I currently have a 320td compact, which was always a stop gap until I get my new car in May. I had a Leon R with 275BHP I had to get rid of fast.
I am after a 325d or a 330d M sport and will probably have it re-mapped.
I am going to spend about 16K - possibly a bit more.
Does the 330d justify - its higher price, higher insurance, lower mpg, higher tax bracket when compared to the 325d?
So just get the 330d... U wouldnt be happy with the 325d.
Im a petrol head (diesel head really).
I have the 325d with a good spec, its now do 80k and its got so much power its awesome. We do a lot of Non motorway driving... When driving normal to quick we get 39.7mpg when driving like miss daisy on a driving lesson we get over 44mpg when driving like its stolen its down to 37mpg obviously cant drive like a twat all the time.
The £155 tax is very acceptable. The mpg is excellent for a 3.0ltr. The tyres are exspensive and dont last long. The insurance is very high. Lastly they have an obvious problem with the DPF (lots of reports of blocked dpf's)
I would defo buy another 325d and im sure i will get it remapped at some point, but not in a rush it has plenty of torque already.
Yeah as Daveyboy said, theres more to the differences between the 330d and 325d than just a detune. A 330d will remap to 335d power, but a 325 won't.....
Yes I do like fast cars, but not so they burn a hole in your pocket every month. i really wanted an M3, but just can't justify how much it would cost each month. The fuel alone would be stupid, even though I don't do that many miles.
I suppose I have got used to how little the 320d costs per month - £35 insurance, £12 tax, £85 fuel - thats £132. I am willing to up this to £180, which I suppose I would get in either the 325d or 330d?
I think the 325d is an excellent middle ground for power and value for money... But i've never drove the 330d, & dont know the running cost.
But i did make a big jump from 1.6tdci (propper green diesel) to the 325d and i'm well happy. My fuel bill is 20% more.. tax is extra £120 per year... Insurance another £400 this is down to it been rwd, i know this coz i can insure a bigger more powerfull fwd for £300 less.
But all above is worth the extra cost for better drive quality (slow or fast), the bmw logo, and fact its rwd m-sport !
My 06 330d M sport Touring is being worked on by BMW Irvine, it'll then be up for sale at £12900,by then it will have 6 new warrantied diesel injectors, one new ECU (warrantied), a new Diesel pump, (warrantied) and a new diesel control unti also under warranty.
It's an amazing car, just trying to get to the seat of a starting problem then it'll be back to being an awesome piece of machinery.
I've absolutely loved owning this car but need to move to something cheaper to run with a bit more space for going camping with the kids in the summer.
About 6 months ago I bought the 325D while I was looking for a 330D, the prices were a little higher for the 330D and I couldn't find one with the correct spec I wanted like Xenon's, By chance I found a silver 325D M-Sport with lots of options.
I have had many many many cars, Mostly Focus tdci like above, and a Few VAG cars like the Octiva VRS Tdi and the Leon Cupra's Rs.
So coming from a 300bhp ST to this I thought would be a massive drop. However the car has stunned me how good it is even if I am missing another 100bhp.
The car has done 50k and feels like new, its so flat and to be honest the standard car needs to be revved to get it moving, hence I remapped mine and its great now, I am really happy with it. Do I miss not getting the 330d? No not really as this is the second car and mostly on the long trips we do the 240bhp serves it well
I came from a 270 bhp ST and a 210 bhp Leon Cupra and the 330d sits right between them. Obviously it's vastly better on fuel which is good due to the mileage I do and it's nicely spec'd and comfy, though the ST's recaros were the most comfy seats ever! As for insurance, my 2006 330d coupe costs them same as the others, about £350 a year with business use! I do at times find it a bit lacking as if there is a flat spot or the auto has changed gear wrong, but actually its just that it's 230 bhp and best part of 1.5 tonnes, and that's why I'm glad I got the 30, as when it's chipped I think it will be spot on but the 25 will IMHO still lack a bit of oomph for what I'm used to. Funnily enough when I was looking there was no difference in price between them! (used buys of course!).
I've got a 325d and had it remapped. Tested it against a 330d recently. Personally I think the remapped 325d is quicker ... but then you could remap a 330d and get even more. The turbo on the 325d is smaller which is both good and bad. Good = less lag. Bad = ultimately, particularly at higher revs, will run out of puff. But these are great cars and to be honest the limitation on anything other than dry roads is not BHP its traction. I can get my traction light flashing in most gears at anything up to the legal limit.
I went for a 330D and love it to bits. Get 38.5mpg (long term combined) which is OK but was hoping for 40+. All diesels I have owned have always been worse mpg in Winter so hoping for more soon (especially as I pumped tyres up by 9psi today- oops)
Insurance and road tax a rip off and with gas @ £1.35ltr its all quite depressing. This motor costs me £2150 more to run p.a. than my Passat. But.... i soon forget all that as soon as I press that starter button!
See my old post asking for similar buying advice. Plenty of your questions answered here...
To the best of my knowledge the 325d and the 330d have less in common than you'd think. Simon at e-maps would confirm this but there are all sorts of hidden areas that seperates them... plus I don't believe there's too much difference in the fuel economy figures either.
If it were me I'd hang out for the 330 unless the 325 was a steal and even then with a 325 in the garage your always going to ask yourself one question.... what will I be missing
Thanks for all the advise. I suppose I should test drive a 330d and see if I am happy with it. If yes then I will get a 325d and re-map it. If not sure then I will get the 330d and re-map that. Where is the best place near Newcastle to get the re-map done?
Are there any other differences between the 325d and 330d apart from the power?
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