Need Help... E36 or E46...?

[lemonteastudio]

Hi there,Im planing to purchase a used BMW, now stuck on choosing E36 or E46...My friend is a typical workshop mechanic, he told me E36 is more reliable due to lesser electronic part & E46 however look nice, but due to the increasing of electronic part and technology the engine wear&tear and failure of the part was high (he have mention there is a badge of e46 having common sensor issue)...Please share your experience and opinion to me to make a right choose on my plan.PS: My friend wasnt a BMW specialist, that why i need the feedback form the end user.Many many Thanks...

 

[Iceduke]

well at the end of the day it depends on how much can u afford to maintain a beemer...e36 6pot has equal electronics as the e46 6pot but without the addition of DSC (stability control)...the e36 318i (4pot) is way easier to maintain as its engine has relatively low maintenance issue as compared to the e46 318i (n42 2.0). The problem with n42 engine is that it has alot of seals here and there and with the long service interval suggested by the bmw early in its age compounds the fact of deterioration even further.

I too was contemplating whether to get e46 1.9 or e46 2.0 but decided to get the 2.0 (n42) even though I know the engine is abit sensitive, as power rules over everything and of coz I know the maintenance wont be an issue if I can pay for it.

bottomline if you're really concern about beemer, best is start off with a low maintenance e36 318i (1.8) model and grow from there...no matter what bmw's maintenance is more than jap cars (partially because the mechs here tend to slaughter those who drive bmw because they know if we can buy a bmw we can afford to pay for it, which I beg to differ la..)...

at the end of the day its up to u... cheers

 

[lemonteastudio]

Hi dude,

Thanks for your advise, i formally using a Camry, W211 compressor & E65 745i before... by the way it was a company car & all service by company, im having a kia forte currently, but due to the past experience with those continental car... at the end i still prefer German car...

Cause of changing work, i need to station at Singapore... So i plan to bough a car during my day off at KL.

I fully understand the cost of maintenance for German car will higher then Jap or Korea car... my concern is how often will the car damage cause by the part or electronic component failure. by the way, honestly my previous experience with German wasnt that bad, at lease during those year i didnt have any break down issue with the german car.

Cause of planing to bought a E46 then i get advice from lot of friend... and the feed back from E46 is just so so... That why i wish to have the end user comment...

Thanks dude...

well at the end of the day it depends on how much can u afford to maintain a beemer...e36 6pot has equal electronics as the e46 6pot but without the addition of DSC (stability control)...the e36 318i (4pot) is way easier to maintain as its engine has relatively low maintenance issue as compared to the e46 318i (n42 2.0). The problem with n42 engine is that it has alot of seals here and there and with the long service interval suggested by the bmw early in its age compounds the fact of deterioration even further.

I too was contemplating whether to get e46 1.9 or e46 2.0 but decided to get the 2.0 (n42) even though I know the engine is abit sensitive, as power rules over everything and of coz I know the maintenance wont be an issue if I can pay for it.

bottomline if you're really concern about beemer, best is start off with a low maintenance e36 318i (1.8) model and grow from there...no matter what bmw's maintenance is more than jap cars (partially because the mechs here tend to slaughter those who drive bmw because they know if we can buy a bmw we can afford to pay for it, which I beg to differ la..)...

at the end of the day its up to u... cheers

 

[ICEMAN 68]

ohh well e36 got different curves and of course a different feel while driving it when compared to the e46'ers ...

interms of looks it all depends on what you want indeed ...the interior and exterior too is a deciding factor when one comes to choose between this 2 variant ..

if you're looking for a powerhouse then invest for a prestine ///M ..if you're able to find one with proper history ..

and for the 1.8 series VS the 2.5 above series ..the diferrence is significantly small when comes to maintainance comparision ...

as from advise given by your friends may i know do they own one of just by hearsay only ... cuz as i know any owner of e46 will never mentioned "so so" unless they had picked a wrong CC powerplant ...

looks around for some and you'll see that most owners of the higher CC's are indeed smilling away ...an e46 330i is mind blowing ...

 

[Iceduke]

just to further add to iceman, the fuel consumption comparison is also very minute between the 4 and 6 potters. So will it be power, or just elegance...you decide...

 

[elixir]

Bro, why don't you go to the used car dealer and test drive both 36 and 46, 4 and 6 pots.
I'm sure you will find an answer.

 

[ICEMAN 68]

Bro, why don't you go to the used car dealer and test drive both 36 and 46, 4 and 6 pots.
I'm sure you will find an answer.

bro ..used car dealers a pretty hard when comes to test drive ..better still organize a HH or TT and you maybe able to test some of the rides around here ...

 

[Iceduke]

yeah agreed...normally they require a small deposit...mine was special as I tested the car 5 times prior to signing the loan agreement haha...even the dealer said I am lucky as he normally doenst allow...

well i guess I showed him that I meant business...

 

[mizhan]

i know a guy who wants to dispose a nice condition stock E46 318i.. cheap cheap