which bmw e46 m3 or 330i or e60 525 or 530i

[linux44]

Hi all,
As you may be aware I already have a e36 (my track day car and weekend car) and am planning to replace my 2nd car which is the family car with bmw 5 series.

I have always loved the new shape e60 of the 5 series. it somehow looks prestigious and posh . However after buying the e36 i kind of like 3 series so here is what i want from a family car and where i am

I want a car that can put a smile on ur face when u tap on the accelerator and not taking a year to pick up and at the same time be economical on the maintenance side.

I have 3 series m3, 330ci e46 and 5 series which can give a minimum of 190 hp or more (maybe 525i or 530). i don't want to buy disel despite its good fuel economy don't like the sound and the fact that it can not be reved ( only 4 or 5k compared 6 -7 k ).

so if you were me what would you have gone with. 70% of my heart is with 5 series but again not sure what model to buy and what to look out for when buying one. for instance i should have looked out for nikasil on e36 and asked the question before buying the car which i didn't and my car has a nikasil block. so anything like that with the car that u suggest will be greatly appreciated

[linux44]

I guess my question was complicated or maybe it means i should ignore both car and stick with my megane

[witeshark]

The 330i likely would get the best fuel economy, the 530i may not be as quick as you would like...

[linux44]

Originally Posted by witeshark

The 330i likely would get the best fuel economy, the 530i may not be as quick as you would like...

does 330i has a good set of features inside the car? i love the idrive on 5 series and that is why i like to buy one so much

[linux44]

what about disel cars, after checking the price with my insurance i may go with disel bmw. the insurance is a hell a lot cheaper despite getting a same hp from it and almost identical 0 to 60 and top speed to the petrol version on 530 d or 330d


my biggest concern is that i don't know how disel engine work as much as i know about petrols. do i have a long learning curve if i was gonna buy one in order to maintain it and tune it ?

are the more expensive than petrol engine to keep? more complicated ?

what i know is because they have a turbo they can be remapped and give about 40 to 50 hp extra , does disel engines have a power to be tunned such as changing the turbo charger or ... ?

[Jack Dabsy]

If you would like to go for the diesel option then I would highly recommend the E46 320d or my top recommendation would be the newer 530d which is just as quick as a petrol in many ways !!

[linux44]

Originally Posted by Dabsy

If you would like to go for the diesel option then I would highly recommend the E46 320d or my top recommendation would be the newer 530d which is just as quick as a petrol in many ways !!

what i like about diesel is their torque compared to a same rated petrol car. I think they have quite a bit more torque which makes it easy to drift and kick their tail out

i am almost shy to ask this, I have seen many diesel cars and have heard them from outside which is to noisy and that was the case with a van that i hired as well even from inside. is that the case with sport or more saloon diesel cars.

are diesel car such as 530d or 330d struggling to climp up the rev as the van did ? or will they pretty quick hit 4.5k which is the redline for them i think

thanks

[witeshark]

The current E90 or E92 335d is well worth a look.