BMW 3-Series 2005 and earlier

white6 · June 2004

I had the nat brown interior and agree that the titanium silver trim does not look good. I purchased a birch trim set and installed it myself. This is pretty easy in the sedan; just pop it off and replace. The mytle trim looks okay too, I just think the birch goes perfectly with the nat brown leather.

kyfdx · June 2004

June 1, 2004

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen:

2005 will be a very significant year for everyone associated with
BMWit will be the year of the new 3 Series. The new model will be
previewed for the public at the Geneva Auto Show in March, and we
are planning a National Dealer Meeting, including a driving
experience, late April in Miami.

BMW has traditionally conducted a one-day national dealer meeting
when there is a time gap between model introduction meetings. We
considered having such a meeting in November or December of this
year, but feel it will be more practical in these times of spirited
competition and too many meetings to use other types of
communications to keep you up to date on business developments
between now and the 3 Series introduction. Additional time at
home preparing for the holidays is always welcomed.

Yours sincerely,

Tom Purves

BMWNA
Chairman & CEO

tom7 · June 2004

I planned to buy a 325i soon. Can any body give me some feedback on the leatherette seats vs. the leather seating. How does it wear compared to leather? Is there any difference between the two materials during hot weather? The salesmen tells me their isn't and difference between the two except for the leather smell. Thanks for your imput.

gordonwd · June 2004

All I can give you is a comparison between the leatherette that I've had in my A4 and now my 325i vs. leather in a different car. The only issue I've had with the leather in my wife's Olds is that it is a light color (similar to BMW sand) and it does tend to get smudges that are a bit hard to get out. Leather is porous and it can stain. Of course, if you're going with black this is probably not an issue.

The gray leatherette on my A4 went 6 years and still looked like new, so with the sand interior on my 325i I stayed with leatherette and so far am very happy. I'm not trying to fool anyone into thinking it's leather, but I often have to correct people when they assume from looking at it that that's what it is.

adawaal · June 2004

I just bought a 2004 325xi with leather. There is a reason the sales folks tell you that you can't tell the difference from the leatherette (which is what? vinyl?): it's a pretty poor quality leather in the 3-series. It really doesn't feel life a natural fabric at all. Now, I'm not just comparing this to the nice, rich leather seats from my 1998 Cobra (VERY soft.... *sigh*), but also to my wife's little 2002 Acura RSX. The argument BMW uses is that this lower quality leather is stiffer, so it holds up longer than a nice Nappa. Oh well. Thankfully there were enough other nice things about the 325xi or I would have had to go with another car....

white6 · June 2004

The leather in my 2001 Firebird Formula was soft and comfortable. It was also showing wear in only 6 months/5,000 miles. The leather in my wife's 1999 Olds Intrigue still looks virtually like new after 5-1/2 years and 100,000 miles. It was thicker/stiffer when new (like the nat brown leather in my 2004 330Ci). The leatherette in my 2004 325i feels exactly like the leather in the 330Ci; just doesn't smell like it. Seems like to me (after having both) that you're spending $1,450 for the smell.

creakid1 · June 2004

& the vinyl smell from the 1976 Chevette alone is enough for me to hate Americans cars! Japanese interior smell wasn't as bad, but seemed more volatile & toxic.

By the way, my cousin who used to sell Mercedes leased a Passat(w/ cloth) lately, & he said the interior(possibly the dashboard) smells just like the good old high-quality 300E.

alibajalajaula · June 2004

I am afraid there is indeed a hole beneath the sharkfin antenna; when I was shopping for my 330 I was also told the same story, it can't be removed. Actually, I inquired if I could add it later and the dealer's response was that there actually was a hole there, and some kind of coaxial cable that tied the communication signals thru some kind of raceway in the roof/pillars. So the add-in procedure was kind of cumbersome. It all behooved me and I decided to locate a car without it. I would suggest your either get used to it or brace yourself to do some metal repair work in your roof should you decide to take it away. If you plan to keep the car for good (more than say 6 years) do whatever makes you feel happy. If not, I wouldn't touch it. I was also told that this feature (BMW Assist) although not appealing now, could improve car's market value on the resale side of it. Go figure.

blueguydotcom · June 2004

The leatherette in my 2004 325i feels exactly like the leather in the 330Ci; just doesn't smell like it. Seems like to me (after having both) that you're spending $1,450 for the smell.

While I would have gone with the leatherette (if it were possible on the performance package but it's not), I must say there is a difference between them.

I have three friends with leatherette. It's soft and rubbery. the leatherette is far softer than the leather in my car. My leather seats are stiff, cold and unyiedling - exactly as I want them.

tenet1 · June 2004

I think that sums it up pretty well about the leather seats. There IS a difference. But people looking fof a cushy lexus like feel in their car should really look elsewhere.

westmorland · June 2004

What goes here ?

I just put my 04 330CI up on the rams to do a "preliminary oil change" (no, I cant convince myself to wait for the 15000. mile service -- old habits die hard). Anyway, everything went fine except that where the book says there is an oil plug access plate there was a hole and no plate. It looked like the plate had never been installed as there were no marks etc. on the surrounding metal. There is, however a neatly cut place for the plate including a hole where the screw went to secure (the hole is unthreaded and this may be a clue)Has there been a production line change ? My car was a March or April 04 production in Germany ?

thanks,

westmorland

keith3 · June 2004

Thanks for the info on the antenna. Even as I write I'm doing the mental adjustment to learn to love it. Its going to take a while. That aside, I really like the car - after almost seven years with an early Z3. The lesson for me is that next time I'll order or hunt for exactly what I want instead of falling for that slick shifting, quiet, good handling little number that I can have this afternoon.

newbuyer30 · June 2004

I put this on the Problems forum, but I haven't gotten any responses.....

I got a '04 330i manual in Jan and I love it. But...the idle is rough--has a "feels-like-it's-going-to-stall" feeling, and actually it has stalled 3 times in the past month at slowing speeds or while waiting at traffic lights (stalls while clutch is down).

I talked to a BMW-service supervisor in the DC area and he said that BMW is aware of this situation for their 330s and that they recommend using the mid-grade octane gas rather than the highest-grade (something about the high-grade is too rich and oxygen sensor reads incorrectly).

Has anyone experienced this? I'm bringing my car in to the dealer tomorrow. I'd hate to bring the car in and have them tell me "oh, that's normal"...

Thanks.

blueguydotcom · June 2004

On other forums I've read of the 3.0L stall issue. Never experienced it with my car but many people supposedly have.

And I've heard of the mid-grade quick fix too.

aldubya · June 2004

Had "leatherette". Was very unhappy. Found it to be hot, stiff, uncomfortable. It's vinyl. My advice, buy leather. I did. Happier. Although I agree with adawaal, poor quality leather in the BMW 3 series - not as soft and supple as in my wife's Jag and nothing like the leather in my Seville I had a while back.

creakid1 · June 2004

brave1heart · June 2004

I had my car on the scale at today's driving school. It came in at 3,206 lbs with 3 gals of gas and the windshield washer filled up halfway. I had taken all the junk (CDs, R/D, etc) out but did leave the spare tire, jack and everything else that came with the car from the dealer. If I remember correctly, the unladen weight is based on 3/4 tank of gas. If I add 9 gallons to the 3 that I already had in the car, I am estimating that the weight would have come in at ~ 3,280. The unladen weight per spec for my car was 3,250 lbs, which means that the options on the car weigh ~ 30 lbs. Not too shabby - I would have thought that the sunroof alone weighs at least 50 lbs. I was also glad to find out that in addition to a perfect front/rear weight distribution, side to side was off by only 20 lbs (forgot which side was heavier but I want to say the passenger side).

----------------------------------------------------
'01 325i: Orient Blue/black 'ette, SP, roof, xenons, heated seats, CD/H-K, OBC, Alarm, steering retrofit, "non-sticky" gas pedal, hardwired V1/concealed display, AP-22 performance meter, R/D front brace, ECIS CAI, Sharked, UUC sway bars, Hawk HP Plus pads, ATE Power Discs, ATE Super Gold, Red Line diff & ATF fluids
Summer: Yokohama ES100 235/40/17 on Star 44s; Winter: Dunlop M2 Winter Sport 205/55/16 on Mille Miglia Spiders
Fun: Watkins Glen, Mont-Tremblant, Lime Rock, NHIS, autoXing, karting

shipo · June 2004

I'm not sure if auto gas (MOGAS in the aviation community) weighs more that AVGAS, however, for flight planning we figure that AVGAS weighs in at about 6 lbs. per gallon. Assuming that MOGAS is about the same (given that AVGAS has lead in it, my bet is that it weighs even more than MOGAS), your 325i @ 3206 with 3 gallons on board, would weigh exactly exactly 3260 with those extra nine gallons in the tank. So, how about only 10 lbs for those options? Not too shabby? ;-)

Best Regards,
Shipo

tenet1 · June 2004

Ok, just checking. 4 days and no new message. Where is everyone??

kyfdx · June 2004

Well.. my wife let me drive it today, so I didn't feel the need to talk about it so much.. Of course, it was just to pickup chinese carryout, but you take what you can get.

tenet1 · June 2004

Ha, ha.

My wife drives the car during the week too while I take the other car. Just washed the Ti-Ag this morning. Its amazing how good the paint and wheels look when clean even after 3 years. And I wash the car once a month.

aldubya · June 2004

Have a new 2004 325xi. Took delivery on 4/26/04. Had 762 miles driven when experienced the "service engine soon" warning lite coming on. Car was taken in to Erhard BMW in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. They felt it was a problem with emissions. The "engine control module" and "DME" were replaced after communication with BMW. Had to wait for the parts to be flown in from Germany. First repair didn't do it. After about 100 miles additional on the car, it was back in for service. Same problem. This time they kept the car for a wk. Communicated again with BMW in Germany. Checked voltage drops, throttle body necks; replaced the "EDK". Anyway, got it back on a Friday and had it back in on a Monday for the 3rd time. Just got the car back yesterday after almost 2 weeks at the dealer. I must say on each occasion, I was given a loaner to drive. Will see if the problem has been addressed and repaired. Otherwise, because of the "lemon law" in Michigan, a 4th service for the same problem without resolution entitles me to be given a new car or released from my lease. BTW, this time, the dealership put 200 miles on the car without a recurrence of the "service engine soon" warning coming on. They did ask my permission to have their "man" take it home for a couple of days and drive it to see if the situation repeated. Any comments out there?

joeny · June 2004

I assume this has been done but has the fuel-filler cap been checked for a proper fit? A poorly sealing or warped cap can cause this problem.

200 miles to attempt to replicate a problem seems abusive rather than thorough to me. Are you sure their "man" wasn't taking advantage of your situation?

Good luck. Hope you don't have to invoke the MI lemon law b/c it's (usually) a great car.

dancingforum · June 2004

Hi there,

I have beening reading this board for a while
and seriously thinking of joining this happy
bmw club! Got 325i in mind and found there is
$1200 factory to dealer incentive now. So i am
wondering if this is the good time taking this
baby home. Or should I wait to the hotter July
(if it will come)? Anybody here had any idea
or experiences, please let me know.

Thanks in adavance!

a bmw lover

blueguydotcom · June 2004

A better deal is usually right around the corner. You can sit on the fence and wait for the inevitable 2000 dollar rebates on the 325i or decide your fun is worth $800 now.

jack1w · June 2004

We are considering a 2004 325i with the sports package, however, in the brochure it says of the 17 X 8.0 wheels with 225/45r-17 tires...due to low profile tires wheels, tires and suspension parts are more susceptible to road hazard and damage. Performance tires are not recommended for driving in ice and snow.

Well I do not drive in ice and snow very often, almost never, but am wondering once the original tires need replacing can I put more of an all season tire on the 17 X 8.0 wheels?

Or would I be better off with the stock 16X7.0 wheels and the 205/55R-16 all season tires.

Needless to say I am not a performance driver, but the deal on the car with the sports package looks good and the sport seats feel good.

shipo · June 2004

Since you have found a car with the SP that seems to be to your liking, go for it even though you don't need the extra performance. When tire change time comes around (probably between 15K and 25K miles) there are MANY All-Season tires in your 225/45 R17 size. In fact, over at TireRack.com there are 18 different All-Season tires with at least a 130 mph speed rating that will fit your car. Said tires range in price from $76 for the Sumitomo HTR+ tires to $208 for the Bridgestone Turanza LS-Z tires.

Let us know what you decide to do.

Best Regards,
Shipo

jack1w · June 2004

Shipo,

Thanks for your reply it will help in making our final decision. Again those sports seats feel good and the rest of the deal looks ok, the sand interior is to our liking and we need to get a car soon so this one is on the dealer's lot.

Maby one more question. The car also has xenon headlights. How annoying do you think they are to other drivers? Are the BMWs well behaved with the auto leveling feature?

Thanks Again

shipo · June 2004

I've had the Xenons on my 1999 328i and on my 2002 530i, and both of them self level. After driving behind them for over five years now, I can say that they do not seem to bother drivers heading toward me any more than the standard Halogens that were on my 1995 Passat. By that I mean that I probably get "Flashed" once a year or so, and always as I am cresting a hill.

Said another way, once you get used to them, you will never willingly drive without them. ;-)

Best Regards,
Shipo

blueguydotcom · June 2004

The car also has xenon headlights. How annoying do you think they are to other drivers? Are the BMWs well behaved with the auto leveling feature?

They level okay. I still get high beamed about once a month but I just ignore it. Really are you worried about other drivers?

Once you have xenon lights, every time you get in a car with regular lights you'll wonder if the driver has them on.

creakid1 · June 2004

"Again those sports seats feel good and the rest of the deal looks ok, the sand interior is to our liking and we need to get a car soon so this one is on the dealer's lot."

Since you need to get a car soon, then you won't have time to wait 6 weeks by special ordering one w/ the $550 sport seats to personalize your car. We did, & also added the $450 4-way lumbar. This is a new offer for 2004.5 models. & our Grey-green German-built 325i is arriving sometime this week.

In the past, the salesman explained to me that he doesn't know how to convert the lowered sport suspension from the $1400 sport package into the long-spring regular suspension.

kyfdx · June 2004

I agree with Shipo.. Once you have the xenons, you'll wonder how you can live without them..

And there are many, many choices in all-season tires in the sport package size. And a lot of them are cheaper than the summer-only tires. The sport package is the best value in options you can buy on a 3-series. Even if you don't need the improved handling, the aesthetics of the 17" wheels and lowered chassis and the sport seats are worth more than the cost.

However, be very careful on ANY snow or ice, when driving with summer tires.

regards,
kyfdx

efxx · June 2004

Anyone else have problems with their rain guards detaching at the rear doors?

riez · June 2004

kyfdx... Pace to your opinion at 26726 above, think the better advice is:

"NEVER drive on ANY snow or ice when driving with summer tires. They are not designed for cold temparatures (e.g., below freezing) nor are they designed to work on snow or ice."

We should use the proper tires as designed. Follow inflation guidelines. Never violate any speed rating. Never overload your vehicle. Be careful about patching. Etc.

ek01 · June 2004

I'm in the process of purchasing a 2002 330i, automatic with about 67,000 kilometres on it. I am currently having the car inspected at the BMW dealership. Are there specific issues that I should be asking the technician to take a specific look at.

joeny · June 2004

You may find a better deal if you wait until the end of the Summer- or even early Fall- but the price for waiting will be a more limited selection. IMO, now is the best time to get exactly what you want at a great price. FYI, you must take delivery by 30 June to qualify for the current incentives.

m4d_cow · June 2004

i was thinking of buying it early fall, but you got a point there about limited selection, stinks, but true...
i hope they still have a grey green on grey leather in stock

otherwise ill have to settle for a jet black (my 2nd choice)...

kyfdx · June 2004

If they have the gray-green when you get ready to buy, drive a hard bargain... While I personally like the color, they have a hard time moving the in-stock units.. Maybe act like you might be willing to take it, and they should fall all over you.

regards,
kyfdx

m4d_cow · June 2004

checked out the dealers today, found out they have 2 grey-green units left, a 325i w/ grey interior, auto, sport-coldweather package, and a 330i w/ grey int, also auto w/ premiumpackage
i played the hard bargain as u suggested, turned out unbelievably good bargain, i ended up with $300 over invoice, how does that sound? let me know

kyfdx · June 2004

Which one? A decent deal on the 325i, which has $1200 incentive, but not so great on the 330i.. they have $2400 incentive.

Thats a weird combo on the 325i.. leather, but no premium.. You usually don't see leather on non-premium pkg cars.

regards,
kyfdx

creakid1 · June 2004

"Thats a weird combo on the 325i.. leather, but no premium.. You usually don't see leather on non-premium pkg cars."

I would get one like that, for 2 reasons. I can only stand the grey interior. I can't get cloth to stay cool, so leather is the next best thing. Besides, I think leather also gives you the rear center armrest. I don't think Premium package does.

Since both cars already got the lowered sport suspension, I'd pick the larger-brakes more-power-per-gallon 330i non-sport over the the 325i sport, especially when the 330i has that much more rebate. Well, maybe not. It's 325i sport's sport seats vs 330i premium's lumbar...

The 330i premium non-sport will ride just a tad smoother than the 325i sport due to the tire/wheel width & non-performance tires.

I won't take either one, since I'd rather special-order the 330i premium non-sport w/ the sport seats 2 months ago.

Yesterday when we were going through the process of the taking the delivery of our Grey-green/sand-leatherette 325i non-premium non-sport w/ special-ordered sport seats & lumbar. The salesman realized that he forgot to lock in w/ the bank by April 30 for the incentive in order to keep it valid until June 30. So the dealer had to pay the difference. I believe the salesman was either purposely or too lazy to take care of our paper work or write us a receipt w/ the finance details in the beginning because, last night, they tried to sneak out the $350 security deposit on the contract we almost signed. Luckily we caught it, & they, including a manager, kept apologizing.

They advertised that they would at least match other ads in the same newspaper & agreed w/ us on another dealer's leasing ad, which includes a $350 security deposit as part of the drive off. I'm sure if they wrote us in detail about the deal earlier, we would have caught any mistake in it. & they would probably remember to beat the April 30 deadline by turning in our credit application.

By the way, I think the Grey-green looks spectacular under the lights at night or strong sun light during day time, but too depressingly gloomy in the shade.

The very-good selling new color, Silver-grey, looks like a dead rat, as one of us said. & they're all over in the dealer w/ black leatherette, since w/ the sand leatherette it doesn't look right, the grey leather looks too flat, & forget about the natural-brown leather w/ black tone. So imagine sweating all over feeling disgusting inside this car under the the hot sun just like in the dark sewage w/ dead rats. ;-)

kyfdx · June 2004

I like it... but they don't sell well.. I have a friend that has an X5 in gray-green and it looks great... For an in-stock unit, I would think you could get a pretty strong deal. I have the sport and premium.. I like to have it all.. lol.

regards,
kyfdx

creakid1 · June 2004

due to the black trims all over, including the black horizontal bar above the rear license plate.

I remember the light-green from the '78 Audi 5000/Fox/Porsche & the one from VW Rabbit/Dasher are slightly different. Only the VW one w/ more grayish tone matches the black rear-license-plate-surrounding panel.

kdshapiro · June 2004

I like gray-green. I have it on my car with the sand interior. Makes a huge difference in the heat of summer.

m4d_cow · June 2004

sorry, i guess some ppl misunderstood, whatever the type its gonna be: invoice - incentive + $300
i dunno but to me its almost like theyre practically giving them away at these prices.

yeah the 325 is kinda weird, dealer said it was the 1st time they got anything like it (leather- non PP), but still like kyfdx said they got a real problem selling it and they just wanna let it go to 1st buyer they can get.
they also got one 325i steel blue on black, premium-sport package, selling for $500 over invoice, apparently they also got a problem selling it.

i agree w/ creakid, silver grey is an ugly color, add grey interior and it will look bland and boring. i dont even get it why ppl still buy them

blueguydotcom · June 2004

Yep, ugly. Gosh that gray leather is bad too.

creakid1 · June 2004

You got all these flashier wheels & body kit, which the dealer said won't have the residual value on our lease deal if we want to have it installed on the 325i.

By the way, your performance model doesn't have the other 330i's grandma-ish chrome trims.

Since this is a newer color, it's actually fresher looking than the Titanium silver, at least for now.

kyfdx · June 2004

Even without the performance package goodies (and thanks for the pictures), I think it is a great color.. I liked steel gray better, but silver gray would be my first choice in what is available now.

And I would grab that 325i-- Steel blue/black leather with sport and premium.. Oh wait.. I did. That is what I have.

regards,
kyfdx

creakid1 · June 2004

but only the Steel Blue looks good w/ it.

The Steel Gray is now defunct due to the Silver Gray.

blueguydotcom · June 2004

I would have bought steel blue. It was the color I always wanted when I saw Bimmers. Then I came across my car all wrapped up in the back of the lot. After opening that early b-day present to myself last May, I couldn't very well complain about the color.

BMW 3-Series 2005 and earlier

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