BMW 3-Series 2005 and earlier

bing330i

Train: S8 at Airport => transfer at Marienplatz on U6 (Garching-Hochbruck bound) off at Freimann. It's 8 Euro one way as of Jan 29 02 (cross 4 zones). Do not know the cost of a 4-zone day pass, a zone-1 day pass costs 4.5 Euro, which would cover most of the areas one would probably visit, including BMW HQ & factory 1.1 (factory tour), BMW museum, factory 2.2(?) at Freimann (ED pickup). The metro is an honor system. All you'd do is to buy your ticket and stamp it at the entrance.

raavir

I can get electric seats and lumber support on 325i, but not on 33oi for that prices.

here is the configuration

325i
sp(sport seats, 3 spoke steering, sport suspension, summertires and 17" wheels)
pp(electric seats, luber support, heated seats, sunroof, HK)
standard(xenons, auto climate control)

330i
sp(sport seats, 3 spoke steering, summertires and 17" wheels)
standrd(sunroof, xenons, auto climate control, sport suspension)
options(HK)

postoak

The electric seats aren't very important unless you have someone else regularly driving the car (or use valets a lot). Last year when I ran the numbers for a 325i with SP vs the 330i, the difference was $6423 U.S. If I could get a 330i for just $2,000 more, I would take that deal in a heartbeat (too).

topspin627

If you can afford the extra $ I don't think that you'll be sorry if you go for the 330. What's the chance that after getting the 330 you're sitting there one day saying to yourself," Gee, I wish my car had a little less power?". I have a 330 and love it. That's not to say I wouldn't have loved the 325 but the extra few buck per month on the lease wasn't enough to change my life. However, don't get yourself in a financial bind over it.
As far as leather vs vinyl, I've only had leather on all of my cars once I moved into the lux range over the last 20yrs or so. I can tell the difference even from the fine quality BMW leatherette.
PS- I now have about 7,000 miles on my 330i with sp,pp,cold weather and step. and it seems to be getting faster and getting better mileage. It's still a blast. Romance should be this long lasting! (I'm sure it is with the right person)>

riez

nobee... If the people use the picnic tables at rest stops, do their pets use the restrooms? I've never been to Germany or Europe and have heard Germans love their pets. Treat them like kaisers. Guessin' I won't be usin' any German picnic tables if I ever get over there. Hope nobody was usin' the table at the time. Germans must have really messy picnics.

ewoq

If you are in Canada, having heated seats will be appreciated for about half of the year. Power seats do allow a driver to make small adjustments while on the road, again a very useful device. If your budget is tight, try a CPO.

raavir

thanks guys, I am concerning about lumber support, not the power seats. I don't get lumber support cause I am not going to take pp on 330i. Heated deats are standrd on 330i and comes with pp on 325i.

raavir

if I don't take pp on 325i the difference would be $8000 with similerly equipped. I am concering about wether to for 325i with sp and pp or 33i just with sp.

denright

Seriously, the degree of monitoring and content-control that this web site exercises over the posts really seems to me to be a bit over the top.

Want this site to thrive? Let people engage in spirited debate, not the muted, boring, toned-down pablum you are insisting upon.

denright

I learned how to drive stick the summer after Junior year of college. I was employed by my university's maintenance department, and was assigned a work truck for the purposes of carting tools and equipment from work site to work site. However, the truck had a manual transmission, whereas I had never driven stick before.

So, I got a crash course in driving stick from my boss, who was a less than ideally patient man. Picture a shaggy haired college kid sitting in a white pickup truck, laden with tools, with a bearded middle age man screaming at him, "no, you gotta give it more gas when you let up on the clutch! Give it more gas, you idiot!"

I eventually got the hang of it, obviously, after a few fits and starts (literally). On one occassion I was stuck on a hill, facing upwards, unable to get underway without stalling for about 10 mintues with traffic piling up behind me. Humiliating, to say the least.

After college I moved to DC for law school. Early in my second year I met a girl who would later become my wife. She drove a '94 Cavalier with a manual five speed, whereas I didn't have a car at all. While we dated, her car was the vital lifeline between her home in Bethesda and mine in Arlington. I became reacquainted with the art of driving stick in my wife's Cavalier, and fell in love with the control that it offered on the road. Driving in city traffic, the manual transmission offered better acceleration off the line than one would expect from a small four cylinder. Moreover, I found that driving a manual made me much more attuned to the road, to the cars around me, and to the entire driving experience. Driving stick literally made me a better driver.

I was hooked.

I bought a Pontiac Sunfire GT in 1997 -- manual of course. Though it was an economy car with a very reasonable price tag, I loved it. Again, the manual transmission made the car a pleasure to drive, zippy and agile, whereas a similar car with an automatic felt sluggish and boring.

Well, come 2001, I had been a practicing attorney for five years and I became interested in looking at new cars. My criteria were pretty basic, I thought: I wanted a 4 door sporty sedan, with a 6 cylinder, at least 200 HP, good handling and a manual transmission. Guess what? There aren't very many cars that meet this description.

The limiting factor, I found, was the manual transmission. To my knowledge, there are no American cars available with 6 cylinders, 4 doors, 200 HP and a manual transmission other than the Lincoln LS. I actually emailed Pontiac at one point to urge them to offer the Grand Am and/or the Grand Prix with a manual transmission. They, obviously, declined.

So, despite my preference for an American-made car, I was forced to look at imports. I considered the Audi A4, the BMW 3-Series, the Nissan Maxima, and the Volkswagen Jetta and Passat. I settled on the BMW and bought a 2001 330xi.

I love this car. It is an utter pleasure to drive ... and I owe it all to a beat up pickup truck and a '94 Cavalier that taught me to love the manual transmission and not settle for the lesser experience of driving an automatic.

pat

There is nothing at all wrong with "spirited debate" - however, when message posters turn to name-calling or the like, that is beyond the civil and respectful discourse required by your Membership Agreement. That is spelled out very clearly in that document which you may review by following the link on the left sidebar.

It is entirely possible to engage in spirited debate without the use of personal attacks. I see it all over the Town Hall every day.

We are NOT going to talk about Town Hall policies here. I will be happy to discuss anything at all with anyone off-line, just drop me an email.

Let me remind you that I do not make the policy here, I am merely charged with seeing that it is upheld. If you have objections to any of the Town Hall policies, the proper thing to do is to address your concerns to our Consumer Services Manager, Jonah Brown at jbrown@edmunds.com - he is the person ultimately responsible for our community.

Thanks.

Pat
Host
Sedans Message Board

raavir

denright

Pat, I didn't say you were misapplying the policy toward which you are so fond of directing people's attention. I said the policy is misguided and stifles the development of a vibrant community.

Frankly, I don't care about this site enough to take it further, and discussing this subject with you appears to me to be an exercise in futility. I will happily drop the subject.

bmwaaron

I have a 2001 325i w/ sp, pp, hk, xenon, htdsts, fold down rs.

I purchased the car on the 12th of January, and have put 1000 miles on it since. The car originally had 15192 miles on it. As soon as I got it home it began to squeak. After one service of the breakes it returned and this time had a groan that was horiffic. It was serviced again and they said they chamfered down the rotors and put on anti-squeak stuff. Three days later it began to squeak again. I just got back (this is third week in less than a month of ownership) with them telling me that sometimes breakes just squeak. They are going to see if the Certified Car Manager will approve new breakes. Will this stop the excessive squeaking? If not how can I get them to stop? They're driving me crazy!

derprofi

Hear hear! I've grown more weary of the constant parroting of the rules and how we're "NOT" going to discuss them here than I have of the rule-breakers themselves... But I too have reached a point where I just don't care enough to argue or even discuss the matter. Sometimes I wonder how many valuable posters or potential posters simply don't bother to come here any longer, and whether I shouldn't just join them.

raavir, grey green is OK but will you still like it in a year? Personally I don't think you can ever go wrong on a 3er with the grayscale shades: white, black, silver, steel.

I visited a new dealer near my house today (Sterling BMW in VA) and sat in a white M roadster and a white M coupe they had out. I didn't dare drive them, though--I could tell even standing still that I would probably never be satisfied with my 330i after that

nobee

German rest-stops are completely different than the ones in the states. They are right off the Autobahn and are completely devoid of amenities. You'll find perhaps a couple of picnic tables and abundance of black and blue trash bins for trash and recycling. In hindsight, I believe that may be a big reason as to why the Autobahns are pretty much clean of trash...or maybe it's because everyone's going 160Kmh+.

The main reststops are the gas stations on the Autobahn. You'll find sit-down, buffet-style restaurants, a snack-shop, lodging, and a spot-less toilette. Make sure you bring at least .20-.40 Euros to use the toilet.

Dogs are everywhere. You'll see them in restaurants, shopping malls, etc..etc.., but they're very well behaved and I've never seen or heard a dog bark in a public establishment. Actually, the dog may have more manners at the reststop than the driver...HA!
-nobee

denright

I bought at VOB. I loved my dealership. My salesman, Bulent (pronounced "Bool-ahnt") was polite, patient, helpful and easy to negotiate with. I got a 330xi for $1500 over invoice, including mats and wheel locks. Ordered last April, took delivery in July.

Since then I have been THRILLED with their service. I give an unequivocal endorsement to VOB.

bmw323is

Perhaps this summer I will be upgrading to 17" wheels and tires for my 323 - using the current 16" for winter tires next year. I've seen alloy wheels for as little $120 each and as much as $700. I don't know what the cost is for OEM wheels from BMW but I'm sure it is toward that higher side. What is the difference between these inexpensive and expensive wheels?

Also, my sport Conti's have gotten very loud on the concrete freeways (I have about 11,000 miles on them). The only time they are quiet now is on new and very smooth blacktop. Any body else notice this?

brave1heart

I also noticed that my Contisports started getting louder around 11-12K. They held the corners better up to that point. They are much easier to squeal now with 15K miles on them but I am projecting they will need to be replaced around 25K miles.

dave330i

Thanks for the correction. I was wondering why nyccarguy kept mentioning leather & PP.

hungry: Clutch is working great. It's still stiff in the morning, but really smooth once it warms up. If I ever get bored, I think I'll go look for that hill again.

butmywife

Raavir, you mentioned that you can get lumbar support on a 325i.It is my understanding that lumbar support is not an option on the 325 cars here in the States. Does anyone out there know if this has changed or is this only available on Canadian models? By the way, does anyone know how much it costs to replace a dented rim on a 325xi? I unrounded one a loner after an untimely collision with a rock slide.
Guys, thanks for all the great info. I'm ready to order my 325xi (grey green, PP) for April pick up in Munich. I'm thinking of getting the tape deck and installing a CD changer so I can have the best of both worlds. Has anyone out there gone with this option? Thanks!!

billiam70

I have an offer from Hahn Motor Company in Yakima WA that is pretty good. I live in the Seattle area and travelling to them will save up to $1100 over the deals I can get here. I feel uncertain about dealing with a dealer so far away (130 miles) and wanted to know if anyone here has any experience with them.

Thanks.

stokdgs

Bailey,
I just finished reading your piece - "Bad Boy Box"
page 34, Roundel, Feb. 2002 and it is GREAT !!
You covered every point about this fabulous X5 4.6is in a very well thought-out manner, literally taking me through the experience with you, giving me your own thoughts as we went.
It was evident that you were more than just writing about it but were very much enthused about it too, and this left me feeling very much the same.
I am very glad to hear your experiences with this bad boy box and want to thank you for your efforts.
If you see Greg Jarem, please convey my thanks and appreciation for the awesome photography - its the best Ive seen in awhile !

DanF

div2

Thanks! I really try to make readers feel that they're actually riding along with me. I'm glad you enjoyed it. My seven year old son almost cried when I had to turn the 4.6is back in; I was just a bit misty-eyed... And I agree, Greg is an outstanding photographer. His photos MADE the story.

buulu

raavir, I hear your dilema. I've been battling this back and forth , on my mind,for some time now. The 330i (canada) has everything I'd need on a 325i (and more)
I'm talking about sunroof, sports suspension,heated seats e.t.c.

With ED, 7% GST and other misc. charges(plates $120, Emission tax $80, Insurance $430, Munich drop off $250, European port handeling $240, Marine insurance $215, Ocean freight $270, Canadian Brokerage and dock charges $180, Port of Halifax loading charges $60, Agriculture Canada Inspection $30, Onward rail transportation $800).

330i (no option) = $50826 Can and
325i(sunroof, sports suspension,heated seats) = $47670can.
Armed with these figures, it seemed apparent to me the 330i is a better deal.
But then wait, I'm now thinking: I live in an apt.
and thoughts of parking a 50k+ investment outside seems a bit daunting to me.

hmm...?

And then gradually I start thinkin whether I should rather consider buying my first house before my dream car??...and on and on and on the thoughts go. Say what? fear factor?
Gosh! I wish I was accepted 10yrs ago as Bill Gate's shoe shine boy .

But well hopefully I'll find the courage one of these days to walk into Bavaria BMW to sign the papers (oh! what a joyous day it will be).

Share your first buying experience if you can!!!.

buulu

raavir

In canada we get it with pp. It is not in options list. But we can place a custom order just for lumber support. For that you need to take electric seats option also. So that it costs $400 for lumber support, $1800 for electric seats, $400 for special order administration fee. So it costs all together $2600. So it's better off taking entire pp rather than placing a special order.

If I go with 330 I don't order pp, if I go with 325 i will go with pp so that I will get lumber support.

raavir

I am not going with euro delivery, I will place order for montreal delivery. For me too sunroof, heated seats, sportpack are must to have. Only reason I am thinking of is wether to get pp on 325 or go with 330 without it, cause pp on 325 comes with lumber support. I don't want to take pp on 330 as it is too expensive ($5300), in that I just need lumber and HK, I don't need lether seats etc.. What are the best quotes you have? yeah u r right parking 330i on road? I am also staying in apartment only, but I can rent a indoor parking space.

raavir

Are you guys know or concerning anything about changes on 3 series for 2003.

nobee

I've personally never dealt with them before, but my friend has and he has nothing but high marks for them. Class act all the way.

But...is it really worth the trouble and the difference in cost in the long run? $1100.00 is a lot of money but I guess I'd take into the consideration of free loaner cars, Seattle dealer's reputation, the cost to drive/fly into Yakima, etc.etc..

If it was me, I'd take a one-way hop (Horizon Air flies into Yakima) and enjoy the beautiful drive back home!
good luck!
-nobee

ubrsf

xrob

Hello. I purchased a new 2001 325IT in August of 2001 and my wipers have already begun to wear out. I was going to buy some Bosch Microedge replacements, but they do not seem to fit properly (driver's side especially) based on the book at the store (they recommend a 22" blade, which is about 1" shorter than the stock one). Also, there are a few attachments to the driver wiper which look like they should stay on. My question: has anyone replaced their wipers with a good brand instead of shelling out the $17 each (!) for the official BMW blade. Would the normal warranty cover this wear-and-tear item?
One other issue has been my windshield. Within the first month of owning the vehicle, the front windshield sustained several pits and cracks from debris. The amount of crud flying through the air during my commute hasn't changed, but the susceptability of the windshield has. On my old car, nothing like this would hurt the glass, but with the BMW, every little thing causes damage. I called and talked to BMW and they told me to take it up with the dealer. The dealer told me they would look at it, but were skeptical over the phone and cited driving conditions etc. would make it difficult to determine whether or not the glass was "defective."
Any ideas, suggestions, or experiences would be great. Thanks,

Rob H

330guy

I can't help you out with an aftermarket wiper blade manufacturer, but I would appreciate comments as well. I change my blades out of necessity every 5-6 months.

I have owned two BMW's a 99 328I and now a 2002 330I. Both cars winshields became rock pitted very easily and I was replacing my windshield once a year. (In MA, insurance covers the charge). I only have 5,500 miles on my 330 and the shield is all pitted up already. This is frustrating, but I have never really looked into it with the dealership.

JC.

shipo

Windshield: the glass on my 328i, if anything, seems less prone to pitting and such when compared to the 1995 Passat GLX that I had prior to my current car. Go figure.

I have in fact found a way around the wiper blade replacement issue, I bought Anco "Aerovantage" replacement blades from www.autozone.com. The two part numbers that are needed for the E46 are N24R (left side) and N20R (right side). Each package comes with two replacement blades and the cost is $4.99 per package.

The other benefit I can report about these blades is that they seem to last longer than the OEM rubber (even though they claim to be the OEM rubber maker). Go figure, take II.

Best Regards,
Shipo

brave1heart

Your easy-flowing writing style and enthusiasm for the car made me look forward to the next sentence... and I am not even an X5 fan.

How did you manage to put your hands on one of these monsters - do you have to commit to writing an article to get one for a few days? You make irrational fun sound really good!!

p.s. Please don't tell me you also get paid for writing the article - that would be too good to be true!!

ccotenj

do you want wheels that will just change the looks or do you want wheels that will actually improve the handling characteristics of the car? if looks only, then you can get cheap cast ones (of course, they'll also dent and get out of round easily as well)... if you want to improve the car (plus have something that won't get destroyed over your local pothole collection), you need to move to something more expensive, either a good cast wheel or forged wheel... cast wheels *will likely* increase your unsprung weight going from the 16 to the 17 (but the *better* cast wheels won't get out of round as easily as the *cheap* ones... depending on the forged wheel, you can end up around the same weight or lighter (depending on how light you want to make your wallet)...

my general rule of thumb... any alloy wheels that cost much less than 400 dollars or so aren't worth buying... (others will probably disagree here)...

also... before you go to the 17's, if you are doing in for performance, you'd probably be better served first trying a tire upgrade on your 16's first... i won't go into great detail about my opinion on conti-sports, but will sum it up in 3 words... "they are junk"...

you should read the "about plus sizing" link on the tire-rack site... that covers the stuff above, plus what *interesting* impacts you'll have on your suspension if you add a bunch of unsprung weight and so on...

other things to consider... your ride is going to be somewhat *rougher* than with the 16's, due to the smaller sidewall... if you are already working with worn suspension bits (like struts, springs, ball joints, and so on), the plus sizing is just going to exascerbate that problem...

a good place to look for the various types of oem bmw wheels is here...

good luck.

-Chriss

div2

Thanks for the kind words. Roundel Editor Satch Carlson assigned the story to me so I attended the press launch just like the guys from Automobile, Bimmer, Car and Driver, etc. BMW gave everyone the option of driving a 4.6is home, so needless to say I jumped on it. As it turned out, the BMW press team at the event was practically begging journalists to drive the cars away to save on shipping costs. If my wife had been able to accompany me I probably could have taken TWO home...:)

sunnybrook

I'm thinking about purchasing a 2002 325i in the next month or so and was wondering what your guys experience was in terms of how long it took to take receipt of the car. I've heard from some people as long as 4 months...is that typical? I was thinking the average would be more around 2 months, maybe less....

brave1heart

It was 7 wks for me (Boston) from the day I ordered it to the day I took delivery. Make sure you get a VIN # when you order the car and ask the dealer to put it on the purchase order - this gets you a car from the dealer allocation.

dave330i

It depends on your options and color choice. If the dealer have to special order one for you, then it could take several months.

huntzinger

I have the option of spending some time in Munich later this year and I've been debating if the factory tour is really worthwhile or not.

My wife probably won't be into it, and I've taken automotive (Ford) factory tours before. Plus, my job used to routinely take me onto production floors...forming, assembly, packaging, as well as the classic "can't see nothin" batch/continuous chemical.

Soooo....is there really anything particularly noteworthy & unique about BMW's facility that makes it noteworthy?

-hh

nyccarguy

where's this article you wrote?

dave330i

It's in the Feb Issue of Roundel (BMW CCA mag).

dave330i

You get to see 3-series built. What more do you want?

nyccarguy

I don't get Roundel as I am not a BMWCCA member.

1johann

Anyone in the DC area ever use

http://www.autoadvantage.net/concept

to locate the buy a CPO BMW?

Are these really CPO?

Thanks in advance,

J

ccotenj

no, they are a used bmw that some guy named "ken" looks over and gives you a 6 month/6000 mile warrantee (how generous)...

ONLY bmw dealers sell BMW cpo cars...

-Chris

petrarch

I can't find a site that lists new car prices since the 1% increase. Does anyone have a URL?

Does the increase apply only to the base price of the car - i.e., before options are added?

bill124

Any suggestions on where in the New York City area (including Long Island and Westchester) on where I might get the best price on a 325/330? So far, $1500 under MSRP on 330 is best I've been quoted.

kominsky

I'm not sure about the service you mentioned, but if you go to bmwusa.com, they have a CPO car locator online. Enter the page, click on "Certified Pre-Owned -> Vehicle Search". You can give it a certain dealership or do an area search up to the entire U.S.

rhmass

In my purchase order, the "production" number was listed, not the vin #. Is it the same? Before the car is in production, will there be a vin # already? I was told it would take at least 8 weeks for my 325xiT which I ordered about 10 days ago.