Hi,
Carrying on from my thread about buying a 318ci, I thought I'd share my experience of ownership of my first BMW, the controversial E46 compact.
Driving
This is by far the best part of this car. The steering is so perfectly weighted, direct and provides excellent feedback. I read somewhere that the compacts were fitted with the fastest steering rack in the range? It is also probably the best handling 3 door hatch I have driven with its near on flat cornering and balanced weight distribution. I still look forward to driving it everyday, and it rides better than my previous Mondeo on its SE suspension.
Cost to Own/Issues
Costs to own has been better than I originally anticipated. On a recent run up to Nottingham it averaged 46.2mpg, which is excellent for a 9 year old 2.0 four pot. Insurance was a bit of a surprise, my premium was increased by £200 over my MGF. I will probably shop around a bit more at renewal time. It's due its inspection II in 2000 miles time, but at £300 it's very reasonable in comparison to some of the new BMWs.
I've had the usual E46 final stage resister fail on the climate control, and it was a pig to change (hidden bolts). The part was only £39 from ebay though, so I can't really complain.
Future Plans
I've been in two minds about making any enhancements to the car. Half of me thinks it could benefit from some larger wheels from the E46 range, and a fruitier exhaust. The other half thinks just leave it standard and put the money towards a better car further down the line. Space is snug in the back for my two year old, it's not an issue now but could be in a couple of years time.
Why the dodgy looking compact?
The equivalent 318 coupe and saloon cars I looked at for the money (£3.5k) had near double the mileage and were in tatty shape. This only had 50k on when I bought it and is in pristine condition with full BMW history, making the compact a very good buy at this price (if you like the looks).
Excuse the camera phone pictures...
Comments/critics welcome
Carrying on from my thread about buying a 318ci, I thought I'd share my experience of ownership of my first BMW, the controversial E46 compact.
Driving
This is by far the best part of this car. The steering is so perfectly weighted, direct and provides excellent feedback. I read somewhere that the compacts were fitted with the fastest steering rack in the range? It is also probably the best handling 3 door hatch I have driven with its near on flat cornering and balanced weight distribution. I still look forward to driving it everyday, and it rides better than my previous Mondeo on its SE suspension.
Cost to Own/Issues
Costs to own has been better than I originally anticipated. On a recent run up to Nottingham it averaged 46.2mpg, which is excellent for a 9 year old 2.0 four pot. Insurance was a bit of a surprise, my premium was increased by £200 over my MGF. I will probably shop around a bit more at renewal time. It's due its inspection II in 2000 miles time, but at £300 it's very reasonable in comparison to some of the new BMWs.
I've had the usual E46 final stage resister fail on the climate control, and it was a pig to change (hidden bolts). The part was only £39 from ebay though, so I can't really complain.
Future Plans
I've been in two minds about making any enhancements to the car. Half of me thinks it could benefit from some larger wheels from the E46 range, and a fruitier exhaust. The other half thinks just leave it standard and put the money towards a better car further down the line. Space is snug in the back for my two year old, it's not an issue now but could be in a couple of years time.
Why the dodgy looking compact?
The equivalent 318 coupe and saloon cars I looked at for the money (£3.5k) had near double the mileage and were in tatty shape. This only had 50k on when I bought it and is in pristine condition with full BMW history, making the compact a very good buy at this price (if you like the looks).
Excuse the camera phone pictures...
Comments/critics welcome
