BMW 3-Series 2005 and earlier

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  • poper3poper3 Member Posts: 8
    I got 33mpg the other day in my 04 325ci with automatic, running 75mph.
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,240
    I got 12 grins per mile, when my wife let me drive her '03 325i yesterday...

    Gas mileage: 30+ on highway trips, 26 overall.

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  • golfnut5golfnut5 Member Posts: 202
    Thanks for the mileage information. I was wondering if there is a difference in mileage between the 330i and 330xi with auto trans. Overall does your miles per gallon decrease with all wheel drive? Thanks.
  • m4d_cowm4d_cow Member Posts: 1,491
    the AWD drinks a bit more gas, id say expect about 3-5 less mpg, around 26-29 mpg on highways
  • shiposhipo Member Posts: 9,148
    A version of the new E90 brochure can be seen at the following:

    http://users.volja.net/memec/E90.pdf

    Not that I can read what ever language the above brochure is written in, however, from what I can discern, the following points are true (at least for the Euro version):

    - The new 3-Series can be had in an i-Drive and a non i-Drive version
    - Regarding the exterior of the car, the Bangle influence is rather muted, presenting a car that, IMHO, is actually quite attractive
    - Regarding the interior, that is where the bad news makes itself most felt, the "Flat Dash" of the E60 5-Series eliminates the Cockpit feeling of the previous generation 3ers. :-(

    All in all, I think that if I do decide to replace my 530i next spring (current feeling is probably not), the new E90 330i is at least a viable option.

    Best Regards
    Shipo
  • nyccarguynyccarguy Member Posts: 17,531
    Did anybody read the write-up of the Active Autowerke Supercharged 330iA in Car & Driver this month? Pretty slick. 318 hp & 280 lb/ft torque propelled the blown bimmer from 0-60mph in 5.5 seconds, 1/4 mile 13.9 @ 102 mph. Yes that car had a slushbox, so they say you could probably shave another 1/2 second of the 0-60mph time with the 6-speed. The article also says a lot about tires! Yes those black things that are nice and shiny also make a huge difference (like many of us have said here in the past. Using the Stock Sport Suspension, they achieved 0.91g (compared to .87 for the M3 and .86 for the ZHP)on the skidpad just by upgrading the tires (Michelin Pilot Sport PS2).

    At $51,229 it is a steep price to pay (plus your 4/50 BMW warranty probably goes down the toilet too)

    2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2025 Camry SE AWD

  • djocksdjocks Member Posts: 124
    Everyone,

    I am more than half way in on my lease of a 330i. I have always been told that leasing lends itself to staying with that particular brand b/c of loyalty discounts for staying.

    This is my first ever lease. I will be right on miles and the car is in great shape. As you all know, BMW has some stiff competition these days but I would like to stay with them. My shoping list will include a 530i, X5, and of course the new 330i when it arives.

    If you get a chance can any of you share what experiences you have had in re-leasing with BMW and what I kind of financial insentives i might expect.

    thanks i appreiciate the help
    dj
  • erickplerickpl Member Posts: 2,735
    Brave, is redline available in local autoshops or do you have to get it online or from certain retailers?

    I haven't looked yet, and probably will in a bit, but I'd love to do that work myself and enjoy the satisfaction of doing it right.

    -Paul
  • erickplerickpl Member Posts: 2,735
    brave and div,

    Thanks for your feedback on the fluids. I'll see if I can find the Ate Super blue or gold to put in the car and some Redline for the diff and tranny.

    -Paul
  • sphynxsphynx Member Posts: 9
    I just got my 330I with ZHP and I seem to be running about 22-23 MPG avg. Just under 1500 miles on it right now. Is there a preferred speed I should be changing each of my gears at for optimum mileage if so is there a chart online? (I remember seeing a chart like this in a Honda I owned once, one was for optimum gas mileage, the other was for optimum shifting for performance)
    I do tend to run about 80 on the hwy and sometimes take it up to triple digits if I get a nice clear straightaway!
  • shiposhipo Member Posts: 9,148
    If I was to tell you to keep the revs between 1700 and 2500 while accelerating and below 2000 in any other gear but 6th while crusing; which would you choose:

    1) Drive as suggested above and save a buck or two per day, or
    2) Drive however the hell you please (within reason of course) and enjoy the car to its fullest.

    My bet is that you will choose option 2. ;-)

    Best Regards,
    Shipo

    P.S.

    The opening suggestion is probably not far from the best practice for good mileage.
  • brave1heartbrave1heart Member Posts: 2,698
    www.redlineoil.com

    They sell through local distributors but they will sell direct if you can't get in touch with a distributor.
  • erickplerickpl Member Posts: 2,735
    I have a bunch of autozone's around, but none of them carry the atf fluids... guess I'll buy online. :)

    Oh well.

    -Paul
  • brave1heartbrave1heart Member Posts: 2,698
    Yup - Auto Zone would not be able to sell enough of them to justify carrying them. You can call Red Line - they took my order over the phone in < 1 min.
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,240
    2005 325i

    Base MSRP $29,300 + $695 destination = $29,995

    (moonroof standard equipment)

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  • memphis10memphis10 Member Posts: 161
    Will MY05 have the new body style?
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,240
    Nope....

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  • div2div2 Member Posts: 2,580
    Here's an informative article on brake fluid:
    http://mach1review.com/BrakeFluidsInfo.html
    The author agrees with Brave and I, so he is obviously very intelligent...;)
  • brave1heartbrave1heart Member Posts: 2,698
    "It is more important to stop, than go!" - says it all!! I am very happy with my Hawk HP Plus pads, Ate Power Discs and Ate fluid. I usually gain on more powerful cars in areas with heavy braking at the track. There are more aggressive pads of course but anything more aggressive than the Hawk HP Plus pads will eat up your rotors and may not be as easy to modulate as the Hawks. The Hawks make threshold braking relatively easy. I love it when the car is doing that little dance at the limits of adhesion under heavy braking!!
  • vimalnvimaln Member Posts: 14
    Hi All,

    Iam planning to buy a new 325i.

    Iam looking at Electric Red.

    But the color seems to be very rare. I haven't seen any BMW in Electric Red. My neighbor has Imola Red.

    On bmwusa.com when I choose Electric Red, the car looks good. Ain't sure if it will look the same in real as opposed to CG - (Computer Graphics).

    I would like to have your opinion. Is Electric Red good looking color on 325i , do people liek it, or is it very bad or....or my other options would be the most preferred Silver or Black.

    Also, Does any of you have an electric red, can you post the pics?

    Thanks in advance.
    vimal
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,240
    I think the Electric Red looks great (a lot of good that does YOU). It is a non-metallic color, but very nice and seems to hold up well, not fading with age as some lesser paint jobs might.

    It is pretty far from Imola Red... Imola has a kind of bluish tint, where Electric might have some undertones of orange. In a 3-series, it is not extremely rare... I bet if you looked for late model 3-series on Ebay, you could find an example.. I prefer it with the grey leather, but it looks great with black or natural brown.. I see a lot of them with sand interior, but I'm not too fond of that combo.

    regards,
    kyfdx

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  • vimalnvimaln Member Posts: 14
    Great Pics.

    Thanks.
  • memphis10memphis10 Member Posts: 161
    "But the color seems to be very rare. I haven't seen any BMW in Electric Red."

    That's for a reason. It's too bright, loud, screaming. Besides, it's more appealing to the ladies than just like the VW beetle.
  • alibajalajaulaalibajalajaula Member Posts: 89
    I have the following questions to the knowledgeable crowd here:
    1) Is the second time the inspection mileage goes down to zero, is this suppose to be the Inspection II event, where they are suppose to replace brake fluids, etc.?
    2) Is it customary to get a BMW loaner when bringing the car for Inspection II?
    3) What are the subsequent inspections called? III, IV, or do they alternate Inspection I with Inspection II? Thanks for any input.
  • memphis10memphis10 Member Posts: 161
    "But the color seems to be very rare. I haven't seen any BMW in Electric Red."

    That's for a reason. It's too bright, loud, screaming. Besides, it's more appealing to the ladies than just like the VW Bug.
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,240
    LOL.. as you can see, color is a very personal thing.. Always buy what YOU like... (Of course, Steel Blue is best of all).

    regards,
    kyfdx

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  • riezriez Member Posts: 2,361
    Unfortunately, most dealers play it very safe with their dealer stock. They tend to order silver, white, black, grey, and other "safe" colors to appeal to the broadest segment. I rarely see dealers order bright reds, yellows, or blues for their own stock. They'll make you special order. Is always sad to see so many "boring" cars lined up in a row in a dealer's lot.
  • kdshapirokdshapiro Member Posts: 5,751
    "I rarely see dealers order bright reds, yellows, o blues for their own stock."

    True in general, but my dealer tends to order different colors. I've never seen electric red, but I've seen imola red, yellows, and a number of different blues.
  • cabbatan1cabbatan1 Member Posts: 40
    Our 325xi wagon is electric red with black interior. Our last car was silver of course and we decided it was time for something different.
    Nothing wrong with silver,in fact,It's still an outstanding color for BMW,Particularly in the 5 series but enough is enough.. We wanted something different!
    We get many compliments on the car and most people say they would not consider a red car but then when they see ours,I think they fall in love with it.. This sounds crazy but everytime I see the car parked in a parking lot and I approach it,it automatically cheers me up especially here in Toronto where the winters are brutal..
    As I say,there are no bad BMW colors..
    Good luck!
  • m4d_cowm4d_cow Member Posts: 1,491
    yeah, true it took me a while to find a dealer selling grey green here, and they had only 2 units along with one steelblue and 1 mystic blue.

    grey-greens the best!!!!
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,240
    Everyone knows that steel blue is the fastest.

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  • erickplerickpl Member Posts: 2,735
    But oxford green metallic with nat brown interior is the classiest and least likely to get you pulled over. :)

    -Paul
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,240
    Okay.. now, I'm jealous..

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  • memphis10memphis10 Member Posts: 161
    For those who are lazy and wash their cars every christmas. There are a lot of us 'cause you see more silver 3 series than any other color.
  • erickplerickpl Member Posts: 2,735
    I have pics of it at http://community.webshots.com/user/skimblz_. It was for my XM installation, but the pics are there of both interior and exterior.

    My wife and I didn't care for the sand (too light) and the black/grey were never considered. :) Natural brown worked perfect for us. I think that it would look VERY nice in the electric red. I saw a 330cic in electric red this weekend with the sand - nat brown would have been sweeeeeeet!

    -paul
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,240
    Very nice... Look back at post #29968.. One of those ebay cars is a 330cic Electric Red/Natural Brown.. I think anything that would look good with Sand, would look better with Natural Brown. Of course, you have to pony up for the leather. The black carpets really make for a more liveable interior, IMO.

    regards,
    kyfdx

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  • erickplerickpl Member Posts: 2,735
    it'll have to wait till I get home.

    -Paul
  • vimalnvimaln Member Posts: 14
    I guess its #26968.
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,240
    "Like other models developed in Munich, the new 3 Series is shod exclusively with run-flats"

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  • nyccarguynyccarguy Member Posts: 17,531
    All the articles you read talk about the Valvetronic I6 increase in power for the 3.0L engines, has anybody read/heard anything about the 2.5L motor's power increase?

    2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2025 Camry SE AWD

  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,240
    2.5L HP = 218

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  • memphis10memphis10 Member Posts: 161
  • qaliqali Member Posts: 60
    I am considering a 325i as my next car. On a recent trip to the dealer, I saw the 325i with premium package fitted with Pirelli tires (not sure of the tire model). They looked nice. However, at another dealer I saw another 325i with the Premium package, but with Continental tires. The dealer was unable to answer why the cars had different tires. To my eyes the Pirellis looked better. Can anyone shed any light on the subject and whether I can specify tires at order time ? Also, which tires perform better in snow ?
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,240
    Pirelli, Continentals, Bridgestones and Michelins mostly.. It is just a crapshoot on the ones you get.. If the dealer has the same exact model with the same exact wheels, but a different brand of tire, most will swap them out for you.

    Just be aware that most of the OEM tires aren't as good as what you can get aftermarket, and most tires on BMWs only last 20K-30K miles anyway, so it isn't that big of a deal.

    You might check Tirerack.com to see how that particular model does in the snow, but you'll have to know the exact model designation.

    regards,
    kyfdx

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  • vimalnvimaln Member Posts: 14
    Hi,

    One of my friend told me that her brother has Navigation in his BMW. She told that the Navigation system tells alternate routes automatically, in case there is heavy traffic in the current route. Is that true? Can anyone tell me how the navigation works in such scenarios?
  • rworrellrworrell Member Posts: 149
    My '02 330i has Nav and, as far as I know, you can't get the integration with traffic in the U.S. Is her brother in the U.K. by any chance? I know they have that option over there--it's very cool!
  • ponytrekkerponytrekker Member Posts: 314
    >>Pirelli, Continentals, Bridgestones and Michelins mostly

    And Goodyears OH MY!
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,240
    That is true.. forgot about the Goodyears on the all-wheel-drives.. Mostly, none of them are that great, although the summer tires that come on the Sport package equipped cars tend to be a little better.

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