I've decided it's time to move on completely from dsm's. Going to start selling everything over the next few weeks.

The car I am specifically looking at is a 2004 BMW 330ci with the M package. Aiming to find one with less than 120,000km (silver, gunmetal, or black)


Has anyone here ever owned one? know anyone that has one? what should I look out for when buying one?

I've done some research and noticed that the cooling systems need early overhauls and the suspension bushings tend to go fast also.

Leave any general feedback. Thanks

This is just my opinion...

If I were looking at a bimmer it would only be a 135i or 335i - Twin turbo, a great balance of luxury and performance. I mean, since literally every third person in the gta owns a bmw or mercedes you're just going to end up completely invisible in that car anyway so you may as well have some fun in the 35i series.

I applaud your decision to move on from dsm's, it's a freeing experience. A couple years ago I sold everything dsm I owned and haven't looked back. When you get around to wanting to go fast again, buy a sportbike - it's everything you ever wanted your car to do and more at a fraction of the cost.

Tis a good point...

The coolant overflow bottle on the 330ci break like no one's business. Also a bitch to replace it... I've done my fair share of them but a good bud of mine just got a 335I and if you got the extra $$ it would be high on my list. Can't really say anything bad about the 330ci other then that though. Great cars

But BMWs are for douches!! (just kidding, I just bought one...)

Personally I love the middle generation bimmers (E30, E36, E46). They all seem to have pretty similar problems: cooling system (and they don't respond well to overheating), Suspension seems to wear quickly, and there are some chassis weak points (subframe cracks, shock tower tears, etc).

I have an E36 3.0 and the engine is smooth has adequate power. RWD > FWD. You can get turbo and supercharger kits for this engine and make ~400hp pretty easily. They're pricey but I think you could piece together a kit yourself. One downside is the BMW guys are completely clueless about tuning

Its funny, I thought the same thing a while back, when I first got into riding. But I would take a slower stock sportscar over a sportbike any day. It just got really boring for me. Its only fun when you ride with friends but when your alone it will get boring fast. I had my bike insured this year and didn't even touch it. Just ended up selling it. Ive owned about 5 bikes now, 2 sport touring and 3 Super Sports in my 3 years of riding. But all those 3 years I always had a Sports Car too ahah. I don't see myself ever owning another bike though.


But yeah the 335 twin turbo Ive heard are nothing but problems. Turbos blowing out around 30k, and other stupid problems.

And when you want to go fast with A/C for when it's hot, a roof for when it rains, and an airbag for when things go wrong... go back to cars.

I wonder what the comparable Audi is to the twin turbo. They're ALSO driven by douches, but Grant Redfern owns one and he's a decent guy. So it's not ALL bad

I'm not going anywhere near the e90 series or the 1 series, parents have owned them and it's not what I am looking for.

Don't care that much about speed anymore.I need consistent fuel economy, and some level of comfort along with good handling characteristics. I need a car in which I can wear a suit and not have to worry about changing an alternator on the side of the road lol after work.


Absolutely set on the e46 generation, 2004-2006 330ci M coupe maybe the M3 if I can find one for a reasonable price. Budget at the moment is $11,000-14,000 max for a low km e46.

I would spend the extra bucks and get into an E9X. My daily driver is a 2011 E92 335xi and have had no issues. Mine is the N55 motor (single turbo) but there's way more mods out there for the N54 motor (2007-2010). Heck, for a few thousand dollars in mods, you'll make more power than a E9x M3

One thing to note about BMWs and MBs are their resale value drops huge when a the new body style are introduced.

Also, becuase they carry the BMW brand, all performance parts are double what they would cost for a DSM (ie: downpipe for a DSM - $100-$200, BMW - $1000+) Also, all guys selling / parting out parts ask top dollar. Factoy 19" rims fetch $2K - it's nuts

When I get into my next car I will be going with a M3 I have drooled over them for a while now and having driven some on a track you learn that they are worth the hype. They actually walk the walk.
Not a lot of need to mod them if your interested in economy.

Audi 1.8T seem to be quite popular as they are fairly affordable to mod and you can get a lot of power out of them. S4 is the ticket if your money can make it happen. Yes Euro wheels are sick when they come to prices BBS are stock on a lot of these in either 2 or 3 piece wheels very light and very nice. It was one of the shockers when I came into the DSM world no one cares what wheels you roll on.

you dont go as fast in a car as a bike, Its never that hot when your on the roads even at 40 degrees your fine(stopped at a light does start to suck with gear on) DD still has a roof for rain, airbags have kill people doing less then 30km. Don't kid yourself bikes aren't terrible. But crap does happen and you are more protected in a car then a bike. I think sometimes Id rather be thrown from the accident then held in a confine spaces that can burn. You take a chance with your life every day you on the public streets. Id rather live a little while doing soo.

But back to the topic at hand =]

I think you pick a good one, Ju Chen also just got a e46 m3 Very nice car. I would go 1 series my self but at this point I did what mark did sell all things dsm. Got super sport bike never will look back.

I was aiming for a saab but now that I just spent alot on my newest bike. I think I am going to end up settling for a beater and keeping that. Perhaps buy my r1 in a couple years. then concern my self with a nice car after I have bought a house.

I had a friend with a modified Subaru Legacy GT get a Saab 92x for an incredibly low price. They're orphans now that the dealers are essentially gone, and you can use that to your advantage. And they're Subaru completely underneath, so you learn to work on the 2.5L Boxer, which comes in handy for when you pick up an STI

In case you guys were wondering ....
The 2014 F80 (sedan) M3 / F82 (coupe) M4 (yes, it will be called an M4) will be an inline 6 turbo (or twin turbo). It appears this motor is very similiar to that that's in the E90/E92's (N54/N55)

http://www.f30post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=744293

http://www.autoblog.com/2010/10/12/class-action-suit-alleges-bmw-n54-turbo-engine-unsafe-causes-un/

There is a class action suit against BMW over their turbos and fuel pump. My buddies car blew a fuel pump and they told him they will not cover it as a recall unless the THIRD one fails!

Thanks for clearing that up! I had seen a saab that looks just like a saab on the outside but it had a boxer motor. I thought it was a 93 but thanks for clearing that up =]