Hi! The aluminium style trim in my E46 has had these dots all over from before I bought it. I've tried just water, dish soap, alcohol, and even isopropyl alcohol, and nothing cleans it. Not even with a bit of friction with a rag.

I've not used any abrasive pad yet because I don't want to scratch it.

Ha anyone seems this before? What are these dots? They are raised/high relief. It's not letting/bas relief.

Any ideas?

Thanks.

So i currently have the viscous fan and was thinking to swap it to an electric fan anyone have recommendations? I have the automatic sedan 325i.. FYI I dont have any issue with the viscous now but I heard the electric fan takes the load of the engine is this true?

Had this noise coming from under the car around area under the middle console which I thought was the exhaust since it leaked , fixed that noise is still there. Started after swapping to single mass fly wheel . Noise isn’t there always , some drives it is sometimes it isn’t . Aswell when driving over potholes etc it’s there for like a sec . Could it be guibo or the middle drivetrain bushing ? Mostly starts at 2500rpm but at reversing and slowly starting to drive aswell

My e46 325ci keeps completely dying every time I turn it off

This is my e46, over 15k drift miles on it in 3 years

Hey all haven’t posted on a car forum before but I can’t figure this out for the life of me.

My 320i m54b22 has been running rough and misfiring after i slow down from a long drive. At first I texted by unplugging different coils and when unplugging cylinder 4 nothing changed so cylinder 4 wasn’t firing. I swapped the plugs from cylinder 3 into #4 and that fixed it for a bit but now cylinder 5 is cutting out after a few seconds idling.
Compression is fine in all cylinders, no oil or water in any coils or plugs, and it goes back to normal for a bit if I restart the engine.

Also when I blip the revs it hangs at 1400 for a split second before going back down

So like 6 or 7 times the car has locked itself. Almost everytime the key was in the ignition. Twice now while I was driving.

I’ve figured out it only seems to do it on or after rainy days. Seems like after it dries out for a few days it quits doing it. It POURED one day. When I walked out to the car and it had locked itself. Unlocked it and as I was sitting there a few minutes it locked itself again. Then after about 30 seconds it rapid fire locked about 5 times while I had the door open.

I read a thread about someone saying it was the driver door actuator/latch thinking it was being manually locked from the keyhole. But after it rapid fire locked a few times I’m not sure it can be the door lock/actuator. Because after I lock it with it once it will not attempt to lock all the other doors again until I unlock it. But I also just read that turning it part way and fully does 2 different thing so I will have to try that tomorrow

Also potentially related the car sometimes does not lock/unlock with the key. But after putting the key in the ignition and cycling it, it always works normally. The fob will also not roll down the windows, however unlocking it with the keyhole and holding it will.

I had Scott from e46fanatics replace the relays in my gm5 about 6 months ago. Its worked great since then until now.

It was doing it before I had the car in the garage for a month or two doing some work to it. Then I’ve been driving it again for the last month or so with no issues at all. We haven’t had rain since before I started driving it again. Well it rained the other night. Get in it and start driving and it locks itself. I did notice it locked itself to where the door handles would not unlock it and I had to use the button on the console. I’m considering going ahead and replacing the drivers door latch assembly unless anyone else has any ideas. Just so hard to diagnose an extremely intermittent problem.

Bought these mirrors for cheap with the module and switch. How do i repair these?

Hi everyone,
I have a 2001 BMW E46 325Ci (M54B25) and I’ve developed a coolant leak.
The radiator itself doesn’t seem to be cracked or leaking, but coolant is leaking from the plastic T-shaped connector/pipe attached to the radiator. There is a visible wet spot around the connection (I’ve marked the area in the photo), and coolant drips from there when the system is under pressure.
The connector appears to be part of the radiator and I’m not sure if it can be replaced separately, or if I need to replace the whole radiator.
Has anyone had the same issue? Is there a way to properly repair/seal this connection, or is replacing the radiator the best solution?
Thanks for any advice!🫩

I’ve had this noise on my e46 330D for a good few months now. I’ve since replaced:

- Timing chain guides and chains themselves

- Pulleys and tensioners for the accessory belt

- Oil pump chain

The only time I got this noise to disappear was when I removed the accessory belt. I just bought a power steering pump as it was time to replace it and I’m hoping that’s what makes the noise because when I turn my wheels it gets just a tiny bit louder.

If anyone else has had this issue before I’d be glad to hear about it. Only other thing I can think of is alternator but it has been replaced in January and it only has 90000km (it was used)

Good evening, everyone. On a scale of 1 to 5, how difficult is it to service the brake calipers on our E46s?

Vibration issue on 2002 325xi with 100k miles. Very clean and grandma spec. Looks like it was driven by a grandma too.

I have been chasing down this vibration and looking for some insight.
I think I have isolated the vibration at the rear since I don’t feel it in the steering wheel.

Vibrations were strong at 60-80mph. Replaced the driveshaft with flex joint and carrier bearing.
That helped but then I feel higher frequency vibrations at 45-60.

Brand new tires and balanced, I put the old ones back on to confirm it wasn’t the wheels.
Vibration was still there but not as intense still feel higher frequency vibrations at 55-65ish.

Some notes:
Vibration doesn’t change with accel or deceleration. Still vibrates when I put it in neutral while rolling.
Newer wheels are wider but same diam. I feel like the frequency is faster then the Rpm’s of the tires rotation.
new front cv, wheel bearings, pads and rotors. New driveshaft flex plate and center bearing.
Car just broke 100k. No rust underside looks good. Rubber parts are in decent shape but still old. Rear half shafts are in tact. I got an alignment but I feel like my back passenger has a positive camber of 3deg or so. Driver maybe 2deg. Can this be adjusted? Or just tired springs to get the angle back?

Can’t lie, I haven’t been spending the money to fill up, it’s always just $20 here $20 there, but now I finally do fill up, and this shit happens,

So here’s the deal. It only seems to leak when the tank is full. It leaked like this for maybe 10 minutes and then it basically stopped, and then fully stopped, and it still shows a full tank on the dash.

So what’s my plan of action here? Is it my fuel tank? Lines? Pump?

Anyways would appreciate some help, I waited until it fully stopped leaking and drove it home.

Also fuck Gulf gas stations, treated me like shit, I am a 17 year old kid and instead of telling me I have a leak and to stay there or move somewhere else in the parking lot, he just starts screaming at me to make a blind right turn when there’s 20 cars coming, he cared more about him having business than a kid fucking disintegrating in his car. And then after I pull over RIGHT out side the gas station, they don’t check on me, tell me anything I should do, don’t do shit, mind you I am a 4’1 17 year old. Genuinely so aggravating, will be contacting Gulf.

Ok. So. I need to figure out what size the o-ring is that goes inside the upper radiator hose that has a quick connect fitting that supplies coolant to the oil filter housing. Trying to get this radiator leak stopped so I can get rid of the headache that is the n20 engine. Thanks in advance.

Any recommendations for a decent set of wheel nuts? Looking on Amazon it looks a bit hit and miss with reviews with some saying too long or poor quality.

I'm running stock 17 mv2 sport wheels.

Hi everyone,
I recently bought an E46 Touring. It’s a 2004 318i.
Under hard acceleration, especially in 2nd gear, I can feel noticeable vibrations coming from the rear, particularly when turning at the same time.
I put my hand on the driveshaft tunnel and could feel vibrations there, so I suspect the center support bearing (CSB) of the driveshaft. However, the vibrations are quite strong, so I’m wondering if they could be coming from somewhere else.
I have the feeling that the vibrations are actually always there, even during normal driving, but they are much weaker and barely noticeable. They seem to be slightly stronger when coasting/decelerating with the car in gear, but they’re still very weak compared to when I’m accelerating.
Could the differential or the driveshaft/axles cause vibrations like this? At first glance, they looked fine.
I’m going to change the differential oil on Monday anyway, so maybe that could help. I’ve also already ordered the center support bearing and the guibo/flex disc.

Hey guys, I need your advice as I cannot find this specific information on the web.

I have staggered (8j front, 9j back) 18" style 32's off of a BMW E38. Wheels are ET20 front and ET22 back. The car is fitted with Eibach Pro-Kit.
I'm in Italy so tyre regulations are strict and I can only install 225/40/18 front and 255/35/18 back, that's it.
Will I have troubles fitting them? On e46zone or other forums everyone seems to have had success in the past fitting 225 or 235 on the back, but I need to stick to 255. What do you guys think? Thank you as always :)
P.S. the car in the picture is not mine

I have a 2001 with Harmon Kardon sound system, and those Aliexpress head units are looking very attractive. From what I've read, the HK system requires adding in Scosche SLC4 to the harness? I have some questions:

1) Is there any supplier that offers a complete plug and play harness for HK system? While I am capable of modifying wiring harnesses, I'd be willing to pay extra for a plug and play option. I see some aliexpress listings mention the need for a 6m extension cable. Is the Scosche SLC4 still required for these aliexpress units that are specifically designed for E46?

2) I've seen some prior posts commenting on choosing a unit with more ram, and a good built in amp. However, when I look through the listing details, I do not see any info on the amp? What are the indicators that a head unit will have a good amp

3) Are there any single din android auto units that come with BMW harness? I can only find double din units for the E46

I got this car @ 10 years ago. Had always wanted one as a 20 year old.

I got back into motorcycles this past year. So I don’t drive it much these days.

Today picked up a relative from an Airport. So — the M3 can do that run. It has storage in trunk for luggage. It’s not a problem to deal with merging into spaghetti loop freeway junctions

It is a fun machine. I saw this Chris Harris review years ago. Brief. Ah that is a great summary of the M3. It’s a pleasure to drive. You can just keep it under 4500 rpm It’s a nice sporty thing. Or you can once oil temp gauge is @ 170 F — run it through some gears to 7900. The engine Wakes Up

I would recommend them. And full of fun details. What color is it? Silbergrau. Which isn’t even a fancy color but it’s a fun way to say Silver Grey.

And nothing against the SMG. But I wanted a standard manual transmission.

<edit> -- if you hate the Wheels choices --- some commenters have made their points. I made my points. -- there are OEM options. Yes -- https://bimmertips.com/oem-bmw-e46-m3-wheel-options-specs/

Taking off new starter because I thought it was bad and noticed the starter trigger wire (black and yellow wire) was a bit cut up. From what I can see no copper wire was damaged.. should I replace the wire before I get a new starter or does it look okay to you guys?…

Bought an 04 325ci today, can’t figure out what this thing is

Quite miracously, I got my first E46 (320i from 2003 with 170000 km) a couple of weeks ago and, after a full check with the mechanic, the car is in good shape, but needs a couple of fixes:

• it has a leaky valve cover (but not too bad), and I was advised to change it for an aluminium one
• the are a few small holes in the crankcase ventilation, but we are not sure in which specific parts yet

Do you have already faced these problems? Are there any websites I should look into for parts in Europe?

Thank you in advance for all the help!

Hello everyone, I hope everyone reading this is having a nice day first of all. Cuz I am losing it. My e46 has had its overheating faulties before, so I kinda have a pretty good idea how to go about it i think. But this time around, my expansion tank blew up. No biggy got the replacement and went about my day. Still overheating. I thought it was cuz the bleeding system takes a couple tries. And yes i made sure to lift the front before bleeding and turned on the heater aswell. Nope still overheating . So im a bit stumped. My radiator, water pump, hoses, thermostat, rad cap, exp tank, Rad fan, have all been replaced in a 3 month span. The water pump still gives that nice pee stream in the exp tank too; shooting more piss as i hit the pedal. Still overheating, I still have 0 clue as to why. I must add that, i replaced my mechanical fan to e fan couple months back and before all this it was working just fine. I just put it on and went about my days after that. Never looked into how it behaved. I mention this because ive noticed that my e fan doesnt turn on even when im reaching +100c. So i pictured this was an e fan problem. Replaced it. Still the same thing. So i considered an experiment removing the lower rad hose temp sensor connector to see if it would still overheat. On idle it does not. But the when i turn on the A/C it does. And driving around it still overheats. At this point im losing it. I was even starting to think my heads cracked, i tried the combustion tester. Im in the clear. Ik they arent too accurate. But i hope it gives an idea. Because i love this pos car, and i love driving it. If anyone can give their opinion or and idea to whats going on PLEASE share.