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BMW 3-Series Maintenance and Repair
5349 messages, Last post on Apr 30, 2013 at 3:31 PM
You are in the BMW 3-Series Forum.What is this discussion about? BMW 3 Series, Sedan
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#197 of 5349 VW vs. BMW by jfriedl
Aug 16, 2001 (6:43 pm)
My wife owned a 1996 Passat that she dearly loved up to the day it got totaled by a Ford delivery van. In the two years/40k miles we only had one problem with the car - we needed to replace the dash because the tach and speedo were reading improperly. The dealer was great. Even though it was a few mile out of warranty, the dealer was unhappy with what happened and managed to fix it under warranty. The car was great. Fun to drive (for a front wheel drive car) and comfortable.I currently own a 2001 E46 325i manual with a sport package. I have never driven anything as fun as this. It has about 8,000 miles on it. I have already replaced a fog lamp and had to have the break master cylinder replaced as an internal seal malfunctioned. Other than that, it is very stout.
From my perspective, both vehicles are great. It all boils down to your personal preference. I personally can't stand front wheel drive. If I enjoyed front wheel drive, I probably would have gone with the Passat (I did test drive one and it was fun). It definitely has much more value for the buck. You can pick up a fully loaded Passat for what I paid for my "stripper". Now, if rear wheel drive is your thing, like it is for me, the BMW is the only way to go. This car is absolutely on rails. It does tend to have more over steer than I would have expected for a car like this, but I am very glad I bought it.
Finally, I do think the Passat is of a higher over quality than the rest of the line. It is the flagship and I think VW goes to extra measures to ensure it is of high quality.
In the end, i don't think you can go wrong with either car. Best of luck!
#198 of 5349 VW vs. BMW by jfriedl
Aug 16, 2001 (6:44 pm)
My wife owned a 1996 Passat that she dearly loved up to the day it got totaled by a Ford delivery van. In the two years/40k miles we only had one problem with the car - we needed to replace the dash because the tach and speedo were reading improperly. The dealer was great. Even though it was a few mile out of warranty, the dealer was unhappy with what happened and managed to fix it under warranty. The car was great. Fun to drive (for a front wheel drive car) and comfortable.I currently own a 2001 E46 325i manual with a sport package. I have never driven anything as fun as this. It has about 8,000 miles on it. I have already replaced a fog lamp and had to have the break master cylinder replaced as an internal seal malfunctioned. Other than that, it is very stout.
From my perspective, both vehicles are great. It all boils down to your personal preference. I personally can't stand front wheel drive. If I enjoyed front wheel drive, I probably would have gone with the Passat (I did test drive one and it was fun). It definitely has much more value for the buck. You can pick up a fully loaded Passat for what I paid for my "stripper". Now, if rear wheel drive is your thing, like it is for me, the BMW is the only way to go. This car is absolutely on rails. It does tend to have more over steer than I would have expected for a car like this, but I am very glad I bought it.
Finally, I do think the Passat is of a higher over quality than the rest of the line. It is the flagship and I think VW goes to extra measures to ensure it is of high quality.
In the end, I don't think you can go wrong with either car. Best of luck!
#199 of 5349 Problem with the windshield wipers. by niwde
Aug 28, 2001 (5:05 pm)
I just read thru 193 messages so I feel confident I have a new one. I just took delivery of my new 2001 330ci, haven't even had it a week, and there seems to be something wrong with the windshield wipers. My car has the sport and premium pkgs. plus xenons, heated seats, and in dash cd. With the wiper control lever in the off position the wipers will wipe at random, rain or no rain. The only way I can get them to work somewhat normally, when it's raining, is if the control lever is in the auto position with the sensitivity turned all the way up. At the low speed position they seem to wipe at the high speed and the washer fluid sprays constantly, this also applies to the high speed position. Also, I can't seem to tell any difference in speed between the high and low speed settings.I have described this to the service advisor where I leased the car and he has never heard of this problem before. He said that maybe the cars software needs to be reset.
I hope someone can give me some advice. -Thanks in advance,
#200 of 5349 Rear speaker rattle by lbennett
Aug 29, 2001 (12:54 pm)
I have a '01 330Ci with HK sound - very low bass causes the rear speaker to rattle. My dealer says BMW knows about this and is working on the problem. Has anyone experienced this problem and have you been able to fix it?Thanks.
#201 of 5349 speaker rattles by nbb
Aug 30, 2001 (12:55 pm)
Check the bimmer.org site for e46 cars. Many people have fixed this by stuffing a padded material in the opening to muffle the rattle.#202 of 5349 Speaker rattles by johngault2
Aug 31, 2001 (5:05 pm)
I too have a 330ci with HK, and low bass causes the speaker to rattle and distort. Even without the stereo on, the rear speaker and/or shelf rattles. My dealer told me that BMW was aware of the problem, but that there was not a fix available for it yet. I have gotten somewhat ambiguous answers from BMW USA on whether any fix is in the works. I am reluctant to stuff a sock in the speaker enclosure, which seems to be the preferred DIY solution. Good luck!#203 of 5349 Windshield Problems? by swap
Sep 03, 2001 (7:31 pm)
Does anyone have any experiences of windshields on the E46 cracking even on impact by small stones/ pebbles? I have had two in the past few months (In perspective, my other car which is an Intrepid seems to weather these hits without any problems (touch wood!))#204 of 5349 by Mr_Shiftright HOST
Sep 04, 2001 (7:25 am)
Just bad luck I think, although the angle of impact (and of your windshield) and the size of the stone would, of course, also be a factor.#206 of 5349 by Mr_Shiftright HOST
Sep 06, 2001 (4:41 pm)
Yes, forgot that one...combined velocity of object and car....also, where you live I guess, if that changed between cars....in Colorado you can just about guarantee a rock in your windshield within a couple years--or if not that, sand-blasting. In Alaska, about 3 months I'd guess!To POST a message, please
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