BMW 330i - the essence of a good performance car?

[Justin]

Autocar give this one a resounding thumbs up this week. It looks like an excellent car and (at least in the UK but probably not in opportunistic dealer land Ireland) the same price as the very good 328i!

One line grabs me:"Fourth gear becomes the enthusiast's choice on fast A roads...".

Now that sounds like a fine car - it irritates me to change down a gear (say to third) in readiness to overtake and then to have to wait in the wrong gear, or even that you have to change down a gear to get extra poke to make an overtaking maneouver worthwhile - I want a car which will go fast enough in fourth for those rare moments when you need a little extra.

I want one of these! But not yet.

[Anders]

According to the BMW importer, the 330Ci will be an extra £1,000 over the 328Ci. Maxwell Motors says another £1,500 over the 328Ci. The price has yet to be confirmed, hence the confusion.

[Anders]

And now for some sobering facts. The 330Ci costs about £55k in Ireland with decent options. In a normal country it costs about £35k with those same options. Exactly what it is that I get out of those extra £20k that I'm forced to pay in Ireland is unclear to me. I also of course get the pleasure of paying motor tax that is about 8 times what it should be, and the insurance is probably about twice what it would be in another country. It's a great little deal that we've got going for ourselves.

[Tony]

Isn't this the same TD engine to be found in the wonderful 530? Apparently this engine has 184 bhp at 4000 rpm, a massive 288 lb/ft maximum torque at only 1750 rpm, which (for the 530) gives a top speed of 140 mph, a 0-60 of 8.0 seconds and pulling power so strong that you could drive the car like an automatic or use just the top two gears! Now that’s what I call pulling power, or in the BMW's case, pushing power. Also this performance comes with economy, AFAIK the average fuel consumption is around 40MPG.

But you're dead right there Anders. Its certainly not a car that’s fairly treated by our nasty tax system, and 3 litre engines bare the brunt of it. According to eForecourt's prices, the 530 costs £40,200 ex works.

[Anders]

No, this is the new 3 litre petrol engine good for 231bhp, claimed 0-60 in 6.5 seconds (can probably be bettered). While the diesel engine is good and has gotten rave reviews, I would never pick that engine in a 3-series. Diesel cars are boring. I don't think I would pick it in a 5-series either. I'm kinda thinking about getting a 540i at the moment. Nothing like a V8.

[Anders]

There is btw no way that I will ever hand over £20k of my hard earned cash to undeserving civil servants just because I'm buying a car. And the day more people stopped doing it we could put an end to Rip-Off-Ireland. But I suppose everyone is too busy congratulation themselves on the success of the Celtic Tiger.

[Chancer]

Did anyone hear that Button was caught speeding in the south of France over the weekend? He was found to be doing over 230kph (143mph approx), and was fined $699 for the incident.

Apparently, as he's under 21, he is restricted to driving diesel cars on mainland Europe. The reason I post this here is that it’s reported that he was driving a BMW 330 diesel at the time.

[Joe]

Yes I heard it, 500 quid fine on the spot - and he paid it on the spot too :) Loose change, eh?

[PaulKanters]

on the spot fines abroad mean "ON THE SPOT" payment!!! And you'd better come up with the money somehow, because not paying means: walking home!!!! :(

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Paul Kanters
Nothing beats Classic Motoring!
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[BeCos]

Anders asks what the extra £20K is for.....simple.....Irish number plates and a cute little vehicle registration cert to frame and hang up over the fire, which wont be lit, 'cos you couldn't afford the extra cost!!! ;)

I think that £55K is way over the top. How much is a 328Ci about £45k?. Surely Motor Imports aren't putting up the price, its just the VRT that takes it up by about £1.5K because its in the next engine size category ,or is it??!!!

[Justin]

I have often compared the prices of UK BMWs and have had cynicism unwillingly foisted on me by the results. Look at the standard spec in the UK versus Ireland and the price of extras and ask yourself whether or not the importers would feel compelled to match a price equalisation policy in the UK. I think not, but someone from BMW contradict me if you will.