Help Needed - Is There A 1.6 3-series?

[Shebs]

Hi all,
I currently own an Alfa Romeo 156 1.6 TS and I live in Egypt. Yesterday I saw a 316i at the BMW dealer which he claims that it carries a 1.6 L 115 hp engine. Due to customs in Egypt, we have to buy 1.6 motors since the customs on cars bigger than 1.6 L are around 135% of the car's price (just imagine!) and only 40% on the < 1.6 motros.

I am 100% sure that the current 316i carries a 1.8 L 115 hp and not a 1.6 L 115 hp, but the car's licence that I saw yesterday says 1596 cc.

I do not know how could this happen, and the dealer can never be wrong because the difference in price between the 1.6 and 1.8 will be more than 95% of the cars price due to customs.

So please if anyone has any information about a 2004 316i with a 1.6 L, that has been especially manufactured or something, please share it with me cause I'd love to buy one.

Also do not forget that the 116i engine is 115 hp, might they have fitted that motor in the 3-series???

[Renwaldo]

Hi,

The UK spec of the 316i se E46 models is a 1796cc engine, as far as I can tell from the site.

Alex

[AIO]

Originally posted by Shebs@Oct 4 2004, 01:32 AM
Hi all,
I currently own an Alfa Romeo 156 1.6 TS and I live in Egypt. Yesterday I saw a 316i at the BMW dealer which he claims that it carries a 1.6 L 115 hp engine. Due to customs in Egypt, we have to buy 1.6 motors since the customs on cars bigger than 1.6 L are around 135% of the car's price (just imagine!) and only 40% on the < 1.6 motros.

Hehe, that's why. The documents (printed for such high custom-tax countries) could be fake. The car engine is always 1796cc for all 116i and 316i models but declaring that in customs would result in a higher price which in turn would ax the sales figures of those models. That's why the manufacterer (BMW in this case) might be choosing to print the engine size as 1596cc even though it is 1796cc, in order to keep the price down. Fortunately the model name is *.16i anyway.