BMW 3-Series 2005 and earlier

abcnyc

Any feedback on tire dealers such as Merchants, NTB, or PEP Boys for changing tires ? I had a nail in my tires and went to Merchants and PEP Boys. Merchants indicated they could not balance the wheels. PEP Boys indicated they could not get the tire off because of the high lip of my wheels. I have the 330i with SP. Are NTB dealers any better ? I'm still debating getting winter tires & wheels or just the winter tires installed on my wheels. Any recommendations on where to get tire work ?

john01

If I were you, I would rather get the wheel/tire set up, but that is just me.

I have heard many 911 owners talking about damaged rims by some of those chains. Especially 18 inch or larger. Some shops would not even touch them. I would contact local BMWCCA chapter or PCA chapters and see if they can refer you to some places. Some of the chapters have websites or yahoo groups, so you can post your request over the web.

riez

abcnyc... My '98 540i6 had a tire repair situation recently. Nail on the inside up high. Took to BMW, as I already had an appointment for some other work, but they couldn't repair it. BMW dealer said he lacked the equipment but recommended some local tire shops. Took it to a greater Omaha (NE) area Tires Plus outlet. They had no problem getting tire on or off, or repairing the tire. Wait was short and the price was low ($15). I was happy. This is second repair on my 5's tires. First time was a simple screw straight thru heart of tread pattern. BMW dealer fixed that one.

bmwed

Just wanted to thank markjenn and div2 for the suggestion to buy the 6 CD Changer from pacificbmw. It cost about $500 (the kit for my 323 Ci was the most expensive variation). It should be arriving any day.

By the way the previous owner tried a non-OEM changer and could not get it to work.

Andy98

I apologize if this question has been posted elsewhere but this board has provided very useful informaiton to me in the past so here it goes. I have a 2002 330xi with about 11,600 miles. At around 6,000 miles, my oil pressure light came on which prompted me to bring it to the dealership. All they did was add oil. Well, the dreaded light has come on again this morning. Is this normal? I have never had a car which has done this in the past. Then again, I've never had a car which didn't need an oil change until 15k. Any suggestions (or reassurances) would be greatly appreciated. Should I bring the car in again? Thanks for your comments.

rogerab

I am thinking of purchasing a #330i with 205/50/17 tires.
I have a fairly new set of Michelin Artic Alpin with wheels P225/55R16.

Will they fit?.

ccotenj

205(?)/50/17???

the question of "will they fit" is more along the lines of "are the wheels my artic alpins are on" the correct offset for the car... and that we can't tell you, without knowing what the offset of your winter wheels are...

as far as diameter, the 16's are gonna be about 3% larger...

-Chris

bimmer3i

The BMW Owners Circle shows the status of my 2003 330i order, in Production (with prod date 9/13/2002). I'm just wondering why the options I ordered are not showing, the portion where it should list the ordered options (Auto, PP and SP) is blank. Is this normal? Will it show later after the production?
I believe there are a lot of BMW owners track their orders through this website (BMW Owners Circle). Could you please give some feedback on this?
I appreciate any input.
Thanks.

Ron

rabright

My 2003 330Ci in on the boat and the options still don't show on the owners circle. It is my understanding from hundreds of post on the same question at bimmerfest, that these options do not show up until very very late in the game.

You can always call BMWNA (hundreds of times) and confirm the options on your car, with your production number. I asked several times just because I liked hearing them listed again...and again.

I find that the Owners Circle is very up to date, on the GENERAL level of production for your car. For specifics and the actual production codes, call BMWNA, anytime, as much as you wish.

bimmer3i

Your posting is very helpful. Thanks for your suggestion. I'll try to call BMWNA ASAP.

seivwrig

I have never tried an aftermarket. I bought my CD changer for significantly less than in the States. That is one of the advantages of ED, pending that you do your homework. I know that Crutchfield sell CD changers and adapters for the BMW. Theirs apparently work. Personally, I don't feel a changer is worth more than $300 unless you can play MP3, then I would be willing to pay more. But then you would have enough music to play on a tour of the US and still not hear everything.

nerd

The oil level monitor should alert you to low oil level much before the engine would lose oil pressure. My service manager tells me that the level alarm will come on when the level is down only half a quart.

I wonder if the problem is with the oil pressure switch.

jean7of9

I am wondering whether any Canadian Buyer tried to track his order on the USA Owners Circle; since this service is not provided by BMW Canada, would it work?
Jean

maransm

I live in Colorado and planning to order 2003 325xi through a DC dealer. I went thru UBS and got an offer $1900 over US invoice. (Thanks to the gentleman who gave this information in one of the thread; I forgot which one?!)

Now my questions are,
1. Once I get my new 03 car, am planning to drive back to Colorado (about 2000 miles). Is this okay? Putting 2000 miles at a stretch, Will it be damaging the engine?

2. Local dealer's offer is about $1300 more than DC dealer. Does the 2000 miles trip and flight tickets worth for $1300?? or Will I be better off ordering to the local dealer paying 1300 more?

3. I am still debating with 325xi or 330i (I just like the more power in 330). Since I live in Colorado and considering the snow conditions in here, Will I have problems if I get 330i? (If needed, I can put snow tires for snow though)

Sorry for too many questions.. Thanks in advance!

bmw323is

1. Driving back from DC will be fine on the car as long as you vary your speeds regularly (stay off the Interstate highways). And don't use cruise control.
2 & 3. If the DC dealer is charging $1,900 over invoice and the Colorado dealer is $1,300 over that, they must be charging full sticker. I live in Colorado, and I think you can do better than that. If not, skip the AWD and buy snow tires - you'll do better in snow and ice. Dealers here are taking advantage of the goofy Colorado "I gotta have an SUV" buyer - especially going into winter. Have you tried all of the dealers? How about Nebraska, New Mexico, Utah, So. CA? $1,900 over invoice doesn't sound that great - you sure shouldn't have to go all the way to DC.

My last advice, buy the 330i. I wish I had the extra power of the 330 especially at altitude. I test drove one last weekend and the difference to my 323 is significant.

toronto_dennis

The current Owners Circle will not track Canadian vehicles or assist Canadian buyers. BMW Canada advised me that Canadian customers can "soon" expect the service to be extended to Canada.

butmywife

I had a similar experience having a cd player installed on my 325xi. I bought a Pioneer 12 changer from a shop but it wouldn't work. I ended up buying the 6 changer from my dealer and had the original shop install it for $35! (My dealer wanted about $400 to install it--they said they couldn't legally hang it from the ceiling of the trunk and had to cut and trim it into the side panel. They mentioned something about not messing with some structure having to do with child-lock safety something or other. Of course, the kit I bought from the dealership included a trunk ceiling bracket. The irony was lost on the service manager.) The cd player works great. I'm sure you'll enjoy yours.
ButMyWife

maransm

Thanks for your suggestions.

Yeah, I have checked out so many dealers in New Mexico, Texas, South California and Utah.. The maximum offer I got was 1000 less from MSRP and thats from Sou.CA and my local dealer. DC dealer offers 2200 less than MSRP using UBS discount.

But according to Edmund's "True Cost to Own" value, 330i seems 64 cents/mile. Then 2000 miles trip would end up with $1300. I guess then, there is no point in going to DC all the way..

Yeah, I want to go with 330i, since I drive V8 SUV right now, 325 seems very less power for me.

yalesom

The inevitable has happened, wheel scratched while parking next to curb. Anyone have any suggestions on repairs or fixes?

platypus

Having to add oil at the 6k mark is fairly common for 330 models, from what I understand. Like you, when my 2001 330i's oil light came on, I took it into the dealer who then added a quart of oil. Dealer said it was normal. I then posted a message on bimmer.org asking if this was indeed a common occurence, and many responded that it was also the case for their cars.

BTW, still waiting for my car to come back from the body shop. Should be done by next Monday. :-)

dl7265

Its 32.6k and im not suprised Dallas is a tough market, ill have to see.

maransm: The large cities in TX are tough but several have found great deals in Temple and Tyler i belive , thats closer then DC

DL

rogerab

I am considering both vehicle's Apart from the engine & tire sizes what are the differences.
My existing vehicle is an Infiniti i30t and I have got used to the driver egress system and the garage opener (Homelink) located in the sun visor.
Do you know if these features are available on the 2003 models of above.

ccotenj

ummm... what pray tell, might that be, other than a fancy name for a driver's side door?

-Chris

rogerab

When you take the keys out of the ignition the drivers seat moves back which allows for easier exit from the car, it stays back until the keys are inserted into the ignition and then moves forward to the pre selected seat position.

locke2c

what's the egress system do if there is someone seated behind the driver in the oh-so-spacious 3er rear cabin?

-Colin

ccotenj

i think he was referring to his i30 having that, not a 3er...

the rear seats are not spacious in the 3er by any stretch of the imagination, but if you actually fit back there, they are quite comfortable (so i've been told, i never ride anywhere but the driver's seat in mine)...

-Chris

kominsky

I agree with platypus that adding a quart of oil somewhere around the first 4,500-6,000 miles seems to be fairly common. I added a quart at 4,500 and haven't run low since.

I gotta ask this question... Don't you guys check your oil regularly?!? I would freak out if my oil ever got low enough for the light to come on. Check it once a week or whenever you fill the tank. It only takes a minute.

brave1heart

I was having trouble shifting my 325i into second in corner #3 at the last NHIS driving school and I thought you might help me figure out why. Corner #3 is 180 degrees and you have to slow down from ~85 mph in 4-th gear to ~30 mph in 2nd. A couple of seconds after I start braking hard from 85 mph (just short of locking up the wheels), I depress the clutch and try to shift it from 4-th into 2-nd. It doesn't want to take it under heavy braking. It didn't want to take it even after I had come to almost a complete stop while exiting the turn. So the way I got around it is by double-clutching - start braking, depress the clutch, shift it into neutral, depress the clutch again, slide it into second, hold the clutch till I am ready for second, then release it (sometomes heel and toe it if I can manage). I can shift it from 4-th into 2-nd ~ 70 mph on the highway (w/o releasing the clutch of course) and it takes it OK. In corner 3, it takes second without having to match the revs but only as long as I double-clutch it. Heel-and-toeing (no time to just blip the throttle in this turn) without double-clutching worked only sometimes... There are a few other corners on the track where I'd downshift it into second while blipping the throttle and without having to double-clutch but I was not braking nearly as hard for those corners. The dealer said they have not had any complaints like that but then again, I don't think there are a lot of owners who push their cars that hard. Any ideas?

kdshapiro

My Jeep had a driver egress system also. Does the 3 series support a driver egress system?

There are 3 seat memory buttons, program one to move the seat back and down.

erickpl

Driver egress, isn't that an ejection seat? hehe Seriously, I think kd is right on this. When the door opens, the seat slides back more and in some cars, the steering rises to make it easier to get in/out. My Jeep Grand Cherokee has it too, though we disabled it. Kind of freaks me out to have the seat move when I open the door.

maransm, I have a v8 SUV also, and have found the power of my 325xi more than ample for me in the 6 months I've had mine. I live in a mountainous area, though not as high or as steep as some areas of Colorado, and the 2.5L still works quite well for me. Even with 2 adults and 2 kids in the car, the car handles and accelerates quite well. Sure, it isn't as fast as a 330, but I find the 325xi meets my needs and wants just fine. The only thing about the 330 I miss is some of the stuff that is standard, like the trim around the dash, door lip trim... things like that. It just is a bit 'nicer.' Yes the bigger engine would be nice, but for the price, I just couldn't justify it.

-Paul

jean7of9

Thanks for your reply. Do you know when BMW Canada will release their 2003 price list? I cannot understand the logic behind their delay since BMW USA released their new prices weeks ago, also MB and Audi Canada.
Jean

getz1

Just to settle an argument, a gentleman on another discussion was bemoaning the E46 325i 5-speed as being buzzy at highway speeds, and stated that in 5th gear he was pushing close to 3700 rpm at 70-75 mph. My E46 323i was well below these rpms at the same speed. Could someone please confirm this, as I would assume it would be similar.
Thanks,
-Getz

kdshapiro

I have driven a couple of loaner 325is' auto, 01 and 02. At 60-65 as I remember the rpms were well below 3K. I would be hard pressed to think the manual would be up that high, but I'm just guessing.

riez

getz1... The overdrive 5th gear in the automatic makes a world of difference. My wife's '00 323iA turns over about 2,700 RPMs at 75 mph. The non-overdrive manual transmission 3s will have higher RPMs at high speeds. That is the nature of an overdrive versus direct drive.

The overdrive 6th gear in my '98 540i6 keeps her turning over about 2,150 RPMs at 75 mph. But this overdrive is numerically higher than my wife's. My 6th is a .82:1, with a 2.81 final drive, and her 5th is a .76:1, with a 3.46 final drive.

In MY 2000 the 323i and 328i automatics both had a 3.46 final drive; the 323i manual had a 3.07 final drive and the 328i manual had a 2.93 final drive. Thus the overall fifth gear ratio of 3.07:1 for the 323i manual is the highest numerical ratio of all these combinations. That leads it to turn over at the highest RPMs and is a reason why the '00 328i manual had an EPA rating of 21/29 versus the '00 323i manual's 20/29 rating.

seivwrig

It seems as though Shipo had posted on this topic before. This discussion came about on the RPM when the 325iA and 325i reach the limiter. I have the automatic and the RPM was about 4200 to 4500 RPM at the point the car reaches the limiter. I believe the manual was around 5000 RPM.

locke2c

div2, I made it through page 1 before stopping but yes that guy is a fool.

hey, can you help out the guy asking a few posts back about the shifting at the track question? I worked all weekend and can't get my head around it right now. (36 hours between Friday and Sunday... )

-Colin

carltu

Hello all,

I got a 325xi. Is it necessary to rotate the tires every 5K miles?

Thanks for your help.

postoak

I have a 325i manual. If memory serves, at 70 mph the engine is turning at 3,000 rpm in 5th. I can confirm that on my drive in tomorrow.

div2

Well, I'm an ancient relic who still double clutches 99% of the time-even on the street-and even while driving my five speed Wrangler. Since double clutching seems to cure the problem, you may have a 2nd gear synchro going bad. I would also look at the motor and transmission mounts-they may be letting the engine and transmission to move around a bit under heavy braking. I sure hope your dealer isn't one of the cretins who deny warranty coverage if the car has been autocrossed or tracked...

maransm

Finnnnally.. I have ordered 2003 330i (Sep build) Titanium Silver/Black leather, Step, PP, SP, CWP and Xenon. My local Colorado dealer could trade-in this car from some other dealer for me.

I am paying $1000 less than MSRP.. I did get about 2300 deal from South CA and DC dealers. But after all calculations, I have decided that I would be better off with 1000 less from MSRP from the local dealer.

Question:
1. When I checked in "owners circle", it said my car is in "scheduled for Production" and "Estimated production date is 09/13/02". With this details, approximately when would I get my car? I would like to know as soon as possible since I need to sell my old car before I get the new one.

2. Do I need to get snow tires or Spider spikes for this winter? I remember someone in this forum wrote that we don't need to replace tires or Spider Spikes if the tires are brand new. Is that true? If not, Which one am I suppose to go? Snow tires or Spider Spikes? (I do go for skiing a lot, so please consider that too)

This forum have been very informative for me since I never owned BMW before. Thanks to all of you..

dlc95035

You were able to get $2300 off MSRP in So. CA? Which dealer did you go through?

I think you should get your car in about 8 weeks - they need to finish the build & then it ships over in about 6 weeks depending on sailing dates & then there's the local transfer to your dealer.

Enjoy!

maransm

Sorry.. that was typing error in too much of excitement.. To be accurate, DC dealer's offer was 2230 off from MSRP and South CA was $1725.

psoto

Maransm, I placed the order on May 23 this year, production date was June 14, came out of the factory on June 19, placed on a ship on June 20, arrived at Port Hueneme on July 14, delivered to the dealer July 18, picked it up on July 22. I am from Southern Cal, by the way. There is a day or 2 lag with the information from the website. The most up-to-date info is from the toll-free number 800-831-1117. Use your order # for the initial tracking. Once the car comes out of production, you will get the VIN, then track it with the VIN. Once it is placed on a ship, ask for the ship name from the toll free #. The shipping company's website is www.wlna.com. (I don't know whether BMW uses this company exclusively for West Coast shipment.) This website will tell you exactly when and where the ship is arriving. The entire tracking sequence is pretty accurate. It even tracked the truck from Pt Hueneme to the dealer
including the time of day it was delivered.
A word of caution: It was pure torture from the time I placed my order to the time I picked it up. Cheers!

ccotenj

uneducated guess here...

i think div's is right on the synchro... sounds like it is locking you out somehow... either by going bad or by the transmission moving around and not letting you get to the gear... your symptoms sound real similar to when i lost the synchro on 2nd gear in my last mustang... except mine did it basically all the time, not just under braking, so it's not an exact match...

div - can you swap out the transmission mounts on the e46 to something stronger (like you could on previous 3ers) to keep it from moving around? i would imagine the ones on the m3 must be somewhat more robust, i wonder if those would bolt right on?

-Chris

ps: yes, the is guy is an idiot... how dumb can you get?

brave1heart

Thanks for your response, guys. My instructor also thought that it might be the synchro going bad but he wasn't sure since usually I could NOT shift it without double-clutching even when I matched the revs. I will ask the dealer to check the transmission mounts next time I bring it in. They know that I track the car and they will not refuse doing work on it because of that but they were concerned that they won't be able to duplicate the problem since it happens under very hard braking and only from high speed. Over the 27K miles that I've had the car, I have grinded second gear 2-3 times - that might have caused it.

p.s. the is300 pilots entertained me well during my lunch break )

erickpl

Just be glad you don't ArmorAll your tires before auto x-ing.

-Paul

lokki

What I like is the entire idea that it isn't his fault. Driving too fast for conditions doesn't seem to enter into any of the kid's thinking.

Something besides the driver must be responsible for wrecking the car. Back to NTB to complain about the tires! Sigh...

erickpl

I'd love to be a fly on the wall at that NTB as he tries to explain why the vendor is to blame. Never mind the rain, NO Traction Control (though a car should be driveable w/o it), and the *snicker* Armor All.

This does bring up a good point. With all the safety features cars are coming equipped with, including BMW (See back OT! ) NO manufacturer of any component can design something to be idiot-proof because idiots will always find a way to get around the safety, whether it is how they drive, what they do to their car, or lack of understanding of *pick your topic*.

-Paul

kimj1

I have a 2002 325i(steptronic) with about 5200 miles on it. For the past weeks or so I have been experiencing some problems with very sluggish acceleration. Most of the times I have had the problem is when I am traveling on the highway and need to pass or increasing my speed to enter a highway. Here is what is happening (bear with me as I try to explain). Whenever I need to pass or pick up speed quickly I sometimes will start gaining speed fine then all of a sudden the RPM's will drop slightly and I will lose a little speed for a brief second then it will rev back up again and everything is fine. But, the other day I had this happen as I was trying to enter the highway and it was much more drastic. As I was increasing my speed, the RPM's were somewhere around the 2700 to 3000 range and I was traveling about 55 to 65 mph. Then all of a sudden I had a dramatic loss of acceleration and I glanced at the RPM's and it had fallen to 1500. This was a much sharper drop that I had experienced before and this time it didn't rev back up, it slowly crept back up. It was quite scary to look in my rear view and see all of the cars bearing down on me as I struggled to get back up to speed.

In general my acceleration has been sluggish lately even just driving around town, but it is the situation above that has me concerned. I would really hate to be plowed into from behind because I had a momentary loss of acceleration.

I have had no warning lights or check engine lights come on. My husband checks my oil level regularly and that is fine. So, I am hoping that someone here can give me some insight as to what might be going wrong with my car. Please help if you can.

thanks. Kim

rpadilla

I am bringing my car (2001 BMW 330i) to the dealer tomorrow morning, but, I thought I'd ask the board if anyone has had this problem or what the board thinks it could be (so that I might be able to describe/pinpoint the problem intelligently with service) -- when in reverse, I hear a clicking sound (almost like a ratchet) coming from the back end that increases in frequency when I increase speed. Any thoughts?