This BMW's Second Owner is Hooked !!

Author's Rating:

Pros: This newer E46 3-Series rocks in Style, Luxury and Performance.

Cons: Less sporty than older E30 series, automatic trans simply decent - nothing incredible.

The Bottom Line: 
This car is a wonderful balance between an luxury auto and a sports car. Quiet, yet responsive. Functions as a family sedan when needed. I love this car.

Author's Review
I purchased my 330i via the Certified Pre-Owned program (CPO) with 33k miles on the odometer in February of 2004. It is the Steptronic transmission (automatic which can shift like a manual). It came with the Premium package: wood trim, power seats with lumbar bladders and memory setting for driver, digital climate control, rain-sensing windshield wipers and auto-dimming rear-view mirror to name some of the biggies. My previous car was a 1990 325is.

This car is sooo much more luxurious than my older bimmer. The exhaust note is very subdued. The cabin is simply hush quiet - at just about any speed! I can easily do 80 miles an hour and whisper into my cell phone to have a conversation! The ride is a bit less harsh than my old 3-series car as well. The ride is firm, yet not wash-board harsh. BMW, like several other bavarian manufacturers, has managed to get the mix just right for a car which keeps the driver in touch with the road yet doesn't isolate you from the road. If you want to feel like you are skating over the road surface rather than driving, get yourself a Lexus or an Infinity.

Nice other STANDARD features include telescoping steering wheel, auto-dimming interior lights, LEDs which gently illuminate the console at night time (mounted in ceiling), standard sunroof, rear defrost, traction control, side airbags, a dash clock which synchronizes with the stereo clock (no separate times), head-rests all around and dual lighted vanity mirrors to name a few. My car has halogen headlights - which I replaced with aftermarket lights that have more of a white-light quality. I do slightly wish I had the HID (high-intensity discharge) or Xenon headlamps. So many Bimmers on the road have these upgraded headlights.

I love the multi-adjustable power leather seats. My previous BMW had the sport seats which have high bolsters along the thighs and kidney area. The sport seats are great for folks who take their car to the track...otherwise I think they are a waste. Leather sport seats are notorious for cracking along the bolstered area due to rubbing and compressing getting in and out of the car. The seats in my car are firm, yet kind. They keep the driver alert on long drives. I do not have the heated seats which comes with the "cold weather package". I believe the cold weather package is only suitable for folks in the far north...I mean Canada and higher. Otherwise, I simply don't think $1000 (approx) is worth it for heated seats, mirrors, and headlight washer nozzles (unsure if heated stearing wheel is part of mix). Legroom is not on par with a Cadillac Eldorado or Mercedes S series...but let's get real - this car is a sports sedan! The rear bench seat is comofortably for most adults under 6 foot 3 inches. Putting more than two adults in the rear would be asking for trouble. The rear seat does come standard with nice head rests and a middle fold-down arm rest two people can use. Folding rear seats are an option I really wish I had. It would be great for putting long items into the relatively stubby trunk. The trunk is an improvement over the E30 in that the lift height is not as high due to lower lip. However, despite the E46 being a larger car, I can honestly say there is that much more usable trunk space than the little predecessor! This car does love to cruise on the highway and can do so at 100 mph all day long - and it is EASY to drive at high speed. Some cars require you to sit at the edge of your seat and be super vigilant to keep the car on the road - Not the Bimmer! Gosh I wish there was an autobahn in the U.S.!


Lets talk about how this car has performed for me over the year I have (and still do) it. Handling is awesome. I have Falken tires (225/45) on it now as I bought it. Continental tires are standard. The car IS a bit heavier than my old 3-series and you can feel the weight in turn - but it keeps holding. Adhesion is very predictable and lets go slowly without whipping the tail around. If anything, the car will slightly understeer. The rear road noise is quite quiet, even on the highway. BMWs have been notoriously bad in snow - HOWEVER, with the DSC (dynamic stability control) standard on all BMWs, this has been greatly alleviated. Braking is applied to make-up for any loss of traction at wheels in an individual manner - not necessarily the wheel that is losing traction either. On slick roads, rarely have I felt any hydroplaning which horrribly plagued my older 325is. I love the DSC...and if you wish (I don't know why) you can turn this system off.

Acceleration is great. Rarely do I find myself thinking I wish I had more power....HOWEVER - coming from a manual car to this automatic (even though it is a steptronic) has left me with some reservations. I admit that I do NOT feel as in control of the car as I did previously with a manual trans. The automatic doesn't always shift in the most predictable or desirable way. Sometimes it will downshift when not necessary (this engine has gobs of torque and power - yet the trans forces it to rev up the RPMs when NOT necessary). And oh yes...there is that LAG issue. When in "manual mode", the transmission will shift (most of the time) when you tell it to, BUT there is a lag of a second or two. If you are looking for a 0-60 car, first don't buy a BMW. BMWs are made by Germans for enjoying twisty roads and going at high rates of speed. They were not designed to be dragsters. Buy yourself a Mustang if you just want to accelerate quickly. Modern BMWs are NOT available with superchargers or turbos for this very reason. They are meant to be dependable vehicles. Now, with that said - the automatic will accelerate 0-60 in about 7.1 to 7.5 seconds. The manual version is at least a second faster. I do think one would enjoy this awesome engine more so with a manual transmission. HOWEVER - if you like to chat on the cell phone and eat/drink while you drive then this automatic is a very fine compromise. Oh yeah..one more thing. General Motors (GM) makes the transmission for BMW, I believe in France. Keep in mind that Ferrari has been known to borrow a transmission from GM from time to time, too.

I should mention that the fuel economy is simply hard to beat for a car like this. Despite the 230 horsepower on demand, if I keep the transmission in "D" or non-sporty drive mode I will get 23 mpg around town which is a mix of 60 mph and 30 mph roads. On the highway, I can easily get 26-27 mpg and go for 450 miles before needing to fill the tank. If I zip around town in manual mode and race the engine, I can expect about 19 mpg. Not too shabby for a 3.0 liter engine!! I have to laugh at what those folks driving Ford Expeditions are having to pay for gas just to commute around town.

Would my next BMW be manual or automatic? Tough question...my simplest answer would be that I would go for the SMG transmission which is truely a clutch-driven transmission but can be operated like a push-button formula one transmission - therefore best of both worlds!

I have to mention the brakes on this car. BMWs are known for their ability to stop quickly. This car does it phenomenally. The 330 series utilizes larger rotors than the 325 or 328 cars. Between the rotors, the ABS and hopefully some good rubber on your wheels - you will have no problem stopping on a dime to AVOID that moron who just cut in front of you at the traffic light.

I do have one small gripe for this and other BMWs. The leather is poor quality. The leather simply does not wear well. I would have thought for a car of this caliber one would choose/design a better covering for the seats. The leather color coating simply begins to wear before it should. I would have hoped BMW would offer something between their cloth seats and leather - such as Mercedes' M-B Tex, a kind of leather-like naugahyde.

This is the third BMW I have owned...and I shall always own at least one BMW for the rest of my life. I love the cars they make that much! They over-engineer the cars. They are dependable, fun-to-drive, perform, hold their value and most importantly are safe and protect the occupants. Reward yourself and you (or your pocketbook) will not regret it.