Man it's fun looking at the BMW 3-series aftermarket...holy crap...

For now, I'll probably just go with 17" M68 wheels/tires...money's tight and I can get these for a pretty good price:


Also, in addition to lip spoiler, Euro tails and are a must (white replaces the orange)...

And here are a more shots...included some interior shots (the interior is gray, not sure why it looks blue)...this was before my detail, it's even cleaner now...

No rock chips whatsoever...cleannnnnn...

 

fix the radiator and the brake light switch and have fun

 

pray the transmission holds together

 

So you actually have cup holders? When did BMW decide to have those ridiculous "push in/out" cup holders?

The E46 is very classy looking, and a great choice. I hope it's as reliable as your prior Acuras.

 

- One of the concerns I had with this car -

 

The push in/out cup holders were in the 5 series, the 3 series kept normal cup holders through the e46's

 

Congrats, I can relate on both counts - first, I have a car seat in my 2005 TL
...second, I was on the verge of buying a black 5-spd '04 3 series when my wife offered me her TL
I got hooked on the wonderful E46 back in '03. I had a brand new MINI Cooper S and every time it went in for warranty work they gave me a new 3 series with Sport pkg to drive. Like buttah.
I had pretty much sworn off the Roundel after the first one I owned (a 318 coupe), but those loaners had me back in love.

 

Oh and PS - YES on those 330i 17s, I love those

 

no seatbelt?

 

That's livin of the edge right there. The mess would be spectacular

 

Like that chick in daddy's Porsche that took out the concrete tollbooth a couple years back - have u seen that one? Real messy....

 

UPDATE: We had our baby boy on 12/26/09 (tax break)! He had some respiratory issues at first, but he's doing great

About the 325i...the Christmas season was good to me

I decided on 17" Style 157s from the 2008 335i coupe...they look killer on the E46...







And sorry for the crappy pic, just this morning I installed my M3 lip spoiler...



The transformation continues...

 

Congrats on the baby!

good looking rims!

 

Congrats!!

Nice upgrades so far..

 

nice! I'm a huge BMW fan but I hear nothing but problems with 3 series so I stayed away, but goodluck and I'm sure yours will be just find =)! Some day I hope to own an 06 M3 with SMG, yummmmy.

 

What?!? You don't wear your seatbelt?!?

I took mine to 170 w/o my seatbelt on...






































I'm kiddiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing!

 

Wheels look good, but I believe those are from the 328 coupe, not the 335

 

I was about to say, the governor kicks in at 161!

I was young and stupid

 

around here, it seems like buying an acura is turning to the dark side.

 

You're right...the 335i comes with 18's...I mis-typed In looking at the 328i, these wheels look better on the E46 than the E92

 

ACK! In that "cartoon" they look like hubcaps on a Vibe

 

wat?

 

I agree. The offset looks real nice on your car

 

Nice buy. Always wanted one of those. My wife is on her second 3 series. 2006 and 2008. Great cars and as much as I always thought they were overrated, still the best built car I've ever driven. I thought that about my Audi too but then when she got the 06 I was like dude, this is freaking nice.

 

Congrats on the e46! One of the last, good-looking beemers IMHO

My brother has an 04' E46 325i as well with about 80k on the odo ...

Just FYI, but you might want to start looking into some aftermarket lower control arm bushings very soon if they haven't been replaced already, as they are known for wearing out around that mileage ... my brother's bushings were filled with rust and dust ... pretty horrible condition @___@

Some other things you might want to read up on as well are (1) Hood sensor problems associated with the car's alarm system (sensor goes out quite often supposedly), (2) Window holder/plastic tabs that hold the windows up (front and rear) tend to break after a while which may need to be replaced or zip-tied (one solution according to E46 forums)

 

Thanks Bro...funny you mention these items...my driver's side window has a slight tick half-way up when it raises and lowers and there's a small squeak when getting in and out of the car heard from the left rear suspension housing. These are literally the only and it sounds like I'm not alone...thanks for the tips...

And a side note: it's funny how people perceive BMW...my buddy came over to see my baby boy and saw my car for the first time. He asked if I won the lottery. I told him I bought it for $10K and he about fell over...LOL...

 

Well I wanted to give an update considering many Acura owners are turning to BMW...well I'm coming back!

The E46 is a great car, but it's just a tad too small for me and getting a car seat in and out for the was a pain. This + small things just got to me like no window nor lock/unlock switches on the doors, the "Premium package" included 8-way power seats and wood trim, yet no heated seats and fake vinyl leather. Little stuff that didn't bother me in the beginning, but wore on me over time.

So I sold it today (with some profit to boot), so I'm back to looking for a 2004-2005 TL or leasing a 2010 TSX and buying our MDX (we're in the final year of our lease).

Anyway, just wanted Azine to know that I'm coming back from my BMW experience! I'll keep you updated on what I get...

PS: I'm in no way saying BMWs suck, the inline-6 on my E46 was amazing and the build quality of my car was outstanding. It just didn't work for me long-term...

 

149 mph @ 5600 rpm? Um, can you say 181 please?


OP: very nice pick up, and release...... And congrats on the kid. Hope you can pay for all of this.

 

Well, after several weeks, I just couldn't find the right 2004-05 TL. Always something not quite right: colors, miles, condition, price.

So we decided to buy the best pre-owned Acura we could find: our MDX

I've been extending our MDX lease after my wife lost her job and the came, so I decided to just buy it (as my wife's primary vehicle) and then have an inexpensive lease on a new car for me to drive to work and back.

I tried leasing a TSX and the rates were good, but nothing came close to the deal I got on my 2010 Mazda 6 Grand Touring Tech/Nav. I had to go outside of Orange County to get such a lease, but damn you get a lot of car...

3.7L 272hp V6 (87 octane!), navigation (touch-screen!), heated leather, keyless entry, push-button start, blind-spot monitoring system, xenon heads/halogen fogs, 6-spd AT, 18's, real-time traffic, and Sirius/XM for a full 6 months free. Plus it's so dammn good looking

I'll be posting pics soon...but this is my exact car (ebony black / beige)...

 

Oh man.. I love those fully loaded Mazda 6! It looks sweet!

Please do post pics once you get them!

Congrats!

 

will do...

Mods, I guess the thread title is no longer appropriate...can you change to:
"Acura to BMW to Mazda (in 9 months)"

Thx

 

Looks good......

 

Took some crappy night pics this evening (it's a little dirty)...I'll take better ones perhaps this weekend. Anyway, here's my 6!