[LORDD]

Hi Guys,
I’m looking at getting a 320 or 330D as Currently have a X5 3.0i and will be doing a lot more mileage . So I’m looking for best economy .
The reason for touring is to fit a bike in the back like my X5 I presume I will need to remove a wheel? I was also looking at E60 touring but not many in my price range.
I am wanting 3 things either black , blue or grey , must have satnav and be a sport if not have sport seats , steering wheel etc. mileage ideally 130-150k
I would like Bluetooth and manual gearbox but not essential .
From what Iv seen the 320d suffers from timing chains any issues with the 330d ? The 320d gets about 50-60 mpg what does the 330 get mpg ?
Is the facelift 2009 onwards ? Does this include the autobox ?

Thanks in advance

[ValSolo]

With that mileage you probably want to look for a 320d with replaced chain. Or just go with 325d/330d, much nicer engine and you can easily get 45-50mpg on motorway trips.

[jacbo]

Depending how you drive but my 330d can get over 60mpg on pure motorway with mainly at 70mph and a bit of 50mph roadworks.

it'll get 45-50 when you are cruising at like 90.

yes facelift is 09, pre facelift 330 has m57 engine which is generally more reliable as long as it's had swirl flap delete. However a facelift 330 with the n57 will go on for ages if it has been well looked after etc. it's the 320 i would be careful with.

I'm a bit biased as I have a manual 330 but they are very rare especially in the right spec etc. I've heard the autos aren't bad but it's no DSG.

[Rich_D]

It very much depends on the type of driving you'll be doing, if you're doing motorway and A roads, then a 330d will return decent mpg, but for town driving and B roads then a 320d is a better option if mpg is one of the main criteria.

[LORDD]

Originally Posted by Rich_D

It very much depends on the type of driving you'll be doing, if you're doing motorway and A roads, then a 330d will return decent mpg, but for town driving and B roads then a 320d is a better option if mpg is one of the main criteria.

I will be doing some B roads and mostly motorway miles for work . It’s mpg I’m looking for as my 17mpg I’m currently getting around town is getting expensive lol 😂

[nomiS330d]

325/330d E91 for a bike is the correct choice. I too can easily get 50mpg out of my M57 engined manual 330d on a motorway. My son has got an N57 manual touring which is never quite as good on fuel for some reason, probably because his right foot is heavier than mine! But it’s close enough to not worry about.
The 6 pots are much better than the 4’s in every way other than economy.

[Tambohamilton]

325 or 330 for reliability and smoothness. 320 for maximum economy.

Of course neither in infallible, but the 6 pots are generally better. I'd basically ignore the swirl flap woes on these. The N57 is more likely to have timing chain issues than the M57.

N47 shares chains with the N57, but is way more likely to eat them. It's also generally higher stressed, so more likely to suffer any other issues.

Not sure how these guys are getting 50-60mpg even on a motorway. Best I've ever got is 47mpg on a steady run from fort William to Ross on Wye. M57 330d touring, no engine mods.

[Rich_D]

Originally Posted by LORDD

I will be doing some B roads and mostly motorway miles for work . It’s mpg I’m looking for as my 17mpg I’m currently getting around town is getting expensive lol 😂

Yeah a 330d will be a bit better on fuel

[Rich_D]

Originally Posted by nomiS330d

The 6 pots are much better than the 4’s in every way other than economy.

This

[Tambohamilton]

Also, at 130-150k miles I think you can expect the car to need a full suspension refresh if it hasn't had one already. Mine certainly needed it when I got it at 125k. Just something to bear in mind

[BMW33]

I'd say look our for an m57 mainly for reliability purposes. N57 is not all that reliable trust me when I say this as I've had the main bearing failure on mine.

As said above suspension components would most likely need doing if not already done. The thermostats and temp sensor too. An a good remap with egr & dpf solution and you've got yourself a reliable motor. Good luck with your search 👍

[Silver Streek]

You don't need a dpf solution, just keep up the maintenance and the dpf's are fine even with a map.

I've got a 325d E91, I used to have an E46 touring with a M47 4 pot diesel. The 6 pot diesels really are a much nicer drive, they don't bog down at low revs nearly as much as the 4 pots and are much more free reving, not to mention smoother. Sensible driving will see 45mpg and more, and when you hit the gas pedal will give you a big smile on your face. Not as good mpg around town, though that is their only downfall compared to the 4 pot, but if you mainly drive A roads and motorway they will give you good mpg. I would never buy a 4 pot over a 6 again. Well that's untill I can afford the new generation ones which seem to be dropping the 6 cylinder in favour of 4 pot turbo petrol.

[nomiS330d]

Originally Posted by Tambohamilton

Not sure how these guys are getting 50-60mpg even on a motorway. Best I've ever got is 47mpg on a steady run from fort William to Ross on Wye. M57 330d touring, no engine mods.

To the very top of Scotland and back to South Yorkshire last year. Mines been remapped, I think the egr has been mapped out, swirl flap delete and dpf gutted (by previous owner). It was on about 160,000 miles when we did that trip and never missed a beat. We didn’t hang about either!

[Tambohamilton]

How does that compare with calculating from full tank to full tank?

[rasa bmw]

my e90 330d manual would see 53 mpg if i drove say 50 miles at 56 mph,,but generally around 43 mpg all in,,,new stats and temp getting over 88 degrees,,around the same in my f31 x drive 330d...

[Tambohamilton]

Originally Posted by rasa bmw

my e90 330d manual would see 53 mpg if i drove say 50 miles at 56 mph,,but generally around 43 mpg all in,,,new stats and temp getting over 88 degrees,,around the same in my f31 x drive 330d...

Yeah, if I cruise at 50-60 mine will return a bit over 50mpg, but factor in accel/decel/etc and driving at 70ish and the net result is 47ish for a trip. My normal average is more like 40-44, and lowest ever average (purely short trips in winter) was 35mpg.

[nomiS330d]

Originally Posted by Tambohamilton

How does that compare with calculating from full tank to full tank?

I did the calculation twice on the trip and it was very close, within .2 or .3 each time. That trip gave a good overall mpg because there was a bit of every kind of road involved including single track back roads. As said, I ‘enjoyed’ the power and mostly cruised at 80ish on the multi lane stuff. I never once drove with economy in mind. Interestingly my son was with me in his n57 manual 330d and ‘only’ managed 47mpg. He’s still got his dpf so weather that restriction on the engine made the difference I don’t know.
My day to day average in 41mpg.

[Karlos20945]

As a 320d owner, part of me wishes I'd held out for a 330d as I wanted a six pot. However, I've had mine for a couple years now and it's been brilliant. The N47 gets all the bad press for chain issues, but the N57 isn't much better in that respect. My feeling is that as they were less popular than the four pot, their failings weren't as well publicised. As long as they have had regular oil changes you should be fine with either. Not 100% convinced on the MPG front. I average 48.3 and my best was a run to Cumbria from Basingstoke were I got 58mpg. I can't see the six pots being any more efficient than that, and the on board computer calculation is not all that accurate (from my workings out anyway).

[Tambohamilton]

Originally Posted by Karlos20945

As a 320d owner, part of me wishes I'd held out for a 330d as I wanted a six pot. However, I've had mine for a couple years now and it's been brilliant. The N47 gets all the bad press for chain issues, but the N57 isn't much better in that respect. My feeling is that as they were less popular than the four pot, their failings weren't as well publicised. As long as they have had regular oil changes you should be fine with either. Not 100% convinced on the MPG front. I average 48.3 and my best was a run to Cumbria from Basingstoke were I got 58mpg. I can't see the six pots being any more efficient than that, and the on board computer calculation is not all that accurate (from my workings out anyway).

The 320d was BMWs biggest selling car by far, so you're quite right about the incidence of failure. If you look at the history of the involved parts, there were major revisions in the early days (crank sprockets were eating the chains pre January 2009), and subsequent revisions right up to 2013ish for tensioners (latest parts have the webbing in the moulded plastic runners filled with rubber to dampen vibrations) etc; so it's really not something you can mitigate with good oil discipline...though of course it's rarely bad to have fresh oil!

I don't think anyone is suggesting a 6 pot would get better mpg than a 320, if all else were equal. You can change the indicated mpg correction factor through the hidden menu on the clocks. I did this by taking my calculated average mpg over a few tanks and comparing that with the average indicated mpg for the same period to get the new correction factor. I can't remember the specifics of it right now, but I'm sure there's a DIY somewhere. Mines never more than a few % out now. I think I went from 1000 to 960ish on the correction factor.

[BMW33]

Originally Posted by Silver Streek

You don't need a dpf solution, just keep up the maintenance and the dpf's are fine even with a map.

I've got a 325d E91, I used to have an E46 touring with a M47 4 pot diesel. The 6 pot diesels really are a much nicer drive, they don't bog down at low revs nearly as much as the 4 pots and are much more free reving, not to mention smoother. Sensible driving will see 45mpg and more, and when you hit the gas pedal will give you a big smile on your face. Not as good mpg around town, though that is their only downfall compared to the 4 pot, but if you mainly drive A roads and motorway they will give you good mpg. I would never buy a 4 pot over a 6 again. Well that's untill I can afford the new generation ones which seem to be dropping the 6 cylinder in favour of 4 pot turbo petrol.

Dpf will be okay for around couple of years after a remap, give it time they soon start playing up when the egr fails or is failing.. I've had it on both n57 and m57 had the cars coming upto 6 years so I'm talking form experience and they are mainly sat on the motorway.

[Tambohamilton]

But if the egr doesn't fail, the DPF will be fine?

[BMW33]

Originally Posted by Tambohamilton

But if the egr doesn't fail, the DPF will be fine?

Yes more or less unless there is another underlying issue..mine failed due to the egr, it was mapped and ran perfect for 4 years with the dpf in place.