330d difference between se and sport
- Thread starter The_One
- Start date
![[TW]Fox](/data/man-of-honor/2009.png){kind=avatar}
Sport adds:
Anthracite Headlining
18" MV Alloy Wheels
M-Tech Bodystyling
M-Tech Suspension
M-Tech Rear Spoiler
3 Spoke Sports Steering Wheel
High Gloss Shadowline
M-Tech Sports Seats
M-Tech badging on door sills, alloy wheels, steering wheel and gearstick. This means OcUK will think you are a chav pretending to have an M3 or something, whereas for everyone else it just adds a nice sense of occasion to the car.
It's basically absolutely worth having. Transforms the car - they handle brilliantly, look great, I wouldn't buy a non-Sport spec car.
Anthracite Headlining
18" MV Alloy Wheels
M-Tech Bodystyling
M-Tech Suspension
M-Tech Rear Spoiler
3 Spoke Sports Steering Wheel
High Gloss Shadowline
M-Tech Sports Seats
M-Tech badging on door sills, alloy wheels, steering wheel and gearstick. This means OcUK will think you are a chav pretending to have an M3 or something, whereas for everyone else it just adds a nice sense of occasion to the car.
It's basically absolutely worth having. Transforms the car - they handle brilliantly, look great, I wouldn't buy a non-Sport spec car.
Soldato
- Joined
- 23 Nov 2004
- Posts
- 10,659
Personally if i see a sport with decent wheels i think its somebody who either has lots of money or likes their cars.
I cringe when i see a 330 in Se form,whats the point in going for the highest model but with a lower trim level. I also cringe when i see 316i Se...thats a bought for the badge type of person.
I have the same opinion on the E39 and E60. They both look a lot more aggresive in sport form even though the E60 Se isnt as bad looking compared to the E39 IMO.
Pay the extra justnow and it will probably be worth more by the time you sell so its not exactly a big problem.
I cringe when i see a 330 in Se form,whats the point in going for the highest model but with a lower trim level. I also cringe when i see 316i Se...thats a bought for the badge type of person.
I have the same opinion on the E39 and E60. They both look a lot more aggresive in sport form even though the E60 Se isnt as bad looking compared to the E39 IMO.
Pay the extra justnow and it will probably be worth more by the time you sell so its not exactly a big problem.
In terms of comfort type features there isnt much in it between the SE and Sport. In fact if you want a car the rides better and cruises the motorway better then you are better off with an SE.Jonny ///M said:
In other words, SEs are for old men, Sports are for those a bit younger!
The_One said:But sports are fetching 3k moreand in cases up to 4k.
Are they really worth the extra pennies
The sport seats are absolutely awesome.
The wheels look good, but linked to the suspension, does make it somewhat "firm". I managed to make my passengers queasy during a blast through the lake district on the first weekend with my sport.
So yes it handles well, but there is a definite and noticeable compromise. Personally I would have been happy to not have the sports suspension.
Guess that means I'm a doddery old git.
Ohh yours is a sport and a leather? Yea i'm sure they're comfortable regardless. Some of the e39's on high miles, especially the black leather for some reason seems to wear horribly in some of them? yet the grey leather generally seems in better nick ?
I have the suede (actually alcantara) seats in my 330d Sport which were I believe a no-cost option. They dont show much signs of wear and my car has done nearly £100k. Alcantara is less slippy (especially when hot) and is far more comf0rtable when the seats are cold (unless you have heated seats of course)
The sport seats in general are good. Not the most comfortable in the world but definitely not bad at all, and provide excellent support in cornering etc.
The sport seats in general are good. Not the most comfortable in the world but definitely not bad at all, and provide excellent support in cornering etc.
Mr_Sukebe said:
My seats are immaculate with the exception of a tiny amount of wear on the drivers seat bolster - if the car is looked after and not driven by a 40 stone hippo, the seats will remain in excellent condition. Ripped seats are something associated with 13 owners from new 1992 325i's.
The Alcantara, however, which comes as standard does not wear so well - even after 40k miles there is noticeable wear apparant on the drivers seat bolster. It's also only half Alcantara - the other half is the most horrible nasty scratchy cloth known to man and it cheapens the interior. There may be exceptions to the rule but every car I viewed with Alcantara was horrible inside. The leather seats offer perfect support so all this 'omg you slip' stuff is complete rubbish. Leather was a £1000 option when new, Alcantara was standard, so it tends to only be the cars which were poorly specified with no options that have it.
Joe T said:In terms of comfort type features there isnt much in it between the SE and Sport. In fact if you want a car the rides better and cruises the motorway better then you are better off with an SE.
In other words, SEs are for old men, Sports are for those a bit younger!
My dad had an E39 530D sport and got rid of it, I now have an E60 530D SE but with sports suspension - mine is way more comfortable but is still as tight as be-damned when cornering or just when generally horsing the car around. When the previous owner was buying my car from new they could've got the sport for only £1500 more or so, which is nothing compared to the total of all the other extras they added - they chose not to, primarily because of the comfort. They also added comfort seats, and chose only 18" alloys rather than 19's to add to the cause. Summary - a tight handling car but with the comfort - there's not much extra handling-wise to the sport, my SE has the anti-roll suspension and various acronyms, my dad and I notice little difference between our two cars. And being 22 I fall into the "those a bit younger" category but no matter what age, you still need comfort.
The E60 as Jonny/M also says, is still good-looking in SE form whereas the E39 looked absolute pap in anything else other than sport. I was originally also against the E60 in non-sport form but it's definitely grown on me. One thing I would say though - it does not photograph well! It definitely looks lovely in the flesh though.
5tephen said:
How very odd - those experiences do not mirror mine. I'm finding it very hard to understand how an E60 on Runflats and Sports suspension is 'way more comfortable' than an E39 on 17's and Sports suspension. It's accepted by virtually all that RFT's and Sports Suspension on an E60 hurts the ride to far more an extent than any previous Sport specification BMW.
No, they had no choice, becuase Sport was not introduced until mid 2004 and yours is a 2003 is it not?
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder but it's safe to say most people think an SE spec E60 looks rubbish - the Sport just about redeems it but it still looks woefully ugly from the wrong angles
So sports fetch 3 or 4k more yet i really cant see the value in what you pay
Sport adds:
Anthracite Headlining - Not essential
18" MV Alloy Wheels - Rather have different rims to personalise the car
M-Tech Bodystyling - Would be nice to have that
M-Tech Suspension - Rather fit AC Schnitzer springs
M-Tech Rear Spoiler - £30 off ebay painted
3 Spoke Sports Steering Wheel - Not essential
High Gloss Shadowline
M-Tech Sports Seats - Pick up seats from a breakers for £500 in mint condition
M-Tech badging on door sills, alloy wheels, steering wheel and gearstick - Easy retrofit
I think i may keep an eye out for a cheap se and retro fit some of the missing parts for about £1500
Cheers for comments so far. What sort of miles out of a tank are people getting in their 330d (Remapped or standard)
Sport adds:
Anthracite Headlining - Not essential
18" MV Alloy Wheels - Rather have different rims to personalise the car
M-Tech Bodystyling - Would be nice to have that
M-Tech Suspension - Rather fit AC Schnitzer springs
M-Tech Rear Spoiler - £30 off ebay painted
3 Spoke Sports Steering Wheel - Not essential
High Gloss Shadowline
M-Tech Sports Seats - Pick up seats from a breakers for £500 in mint condition
M-Tech badging on door sills, alloy wheels, steering wheel and gearstick - Easy retrofit
I think i may keep an eye out for a cheap se and retro fit some of the missing parts for about £1500
Cheers for comments so far. What sort of miles out of a tank are people getting in their 330d (Remapped or standard)
Doing it yourself will be a mess and cost a fortune, and be loads of hassle to boot, the sport bodykits and wheels and seats etc are not cheap at all. Cant see you saving money at all, and at the end of it you have a modified SE which will be worth SE resale value at best.
Aftermarket wheels look absolutely awful on BMW's, but you could add sport BMW wheels yourself.
Aftermarket wheels look absolutely awful on BMW's, but you could add sport BMW wheels yourself.
I get a minimum of 525miles to a tank in this weather. Mixed driving (25% town/50% dual carriageway/25% motorway). Most I have ever seen was a range of well in excess of 600 miles (obc was showing a range of 660miles iirc) cruising at 70mph through Switzerland.
This is remapped too - the remap itself hasn't had a negative impact on the economy. I'm tempted to say it's added 1-2mpg to my usual driving, but not sure how much of this is due to the warmer weather (had the remap done late Feb).
As for the sport kit, the 3 spoke steering wheel is a must - all other offerings look naff. Most BMW wheels will look good so long as they're 18s. Bodykit is essential. Sport suspension adds a different antiroll bar and lower springs - although you'd be better off just fitting Eibach equivalents. High gloss shadowline is cool but expensive to retrofit. Sport seats are essential. M3 illuminated gearknob is cooler than the standard M-tech one.
This is remapped too - the remap itself hasn't had a negative impact on the economy. I'm tempted to say it's added 1-2mpg to my usual driving, but not sure how much of this is due to the warmer weather (had the remap done late Feb).
As for the sport kit, the 3 spoke steering wheel is a must - all other offerings look naff. Most BMW wheels will look good so long as they're 18s. Bodykit is essential. Sport suspension adds a different antiroll bar and lower springs - although you'd be better off just fitting Eibach equivalents. High gloss shadowline is cool but expensive to retrofit. Sport seats are essential. M3 illuminated gearknob is cooler than the standard M-tech one.
Last edited: