Dave330 Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 Well, my dalliance with Mercedes has been brief. Although I've enjoyed plenty of V8 rumble and wind in (what's left of) my hair, my CLK430 convertible is probably going up for sale shortly. The reason? I enormously regret selling my lovely 330ci Sport! So, it's time to get back into another E46, with a budget of about £3k. I want an auto, and I would prefer a pre-facelift. But I'm wondering what else people valued in the options their car has/hasn't got. For me, the essentials: Sport over SE Black leather, carbon/cube trim Harman Kardon (the non-HK kit is truly pants) Electric seats Parking sensors Things like heated seats, xenons and navigation are nice, but non-essential for me. What was high on your wishlist when you went E46 hunting? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MangoMan Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 For me, a good Engine and Gearbox - everything else was a 'Bonus'.... But then my budget was a lot less sadly.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz 330 Cs Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 Xenons are an absolute must. Candles are awful. Heated seats too, and HK as you say. The_Judge_ 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bennno2005 Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 (edited) Mine had to be manual and after selling my last one rust on the rear arches would be the biggest issue for me. I was pretty lucky with the one I've got now as it had every option from new except from the pointless rear blind. Edited June 27, 2016 by bennno2005 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salim Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 I've just come back from a fully specced out £12k 335d E92 to a sub £4k 330cd again. Noway near as refined and looks s**t compared to the E92 but man does it put a smile on my face when I drive it! Essential options for me were heated seats, non-sat nav and obviously mechanically sound. Diesels tend to have a s**t load of issues at this age Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamesfoley Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 I'd say the Xenons are a must, its one thing I wish I had looked out for when I bought mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave330 Posted June 27, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 59 minutes ago, Daz 330 Cs said: Xenons are an absolute must. Candles are awful. Heated seats too, and HK as you say. I actually found the non-xenon lights in the E46 to be pretty good. Easily as good as my CLK's xenons, and never left me wanting at night. I never checked the bulbs, so perhaps someone had put a set of nightbreakers or similar in? MangoMan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave330 Posted June 27, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 38 minutes ago, Salim said: Essential options for me were heated seats I wonder whether I'm underestimating how much I used my heated seats... They are on quite often in the CLK, but that's generally because of a combination of open roof and British 'summer'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salim Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 I think you only realise how much you use them when you go heated to non-heated, especially when it starts getting cooler Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MangoMan Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 41 minutes ago, Dave330 said: I actually found the non-xenon lights in the E46 to be pretty good. Easily as good as my CLK's xenons, and never left me wanting at night. I never checked the bulbs, so perhaps someone had put a set of nightbreakers or similar in? I agree, I find the standard headlights very adequate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz 330 Cs Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 Standard halogens can't be compared to Oem xenons. Maybe the lights on your CLK were faulty ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2clubsp Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 3 hours ago, Salim said: I've just come back from a fully specced out £12k 335d E92 to a sub £4k 330cd again. Noway near as refined and looks s**t compared to the E92 but man does it put a smile on my face when I drive it. Interested why you weren't particularly enamoured with your E92. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salim Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 The 335d is a lot faster than the 330cd, sounds better and much smoother but it just not as nice to drive. Not like it was a bad example either, full dealership history and still under warranty but genuienly did not compare to the handling of the e46 chassis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TriggerFish Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 Xenons. Sport. No leather seats. Manual. Lumbar support. I managed one of those at purchase, and have added the rest since Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2clubsp Posted June 27, 2016 Report Share Posted June 27, 2016 33 minutes ago, Salim said: The 335d is a lot faster than the 330cd, sounds better and much smoother but it just not as nice to drive. Not like it was a bad example either, full dealership history and still under warranty but genuienly did not compare to the handling of the e46 chassis. Interesting, was contemplating selling my clubsport and getting a 335ci. Not a big fan of diesel despite their tremendous torque and tunability. To answer the tread question my list is: Sport, heated leather memory seats, HK, xenons, shadow line, cube dash trim, manual. Funnily enough, that's exactly what I got! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edges Posted June 28, 2016 Report Share Posted June 28, 2016 If I were to buy another, I'd only look at facelift 330ci. Must have 6sp manual, nappa leather or suede/cloth seats (standard leather is s**t) must have xenons, piano black dash trims, good correct service history (if it had 3 oil services in row I'd walk away), I'd also walk if it had budget tyres fitted as obviously isn't looked after. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz 330 Cs Posted June 28, 2016 Report Share Posted June 28, 2016 55 minutes ago, Edges said: I'd also walk if it had budget tyres fitted as obviously isn't looked after. I'm not quite sure how you'd arrive at that conclusion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edges Posted June 28, 2016 Report Share Posted June 28, 2016 2 minutes ago, Daz 330 Cs said: I'm not quite sure how you'd arrive at that conclusion. Any car I have at work, people who skimp on servicing buy budgets. People who service cars properly buy at least good mid range tyres. It's the only part of the car keeping you on the road so the most important bit. Ditch finders scream not looked after to me TriggerFish and MangoMan 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MangoMan Posted June 28, 2016 Report Share Posted June 28, 2016 I agree. Tyres are one of the first things I look at when buying a car... Always a good indicator of the level of maintenance. Edges 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TriggerFish Posted June 28, 2016 Report Share Posted June 28, 2016 1 hour ago, Edges said: If I were to buy another, I'd only look at facelift 330ci. Must have 6sp manual, nappa leather or suede/cloth seats (standard leather is s**t) must have xenons, piano black dash trims, good correct service history (if it had 3 oil services in row I'd walk away), I'd also walk if it had budget tyres fitted as obviously isn't looked after. Mine had Bridgestone Potenzas on all round when I got it with good tread. I see that as a much better sign than a set of Nankangs that are nearly worn out. Edges 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TERKIN Posted June 28, 2016 Report Share Posted June 28, 2016 (edited) ive got budgets on mine....guess my car must be an unserviced poor running pile of crap then Edited June 28, 2016 by TERKIN ibrahimx2001 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave330 Posted June 28, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2016 1 hour ago, Edges said: Any car I have at work, people who skimp on servicing buy budgets. People who service cars properly buy at least good mid range tyres. It's the only part of the car keeping you on the road so the most important bit. Ditch finders scream not looked after to me Couldn't agree more. From experience there's a MASSIVE correlation between owners who skimp on tyres and owners who skimp on servicing/upkeep. This is usually a major red flag for me, unless the car is ludicrously cheap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave330 Posted June 28, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 28, 2016 (edited) On 6/27/2016 at 14:00, Daz 330 Cs said: Standard halogens can't be compared to Oem xenons. Maybe the lights on your CLK were faulty ? You're right, the halogens are nowhere near as good as xenons. But I think it's a bit hyperbolic to call them "awful". I've owned dozens of cars (some with xenons/projectors, some without), and my E46 halogens were perfectly adequate. Not amazing, but absolutely miles from "awful". Edited June 28, 2016 by Dave330 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MangoMan Posted June 28, 2016 Report Share Posted June 28, 2016 1 hour ago, TERKIN said: ive got budgets on mine....guess my car must be an unserviced poor running pile of crap then You said it..... TERKIN 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daz 330 Cs Posted June 28, 2016 Report Share Posted June 28, 2016 Nobody mentioned anything about tyres that are worn and require replacement. There's simply no logic to assume a car with budget tyres on is poorly maintained. Sorry but that's ridiculous. Not everyone drives like a bellend. TERKIN 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
