bmw 330i?

v_man

v_man

v_man

Associate
Joined
21 Dec 2004
Posts
580
Location
London
Hi,

I'm considering changing the 9-3 aero for a Beemer. I've found this one on autotrader and it seems like a good deal -







It's a 2001 Sport priced at £9,995, and has done 64,000 miles. The spec is pretty basic, as I don't think it has a CD player (is this quite easy to fit after market, as tunes are quite important to me!).

However, do you guys think this is a good buy??
 
There was a 2004 330i sport on autotrader lastweek for 14k, it ws at a Bimmer dealer too, that was well cheap i thought, i will see if i can find the link :)
 
Ideally i'd want a straight swap for my current car, which I believe is valued at around the 10k mark.
 
That looks stunning, especially in that colour combination ;)

Decent price. The CD changer is dead easy to fit as all the cabling is already fitted - it's just plug and play. I sold my OEM one for £80 over the weekend.

If you're feeling particularly flush, you can go all out and fit the 16:9 comms pack and have navigation/tv/ipod connectivity.
 
Few more pics to tempt you ;) :

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Mine is exactly the same colour inside and out, it's just the manual diesel equivalent. Had it for nearly 18 months and 24k miles now and has been a joy to own. Only work that I've needed to do was replace a set of suspension bushes for £140 - although the car has covered over 120k now.

Fitted the 16:9 screen and satnav earlier this year - big job (lot of time and money) but it looks so much better. Took me over a year to convince myself that I needed it :p.

Standard audio in the e46 isn't great, but can be vastly improved with a £30-40 Sony sound-on-top amp off eBay. I've also fitted an Infinity Basslink subwoofer (£100 of eBay).
 
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v_man said:
Ideally i'd want a straight swap for my current car, which I believe is valued at around the 10k mark.
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best of luck getting any dealer to do a straight swap even of your value is fair :(
 
NickXX said:
If you're feeling particularly flush, you can go all out and fit the 16:9 comms pack and have navigation/tv/ipod connectivity.
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Nick>
Sorry to derail the thread. What's the deal on the comms pack, i.e. cost, fitting, connectivity, control of the Ipod etc?


Ref the OPs question, looks like a good price as I recently paid that much for a 2002, but with 84k miles on the clock. As already stated, you probably have the CD changer in the boot.
Mine's just up for it's Inspection1 service, which will cost £220. Rear tyres are £115 - 190 each, depending upon brand. I'm getting around 25mpg in mixed London driving, but can push that upto 30 on a long run.

The only downside I feel is that the ride is a little too firm for my likeing as a result of sports suspension and the 18s. The car in the pics has the same wheels as mine, so you'll have exactly the same end result. The good news is that it smooths out and speed and can be hustled rather quickly when you wish.
 
How do the 18's affect the rattles etc in the car, Mr_Sukabee? I really like the fact that over bumps and imperfections in the road my car doesn't make any irritating sounds or rattles. - it just feels properly screwed together. I don't want to ruin this by upgrading to 18's.
 
[TW]Fox said:
How do the 18's affect the rattles etc in the car, Mr_Sukabee? I really like the fact that over bumps and imperfections in the road my car doesn't make any irritating sounds or rattles. - it just feels properly screwed together. I don't want to ruin this by upgrading to 18's.
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Definitely no rattles, just a harder ride than I'd like. I guess the key point is that I rarely get to drive it fast, meaning that 2% of the time it's VERY good, but 98% of the time, it's not so good on harsh road surfaces. Probably more about circumstances and preferences than anything else. If I lived in say Scotland, I'd probably be bubbling with enthusiasm about the way it handles, as for it's weight, it's damn good. Where I am, it's used more as a GT/cruiser at best. I sometimes feel that I would have been better off with an SE on 17s, and then to have had the (excellent) sports seats as accessories.
I talked with the missus about changing to 17s. Guess she's not as bothered as she prefers the look of the 18 wheels (yes they DO look ace).
 
Mr_Sukebe said:
Definitely no rattles, just a harder ride than I'd like. I guess the key point is that I rarely get to drive it fast, meaning that 2% of the time it's VERY good, but 98% of the time, it's not so good on harsh road surfaces. Probably more about circumstances and preferences than anything else. If I lived in say Scotland, I'd probably be bubbling with enthusiasm about the way it handles, as for it's weight, it's damn good. Where I am, it's used more as a GT/cruiser at best. I sometimes feel that I would have been better off with an SE on 17s, and then to have had the (excellent) sports seats as accessories.
I talked with the missus about changing to 17s. Guess she's not as bothered as she prefers the look of the 18 wheels (yes they DO look ace).
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Should be ok then - will be doing circa 5k a year around town and not many trips of more than about 5-8 miles so I can put up with it.
 
Originally Posted by leaskovski
So how come you are dumping the Aero?
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Well I still haven't decided if I want to get rid of it. I need to test drive a few cars before I make a decision. The Aero is a great car, it looks great and has a good, solid engine which can effortlessly overtake most cars (including 330s) with ease. I don't desperately need a change of car, just curious as to the alternatives available. If I like, I buy.
 
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