[autoAER]

Hi all,

Long time E90 owner here. My journey started with a 2008 335i (not great, injector problems, both cats failed, charge pipe cracked, currently sitting disabled in my garage), then I moved onto a 2008 328i coupe (this thing was Honda reliable-took it to 188,000 miles and NOTHING failed, it never left me stranded). After experiencing the NA reliability of the N52, I became obsessed with the E90/E92 generation with the naturally aspirated engine. After I sold the 328i, I picked up a barrique red 330i auto- my commuter for 3 years- also never experienced an issue in my ownership. Fast forward to two years ago- I found a great deal on a mystic blue 2006 330i- all the options I was looking for- sport package, 6MT, low miles. I bought it on the spot, drove it religiously for the past 2 years- it currently sits at 76,000 miles. Now for the interesting part- this exact 330i was ordered new by MotorTrend as a long term test car! I read this article a while ago when I was first considering a 330i- turns out I own that exact car used!

Currently sits on style 225m wheels, with some small modifications (BMW performance SSK, 3.73 diff)

Article link(s) here:
https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/2006-bmw-330i-2
https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/lt-2006-bmw-330i

attached some pictures from my car- one as it sits currently in my parking lot, one showing the wheels as it currently looks, and one from the MotorTrend article showing the license plate :

[Welcome to NBA Jam]

That might be the rarest car here. Very freaking cool

[Brian86]

That's pretty neat.

[2one3E90]

Wtf WOW. Good find. Love my 330i manual

[InnerBlueSkies]

Looks beautiful when the sun reflects on it.

[Biginboca]

Wow pretty cool. You are in good company with the love of the platform and the N52 btw!

[F30lolz]

From the article:

By now our 330i is gone, no doubt snapped up by some lucky "pre-owned" customer.

Good job.

[3PedalJake]

This is cool. I read this article many times while I was dreaming of finding mine. I hoped to find one in MBM like this, I settled for silver but WOW how cool is getting the actual car you read about! *Cheers!*

[fastboatster]

Very nice, I like this color, it looks like million bucks under the sunlight. Some interesting history, too.

[autoAER]

Thought I'd update this thread after a fresh detail- wow, mystic blue is such a unique color! Thank you all for your kind comments

[lowrydr310]

Cheers, from another 330i 6MT owner! Love the color and the wheels! But what's the story with the 330i badging on the back? It looks too high and too far to the right.

[autoAER]

Originally Posted by lowrydr310

Cheers,from another 330i 6MT owner. Love the color and the wheels! But what's the story with the 330i badging on the back? It looks too high and too far to the right.

Thank you! 330i club here!

I actually bought the car with the badge like that. Not entirely sure what happened, but I let it go because the badge is razor straight I've been meaning to debadge it for a while or place it closer to the trunk handle where it should be

[lowrydr310]

Originally Posted by autoAER

Thank you! 330i club here!

I actually bought the car with the badge like that. Not entirely sure what happened, but I let it go because the badge is razor straight I've been meaning to debadge it for a while or place it closer to the trunk handle where it should be

Makes sense, why fix what isn't broken? Most people probably don't notice these details, but a very small handful of internet car weirdos (like me) do.

I was just wondering if there was a specific reason - perhaps it was just debadged before and someone put it back but in a slightly wrong location, or some body work to the trunk lid. My car isn't perfect - the hood had some dents repaired, showing some faint sanding marks in the filler, and the Sparkling Graphite Metallic wasn't perfectly tinted to match so the hood and blending into the fenders is a slightly warmer tone than the rest of the car, only noticeable under certain lighting.

I've debadged every car I've owned, except this one. I don't know exactly why, there's nothing special about a 330i to anyone except the people who own them and it's not any better than a 328 with a 3-stage intake manifold and the tune for it. But it's special to me.

These days, a 0-to-60-mph sprint of 6.2 seconds is barely adequate for a premium sporting sedan

Truth.. but I didn't buy this car to win drag races.

[autoAER]

Originally Posted by lowrydr310

Makes sense, why fix what isn't broken? Most people probably don't notice these details, but a very small handful of internet car weirdos (like me) do.

I was just wondering if there was a specific reason - perhaps it was just debadged before and someone put it back but in a slightly wrong location, or some body work to the trunk lid. My car isn't perfect - the hood had some dents repaired, showing some faint sanding marks in the filler, and the Sparkling Graphite Metallic wasn't perfectly tinted to match so the hood and blending into the fenders is a slightly warmer tone than the rest of the car, only noticeable under certain lighting.

I've debadged every car I've owned, except this one. I don't know exactly why, there's nothing special about a 330i to anyone except the people who own them and it's not any better than a 328 with a 3-stage intake manifold and the tune for it. But it's special to me.

Truth.. but I didn't buy this car to win drag races.

Hilariously enough, I actually found out my car was rear ended through motortrend's daily journals of it now that you mention it, it's entirely possible the trunklid was replaced and the badge placed incorrectly

I love anything with an N52, but to be completely honest, the 330i with a manual transmission is by and large the best car I have ever owned. It's special in that its excellent at everything it does, and it doesn't pretend to be anything its not. Of course, outside of the M series cars and outrageously tuned 335i's, none of us have 'fast' cars- if you own an E9X, chances are you're a driving enthusiast who just wanted a comfortable sport sedan that you can drive every day without getting tired of the drive- and thats where our cars shine.

My car isn't perfect either- outside of the newly discovered motortrend rear ending, I left a family member in charge of taking care of it when I was out of state, and he promptly bumped into a truck in traffic (texting and driving in a stick shift car ) The replacement hood absolutely does not match the rest of the cars glossy finish, but being that no shop in the area was willing to do a quality paint job on the hood for under $2,000, I've learned to live with the imperfection.

Sparkling graphite metallic is actually one of my favorite colors on the E90 chassis- I remember the first E90 I ever saw was a 325i 6MT sedan in sparkling graphite on black interior- absolute stunner when the sun reflected off the paint!

[baklavae90]

very cool, I just re-read that article yesterday. Good to see it went to a good home.

[tlow98]

On the hood - buff and polish it! You’ll be shocked at the results and if you polish the surrounding panels as well it will blend very well.

I love how this forum appreciates the n52 more and more everyday. I especially love that the n54/5 owners don’t bother stopping by to talk about how tiny their wieners are anymore. I guess that found other ppl to talk down to :-)

Awesome car, OP!

The 330i is certainly a car you could own for a lifetime.

[2one3E90]

Originally Posted by tlow98

On the hood - buff and polish it! You’ll be shocked at the results and if you polish the surrounding panels as well it will blend very well.

I love how this forum appreciates the n52 more and more everyday. I especially love that the n54/5 owners don’t bother stopping by to talk about how tiny their wieners are anymore. I guess that found other ppl to talk down to :-)

Awesome car, OP!

The 330i is certainly a car you could own for a lifetime.

Best car ever, its my daily. I use my e90 328i manual as a weekend car and noticeable power difference in torque but top end feels similar.

[baklavae90]

Originally Posted by tlow98

On the hood - buff and polish it! You’ll be shocked at the results and if you polish the surrounding panels as well it will blend very well.

I love how this forum appreciates the n52 more and more everyday. I especially love that the n54/5 owners don’t bother stopping by to talk about how tiny their wieners are anymore. I guess that found other ppl to talk down to :-)

Awesome car, OP!

The 330i is certainly a car you could own for a lifetime.

this

[Clammy]

Thanks for linking those articles. Makes me even more excited to be a fellow 330i 6MT, sport suspension, owner.

I added AA headers and tune, along with the Rev Motoring silicone intake tube, and BMW Euro airbox plus K&N filter, and I can tell you that it really adds quite the power bump, and gives a nice aggressive exhaust note.

I've done a bunch of retrofits: USB, FRM2, Bluetooth, Power Folding Mirrors, Heated Steering Wheel, Euro headlight panel with rear fog lights button.

I've also done some cosmetic changes: 20% window tint all around, matte black kidney grills, Blackline taillights, swapped the chrome window trim for black, gauge cluster from a 335i, with oil temp (instead of instant mpg), updated radio to a later one with silver accented knobs, same with the climate control panel, and the steering chrome accented wheel center panel, BMW stainless steel pedals, and a nod to the old school hot rod days: chrome skull shifter knob.

Done some custom coding such as automatic fog lights that stay on with the high beams, passing beams (inner halogen bulbs) that also come on with the high beams.

She sits on Michelin Pilot Sport 4S 235/40ZR18 up front and 275/35ZR18 in the rear, on MRR GT7 rims in matte black. She's a real joy to drive!

The last few things I need to get done are: suspension refresh, using M3 parts, swap the stock 3.15 diff for a 3.64, and get her painted.

I really love this car and plan on keeping her forever!

Cheers!

[autoAER]

Originally Posted by tlow98

On the hood - buff and polish it! You’ll be shocked at the results and if you polish the surrounding panels as well it will blend very well.

I love how this forum appreciates the n52 more and more everyday. I especially love that the n54/5 owners don’t bother stopping by to talk about how tiny their wieners are anymore. I guess that found other ppl to talk down to :-)

Awesome car, OP!

The 330i is certainly a car you could own for a lifetime.

I learned the hard way with my old N54 335i, yet the N54 owners swear that things like HPFP, injectors, walnut blasting, and ignition coil failures are 'standard maintenance' I'm so happy to see so many fans of the 330i, this car is one I will keep for a lifetime!

[autoAER]

Originally Posted by Clammy

Thanks for linking those articles. Makes me even more excited to be a fellow 330i 6MT, sport suspension, owner.

I added AA headers and tune, along with the Rev Motoring silicone intake tube, and BMW Euro airbox plus K&N filter, and I can tell you that it really adds quite the power bump, and gives a nice aggressive exhaust note.

I've done a bunch of retrofits: USB, FRM2, Bluetooth, Power Folding Mirrors, Heated Steering Wheel, Euro headlight panel with rear fog lights button.

I've also done some cosmetic changes: 20% window tint all around, matte black kidney grills, Blackline taillights, swapped the chrome window trim for black, gauge cluster from a 335i, with oil temp (instead of instant mpg), updated radio to a later one with silver accented knobs, same with the climate control panel, and the steering chrome accented wheel center panel, BMW stainless steel pedals, and a nod to the old school hot rod days: chrome skull shifter knob.

Done some custom coding such as automatic fog lights that stay on with the high beams, passing beams (inner halogen bulbs) that also come on with the high beams.

She sits on Michelin Pilot Sport 4S 235/40ZR18 up front and 275/35ZR18 in the rear, on MRR GT7 rims in matte black. She's a real joy to drive!

The last few things I need to get done are: suspension refresh, using M3 parts, swap the stock 3.15 diff for a 3.64, and get her painted.

I really love this car and plan on keeping her forever!

Cheers!

Whoa, that sounds like an incredible build! Mine is relatively tame compared to your build Feel free to share a pic or two, would love to see her! Cheers on the awesome choice! P.S. 3.64 diff is a riot on this car! and you can't go wrong with BMW's own performance SSK kit!

[StradaRedlands]

330i MT owner, checking in! I love this car, and hope to keep it a long time! MUCH higher miles on mine, but so far, so good!

Do you know any of the history from before you owned it? How did it come up on your radar?