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What Does e36 mean?

30K views 25 replies 19 participants last post by  David Mc 
#1 ·
What is the significance of e36, e30, e46, e90, e39... are they just numbers or do they have purpose?
 
#2 ·
Im sure you will get a more "technical reply" but in short it is the BMW series number for a particular platform - for example E46 is the 3 series platform from 1999 to present and while there are 318, 325,323, 320, 330, 328's and M's with all kinds of flavors: xi, i, ci, convertible, etc. they are all based on the same platform (E46)

E36 was the previous platform (up to 1999) for the 3 series - it is usefull in the sense that it helps categorize your particular car without having to know the detailed options put into car or what year the car happens to be - all you have to know is your car falls into a particular platform
 
#5 ·
:rock I do think that E does stand for Extremely cool, or Extreme ownage, where as the number just designates the design that the ownage takes it's form in. And the higher the number does not always have to equla more ownage. It just designates a higher price tag. :yup
 
#12 ·
LOL I still like my reply as it wins the: "NO SH...... :confused " category - definetly misread what you were asking.... :cheers

So given the motors have a M designation and the platforms have E and using the same "engineering" idea posted by others could it stand for "Entwurf" which is German for design, draft, project, concept (man that German word has lots of meanings....)
 
#15 ·
the numbers are the chassis number used in developing the car...like back in the day, you had the e20 and the e30, e34, the e36, e39, e46 and so on...these refer to all the possible chassis that BMW has designed over the years. Between the e34 and e36, there was an e35 which I have never heard of, but that is because it most like didn't get approval for production. Then came the e39 which was an approved design for a car after three previous attempts.


In a short, yes its engineering code for the different chassis they have come up with. Hope this made sense... I think the new 3 series coming out in 2005-2006 is designated the e90. that means they went through about 30 different designs after the current 7 series before coming up with an approved new 3 series...
 
#18 ·
Originally posted by thekid@Jul 31 2004, 03:30 PM
:rock I do think that E does stand for Extremely cool, or Extreme ownage, where as the number just designates the design that the ownage takes it's form in. And the higher the number does not always have to equla more ownage. It just designates a higher price tag. :yup
Not true. e39 m5 is > e46. :)
 
#21 ·
Originally posted by komodo9+Aug 1 2004, 01:01 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (komodo9 @ Aug 1 2004, 01:01 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-thekid@Jul 31 2004, 03:30 PM
:rock I do think that E does stand for Extremely cool, or Extreme ownage, where as the number just designates the design that the ownage takes it's form in. And the higher the number does not always have to equla more ownage. It just designates a higher price tag. :yup
Not true. e39 m5 is > e46. :) [/b][/quote]
please note the "does not always equal" well actually is "equla" but the idea is still the same.
 
#22 ·
that would be an awesome site to see...to see what could have been...its like playing God and being our own versions of Darwin or something... :devil


If you want even more information on the E meanings, there is a good write-up about it in the FAQs
 
#23 ·
BMW used to use a 3 digit E code for the cars but ditched it when the numbers got too complex.
 
#26 · (Edited)
Nice thought, but the E actually designates "series" in German. Not all E series cars were fuel injected - for example the E12 (forerunner to the E28), which offered single and dual carburettor versions in the 520. The injected 520 was identified by the postscript "i" after the model number. If you troll back through German websites, you will find that historically, the original "E" cars were described as 3er and 5er - 3 series and 5 series.
 
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