick that's sublime. The BMW...ford-like junk that detracts from my driving pleasure.

mxpro738 · November 2003

For what it's worth, by far, the best stick I have personally driven is the Honda S2000. To me, that has set the benchmark.

That said, I wouldn't say that BMW is categorically bad in this department, but there is a very noticable gap between how my car's stick operates (which I wouldn't trade) and that S2000.

jim1395 · November 2003

very clever! i have to agree with you. honda/acura does have very nice feeling sticks. i wouldn't call bmw manuals garbage but i do see room for improvement.

i just visited the consumer reports site and noticed bmw 3 series is back on there recommended list. stating reliability has improved recently. not that i place to much weight on there ratings, but thought some people may like to know

topspin628 · November 2003

My lease on my 330i step, pp, sp, cold weather, is up this summer and boy is it fun to start thinking about my next one.

Some advice would be nice. I see how most of you enthusiasts opt for the stick but the universal consensus seems to be that bmw's stick is not the best. This is surprising to me. I probably will go with a step anyway since my wife will sometimes drive it.

So my choices as of today
330 i same as I have now- I love it!

330 i with ZHP- just for something different- I like the touches in and out and it would actually be less $ than the set up I have now. And it now comes with (ouch!) step. I would have to see, however, how intrusive the exhaust sound is.

330 cic.- I have never had a rag top. I live in the northeast and wonder if I would love it enough for 6 mos to make up for any inconveniences for the other 6. Any input on how different the car is with top on, (blind spots, drafty?) would be helpful. Also, the joy of "open air" driving... does it get tiresome?

Thanks

dbs8 · November 2003

I have owned four Hondas, one Acura and a Miata, all with sticks. IMO The 325cic I test drove last week was smoother that any of my Honda products. The Miata, which was a 1997, wins for best overall though.

I'm ordering the 5-speed 325ci, I hope it's as good or better than the one I drove.

jim1395 · November 2003

i hope i didn't give you the wrong impression. i have a 325i 5spd/sprt/prem and love it! i think its one of the best manuals i have ever driven, but i feel there is always room for improvement.

andergtr · November 2003

in sticks, and the BMW isn't that. the hondas i've driven are hardly performance sticks, and the BMW is much more along those lines. i don't agree with the rubbery feel you describe. to me, an audi or VW is rubbery in its shifting; the BMW doesn't feel that way at all.

as for your allegation that you've been driving stick since you were 10...i dunno. are you counting go karts and farm equipment?

to each his own, but i'm guessing that if you like the honda stick more than the BMW stick, you probably wouldn't like a porsche or something more performance-oriented. i've never heard a ferrari driver (my uncle has five of them) say that he liked a honda stick more than a BMW stick.

blueguydotcom · November 2003

I don't want anyone to get the wrong idea. I adore my car. But you're either at the top or you're garbage in my opinion. What's the losing team get after the Super Bowl? The second worst pick in the draft. Might as well have had the worst record in the league if you're not gonna win the big one.

erickpl · November 2003

BGDC is a Raider's fan.

-Paul

blueguydotcom · November 2003

as for your allegation that you've been driving stick since you were 10...

Allegation? Um, if it's my experience then it'd be a fact. The first stick I drove was a 1983 Nissan Pulsar NX. It was in a college parking lot. From that point on I drove sticks pretty consistently around the neighborhood, in parking lots and at my friend's grandparent's farm. There's not much that's more exciting for a 12 year old than doing e-brake 360s on dirt roads with nothing to hit for miles. Well maybe cows.

i dunno. are you counting go karts and farm equipment?

I've never driven a gocart or any farm equipment unless you count ATCs and ATVs as farm tools.

to each his own, but i'm guessing that if you like the honda stick more than the BMW stick, you probably wouldn't like a porsche or something more performance-oriented. i've never heard a ferrari driver (my uncle has five of them) say that he liked a honda stick more than a BMW stick.

I've never heard anyone say Porsche or Ferrari have good manuals. In fact just the opposite. i've read many, many complaints about the manuals in those cars. Prior to the Tiptronic there wasn an old joke about being able to tell a Porsche owner in So Cal by the fact that his left thigh was twice the size of his right.

BMW manuals are not rubbery. Never said so. I said notchy, binding, sloppy, poorly engineer. I know rubbery - I owned a VW. It's not like that. A bimmer tranny is more like stirring cold spaghetti with a wooden spoon.

blueguydotcom · November 2003

BGDC is a Raider's fan.

Actually, born and raised a Niners fan. Even if they are a lousy team and have been for nearly a decade, I still support them.

andergtr · November 2003

you aren't into the whole sport stick kind of feel. you'd rather have a honda stick, which is cool.

gotcha.

as far as the ferrari sticks...well, if you like the honda, you're not gonna like the ferrari. and the porsche clutches are heavy as hell--it's a driver's car, not a comfort car.

memphis10 · November 2003

I have a 5 speed and I have only one complain. The throw is too long. But I have to admit that the BMW does so many things better than others out there but when it comes to the manual tranny, it is just about average, not exceptional. Though I don't have any major issues, I feel there is a lot of room for improvement.

blueguydotcom · November 2003

as far as the ferrari sticks...well, if you like the honda, you're not gonna like the ferrari. and the porsche clutches are heavy as hell--it's a driver's car, not a comfort car.

What a copout. There's no reason a performance car should have a substandard tranny.

Driver's car...if that were so then the tranny action would be short, precise and unwavering.

This is like saying an action movie shouldn't have full characters and good dialogue because afterall it's all about things that go boom.

mxpro738 · November 2003

I encourage you all to take time out on a Saturday morning and test drive an S2000 with a stick, especially if you can con the salesman into staying at the store while you're gone.
I think that experience might put a positive spin on what (I think) blueguydotcom is trying to say.

In fact, if I recall correctly, Edmunds and/or some of the car rags have lauded Honda for that particular tranny, which is unlike its others.

Yes, I have had the good fortune driving 911's too. I still "stick" to my opinion here.

sunilb · November 2003

I think the contrast between BMW's stick and Honda's is the consistency, or lack thereof. Pretty much, every Honda I've driven has an incredibly smooth stick. But BMWs are hit or miss.

Does anyone think that Honda's better stick is partially attributable to the fact that they are mating them with low-torque engines (rather, low-torque at low rpm). Whereas, BMWs have much higher torque available at lower rpm.

trmichaels · November 2003

The button for the on-board computer, which is at the end of my turn-signal stalk, says "BC" on it... any guesses as to what this means? (I considered that it might stand for "on-board computer," but they kind of left the "o" off if this is the case!) Just curious.

hpowders · November 2003

Hello. I have a 2002 325I with premium package. I need a new windshield and was asked whether I have a rain sensor or not. How can I tell?
Thank you.
Howard

kdshapiro · November 2003

rain sensing wipers - look at the windshield. Rain sensors have squarish red covers similiar to what is on most remote controls.

BMW 3-Series 2005 and earlier

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