Looking to buy first e46, advice appreciated

[Cwright]

Hey guys,

New member here looking to join the e46 gang. I've owned an e36 and loved it, and it's finally time to get back into a Bmw. Im looking at several e46's, mostly years 2001-2003 and the typical km range to fit in my price range is 170-240xxx km.

One in particular I would like to ask about is a 2001 330ci with 240000km (150k miles). The car looks to be in great shape cosmetically and the guy has provided me with a good amount of maintainence done to it. I'm aware of the cooling system problem that I will likely have to fix after buying an e46. Anyways, here are the repairs/maintanence/upgrades:

Mtech 2 Front bumper with carbon fiber splitter, Vorsteiner carbon fiber trunk, BC Racing Coilovers.
Brand new steering wheel and leather shift boot. Newer stereo with aux in. New brake pads and rotors, LED Tail Lights, Clear reflectors and fender markers, Clear signals, and new headlight lenses, plus more.
Power heated memory sport seats, power windows, mirrors and moonroof. Auto climate control.
Comes with extra set of wheels with winter tires.

The front passenger airbag was replaced under recall.
Power steering high pressure line, suction line, return lines and reservoir.
Brake flush
Plugs, cabin, air and fuel filter.
Led license plate lights
Front crankshaft seal
Tie rods
Front sway bar links
Fresh alignment
Oil filter housing gasket
Oil pan gasket
Previous owner had put about $10,000 into it before I bought it. The lip, the trunk, wheels, coilovers, tails, updated oil dipstick, short shifter fogs, front lower control arms and had the front resprayed.

I'm wondering with this long list if the car is worth the $6500CDN asking price. There are a few other 330i's and xi's around for similar prices (most less) but the owners don't seem to be too knowledgable about previous maintenance done. The winter tires on Bmw rims is appealing too as I will be driving this in the winter.

Any advice is appreciated!

Thanks

[Cromer]

Hi.

Yes the 330 ci is a very good option on the e46 range.

I own the 318i e46 m43, which is a nice car but needs a lot more power!

I would chosen that one above the others as the owner knows his car and the maintenance done on the car, as for the others most of them is probably neglected maintenance and only did the necessary stuff for car to run.

ENJOY!

[Cwright]

Hi.

Yes the 330 ci is a very good option on the e46 range.

I own the 318i e46 m43, which is a nice car but needs a lot more power!

I would chosen that one above the others as the owner knows his car and the maintenance done on the car, as for the others most of them is probably neglected maintenance and only did the necessary stuff for car to run.

ENJOY!

Thanks for the input. I figured it was a good sign. With older cars it's hard to know if extensive maintanence is good or bad. Sounds like this guy did alot of preventative stuff and ride quality upgrades which is a positive. I was a little worried about the coil overs and cosmetic upgrades since that leads me to believe the driver may have been trying to turn this car into something more than just a nice daily driver, those upgrades can often be found on cars that are driven harder (I think). Ill likely be taking it for a test drive and going over the e46 checklist I found on the forum to get the best feel for it. Hopefully all goes well. Thanks again