AWD question..help - BMW Forum

fatcatsailor · 03-10-2012, 07:16 PM

I bought my first bimmer a month ago and now I may buy my son one also. What he found is a 1997 328i that belongs to his coach. HERE is the catch..he says its AWD. He said it says it on the dash board also. The owner claims it is also. I have looked high and low for this car and can't find one anywhere. Did BMW make this car? If they did..is it rare?

Lord Vader · 03-10-2012, 07:29 PM

A 1997 328i is not AWD. Unless it says X-Drive on it, it does not have AWD. And if im correct the XDrive system was not introduced until the E46 generation. My 1998 is RWD but has ABS and stability control.

If it really does say it on the dashboard, take a look. I would like to see pictures. Also take a look underneath the car. If it is AWD it will have a Transfer Case, which should be quite noticeable.

fatcatsailor · 03-10-2012, 07:59 PM

Thanks I will have him check again..this owner is pretty stupid for driving it 250k miles

Lord Vader · 03-10-2012, 09:14 PM

I agree. He must obviously not understand his car very well. Unless the PO before him told him some stories and now he believes it. However if you dont drive in an area with any snow or ice then sometimes it can be hard to tell if its AWD or RWD. Especially when the ASC kicks in.

Jack Dabsy · 03-11-2012, 07:46 AM

... And the obvious extra shafts to the front wheels would be a tell-tale

B328iC · 03-11-2012, 09:32 AM

Are you sure it's a 1997? They did produce an 325ix in 1987. That would be the boxier E30 model.

fatcatsailor · 03-11-2012, 10:31 AM

I am sure its around a '97. This owner is very bad with cars. Bought the car new and have virtually no troubles. Good for 260k miles. We live in MN..can't believe he thinks its a AWD. Son drove it in the snow and it really goes in the snow up hills. That's why he believed him. I was just wondering if BMW made one back then. He is checking it out again today but the answer must be no.

Lord Vader · 03-11-2012, 10:51 AM

I live in Canada which is probably worse then MN on some days. The car is great in te snow with a good set of winter tires. The reason he thought it was AWD was probably because of the ASC traction control. Just goes to show that some people see cars merely as an object. In this case make sure you get service records because it's har to say if he had proper maintenance done. When buying a car and the guy can't tell me anything about the history I question whether he took care of it properly. Enthusiasts usually keep all their records which I think is very important.