Looking at a 325i coupe 2007 manual. Should I be looking for anything in particular? First time buying a second hand car, bit worried it has 83,000 miles, but perfect features, sat nav etc. It says it's been under BMW extended warranty since original expired, I assume that's a good thing!
BMW and M Power Owners
- Thread starter panthro
- Start date
Is anybody using a Parrot CK3000 Evo Bluetooth kit and connects2 steering wheel adaptor?
Mine works almost perfectly except that activating Siri from steering wheel is not reliable.
I've not pinpointed it's behaviour but it's as if the iphone and/or Bluetooth kit goes to sleep, making or receiving a call (which can be answered via steering wheel) seems to kick siri in to action for a while.
Siri would actually be really handy for reliable voice dialling.
Phone is an iPhone 4S.
Mine works almost perfectly except that activating Siri from steering wheel is not reliable.
I've not pinpointed it's behaviour but it's as if the iphone and/or Bluetooth kit goes to sleep, making or receiving a call (which can be answered via steering wheel) seems to kick siri in to action for a while.
Siri would actually be really handy for reliable voice dialling.
Phone is an iPhone 4S.
I don't think there are too many specific things to check. Just ensure the service book has been stamped. Find out if the extended warranty is paid annually or monthly, because annual policies can be transferred.
- Check the seat belt catch arms are working.
- The iDrive will tell you all the service intervals and when the next round of servicing is due.
What do I need to install a Dynavin N6 for an E46 that has a standard head unit? As far as I can tell I need a bracket to relocate the climate control panel and the N6 unit itself. Are there any other ancillaries that I need?
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Thanks for your advice.
Do you think it would be worth paying an extra £2,000 for a car with 50,000 miles, same spec? This to me, has quite high miles for what I was looking at, but the BMW warranty means it's been looked after to a good level?
You dont really need the climate relocation panel thing, the climate control unit jams into the existing hole left by the cubby hole. It is not a perfect fit but honestly you would never know unless i pointed it out that it isnt quite right on mine.
Other than that, you dont need anything, its all PNP, it comes with "old round pin" and "new square pin" connections, although i have never seen a square pin car despite my current one being a 2004 facelift. Just check that the unit comes with a FAKRA to <whetever, the normal round aftermarket connection> converter lead for the aerial.
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It comes with an Ipod lead (although its the old style fat ipod lead so wont work with iPhones since the ip4 
) and has USB sockets and leads yeah. Its normal USB so if it doesnt come with anything they are all standard style USB leads
Personally i am not using USB, i am using A2DP streaming and instead of USB i am using an SD card loaded with stuff, it slots neatly into the unit at the front and i have a PC SD reader so it seemed easiest to me.
Unfortunately the bluetooth on mine with the internal microphone was utterly terrible, this is the only issue i have had. That said i had one before (different unit & car) and it was perfect so i think mine has an issue. As a result of this i got a massive partial refund for the unit and have fitted an external mic which i have run up the drivers pillar with the mic discreetly in the corner by the glass. The Sport headlining is black anyway so the mic hardly shows against it.
A final word of warning, TW Fox will attest to this, its a bit chinesey. Its the best solution for the E46 in that it is all bang up to date with excellent nav and features, and good physical build quality which matches OEM plastics etc, but the interface is certainly not OEM quality at all. Personally what i do is just leave the navigation on the screen all the time (my preferred screen anyway even when not actually navigating) and leave the iffy interface behind the scenes, only looking at it to change a function. Its not terrible but as someone who loves OEM things only, its not "fitting" at all.
) and has USB sockets and leads yeah. Its normal USB so if it doesnt come with anything they are all standard style USB leads Personally i am not using USB, i am using A2DP streaming and instead of USB i am using an SD card loaded with stuff, it slots neatly into the unit at the front and i have a PC SD reader so it seemed easiest to me.
Unfortunately the bluetooth on mine with the internal microphone was utterly terrible, this is the only issue i have had. That said i had one before (different unit & car) and it was perfect so i think mine has an issue. As a result of this i got a massive partial refund for the unit and have fitted an external mic which i have run up the drivers pillar with the mic discreetly in the corner by the glass. The Sport headlining is black anyway so the mic hardly shows against it.
A final word of warning, TW Fox will attest to this, its a bit chinesey. Its the best solution for the E46 in that it is all bang up to date with excellent nav and features, and good physical build quality which matches OEM plastics etc, but the interface is certainly not OEM quality at all. Personally what i do is just leave the navigation on the screen all the time (my preferred screen anyway even when not actually navigating) and leave the iffy interface behind the scenes, only looking at it to change a function. Its not terrible but as someone who loves OEM things only, its not "fitting" at all.
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eBay, UK seller eBay is my preferred outlet for everything of this type as returns are so painless on there with paypal backing you up. As per my experience there is also opportunity to get partial refunds should anything be amis as per my bluetooth.
See my edit re warning of what to expect from the radio side interface.
eBay is my preferred outlet for everything of this type as returns are so painless on there with paypal backing you up. As per my experience there is also opportunity to get partial refunds should anything be amis as per my bluetooth.See my edit re warning of what to expect from the radio side interface.
Def get it from eBay as you might not get on with it. I returned the unit i had at first for another E46 as it seemed too chinesey and a bit of a rip off, weirdly i also seemed to get bad radio reception with that unit.
Now that i am actually using my E46 as my daily drive (lots of miles) i caved in and have learnt to just ignore the dodgy interface behind the scenes and leave the Nav on the screen. The nav side runs decent non chinese Igo software so works brilliantly. It also supports absolutely every format of media (divx, flac, mp4, blah) and really tidies up the dash. Overall i wouldnt not have one now.
Now that i am actually using my E46 as my daily drive (lots of miles) i caved in and have learnt to just ignore the dodgy interface behind the scenes and leave the Nav on the screen. The nav side runs decent non chinese Igo software so works brilliantly. It also supports absolutely every format of media (divx, flac, mp4, blah) and really tidies up the dash. Overall i wouldnt not have one now.
My mileage has changed recently so I'm considering a 6 series again. A quick search suggests around £13k should net a nice facelifted 630i Sport with 272 horses.
Any idea what the BMW warranty costs would be like? I do baulk at the cost of 19 inch tyres but that wouldn't be the end of the world if rest of the upkeep was reasonable.
Any idea what the BMW warranty costs would be like? I do baulk at the cost of 19 inch tyres but that wouldn't be the end of the world if rest of the upkeep was reasonable.
check it out at bmw warranty website, i was looking at 7 series recently then noticed the £1800 a year warranty price (with £100 excess and no breakdown), i'd take a wild stab and say the 6 wont be much different?
So after a bit of dithering and a second visit (and 2 days in a 320d GT *vomit*) my local dealer were able to get a reading from my OBD and confirmed a faulty HPFP replaced under warranty They glossed over the fact my OBD had been hidden and immobilised on previous visits when I had asked for gearbox software updates to be checked...
I was also claiming for headlight condensation (occurring in cold wet weather, which clears within an hour normally)
And an intermittently faulty central locking receiver:
I've been told that the condensation is normal/can occur as the headlights are 'exposed', which I know is not as they're sealed units and that they can't replicate the issue seen above in the video, which I have given to them, so can't do anything at this stage
Sounds like a load of **** to me but short of arguing with them who should I be speaking to or contacting within BMW/Mondial to ensure that these issues are resolved. I wanted them all covered under the same warranty claim to save paying my excess twice but this looks unlikely now...
They glossed over the fact my OBD had been hidden and immobilised on previous visits when I had asked for gearbox software updates to be checked...I was also claiming for headlight condensation (occurring in cold wet weather, which clears within an hour normally)
And an intermittently faulty central locking receiver:
I've been told that the condensation is normal/can occur as the headlights are 'exposed', which I know is not as they're sealed units and that they can't replicate the issue seen above in the video, which I have given to them, so can't do anything at this stage
Sounds like a load of **** to me but short of arguing with them who should I be speaking to or contacting within BMW/Mondial to ensure that these issues are resolved. I wanted them all covered under the same warranty claim to save paying my excess twice but this looks unlikely now...
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