E46 325ti

[bss325i]

I'll be honest i'm not seeing the rusty e46's down here, and i'm looking because of this thread.

Agreed!

We still get loads in though work, i look after several privately and there many of them on the roads down here.

Its not to say i look at every single ones rear arches etc but all the ones i see up close i will look round and rust is just not common down here.

I might see the odd old coupe/convertible with the first signs on the front wings but down here that rare and i do mean rare.

By 'eck its grim oop t'north!

[E30BeemerLad]

The car i have just bought spent it's earlier years in the care of Vines of Guildford.

There is plenty of muck under the arches but no bubbling etc. It's a good clean original car and drives without fault, so I'm happy. I would of course prefer the extra shove of the 330, but reality was my tight northern budget was not going to bag a good enough example.

Would it just be a straight forward engine only swap for the B30 donk or does the drivetrain need any changes made too?

[Andyboy]

325i's use the small 250G box (the four cylinder one) and a 330i would probably shag that in no time. So a 330i box'n'prop would be required - not expensive because it's basically the E36 328i unit that you can buy for about 75p.

[bss325i]

The diff will need changing or at least the input flange as the 330 uses a CV type joint at the rear and the 325 just a normal UJ.

Brakes are also bigger on the 330.

F*ck it, just go all out and S54 the mofo!

[scott180gtb]

I'm interested to learn more about the paddle shift

I have a 530d on 52. How hard is the mod?

Good work Lee

[bss325i]

I'm interested to learn more about the paddle shift

I have a 530d on 52. How hard is the mod?

Good work Lee

Very easy!

All you need is the SMG steering wheel with paddle and the slip ring/clock spring from an SMG car.

Your car should have the round airbag so its literally plug and play.
You then need to run a couple of wires from the back of the slip ring down to the +/- switch on the gear selector and away you go.

There is a company that sells plug and play looms so you dont have to cut into factory looms so it can all be reversed without any trace.

[Simon13]

The car i have just bought spent it's earlier years in the care of Vines of Guildford.

There is plenty of muck under the arches but no bubbling etc. It's a good clean original car and drives without fault, so I'm happy. I would of course prefer the extra shove of the 330, but reality was my tight northern budget was not going to bag a good enough example.

Would it just be a straight forward engine only swap for the B30 donk or does the drivetrain need any changes made too?

ditto, right in my bit of the world. My sisters e36 318i touring was supplied new from there and bar a rusty stonechip on the door, thats it on it really.

[Morat]

s54 touring would be a really cool thing

[scott180gtb]

I'm interested to learn more about the paddle shift

I have a 530d on 52. How hard is the mod?

Good work Lee

Very easy!

All you need is the SMG steering wheel with paddle and the slip ring/clock spring from an SMG car.

Your car should have the round airbag so its literally plug and play.
You then need to run a couple of wires from the back of the slip ring down to the +/- switch on the gear selector and away you go.

There is a company that sells plug and play looms so you dont have to cut into factory looms so it can all be reversed without any trace.

I will start looking at Ebay

[bss325i]

I'm interested to learn more about the paddle shift

I have a 530d on 52. How hard is the mod?

Good work Lee

Very easy!

All you need is the SMG steering wheel with paddle and the slip ring/clock spring from an SMG car.

Your car should have the round airbag so its literally plug and play.
You then need to run a couple of wires from the back of the slip ring down to the +/- switch on the gear selector and away you go.

There is a company that sells plug and play looms so you dont have to cut into factory looms so it can all be reversed without any trace.

I will start looking at Ebay

A E46 retro fit guide including part numbers but its basically the same for an E39 with the round air bag wheel.

[scott180gtb]

Have you any links to fit guide Barry?

Found this on Ebay

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-STEERING- ... 257893413f

[bss325i]

See my last post for a retro fit guide.

[E30BeemerLad]

The diff will need changing or at least the input flange as the 330 uses a CV type joint at the rear and the 325 just a normal UJ.

Brakes are also bigger on the 330.

F*ck it, just go all out and S54 the mofo!

I'm not planning to mess about with it (for now), I can't be arsed with any more driveway engine swaps and the S54 kit and all the other upgrades it would need.

I thought I had better run an insurance quote, gotta love a standard car. £179 fully comp

[bss325i]

Bargain on the insurance!

Admittedly the S54 conversion is not as straight forward as the M54.

[E30BeemerLad]

bit of a gay question, but if I want to fit the standard cup holder into the centre console instead of the little tray it has with the retractable sliding lid, do I just buy this and fit it, or do I have to buy a surround too?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-Genuine-F ... 27cdd9dcc7

[bss325i]

You need that and the coin holder as the cup holder part is shorter than the tray thing.

No surround needed.

[B7]

I'll be honest i'm not seeing the rusty e46's down here, and i'm looking because of this thread.

Agreed!

We still get loads in though work, i look after several privately and there many of them on the roads down here.

Its not to say i look at every single ones rear arches etc but all the ones i see up close i will look round and rust is just not common down here.

I might see the odd old coupe/convertible with the first signs on the front wings but down here that rare and i do mean rare.

(

The 318i SE saloon I looked at yesterday was rotten! Rusty right round the front off side arch (not just scabby but bubbling from the inside out), very scabby door shuts, the rear arches were starting to go and the seam where the front wing and the rear arch lines meet the sills were shot. Bonnet was scabby as well along the front edge. That was before we saw the "Xmas tree" dash!

And that 03 Orient 325 saloon I sold a while back was going the same way in the door shut's.

B7's prediction is that these will be the worst BMW for rot within a couple of years.

[bss325i]

Do you know where these E46's have been all their lives and more importantly how they have been looked after?

[Andyboy]

No, but I know a lot of UK RHD E46's come from South Africa. When 14 year old Pug 406's are still rust free, it's not good that so many E46's are so rusty. A properly made car body should withstand ten UK winters. The Slaguna I have - now eight years old - is absolutely mint underneath and they have no quality or prestige pretensions at all. It's just ordinary, but with a properly made bodyshell. Like the contemporary Mercs, the E46's just aren't good enough because there shouldn't be any rusty ones. If the French can do it.....

[darkchild]

No, but I know a lot of UK RHD E46's come from South Africa. When 14 year old Pug 406's are still rust free, it's not good that so many E46's are so rusty. A properly made car body should withstand ten UK winters. The Slaguna I have - now eight years old - is absolutely mint underneath and they have no quality or prestige pretensions at all. It's just ordinary, but with a properly made bodyshell. Like the contemporary Mercs, the E46's just aren't good enough because there shouldn't be any rusty ones. If the French can do it.....

Quite. My old E46 coupe needed both rear arches (above where the rear bumper joins) and the driver's side wing sprayed. They only had minor bubbling but I decided to nip it in the bud before it worsened. Car was immaculate in every other way, low mileage and had spent all its UK existence down South. I seldom see pre-facelift coupes that haven't got rotten wings. Wouldn't have another.

[Andyboy]

A mate had a 2003 330d where both front wings were rotten at 5-6 years. The rest of the car was superb and he liked it enough to have 2 new wings fitted when it was destroyed by a tractor. He replaced it with a 2007 118d that's been very good. The E46 was Topaz blue and German made. The wing issue is just poor design and the lack of a rubber seal on the arch liner edge allied to insufficient rustproofing.

[Gortour]

Wouldn't surprise me if they do it on purpose, your car rusts, you need to buy another, or spend money in the body shop. Either way, work for the working man...

[scott180gtb]

VW honer the 12 year anti corrosion warranty. I'm having both front wings and boot lid replaced and painted. The car is a 2003 124000 mile passat.

That's customer service!

[E30BeemerLad]

VW honer the 12 year anti corrosion warranty. I'm having both front wings and boot lid replaced and painted. The car is a 2003 124000 mile passat.

That's customer service!

You told me you rimmed the service manager, that's why you're getting new wings & bootlid

[B7]

Wouldn't surprise me if they do it on purpose, your car rusts, you need to buy another, or spend money in the body shop. Either way, work for the working man...

And ruin a reputation in the process? I doubt that. I can't exactly see BMW or any other marque deliberately following Lancias business model.

It is pure quality, cost and design issues. Simple. And BMW will learn from it and move on.

Have not seen a rusty 1 series yet. Or a 6 series and they are starting to get long in the years now.

[B7]

Do you know where these E46's have been all their lives and more importantly how they have been looked after?

Not sure that relevant my old China.. You could argue that point about e34's for instance and they were rot free for years. I remember looking for my first 5 in 1997 and I saw some shockingly abused examples of the 88-89-90 model years. But not a spot of rot on any of them.

In 3 - 5 years time, we will refer to the 46 as the "italian" I reckon.

[Andyboy]

VW honer the 12 year anti corrosion warranty. I'm having both front wings and boot lid replaced and painted. The car is a 2003 124000 mile passat.

That's customer service!

You told me you rimmed the service manager, that's why you're getting new wings & bootlid

Tongue up the bum, no harm done.

[pnd]

my 2001 e46 is badly rusty above the rear bumper its a southern car too. They are bad for this and no mistake. Mind you so are mercs of the same era.

[E30BeemerLad]

Off to pick the new turd up tomorrow.

It's the first time I've not felt genuinely excited about getting a new/different car. I've not actually been excited when looking at anything this time around.

Bah cum bum

[Simon13]

Why not? getting old!

[E30BeemerLad]

I think I am mate

[DanThe]

How could you get excited about a 2.5 estate?

[bss325i]

Did you leave a deposit? Not to late to pull out surely?

[E30BeemerLad]

yeah £200 non-refundable deposit.

I'll be reet

Dan, you'll keep

[E30BeemerLad]

What's the deal with improving the audio on these E46 turds?

The touring is fitted with standard Business CD headunit. It sounds cack.

I don't like E46's with aftermarket headunits as it ruins the dash. Is there any point upgrading the stock speakers? Other than the Harman Kardon gear (which looks like a ball ache to retrofit) is there a way to get better sound with the OEM headunits?