I'd like some BMW info..

[psychlopath]

Since I upgraded life by ditching the wife, I'm wanting to spend my new-found expendable cash on a half decent car.
It really is a hard choice. There are SO many good cars out there for a car guy to get into. I've looked through so many different models but (on paper, at least..it'll be a while before I can test drive) have settled on a 3 series.

The question that I'm having a hard time answering for myself is: What is the difference in all of these models? 325, 335, 328, etc, etc. And the 'i'? That's got to be some form of upgrady thing, right?

Anyone have a link or just feel like typing out some info to help me figure out what I want? 325i seems to be what I see reviewed most often, so that's what I'm leaning towards.

Man, I feel like a noob.

-David

 

[Leche]

Since I upgraded life by ditching the wife,

Can't help with your question but those first couple of words.

 

[82R100]

The question that I'm having a hard time answering for myself is: What is the difference in all of these models? 325, 335, 328, etc, etc. And the 'i'? That's got to be some form of upgrady thing, right?

All BMW's lately have had the "i" suffix, so it's really meaningless. At one point it differentiated performance oriented models from economy models, but not now.

After the "3", the other two digits loosely refer to the engine size. Right now the new gasoline models are 328i and 335i, good for 230 and 300 hp, respectively. There's also a 335d, which is a high performance diesel.

Any given older model year will offer two different engine sizes, separated by about $6,000 in their new car list prices.

BMW's a little unusual in that they have continued to offer manual transmissions in these cars, though they still account for a small percentage.

I own a 1997 328i that continues to serve me well.

- Chris

 

[professorchaos]

Since I upgraded life by ditching the wife, I'm wanting to spend my new-found expendable cash on a half decent car.
It really is a hard choice. There are SO many good cars out there for a car guy to get into. I've looked through so many different models but (on paper, at least..it'll be a while before I can test drive) have settled on a 3 series.

The question that I'm having a hard time answering for myself is: What is the difference in all of these models? 325, 335, 328, etc, etc. And the 'i'? That's got to be some form of upgrady thing, right?

Anyone have a link or just feel like typing out some info to help me figure out what I want? 325i seems to be what I see reviewed most often, so that's what I'm leaning towards.

Man, I feel like a noob.

-David

There is some method to the apparent madness....BMW usually uses a three digit number followed by a letter or two. The first digit is the series number, as in a 3, 5 or 7 Series. The second two digits traditionally refer to engine displacement. The letters refer to different attributes. i = fuel injected, C = coupe, X = xDrive etc, etc. So if you happen across a 328ix, you know it is a 3 Series with a fuel injected 2.8 liter engine and four wheel drive. A 530is is a 5 Series with a fuel injected 3.0 liter engine and their sports package.

 

[MasterP]

Sometimes you got to let em' go. It is unfortunate, but that's life. Since you are a member of this board, I suggest going w/ an M3, or a Porsche boxster or a 911. The M3 really is hard to beat as far as value for the money, but if you cant afford it go to the next lower model.
If you are going to wait atleast 12 months, I suggest you join the BMW CCA, car club which gives you a rebate up to $1500. I wish I had known that or I would have got a $1000 back on my M3. But some years they dont cover the M3, so make sure you look check the member benefits. Another thing I would do, is th European Delivery, it will save you 10%, which could be used for plane tickets, and BMW will pay for insurance for 30 days for you to enjoy Europe, and 1 -2 nights of hotel stay. When you are done, you can drop it off at many locations and they will ship it to your dealer back home.
I had my M3 for 11 years, love it, still going strong, no big problems, oil changes are every 10K miles, mine is a I6, but the new ones are V8s.
I suggest you test drive those models to see which ones suit you the best.

 

[psychlopath]

I thank you all for the info. Brilliant! And informative.

As for this:

Can't help with your question but those first couple of words.

I cant see ditching a cheating woman (redundant much??) as a bad choice.

 

[zimmer]

We have a 2008 528 which is, unfortunately for us, much smarter than we are.
It is fast, comfortable on long trips and reliable. I owned a 328 prior to this car but my wife whined about the ride...thus the 500 series.
For performance, I'd try the 300 series and for ride, I'd try the 500 series.
Lexus makes a few really nice cars on par with the BMW, as does Acura.
My all time favorite cars were my 73 240z, 73 Corvette, and my Alfa Romeo Spyder. Problem was, at the time, no one knew what an Alfa was except "Tony, the italian sports car mechanic.....he charged a boatload and yelled at you for "abusing the Alfa", which by the way, would break down every other week. Drove wonderfully in between visits.

 

[Leche]

I cant see ditching a cheating woman (redundant much??) as a bad choice.

I wasn't making any judgment against you, I guess it was the way the post started. Wasn't expecting that.

 

[rickboone1]

Got a 99 323i for sale.

 

[Unknownsoldier]

Sometimes you got to let em' go. It is unfortunate, but that's life. Since you are a member of this board, I suggest going w/ an M3, or a Porsche boxster or a 911. The M3 really is hard to beat as far as value for the money, but if you cant afford it go to the next lower model.
If you are going to wait atleast 12 months, I suggest you join the BMW CCA, car club which gives you a rebate up to $1500. I wish I had known that or I would have got a $1000 back on my M3. But some years they dont cover the M3, so make sure you look check the member benefits. Another thing I would do, is th European Delivery, it will save you 10%, which could be used for plane tickets, and BMW will pay for insurance for 30 days for you to enjoy Europe, and 1 -2 nights of hotel stay. When you are done, you can drop it off at many locations and they will ship it to your dealer back home.
I had my M3 for 11 years, love it, still going strong, no big problems, oil changes are every 10K miles, mine is a I6, but the new ones are V8s.
I suggest you test drive those models to see which ones suit you the best.

Don't bother with the M3, go for the 330i, I have the 330ci, and the only real difference is a milisecond or two, and about 4K in servicing, M3's cost more to service and are more prone to engine faults, my 330ci I've had for going 9 years now and she's a beaut to drive, no ferrari, but she'll keep up with the best of em' and I've toasted more M3's than I can remember ;-)

As has been said:

330ci

3 Series (E46, older style, E36 Old Style squarish, E30 very old school very square).

30 = 3.0 litres (don't always take as gospel, my 316i first car was a 318i that had been chipped....... still said 316i on the boot.....). The difference between the bigger diesels 325d 328d 330d is virtually just different turbo sizes.

C = Convertible/Coupe

i = Injection

TBH, if you go for the E46 you can pick up an M3 in very good condition 25k miles for around 15K (thats about $30K), cheap considering my 330 cost me 34K ($64K) when new, you get a lot of car for the money, mines about $20k now, even better value IMHO.

So depending on what you want to spend, you have a good choice, ifcruising is your goal, go for an Alpina, these can be found in E46 guise for not much more than a similar non-Alpina model, better engine, interior and body though

Always loved my BMW's and have had 3 so far (316i "Schnitzer", 520i SE & 330ci Sport), great cars, feel free to PM me if you want any more info

Try here: http://www.bimmerforums.co.uk

ATB,
Tom

 

[82R100]

Try here: http://www.bimmerforums.co.uk

Or bimmerforums.com

 

[letterk]

What are you looking for? New or used? What's your desire? Performance? Comfort? Gadgets?

I just went through this a couple months ago. While I decided for the Infiniti G, I did plenty of research and driving of the 3 series.

 

[Gravy]

A car can never replace the love of a woman.
Only a Bike can do that. And you're in luck.
BMW sells them too.

 

[dbconlin]

What designation indicates the wagon vs sedan? I didn't see that addressed.

 

[MasterP]

I have to admit, Unknownsoldier has a good pt. I just looked at the specs on the 335, they don't make 330 anymore. Sticker is 42K and it is turbocharged. So that definitely seems like the better value.

 

[RoyalKooparillo]

What designation indicates the wagon vs sedan? I didn't see that addressed.

Well, here's where it gets interesting. BMW also gives model designations that don't appear on the vehicles' backside...

For instance, the latest 3-series models are represented by the designation E9(x)

E90 is the sedan
E91 is the wagon
E92 is the coupe
E93 is the convertible

These designations just refer to the body style. So all coupes are E92s, regardless of their engine/drivetrain/performance. The full designation for a diesel 335 coupe would be "E92 335d"

 

[RoyalKooparillo]

As an aside, I'm also considering a BMW purchase soon...

I'm thinking about doing a European Delivery of an E92 335i with the M Sport package and performance suspension.

I'll most likely wait to get an M3 for a few years, but I'm not too crazy about them moving back to a V6 in 2012/13. Love the grunt of that V8.

 

[Sluggo]

I say you go with the BWM Iseta. This way you will never have a cheating wife again since no woman will want to be seen in this

Good enough for Steve Urkel, good enough for you

 

[DunEdinRanger]

Only 2 car companies in the world make cars with a boxer engine, POrsche and Subaru. If you haven't checked out the 2010 Subarus you really should.

The new Legacy sedan is sharp, has full time AWD, and can be had with a 6 speed manual transmission. The new Outbacks can be had with a spiffy CVT that will get around 30 MPG on the Highway.

 

[Unknownsoldier]

I have to admit, Unknownsoldier has a good pt. I just looked at the specs on the 335, they don't make 330 anymore. Sticker is 42K and it is turbocharged. So that definitely seems like the better value.

I was working on second hand but yeah, the 335 is pretty close to the M3 in performance but gives better MPG and is cheaper to run service and insure, plus you don't get the d***s wanting to race you all the time as you do in an M3. Oh and you can tune it to be faster than the M3 with a remap and a few subtle tweeks

Over here now Subaru shouts chav/boyracer......... sad but that's all that seem to buy them.... also insurance in the UK is nigh impossible ot get on Subaru's now thanks to aforementioned idiots... it's like the 80's phenomenon of charging more to insure golf GTI's than you actually paid for the car new!

ATB,
Tom