Newbie BMW owner - 2004 330i

Well, as the subject states, i am a newly proud owner of a 2004 BWM 330i that i just purchased from Gault BWM in Binghamton, NY.

I looked all over before actually finding a 330i... rather than buying the 325xi... Seems like thats all they want to sell in upstate NY.

Ok, a couple of minor questions.

What was the cost difference to upgrade to the 330i, from a comparably equipped 325i? ((i know dumb question, but im curious))

Second, where can i find a list of all standard, and optional equipment by option code. In the car, and in a listing of the ones available from BWM.

I just want this info for my own curiosity..

Thanks in advance Rodney

Reply to
tim
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"tim" wrote

A 330i was around $5,000 more than a 325i. It has a higher level of standard equipment: bigger brakes, 17" wheels rather than 16", power seats, etc. The AWD models are/were $1750 more than RWD alone.

Sorry, don't know. However, creating an owner's circle account on bmwna.com will allow you to look at much of the stuff on your car.

FloydR

Reply to
Floyd Rogers

cool! thanks, i might have to do that today

Rodney

Reply to
rhalljr

What difference does it make? You bought a 330, not a 325. Revel in your superiority and get on with life.

One thing to remember is that the 330 comes standard with wider tires and either 17 or 18 inch rims (I forget which), the result of which is that the sidewalls are narrower than on the 325. The point being that the tires on the 330 are not really friendly for winter driving in upstate NY. You may want to investigate this further, and find a set of 16 inch rims for winter tires.

The dealership can give you a build sheet from the VIN.

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

Good advice! :)

i was look>

Reply to
tim

Which winter - North America, Canada, Finland, Southern Spain, Mexico.

Remember if you go down on tire/tyre and wheel size the speedo and odometer will malfunction and possibly the low tire pressure sensor (but maybe not).

ICE is slippery no matter what tyres/tires you have but Knobblies with studs are what we used in Norway (they still do) but speed limited - illegal in UK - studded tyres that is on metalled roads (tarmac/concrete).

Given that info someone where you are might have the definitive answer.

Hugh

Reply to
hsg

Not quite, Hugh. On my E46, the 225/45/17" summer performance tires turn

834 revs per mile. Since my winter 205/55/16" tires rotate 831 times per mile, I don't think the 4/10 percent difference has caused my speedometer & odometer to malfunction!

Tom K.

Reply to
Tom K.

That would be North America, since Upstate New York is located there.

There is no reason to suggest that the difference in a 225/45x17 and a

205/55x16 will have any significant difference in the speedo of the other systems you mention. The difference in these two sizes is 3 revolutions per mile.
Reply to
Jeff Strickland

Never got the first bit for some reason only got the 4 line reply to someone Sorry!

Reply to
hsg

Whenever you go down a size in wheel diameter, you always pick a tire with a higher sidewall, so the diameter (and circumference) of the assembled wheel and tire will be the same. No problems with either the speedo or the low tire sensing.

My experience is that a good winter tire will provide much better traction on ice as compared to an All-season or (god forbid) a summer tire. The softer rubber compound and siping of the tread gives this advantage. Perhaps not as good on glare ice, but generally that is not the kind of ice one encounters most often on the road anyhow. The usual culprit is the snow that has been compressed by other cars into an ice-like sheet, and the winter tires work well on that/

Reply to
Fred W

bad idea, the 330 has larger brakes than the 325 and cannot take 16" wheels

Reply to
stuart

Not according to Tire Rack!

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Tom K.

Reply to
Tom K.

That's a good point if true, I'm not sure that it is though.

The 3 Series cars (except the M3, perhaps) should all have the same brakes, and if so then the 16" rims will fit the 330. When I was buying brakes for my daughter's 323 E46, all E46 cars took the same brakes, again with the possible exception of the M3. (Since I do not have an M3 and I accept that the M3 may have different equipment which arises out of the added performance envelope, then I have room for the M3 getting different brakes than the rest of the cars on the platform, and I do not shop for parts to fit the M3 cars so I do not know if the brakes are the same as the other cars or not.)

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

It is different with the new E90 3-series. 330/335 comes with 17" rims for the larger brakes. The 16" rims would interfere with caliper. E90 325/328 etc. come with smaller brakes, thus 16" are OK.

I run 17" winter tires on my 330xi, all seems fine. Still, I would not want to whack a pothole too hard since yes, those sidewalls are narrower than the

16".

Mike

Reply to
Mike

Wrong.

Wrong.

Reply to
dizzy

But the OP has an '04 E46, not an E90.

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

The wheel options are printed on the placard affixed to the driver side door jamb. The OP stated that he had an E46 (he really said that he has an '04

330i, which is an E46), and the E46 takes a 16" wheel.

Your E46 might be fitted with 17", or even 18" wheels, but the brakes are designed to accomodate the 16" wheel package. It seems the new E90 does not take 16s in any of the available trim levels, I do not know this to be true or false. If true, then the brakes will not accept the 16s, but if 16s are available on any of the trim packages, then the brakes would be the same across all of the platforms, and therefore a 16" tire package should fit fine. I happen to agree that the E90 might not allow for 16s, but I know that the E46 does take 16s, so 16s will fit the OP's car.

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

"Jeff Strickland" wrote

This is only partly true, Jeff. All 330's have bigger brake rotors than

325's. The correct statement is: "Some 16" wheels fit on 330's".

The 330's came with 12.8" front rotors, 325's came with 11.8" front rotors. The rears were 12.6"/11.6" respectively.

TireRack has 16" wheels that do fit on 330's; if they say so, they'll fit. And they back everything up so you're safe IAC.

FloydR

Reply to
Floyd Rogers

According to BMWNA, the current (US) E90 328i has 11.8" diameter rotors and comes standard with 16" wheels & "all-season" run-flat tires. The 335 has larger brakes and 225/45/17 tires as OEM.

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Tom K.

Reply to
Tom K.

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