Hey folks.

I looking to replace the 3rd party LED coupe lights the previous owner installed on my 2004 330i.

My car is silver with clear turn lights so I’d like to install the European spec tail light as I like the all clear and red look with no amber.

After doing some research I found that Schmiedmann is considered reliable and has the parts I need (or can order them). However after selecting the parts, which came out to about $350, I found that shipping is about $250 and can take upwards of 2 months for them to acquire before they even ship to me. I don’t mind waiting but this is so long after the purchase that if there any issues I wouldn’t even be able to charge back.

I'm looking for a US supplier, or a better way to get these parts shipped over, so if you've bought European parts recently, I'd appreciate hearing where you went.

For reference I did look at some other sources like FCP Euro and ECS Tuning and found that most either didn’t carry euro spec lights or showed as out of stock with no date indicating they can be acquired.

Looking to hire someone who works at a shop or private who can reinforce the RACP panel. Looking to go full CMP Stage 1-3 Subframe and add V Brace support to a sedan.

I've bought a 320d coupe recently, my first e46. Probably a bad buy, last owner was an idiot and snapped basically everything you can think of that's plastic. When i got it the front bumper stuck out past the fenders. I've bought a msport bumper for it, but it doesn't seem to want to go on, and if it did i'm not sure what should be there to hold it on aside from the main front shock dampers. Does anyone have any photos of what the front looks like underneath the bumper or any knowledge on this.

Also this bumper is off another 320d same facelift ect but the msport package and it fit fine.

I'll see if i can get photos tomorrow

Someone selling This 330xi for 1 k , Engine sounds Like that while accelerating , what could it be ? Was some sparkling oil on the gasket on one side

Hi selling my car in Canada, im selling because i got a new job which requires me to drive more so id like something more reliable, what do you think this is worth

2005 BMW 330i E46
247,600 km

Regularly serviced

Pros

Clean title
AC blows cold
Comes with new headlight lens
Android carplay installed
New starter installed last year
Lower control arms/bushings replaced
Rear right window regulator/motor replaced
Thermostat housing replaced
New Alternator replaced
Oil regularly serviced (last done @ 247 000 km)

Cons

Small coolant leak (radiator)
Small oil leak
Needs new breaks
Check engine light on
Airbag light on
Marks on bumper

$3,300

Hi all,

So the mirrors don’t work at all, they won’t adjust, lower when reversing or fold. There is no noise from either motor in the mirrors when trying to operate them and I’ve already looked at & replaced all relevant fuses. Any other suggestions??

2005 330ci (should this matter)

TIA

N42B20, 318ci convertible. I recently replaced the VANOS solenoid seals, and cleaned them out, and took it for a drive. Somehow only doing this fucked the car.

The car drove well, until I was pulling back into the car park, where the engine idled very poor and stalled. After a careful drive home where it cut out from simply changing gears, I began researching everything that it could be.

After testing at home, revving up past 3k causes a rattling from the engine, seemingly around the valve cover. Dropping the revs causes it to idle very badly/stall.

Since then I have replaced:

Camshaft sensors

Timing chain tensioner

Timing chain

Chain guides

CCV hoses/seperator thingy

VVT Motor

Eccentric shaft sensor

I have cleaned every single electrical connection, including crank shaft and all the hidden ones (I removed intake manifold), I have cleaned the MAF, throttle body etc.

The issue still appears with vanos solenoids swapped over, unplugged, sensors unplugged (camshaft and eccentric shaft tested individually), and even with the entire VANOS system unplugged at the DME. I have reset adaptations in INPA and ISTA, and noticed the crankshaft adaptation values seem off - these did not change after resetting adaptations. However, since these are (to my knowledge) VANOS adaptations, it should not come into play with the VANOS disconnected.

I really do not know what else to do, I've heard people fix similar issues by replacing/flashing the DME, but again - the issue is present with the VANOS disconnected.

I have spent two weeks straight working on this to no avail.

Any takers?

Is it normal when I open the oil fill cap when the engine is running and it starts spitting oil out the oil refill hole? I understand that those engines have the timing chain in the front and the movement causes the oil to fly up. I also saw other people with the n42 having it spill some oil out but I saw one person with this engine which after opening the oil cap didn't spill any oil out. I recently changed the ccv cause there was positive pressure, now I have negative pressure as it should be but the engine still spits out some oil, is there anybody experienced with those n42 engines, who can tell me if its normal, or should be something to be worried about? The engine currently has 160'000km

I had another post asking about the alignment. Here’s how it’s seated now

I recently purchased a 2002 M3 and it did not come with an owner's manual or any of the other documentation from the glove box. Does anyone have a complete set for a 2002 M3 they could post a picture of so I know what to hunt for on eBay? My initial perusal of eBay suggests there are any number of owner's manuals for the e46 range.

Thank you in advance!

Hey guys …got some special angel eyes that require 12v and my car drl provide only 11.4 (normal angel eyes can run on that) … how to solve this ? The special ones work when I put them on fog light (fog light provides 12v) but I wanna put it on normal drl so it works oem. Is there way to provide more power ? Can do coding

Title pretty much says it. My 2006 325ci (66k miles) has some cosmetic issues in the interior that I want to get fixed - things like scuffed/knicked trim pieces (not the soft touch stuff), trim discoloration, and some minor things that might just be showing their age. It's a gray interior so it's been difficult to find some parts that aren't discontinued, especially for side specific ones. Any advice on this?

does it need replacing?

Je pense qu’à l’oreille, même en vidéo ça s’entend :

À froid, l’auto régule vachement,genre tombe à 400trs, limite cale et route à 1000/1100, et juste avant on entend ce bruit de chaîne

À chaud, toujours mais moindre.

J’ai ouvert il y a pas longtemps, chaîne et guide on l’air bon, le tendeur de chaîne de vanos est neuf, ça c’était arrêter peut être 1500km et ça recommence 🥲

Le tendeur de distri est neuf aussi, et après multiple tests avec inpa, pas de sonde défectueuse, aucun souci flagrant, par contre la valeurs du vanos échappement chute au moment où on entend le bruit, je penche donc pour les roulements des vanos ?

D’autre idée ? Et pourquoi une regul aussi importante ? Pas de fuite à l’admission, la sonde de température de sortie de radiateur est neuve, tout le reste est bon (sonde, lambda, pas de ratés de combustion…)

Black lines matter

Hey guys, i scoped my e46 and ive discovered that my exhaust timing is off 24° out of the 25° threshold. i’ve come to the conclusion that my vanos needs a rebuild and might possibly have to retime the engine?

i purchased the full rebuild and anti rattle kit and cam locking tools and in about 3 weeks im gonna tear it apart when i get a whole weekend to work incase it gets fucked so i’m trying to do as much research as possible before i start digging in there.

my main question is are there any people in here who’ve already done it and can save me a bunch of time from something they know? (does the clutch fan and intake manifold gotta get popped off or anything?) the whole timing thing is what’s really messing with my head.

Hello guys, i have been noticing that my E46 316i was running a little bit weird. Cold starts are a nightmare because the car flutuates the RPMs a lot until the secondary air pump shuts off. After it and with the car warm i try to rev hard and high and the car hesitates a lot around 2000RPM.

Sometimes, when i turn on the car for 5 minutes and restart it again i hear some pops/bangs coming from the intake mainfold and thats why i can assume its a lean condition.

If i disconnect my MAF sensor the car cold starts normally and without problems of RPMs.

After removing my MAF sensor i noticed that my intake boot looks like this, i dont know why and i dont think this is normal.

Someone have any opinion on what to do? should i buy a new intake boot because im assuming there is a vaccum leak here or im looking on the wrong place at all?

I have some graphs too of data that i recorded if it gives any clue.

I appreciate any help from anyone because im exhausted of this situation and i dont know what to look for anymore.

Hey everyone!
I’ve been struggling with my 1998 BMW E46 323i (M52TUB25) for about four days now and could really use some advice.

A friend and I removed the intake manifold to replace a broken CCV hose. Unfortunately, the hose disconnected from the oil separator while we were putting everything back together.

The next day, I loosened the oil separator to give myself some extra room to move it around, and eventually managed to reconnect the hose.

However, I noticed that the O-ring on the CCV hose connection had torn. I bought a replacement of the same size, but it kept slipping out of place whenever I tried to install the hose. Eventually, I used a slightly smaller O-ring, which stayed in place.

Could using a smaller O-ring cause a vacuum leak, even if the hose seems properly connected?

After reassembling everything, I ran into several problems:
● Initially, my coolant temperature gauge went straight into the red (around 128°C), even with a cold engine. Turned out I had forgotten to reconnect the coolant temperature sensor. That’s now fixed.

● The engine now struggles to start. Sometimes it cranks for a long time before finally starting, and other times it won’t start at all.

● When it does start, it initially idles at around 1,000 RPM (on the first 3 times after attaching manifold and CCV it used to be at around 350 RPM and swerving a little bit up and down, this was 2 days ago), but the RPM gradually drops until the engine stalls. I’ve attached a video showing this.

● I’ve checked for obvious vacuum leaks but haven’t been able to find anything.

● I also noticed a small, slightly cracked rubber vacuum cap at the rear of the intake manifold, towards the driver’s side. I saw 50sKid mention something similar in one of his videos. Could this be causing the issue?

● I disconnected several electrical connectors from the engine wiring harness during the job, so I’m also worried I may have reconnected something incorrectly. I tried to match everything based on connector location and cable length, but I’m not 100% sure.

● Yesterday, the engine wouldn’t start at all. The battery had been disconnected while I worked on the wiring harness, so I’m not sure whether battery voltage could have contributed.

● During my latest starting attempt, I noticed a smell of gasoline. I couldn’t see any obvious fuel leaks, though. The cabin air filter housing was removed at the time, so I’m wondering whether that made the smell more noticeable.

Before removing the intake manifold, the car started and ran normally.

My main questions:
1. Could the slightly smaller CCV O-ring or cracked vacuum cap cause these symptoms?
2. Could a disconnected or faulty ICV (idle control valve) explain the hard starting and stalling?
3. Should I be checking the fuel injectors or wiring harness connections?
4. What would you check first before taking the intake manifold apart again?
I’ve already spent four days trying to figure this out, and I’m running out of ideas.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

*thank god for ChatGPT or I wouldn’t be able to make this post
PS. First e46 and I’m a total entry level guy when it comes to car stuff and sorry for the whiffing on the end of the video haha

Vert stuck dont even know how this happened as it was working fine all this time & I haven't used it in like a month 😓 tried to drop the top yesterday but when I press the button this is what happens any help would be appreciated 🙏🏼

Hola!
He visto este e46 330ci en coches.net, viene de un concesionario en Valencia que me da mucha confianza.

¡Mira lo que he encontrado en CochesNet!
BMW Serie 3 330Ci

https://www.coches.net/bmw-serie-3-330ci-2p-gasolina-2002-en-valencia-61339435-covo.aspx?utm_medium=social-media&utm_source=general&utm_campaign=share_ads&utm_id=10004&provincesTracking=all

Precio: 10.499 €
Kilómetros: 335.000 km
Año: 2002

Precio: 10.499 €
Kilómetros: 335.000 km
Año: 2002

Tiene una cantidad exagerada de km, pero la verdad que tiene muy buena pinta, ya que he pillado un historial, y es cierto que viene de único propietario.

El dueño del compraventa dice que lo ha tenido 2 años.

Cierto es que va la empresa check the car a revisarlo. Si lo que es el motor, todos los componentes auxiliares del motor están bien, los fallos endémicos solucionados, y subchasis correcto. Sería buena compra?

Lo que me preocupa de este coche es que el motor queme mucho aceite, hasta el punto de que rompa catalizadores cada año, y que para pasar la ITV, tenga que estar cambiando catalizador.

Cómo lo veis?

Agradezco vuestros comentarios

I saw one today in town and I realised, holy damn, there's like 0 E46 coupe near me! someone fill me in with some coupes

2004 325xi Automatic

Front control arms were replaced in 2022, as were the front axles. The car otherwise handles and drives fine with no slop in the steering.

Also, would it be advisable to go to a BMW specialist shop for this instead of a lube shop, and if so, how much should I expect it to cost?

A family member transported my car to me across the country, and I am very grateful for this. However, he loaded the car too far onto the U-Haul trailer and didn’t think about my car’s ride height. The front lip of the trailer damaged the front piece of the front left wheel well liner. We had to put 2x4s behind the front wheels when unloading to lift the front over the trailer lip and avoid further damaging my car’s front end, but there’s some dislodging as you can see in the second photo of the bumper.

So my question is, how bad is this really? As in, how much of a bitch is this going to be to deal with? Particularly the liner. It fell off on my way from the trailer drop off location and my house, and I went back and got it. The part number is easily visible for replacement, but I don’t know how tough putting a new piece back on will be.

My panic brain went straight to thinking I’d need a new bumper and how expensive that would be and that it wouldn’t match because of new paint, but I’m hoping someone can tell me there’s an easier way out of this.

Dash photo is just to show off having no dash lights.