Time to lose the E46 330i - spec me please

Oxide™

Oxide™

Oxide™

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It's time for her to go, I get the feeling she may throw some expensive bills my way soon which I can't afford - hoping to get 3k for her.

What is a good runabout car to go for around the 2k max bracket?

I'm thinking a focus or golf? or even a saab or seat but which engines are still fun? or is this not possible at this price?

must have:
petrol (preferably)
4+ seats
manual
cheap to run and maintain
big boot (so hatchback)
abs
air bags
able to go on trips at times around britain without too much discomfort

Ideally:
cruise control
fun/punchy when required
bigger than fiesta size
 
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In what way is a 2k car not also going to throw bills?

£3k for a 330i that needs money spending on it soon seems a bit optimistic too.
 
What he said. My low mileage 2002 330i sold for £2k and needed nothing spent really. Anything you replace it with will just as likely need money spent too.

You're usually better off just sticking with what you have until you can afford to get something better, not worse.
 
Oxide™ said:
must have:
petrol (preferably)
4+ seats
manual
cheap to run and maintain
big boot (so hatchback)
abs
air bags
able to go on trips at times around britain without too much discomfort

Ideally:
cruise control
fun/punchy when required
bigger than fiesta size
Click to expand...

Doesn't the "petrol (preferably)" put it into the "Ideally" category...?
 
This has Mondeo written all over it no?

I was going to say Saab because while they are dirt cheap they are comfy, but when they go wrong they can be expensive.
 
naefeart said:
This has Mondeo written all over it no?

I was going to say Saab because while they are dirt cheap they are comfy, but when they go wrong they can be expensive.
Click to expand...

Would disagree with that, they're no more expensive to repair than anything else in this price bracket. The fact it's a turbo petrol makes a lot of people think they'll explode when they hit 100k but in reality turbo failure is very uncommon on them (yes I know there's a recent thread by someone having just that problem but that's just bad timing)

They're cheap because

1- they've gone out of business, people assume they'll be hard to find parts for (they're not)
2 - people who don't know any more about Saabs than what they've heard in passing comments by people on the Internet and in the pub think they're "vectras in drag" (they're not)
3 - they were cheap in the first place and depreciated hard in the first place
4 - they're not terribly good cars in a lot of ways

The only one of those to concern yourself is 4 - some may find it surprising to see me say that - I'm a massive Saab fanboy. I very much doubt I'll get to the end of my motoring career without owning a couple more.

The reasons they're not very good is in a few areas - if these areas aren't a priority for you then they're probably worth looking at. Handling, even on the sporty ones sucks... Don't try chucking any modern Saab around a B road, it's not fun. The interior can be pretty rattly/squeaky and the style (inside and of the car as a whole) is a bit marmite.

If you like the looks (I do), aren't after pin sharp handling (I'm not) and can cope with some rattles (I can) then they're definitely worth a look. What you get is a well equipped, comfortable, powerful and reliable car for very little money.

If you want that but with a decent interior and sharp handling then I'd suggest a 330i...
 
Yeah tbh I can't think of any area other than boot space where I'd rather have a 9-3, 9-5 or tbh even Mondeo than a 330 - particularly when you already have the BMW
 
Yep I concur. The 330 is better all round. If this was a spec me thread of buying a 2k car from scratch then the Saab would be a better bet than the BMW. But the BMW would need to be all sorts of knackered for this whole transaction to make any sort of sense
 
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