BMW E46 330ci Reliable Car Or Not ?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- Let’s take a look at my E46 330ci M Tech II, which is almost 20 years old.
Has it been a reliable car to own and drive every day?
Any of you E46 330ci owners out there, let me know your experience with these cars in the comments below.
If you liked the video don’t forget to give it a like, and subscribe for more BMW videos. Thanks for stopping by and checking out the video.
A buddy of mine and I just got back from the Army, and the first thing he did was buy a used E46 330ci. Sedan, automatic. It had nearly 100k miles on it. This was back in 2006. He drove that thing non-stop for the next 14 years. He got a great job in Italy, and he felt he had to sell his beloved BMW. He told me he clocked 230k miles. I believe all he did was replace the oil gasket, spark plugs, and maybe some other jobs that were not too bad. He truly loved that car.
Awesome, thanks for sharing. They are really good cars!
Currently replacing head gasket on my '04 330Ci. It has over 300.000km and it appears to be a little bit neglected by the previous owner. I got it a year ago and I'm almost done getting it up to date but there's still some work to do (new leather on the wheel, replacer shift knob, polish headlights, replace rear tires).
I paid 3.500 euros for it, I think it was the cheapest 6 speed LCI in Spain.
Getting a silver 5 speed Sunday, so excited!
Nice one, 5 speed- cool. They are great cars and worth getting excited about!
Just got mines last week. Beautiful car
@@Holysancho They are great cars to own & drive. Had mine over 8 years now and don’t plan on getting rid of it any time soon
Hopefully not from ruslip area, thats mine!!!! :p
I'm picking my 330ci convertible up tomorrow can't wait! Will be my first bmw also.
Regreting selling yet lol i just did the spark plugs on my 330ci and tomorrow we will tackle the vcg and replace the centre consol that has been scratched with brand new bmw parts. Also recently added 2k worth of stereo equipment. I love this car. I have had mine 8 years now. I bought it in Red Beach Auckland.
Nice 👍
9 years.... though you were gonna say 9 months. Good on ya
Cheers, thanks for watching
I have a clubsport with 150k miles. I dunno if i love it or hate it. Due to 3k spent on it so far for fixing improvements and restoration, only 3k more to go ahaha
You’ll love it when it’s all sorted and the resto expense eases off!
“It’s never let me down and has been very reliable” *proceeds to list 1 million things he’s had to replace* “and that’s it!”
It’s called maintenance
@@MTechGuy it’s not reliable if you have to do constant maintenance outside of tire rotations/oil changes and any other fluid exchanges. New gaskets 3 times in a row is not reliable
I got one a few weeks ago, it looks similar
I also uploaded a few videos of it
About to thrash mine this weekend.
My 2002 e46 330i has 260k miles on it , while I’ve replaced a lot of parts mechanically , it still needs a clutch , shift linkage , power steering pump & lines , rear bushings , rear control arms , passenger window regulator etc. I’ve put about 9k or more into parts Doing all the work myself, is it time to sell it and move on to something cleaner with lower miles? Not sure it’s worth repairing , although the engine seems to run healthy
Keep it.
@@TheBooostleak I forgot I made this comment , I do still have the car in the family , my father may use all the parts I put into the e46 to fix another cleaner e46 with low mileage that had light front end accident . I actually ended up recently getting a 2011 335 xdrive M-Sport and I’ve been in love but I still miss the e46 from time to time can’t say I’d go back tho now
@@GPerformance710 335is is a good car to upgrade from thats the direction ill go.
For me I want a pure unmodified bmw e46 m3 or a 330ci
i love mine soo bad a 328i only let me down becaus of tyres .. bt that i have to blame it to my foot its heavy on those pedal
if you still own the car i recommend an android tablet from amazon to put where the radio is because it will give you nav and calling it really help but it’s fine if u prefer this one !
Bremmen double din all the way
Kenwood Double Din is the best unit for this car as the top part of the radio at the back is compressed into the lower section of the radio so the unit will fit into the space behind. Normal double din units don't fit in behind without cutting. So the best unit for these cars is Kenwood DMX5020dabs
I bet I know something you forgot to mention.
Control arms and bushings.
Id be surprised if you haven't changed them.
Yes! It had about 3 sets of front lower control arm bushings (can’t remember if I mentioned that in the video?) It always had the original lower control arms during that time- never required replacement (factory M tech ones with the metal ball joints)
@@MTechGuy watched twice i think you missed them. I have an 02 5spd non-sunroof with 200k miles 14 years and counting.
Pretty much spot on all your changes. 3 valve cover gaskets. 3rd set of control arms
Only thing different was my Fuel pump failed and needed a tow for that. In hindsight i missed some clues that could have saved me from that tow.
And also had to disassemble my hear control valve and clean it.
Also repair some of the wiring where the trunk hinges
Window switches from little plastic tabs broke.
Love the black paint on your car. Seems 9 out of 10 e46 cars are silver here in the States...like mine.
Wrapped mine in red about 5 years ago.
Yes must have missed it- good catch! My fuel pump was the original one. Had one fail on an E30 I previously owned. 5 speed- nice!
Sounds like you’ve encountered some very common problems, that’s not bad for 14 years though aye!
Silver was a popular choice in the early 00’s. I’ve always been a fan of black paint
If anyone is interested in doing a review on my e46 330ci, convertible m-sport let me know. Thanks
Is there an aux cable in the e46 330ci?
No, but you can get a factory AUX retro fit kit that can be installed in factory radios with a build date from Sept 2002 onwards
100% worth buying Eonon GA9450B stereo comes with everything you need easy to install and come with free dash cam, reverse cam, and OBD thats connect to the stereo
You have a beautiful car
It was well looked after, i’ve sold the car since making this video
@@MTechGuy what are you driving now?
The M5! Currently on the look out for another BMW though
Lol is that because the e60's reliability issues? Which have you considered so far, f10?
How many miles? I’m looking at one with 244
Mine has around 135,000 Km’s
M Tech Guy dang man that’s only 83 thousand in mph, the one I’m looking at has 244,000 mph which is a shit ton
M Tech Guy but dang man good for you for keeping the miles low 👍
With all the parts you purchased for the car, were you replacing parts prior to parts breaking? Because you said it’s never broke down, but like one of the comments read, some guy said “it seems like you bought a whole new car” lol
A lot of them yes, preventative maintenance
I know, It's not reliable, look what he's had to change, beyond scary, who wants a money pit, so hilarious...
@@TevinJamesBand Them parts replaced over a 9 year period, not exactly a money pit?
@@MTechGuy Still, close enough, don't want to count what you've done to it. Well it sure doesn't mean that it's reliable and make me want to buy one. I saw one today, 2001 330 Ci convertible only 125,000 kms on it, seems great, no major work done to it, all receipts kept, BUT there's probably a great chance that I could be on the end of all that maintenance. So sad why BMW of that era made cars like that, I heard money issues. It's not a good sign when you have to do so much investigating when buying a car. Thanks, take care. Oh, he's asking $13,000 Canadian, manual
hey bro is it ok to change trans oil?? you said 3x??
Yes of course, as long as it’s done properly
I might be getting one for 10K.. what is your opinion about this? 190K KMs on the counter.
These cars are getting on a bit now. Depends on condition and how well the car has been looked after (and what currency 10K)
@@MTechGuy 6 owners always been looked after by a shop, complete M-sport edition. and currency Euro.
M-sport will fetch more, but the value will be in the condition and how well it’s been looked after
Changing the oil every 25000kms, no way. That's what BMW are boasting about their latest models and advise running fully synthetic oils. And what's been happening, engines breaking down and wearing out turbos due to increased wear. Never leave engine oil to be changed at 25000kms. I have a 2003 model 330ci and I change the oil every 5000kms, no wear, no ticky noise on start up and it's done 192000kms.
True comment, going ‘old school’ intervals with your oil changes, even with it being synthetic, is never a bad thing!
i’m thinking of buying a used one for my first car what’s the max amount of miles i should buy it for
Depends on how the car has been looked after. I wouldn’t worry about mileage, buy on condition at this stage in these cars lives
@@MTechGuy i wasn’t expecting to get a reply since this was uploaded 3 years ago your the man💪
Me thinking too but then he names a list😬
How many kilometers on the odometer?
Had approx. 129,000 km’s when I recently sold it
Short answer: kinda
Yes, probably
I leased one of these for 3 years and I drove it into the ground, putting over 100K miles on it. I had ZERO malfunctions or breakdowns. I regularly maintenanced the car. It was very, very durable and reliable.
It's an amazing car and it always makes me happy to hear that someone else is having a similar experience with their 330 Ci. As you said, it's a reliable car, but the maintenance can take some effort as the car gets older.
Then I must say my brother you have got the unicorn of the E46 I guess because that is just amazing if only you seen my facial expression when you said it's still on the same starter and alternator I almost dropped my phone
The paint on yours is gorgeous! I have a light silver ‘01 330ci and the previous owner had odd looking aftermarket front and rear bumpers installed and I want to replace them with mtech ones eventually, not sure if I want to match them to the rest of the car or respray it entirely, paint has seen better days lol
I used to own a E46 325i wagon in silver, it was easier to keep it looking nice compared to the black! Get the new bumpers colour matched and the rest of the car paint corrected/machine polished
Considering the amount of parts changed it's not really a surprise that it never let You down. Pretty much any car would keep rolling I think with this thorough maintenance 👍😉
330ci still moving like Trigger's Broom! Love this car, despite it being the pre facelift. Nice.
@@ppppugh7892 the preface is the same as the m3
@@richlee509 nope. M3 is M3. Distinct from the m-sport or ZHP coupe whether pre or facelift. M3 is neither pre or facelift. There was only 1 bodystyle, therefore just called E46 M3.
What do you expect for a 20 year old car if you buy a 20 year old car and think nothing will ever go wrong with it you’re high as fuck I mean of course you’re going to have to replace things overtime that comes with buying a car with this age
Definitely
Nice car! This is also my daily, built to run forever pretty much, as long it doesn't overheat then it's curtains lol. My fourth year of ownership, have done most of what you've outlined, mostly rear bushes/balljoints left.
Curious though, why 3 valve-cover gaskets in 9 years??
These cars make great daily drivers. Preventative maintenance on the cooling system will keep the overheating at bay.
The valve cover gaskets went hard over time and used to leak oil onto the exhaust manifold, easy fix
@@mislavkonjik2827 wrong. E36.
@@mislavkonjik2827 wrong. I own both so I should know.
@@mislavkonjik2827 e46 suffers electrical gremlins that the e36 doesn’t
Frequent valve cover gasket leaks/failures often indicates problems in the crankcase ventilation system, which is one of the most annoying repairs on the M54.
Picked one up a year ago and it looks identical to yours. I bought for better gas mileage. My truck eats gas up.
I really like my car but it’s had a few things go out that I did myself. Next is the alternator. I cut the muffler out to give it a little more of a mean sound. It sounds great imo.
I had an e36 that was amazing. That car never gave me problems.
Awesome, thanks for sharing man
They are damn reliable imo. Woudlnt own one if I couldnt fix it myself tho. Parts are cheap, labour is not
bought a e46 330 ci last week, hopefully it will be as good and reliable for me as yours was for you!
I’m looking to buy one currently.. how is yours holding up so far 🤔
had my first car, a 325ci, for a month or so now and love it. im at least going to get it from 170k to 200 miles
Found an 02 with 80,000 km. Thinking I’m gonna get it
Nice!
80k km? Yeah no... 😅
@@kevinstegne5206 lol thats not a lot
@@SergioRodriguez-pb1rk a 2002 bmw e46 with 80k km is not possible... Only if it sat some where for over 15years.
@@kevinstegne5206 i just got one in new zealand two owner 66000km and yes last onwer only drove it on weekend its in mint condistion
2001 e46
Your bmw is so nice and clean
It’s been well looked after!
i have a 05 E46 320 CI and i love it. nothing else drives like it. your car is immaculate for a 20 year old car.
They are great cars and the M54 is a great engine! Thanks, the Coupe has been looked after well
I bought my 330Ci back in 2016 with 407.000 kilometers on it. It's now coming up to 500.000 kilometers and it's never left me stranded either. I do preventive maintenance though, so that helps.
Impressive km’s, must have been well looked after
How’s the car doing now?
@@Kinghippo24.7 She's in storage at the moment while I'm saving up and sourcing parts for a rear subframe, suspension and engine revision. She drives but every gasket and bushing needs replacing at this point.
@@budrobadreI'm curious, did you ever get her back on the road?
@@reece8082 Yeah I did! I passed the 500000 km on a roadtrip to the Nurburgring a few weeks ago. Still doing great!
Trigger's broom! Everything has been swapped out for new. Rear dif bushing done, how come?
Haha, pretty much. Diff bush was torn, common problem
Have the same exact car. Mine is manual I'm thinking about investing more money into it. I believe I won't regret it. Happy with my little beasts of a car.
They are great cars, and worth looking after.
Same I recently just bought one. But I’m reconsidering to purchase a e46 m3 would that be a better choice?
@@dannynguyen9074 Different cars, depends how you intend to use the car. M3 would be a better investment long term, but will cost more to repair/maintain
@@dannynguyen9074 just beware of the rear subframe issues
Do you think it's good for someone who doesn't know much about mechanical maintenance much but wanted to do DIY as much as possible. I love e46 coupe but I'm afarid that I can't do all the maintenance myself and it coat a lot here at repair shops
Certainly, if your are keen to learn and get stuck in yourself! These cars a relatively easy to work on, and there is so much info out there on maintenance. Start off small and build up to the bigger jobs, if your keen to put in the work it can be a very rewarding ownership experience. Buy one that’s been relatively well looked after, or you may find the amount of work overwhelming and it will sour the ownership experience 👍
@@MTechGuy thank you so much. Right now I need a reliable daily driver and I'm learning how to fix this and that on my car and hopefully it the future ill get e46 or e39 as a fun car. Thanks again
Beautiful coupe ❤️ Pre-facelift looks so good 👌
I agree!
I own 2 E46'S a 2004 330i (ZHP) and a 2002 330ci with no sunroof and I love em both
Nice! They are great cars. ZHP was never available over here
Should have kept this car in a few years you will probably wish you still had it
It was a great car, I always intended to keep it forever but it was time for something new
Beautiful car, I have a black on black 5 speed from 2002, I absolutely love it.
Nice! 👍
Wanna know what parts I’ve replaced on my 2000 Toyota Camry ??
None - still running no issue
Good on ya buddy 👍
Ha ha - you’re right @mastluob - nobody makes a video about how many parts they’ve changed on a Toyota ! 😛
I spent around 13k on maintenance and repairs on my 2002 330xi.I purchased as a CPO in 2005. They are great cars, but so much goes wrong. Never left me sitting. rear springs twice!
Hi, nice review. I’m in the US market for a 330ci convertible. Really want a Sunday car to push the limits also don’t want to break to bank. The info I’m getting from these videos is you need to buy these well maintained otherwise it’s a broke me wallet. Ps. Nice red leather interior thats a rare find that is.
There are a lot of really rough ones out there now a days, look for one that’s been looked after properly, and set aside some $$ to make it 100% to avoid any headaches down the road. Good luck with the search, thanks for watching
found a black 330ci 6 speed manual with 66k miles for 6000 is it worth it ? and do they have potential to put work in them ? thank u and nice vid
Looks a good price for a 6 speed with that mileage, but depends on condition & currency $$ you’re talking. Certainly the best colour 👍 Depends what you mean potential for work- yes maintenance & easy to work on, no you won’t get much more power out the engine unless going forced induction. Thanks for watching man
Anthony Herrera Anthony Herrera 330ci 6 speed is the def the best configuration. Black color your can’t go wrong, I myself am on the hunt for reasonably priced imola red zhp. If it’s the non-zhp package, I wouldn’t pay as much. That being said if you want this 330ci 6k is ok deal, if the previous owner did keep up with maintenance. Just know that you will have to do maybe cooling system refresh in the near future, unless already done. Really pay attention to the cars mechanical condition because it can turn into broke my wallet real quick. That being said disa valve, guibo, vanos rebuild, various seals are down the road maybe closer to @190k Kms so I guess be prepared just in case. Otherwise go for it, I wanted a 330ci ZHP originally, I might just settle for an 01’ M3 vert cause the price difference here in US is minimal. That being said go for it, just consider the sport package 330ci’s first, and 2 tone interior could make the car 👌🏾. Good luck friend
Today Iam planing to get my third BMW e46 330ci 2002 will check the ecu if all systems 👍🏼 I’ll take it cause it’s in awesome conditions pristine like new and I trust m54 engines those engines never dies but most of owner here neglected service and many issues on the car and they are not servicing it run it like a Corolla
Nice 😎
you guys are worrying wether this car is reliable or not. Im telling you guys.. life is short. Just buy the car if u want it..
It's a premium 20-year-old euro car--it's about as reliable as you can in that genre. Imagine what a period Chevy Tahoe needs by this time.
@@nutsackmania i already sold my honda and bought a volkswagen. continental cars.. are the best
@@nutsackmania after this i will get a E46.. if i have the money
Just got a navy blue 05’ drop top and I love it
Nice 👍
Hey how's the reliability?
@@louisfernando4825
Had her for about 2 months now and so far so good!
No check engine lights, still riding smooth and quiet
@@d.wil2x that's good, there beautiful cars!
Yours look very clean
It was, well looked after for 9 years. I recently sold it
which one is better automatic gearbox or manual gearbox? not for the fun but for reliability
I HAD A CLUB SPORT ,then i bought an M3 rubbish i bought my club sport back just as fast .
She's beautiful, you've done a great job of taking care of her. I'm driving the E71 M, she's my baby. I thank God for her. I change her oil every 4 to 5k miles. I should just change her oil filter because I use Liqui Moly 10 60w due to the S63 motor, best oil out there.
Cheers Jeff. Nice M SUV the E71 👍
Nice viddy, clear info!
Thanks for watching man!
fuel economy vs small cars I heard is about the same?
It’s not bad
What is this accent, English bloke who emigrated to Austria?
Northern English bloke who emigrated to New Zealand
Hey recognised the Northern accent is it Yorkshire or a bit north?
I have a coupe. I have 178k I pray it's good for another 50k
Should be fine if it’s well maintained and looked after
Found 1 for 3k has 170k miles? What do you think?
Good question, depends on condition and how well it’s been looked after. That’s cheap though!
Nice car! But I wish you showed us your engine !
Check it out in this video th-cam.com/video/R-TcrFG3cm0/w-d-xo.html
👍
I’m getting to test drive one and possibly get to buy hopefully today!
Awesome! Good Luck, hope it turns out to be a good one
Around what were the milage intervals for the parts you replaced?
How many km on it? Has it original clutch? Cheers, Emil
Has around 135,000 km’s. No clutch, it’s an auto!
@@MTechGuy thanx a lot. No of course. I'm looking at one with 201.000km. It is a bit right?
At the current age of these cars, condition and how well the car has been looked after is more important than km’s
criminial no interior video...
Dam 9 years
Daily
I love the leather keep it
The 330ci was sold quite some time ago!
One set of spark plugs. wow
Yes, 100,000 km intervals
Is this one stick shift?
Auto
Great vid and look of your e46. Do you think it's worth changing dif oil? I've got an e46 325ci. BMW won't do it
Yes
Do you think 122,000miles for 4,500 with some damage in the bumber bad?
Depends on if there’s any body damage, and overall condition of the rest of the car
122,000 miles £4500 is a lot, I’d say £3,500 for the 6 speed facelift with that mileage, or £2000 for the 5 speed
this car has pretty much had everything done for maintenance...Scared me
if you want bmw this is it... if it was cheap and reliable to own everyone would have one but sometimes you gotta weight the cons over the pros but overall this is a great car when everything is fine i really enjoy it,. yeah sometimes is pain in the ass when something broke down but when you fix it and drive it the pleasure you get from it its worth it i must say
Does he realize what he's saying?? He lists dozen of things he's fixed, it's NOT reliable, so funny!
It got topped of with petrol regular too, and guess what- it never ran out of fuel!
I saw one online for sale a 2004 with 150k miles on it, the guy wants 9k for it. Is it worth it to pay that much?
Depends on how well it’s been looked after man
Is this tanin red interior?
How much do u think a e46 would be to ensure for a 17yr old?
No idea, call a few insurance companies for quotes 👍
Caaah
Caaaaah!!
2002 convertible with 107,000 miles and the body is in good condition for 10k is it worth it?
Depends on the overall condition of the car and what’s been done to it
The floor does rip out of the car eventually,
After 19 years this one was still intact
@@MTechGuy Same with mine, but I never forget that the floor will rip out some day.
What’s your fuel consumption?
About 9km/L
so basically you were diligent with maintenance and the car has been good to you. nice. looking at a silver ‘04, 100k miles, 1 owner, 18 records (we’ll see what that entails), $6k. sound like a decent deal.
Yes exactly that. Good luck with the ‘04, good deal if the 1 owner looked after it well!
that's a lot of maintenance on how many miles??
Approx. 129,000 Km’s, I’ve since sold the car. The car would be 22 years old now
i was so excited to get one, now im scared shitless with all the potential problems
Most of the major problems can be prevented with preventative maintainance. Don’t worry 👍
M Tech Guy thanks there so beautiful and growing up with them in games just made them a dream, loved the video btw. wish me luck with my first car lol
Sounds like you’ve got the bug already! Good on ya man, E46 Coupe would be a super cool first car. Hope you find a good one man 👍
@@clov3zz860One positive aspect with the e46, is the online community. There a lot of e46 fans out there. If you turn your own wrenches or even willing to learn then there are diy instructional videos that will almost certainly address any repair that comes up.
How many miles are on this?
Approx. 129,000 Km’s
So, you would recomand this car, looking to buy a 330ci for sometimes, some people say they break and others that they are amazing.
Yes, I owned this car for 9 years and found it very reliable, but they have to be looked after properly!
What year is it?
2001
Wait , you just said it never broke down, it sound like you bought a new car after all thought parts you put in.
Yeah, never broke down!
How was the subframe?
All good 👍 It’s not something the auto E46’s suffer with
@@MTechGuy - how about manual e46's 330ci?, my e46 330ci started life as an auto, and converted to manual with some spirited driving over the years, and recently i took a look and it had hairline cracks, so decided to do the subframe
Yes they can take a hammering with a manual gearbox, sounds like you’ve got it sorted 👍
@@MTechGuy awesome, on a different note, when i fill up my fuel to the max, the fuel gauge only hits halfway then slowly creeps up to 7/8 after a day or so of driving or long distance driving, menu obc 19.6 says i have 24036, 24 litre and 36 litre but fuel gauge is acting strange, any idea ?
Sounds like possibly a faulty sender which is part of the fuel pump. It’s worth changing the fuel pump out preventatively as they do fail over time and can leave you stranded
Had mine 15 years, bought it with 42000 miles. It now has 165000 miles. NO major problems, I havnt had to replace a fraction of the stuff.
This car must of had a hard life before your got it. I love mine, it’s the best car I’ve ever owned. I’ve also got the m3 convertible for my weekend toy
Nice. Mine was in good shape when I got it, most of the repairs where preventative maintenance, or general wear items
Interesting, I think it's like going to a casino, roll the dice. I saw a nice one today, now I'm scared like crazy, don't want a money pit!! I think most need a lot of maintenance, so how has yours magically been so good?? Thanks
Looks like a nice motor and nz new too ?
Thanks man, Japanese import this one
@@MTechGuy oh that's cool too. I have a nz new imola red one that I have in the UK now. Rare in red only 3 nz new ever sold in that year 2002
@@richlee509 Nice 👍
Geese, did you say 3 value cover
Yep, 3 valve cover gaskets- genuine ones too
'and that's it.'
not sure if serious, that's a ton of shit you had to repair.
Car looks great man! I've got a 2002 330Ci in steel blue metallic. As a crazy person who has owned 36 cars, in my opinion the pre-facelift 330Ci is probably the best all-around road car ever made. It makes all the right compromises--extremely good looking, economical, the right size, reliable enough, powerful enough, and extremely involving to drive without being tiring. The best improvements I've done are an LSD and Bilstein B6 monotube dampers, both of which really took the car from great to perfect in my case. If I had to pick one car to drive the rest of my life it would probably be it.
I daily drove this one for 9 years and can certainly agree with what you're saying. Great cars, the shocks and LSD you chose would finish it of nicely, 👍
So glad to hear this, I’ve just picked up the exact same car (2002 330ci) although I’ve got the convertible model so more fun issues!😅
how come u mention that ur e46 was a pre-facelift? is the facelifted model made worse?
@@Infamous.07 Is trully better, because the issues of the pre were solved. So facelift is better car
@@enekoibi9406i prefer the pre facelift headlights tho. They look more mean but subtle.