sparklyman Posted November 24, 2015 Report Share Posted November 24, 2015 Hi, Just thought I'd introduce myself, as just acquired a 2002 E46 320i SE Auto (2.2L), which appears to be in A1 condition throughout, with Service History and all Invoices etc (110,000 miles) I've tried to find obvious faults/issues with the car, but can't .... hence the purchase (as 2nd car really). I'm now hoping the E46 enthusiasts/specialists amongst you could provide a list of "issues" known for this particular car, just so I can check history/invoices to see if addressed, or outstanding and/or completely unconsidered/missed during inspection etc. Invoices already indicate that ; 1) MAF sensor has been replaced twice in last 3 years (?) 2) Regular MOT advisories of "oil leak", which are accompanied by lots of topping up of Power Steering fluid over the years, seemingly addressed recently by previous owner replacing PS reservoir and hoses ? 3) AA Recovery 2 years ago, due to failed Fuel pump 4) Some Control Arm bushes and "drop links" replaced 2/3 years ago, but not all at once and spread of Invoices don't indicate actual locations (eg: N/S rear etc) ? Thanks in advance for your help in bringing any other potential "known" issues to my attention, so I can inspect etc. (If this is not the right place for this type of question - please let me know) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davy J Posted November 24, 2015 Report Share Posted November 24, 2015 Hello & Welcome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bennno2005 Posted November 24, 2015 Report Share Posted November 24, 2015 Welcome. Rusty wings and rear quarters. Possibly even the sills. Worth spending a few hours cleaning out the inside of all arches and undersealing them to prevent this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichS Posted November 24, 2015 Report Share Posted November 24, 2015 Welcome mate, for an oil leak the first place I'd check is the valve cover gasket (AKA rocker cover gasket) as they all need this done at some point as most leak from here. But well done on your purchase, at more than a 100k miles you want to make sure the cooling system is perfect and maybe have a look at refreshing the suspension if you can - the car will feel like new after. But otherwise just drive it and enjoy it:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparklyman Posted November 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2015 On 24/11/2015, 16:01:57, Rich (BoxClever) said: Welcome mate, for an oil leak the first place I'd check is the valve cover gasket (AKA rocker cover gasket) as they all need this done at some point as most leak from here. But well done on your purchase, at more than a 100k miles you want to make sure the cooling system is perfect and maybe have a look at refreshing the suspension if you can - the car will feel like new after. But otherwise just drive it and enjoy it:) Thanks for the welcome guys. Visual check on rocker gasket (as best possible) - nothing obvious .But no invoice for a replacement either ...... so maybe on the horizon at this milege ?? previous owner advised block is dry, as is undertray. He did mention rocker gasket may be something to watch out for in near future - mentioned first indication of an issue would be smell of burning oil inside cabin, as any weep would find it's way onto the exhaust manifold first. Cooling System: Water Pump, Belts, Thermostat, Temp Sensor and upper hose all replaced within last 3 years Suspension - car is smooth & very tight handling wise, but seems harsh/hard ride on some of the rougher B-roads around here. 18" Tyre profiles aren't that low - maybe dampers are tightening up with age ? No MOT advisories. Again, no invoices for any springs/dampers so maybe something to consider in the spring.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparklyman Posted November 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2015 On 24/11/2015, 15:58:10, ben.embrey said: Welcome. Rusty wings and rear quarters. Possibly even the sills. Worth spending a few hours cleaning out the inside of all arches and undersealing them to prevent this. Any particular places, or just the arches ? Arches visually good - Had a good feel of all 4x lips during inspection - nothing found. Previous owner said "no rust anywhere" - couldn't see any but wiating for daylight this weekend for a thorough inspection of areas ... Sills looked good from standing , but I didn't get down to fully inspect.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparklyman Posted November 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2015 On 24/11/2015, 15:47:36, Davy J said: Hello & Welcome Thanks Davy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichS Posted November 27, 2015 Report Share Posted November 27, 2015 Sounds like you got a good one! But at your mileage and without any proof it's been done I would replace the valve cover gasket as a preventative item at some point. But your suspension sounds fine, I wanted mine lower a little and at 60k miles I thought it worth replacing all the shocks and springs and I'm glad I did - the car looks and handles so much better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macp Posted November 28, 2015 Report Share Posted November 28, 2015 I have the same car mine is earlier though but has full black leather and dark wood trim very classy.Currently I am suffering with air leaks and my CCV needs replacing all of which are common issues. Having said that its still a good drive and I love the smoothness and sound of that straight six. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunk1 Posted November 28, 2015 Report Share Posted November 28, 2015 (edited) Hi and Welcome How many previous owners has it had ? I'd be very surprised if the rocker/cam cover gasket hasn't been replaced due to the cars age and mileage, mine started weaping very slightly this year and its an 04 reg and done 60000 Have a close look at the front lower control arm bushes as they are also a known part that needs replacement. I'm told by my local BMW specialist they don't last that long but at least its a simple job and the genuine parts not that expensive Edited November 28, 2015 by dunk1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirkynut Posted December 1, 2015 Report Share Posted December 1, 2015 Sounds like you've bought a good one with many of the usual suspects replaced. In respect of the valve cover gasket / rocker cover gasket, whatever you want to call it, they leak at the back under the pollen filter and you have to get your hand round the back when the engine is cold to feel for a leak. They are not always visible. If the radiator and expansion tank have not been replaced they will be the next things to change on the cooling system. The radiators bow and split at the bottom. If you remove the under tray and then the slim plastic cover at the bottom of the radiator you will see if this is the case or not on yours. The expansion tank can split at this age/mileage from fatigue and there is no way of checking it, they just decide one day to call time and split open. The radiator was a Valeo one from the factory on many E46's and the expansion take was made by Hella. I got both OE parts with the same part numbers on from Eurocarparts. If the OE stuff lasted over 10 years and 100k I was happy to buy the same parts again - albeit on other cars these parts last 200k miles! If you want to replace the water pump, get an OE one as they used a composite impeller now and not the plastic ones that used to cause all the issues when E46's were new and the ones that Eurocarparts sell are rubbish - I have the experience of them! Kirkynut Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparklyman Posted December 3, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 (edited) Thanks for all the additional Info. 4x previous owners Front control arm bushes - I think have been done around 18 months ago, but will check invoices again. Expansion Tank - no invoices, but seem to recall previous owner said he replaced it. No invoices for radiator, so something I will check ASAP Cam Cover Gasket - will get my hand round the back and see what I find - thanks for the insight.... Air leaks/CCV - Yikes, have read a bit about these - what are running symptoms of each please (need to monitor ) Also read about VANOS & Sub-frame cracks, which is a bit worrying. Hoping the 2.2L Auto combination may have avoided any sub-frame issues. But what are symptoms of VANOS issues ? ...the 320i is VERY nice all round, but i've been spending some time recently also looking at 330i, and even M3 - seems I may have gotten the bug for these E46's, but I also read about all the expensive issues such as con-rod bearings SMGII faults and sub-frame cracks. Watched some YouTube from Redish Motorsport last night - scared the hell out of me and need to check rear end this weekend. have read sub-frame repair job can be £6K + !!!!!! Edited December 3, 2015 by sparklyman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bennno2005 Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 (edited) 2 hours ago, sparklyman said: Thanks for all the additional Info. 4x previous owners Front control arm bushes - I think have been done around 18 months ago, but will check invoices again. Expansion Tank - no invoices, but seem to recall previous owner said he replaced it. No invoices for radiator, so something I will check ASAP Cam Cover Gasket - will get my hand round the back and see what I find - thanks for the insight.... Air leaks/CCV - Yikes, have read a bit about these - what are running symptoms of each please (need to monitor ) Also read about VANOS & Sub-frame cracks, which is a bit worrying. Hoping the 2.2L Auto combination may have avoided any sub-frame issues. But what are symptoms of VANOS issues ? ...the 320i is VERY nice all round, but i've been spending some time recently also looking at 330i, and even M3 - seems I may have gotten the bug for these E46's, but I also read about all the expensive issues such as con-rod bearings SMGII faults and sub-frame cracks. Watched some YouTube from Redish Motorsport last night - scared the hell out of me and need to check rear end this weekend. have read sub-frame repair job can be £6K + !!!!!! Air leaks will manifest themselves as a slightly lumpy idle and possibly a warning light (this is what I had anyway) Cam cover gasket - mine (and most others I've read about ) was leaking at the side and dripping onto the exhaust manifold heat sheild which was causing a stink. Easy / cheap job to sort. CCV - if blocked you will find you have heavy oil consumption, not really any other symptoms. I use a litre every 1k so could probably do with changing mine; however I'll wait until the weather is better before tackling. I don't think VANOS on E46's is a common issue at all. I wouldn't worry about subframe cracks, especially on a 2.2 auto. Cars after 2001 have additional spot welds so are much less prone to failing than cars manufactured before this. The M3 / 330d's are still affected due to the torque output and I think there are examples of 330i's being effected too but this is rarer. Mines a manual 330ci on 110k and last time I checked subframe was crack free If you decide to go for an M3 - SMG & Subframe cracking would be the top of the list. Con-rod issues effected the earlier models and most left would have gone bang by now or been taken care off by BMW recall. Head gasket on M3 is another issue I've come across on forums etc, not overly common though. Edited December 3, 2015 by ben.embrey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TriggerFish Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 On 01/12/2015, 13:18:11, kirkynut said: If the OE stuff lasted over 10 years and 100k I was happy to buy the same parts again - albeit on other cars these parts last 200k miles! For what its worth, mine lasted over 200k until the radiator failed (i think something hit it, as it leaked bang in the middle). I know they do fail, and if not caught, will cause big problems, but they're not all bad Welcome along though. Nothing really to add that hasn't been covered, except the heater fan fsr can/does fail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparklyman Posted December 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 thanks agin for the additional info - all good to know. Will try & get upto speed on the CCV and will moniotr oil consumption Heater Fan FSR - ah, yes, was going to ask about this as I think I have symptoms Low to mid speed fan settings and fan is "hunting" anything above mid speed and the hunt dissapears and fan runs steadily. Have seen a lot of £12~17 FSR's on eBay from China - wondering if anybody has experience of these or can tell me a specific brand to purchase ? I assume the genuine BMW item is v.expensive..... ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
