1998 BMW 3-Series Review - With Richard Hammond

[@NACUDA07]

E46 is the best BMW model out of them all

[@guill0t520]

RichJW yes

[@guill0t520]

Mislav Konjik well really depends what e46 we talking about and what e39

[@MetikalMan]

I wish they were a bit more durable. Beautiful though. The late model coupes were just perfection.

[@eurosonly]

I think so too.

[@M54ftw]

@@mislavkonjik2827 yes

[@LeonhardWindecker]

wow how did he get his hands on such a good condition e46 after 23 years

[@YegoYTP]

hammond looks good here for 52

[@GlitchTTG]

It is Pre-Recorded From The Late 90's And It Is Uploaded To KZbin...

[@bubert8955]

@@GlitchTTG no it isnt, it was recorded in the year 2018.

[@GlitchTTG]

@@bubert8955 nah

[@bubert8955]

@@GlitchTTG yes it was, clearly hammond just dyed his hair again.

[@nickamarit]

The flaw is at the unibody - right above the subframe bushings.

[@sergiomartins98]

And the fuel pump of the 320d

[@eventhorizon88]

I was thinking of that while watching.. now after 25 years we sure know the flaws

[@daancontent]

Rust is the biggest issue.

[@MisoElEven]

@@daancontent Rust was the biggest issue of all 90s cars to be fair.. the subframe cracks are not acceptable though noone at BMW expected these cars to be 500€ "teenager" drift cars xDD

[@Dennis-du4jh]

The worst repair Ive ever had to do...

[@banditY2K]

I'm driving a '05 E46 330i w/ 139K miles on it. Just a fantastic car.

[@absitinvidia3948]

I have 330d 2003 150kw its realy fun economical car.

[@nmeister67]

Thanks for uploading all these video reviews, really great to see! In good quality too! I wasn't even aware of these car reviews/programmes back in the late 90's. Must be quite a bit of work, I'm guessing they're cut individually from a 30 or 60 min programme? What was it called? Anyway appreciated your efforts :)

[@sirbuttmen7925]

ha ha, i have one, it is perfection, i love it even if is old

[@DVJRino]

I have one to. its awesome car

[@outlawpoet1986]

I have one too! It's the best car, and still looks new. And handles like a dream, my last car was c class MB, it was the WORST CAR, I've had. BMW is the winner in that argument.

[@SuperMrBentley]

Is yours a 1998 model?

[@magnusflechsenhaar]

Also have a 1998 E46 with 269km and it still runs beautifully and handles amazing

[@paianis]

1:11 Schumacher's definitely not a good metaphor for boring anymore. :(

[@MrTomcat104]

Looking at this video two decades later, I have to say Hammond hasn't age too badly today...

[@MrMudmouth]

i have a 2001 coupe version of this with 60k miles on the clock in 2023. Mint condition never getting rid of it

[@pauldavies5199]

Love that 2 tone dash

[@newtonshiggers]

Success hasn't changed Richard Hammond. From his humble beginnings here, to worldwide fame with Top Gear and Grand Tour, he was a complete and utter sausage then, and a complete and utter sausage now.

[@bengermain8310]

Not seen him on the tv for so long i'd forgotten how bad at driving he was. Just look how he nearly clips the kerb, drives over the grass banks, can't keep between the lines or turn into a road properly...step it up Hammond!

[@MuaadElSharif]

03:26. Sounds like a lawnmower. Couldn't the audio be recorded separately?

[@toomanyanon3345]

e46 318i 1998 8 valve is the best BMW ever, especially in reliability.

[@Sanpedranoazul]

How reviews have evolved, thanks God!

[@salovila5328]

Car prices have gone crazy. 20 years ago top of the line 3 series with all the gizmos was less than 35k.

[@asianskywalker]

i picked up a 2.5 year old 318d for £9k. it was a bargain back then.

[@some1156]

Is the 318 good for a first car?

[@kennedymark1]

Some 1 if you can get cheap enough insurance then yes. The e46 (1998-2005) is a very good reliable car - I had an almost new 318 coupe which was faultless for the 5 years I owned it. These older ones are probably more reliable too. New BMW’s although good have run flat tyres which can be very expensive to replace and apparently these newer cars aren’t as well built. I’ve had no issues mind . Good luck in your search.

[@some1156]

kennedymark1 Thank you so much, I have my driving test in 3 weeks and I’m contemplating on either getting an E46 318 or an Alfa Romeo 159

[@kennedymark1]

Some 1 I like Alfa’s, but the lack of symmetry with the location of the front number plate bothers me. They do some lovely looking cars, but I don’t know how reliable they are. Just remember if you go for an e46 that in saloon guise rear folding seats were an optional extra and CD players weren’t on the first few (my 2003 had a tape player!! 😃) although I got the dealer to put in a multi changer. The engines go on forever as long as they’ve been serviced properly.

[@breakfree1967]

Don’t buy a 4 cylinder bmw!

[@MisoElEven]

So..do you still have it? I went with an E39 528i as a first car :D Im still alive despite what everyone told me when I bought the car... I guess youre too

[@saladdressing3464]

What class car is the bmw 3 series

[@Meton12765]

It's Hamster. Lol.

[@gustavobonilla6438]

I have one BMW 2000 323i good condition I love it 🚘

[@ianhand5006]

That particular car lasted for 18 years and was scrapped in 2016.

[@DF-pr4sb]

How do you know? And who owned it?

[@kouroshtashvishi5031]

Daniel F check on mot app

[@annemoonian]

That is sad

[@kouroshtashvishi5031]

annemoonian yeah, mine still going 2001 only 116k miles no rust last owner had it for 11 years and mine forever now ❤️

[@luputtaja]

It sure is a good car but when i had one for 6 years i found out so many ways car can break that i had no idea about

[@DJ-JAY-Q]

Why is Richard so good looking and beautiful and and handsome lol

[@Ferraridude13]

3:17 "overpowered" lol. Not a term you hear a lot these days in terms of cars

[@hfhehdhwhhahshhauwunsnammw6790]

Overkill is the new

[@hassankhan384]

That number plate, has richards name, if you you look carefully.

[@yogeshkumbam]

Love the poetry

[@mikee6220]

Looks like Davy Jones from the Monkees

[@mclarenf1gtrlmedition715]

BMW THE BEST

[@armandoenriquez1104]

15 years after uploaded on PBS Kids.

[@fabianmarcoschau]

1:47 Richard trying to be jeremy

[@madcommodore]

The flaws are - rusts like a 1970s Fiat, as reliable as a 1980s Lancia, as badly designed an engine in the 2.8 as a Trabbant (2.8L VVT system destroys itself requiring major rebuilds before a bloody LADA FFS) but the 328CI is probably the best car BMW ever sold in the 3 series range

[@MisoElEven]

As far as I know all the 6 cylinder engines are great..do the cooling right after buying the car, check the vanos, disa and timing chain guides and youre good to go for at least the next 5 years without anything major - no matter what you do with the car. Also to be fair to the E46 almost all 80s-90s cars suffered from rust. My point is..if you take at least a little bit care of the engine, it will last practically forever and will take all the beating you throw at it (thats why theres so many of them despite everyone revving the shit out of them when theyre cold)

[@madcommodore]

@@MisoElEven The two metals used on the VANOS for the E46 328 engine, not the E36 328, do not work together properly and due to a design flaw you constantly need major work a lot sooner than the usual 150-200k of an E36 model would. Aircon/heat does not fail safe like the E36 when the final stage unit fails so your car is illegal as the motor is deactivated, to get to the part to replace it you need to remove half the trim on RHD UK cars. On the E36 the same fault causes the fan speed to stick at maximum or zero as required so at least you can use the car. I drive less than 100 miles a year and drive it properly not like some teenager. These problems are specific to the 328i E46 engine only, which is why it was replaced immediately with the 3L engine with all the design flaws removed, it's a self destructive engine to squeeze it down one category for the idiot business men for their company car taxes due to weird warm up timings too. Still rust like a 1970s Fiat too. My E36 hasn't a spot of rust on it anywhere and I've owned it for 22 years so the problem isn't me, it's the 1999-2001 E46. Shame as they drive like a modern E30. Unless you know a garage run by E46 experts you will have to buy a 325/330 E46 with the 'smiley bumper' facelift but you still have to change the Final Stage Unit about once a decade. BMW design their cars to fail after the E36, the new cars are horrible Ford knock-offs with four banger blown engine crap and pig ugly styling parked next to a cheap Seat etc, YUK.

[@MisoElEven]

@@madcommodore There are 2 versions of the 2.8l.. the M52B25 and M52B25TU.. as far as I know the 328i only had the older version (without the TU) so the same one as was put into the E36 and E39. I have that same engine in a 96 E39 and it runs great and Ive actually never heard of these issues anywhere... but yeah youre generally right, be it M50, M52 or M54 the best choice is always the 2.5l or the 3.0l..when looking at individual cars I would much rather take a less milked 2.8l over a 3.0l from someone who doesnt seem genuine. I also dont particularly like the 4 cylinder turbo crap engines..but the new ones are kinda good actually. The current G20 330i is quite reliable for what it is, but as with all newer BMWs rod bearings are something to take care of sooner rather than later. Its actually the car I plan on getting (when prices drop a bit) to replace my E39. Only problem is, I most likely wont be able to service it myself anymore.

[@neildempster2827]

E46. Su-fucking-perb!

[@BrownStig95]

It's Richard the Hamster Hammond!!!!!!! By the way whoever makes the titles of the videos for this channel, needs to be fired.

[@WayToManyAssassins]

When bmw used to be good

[@TheDaneJohni]

E46 cabriolet is the best cabrio in the world!

[@detective3728]

Nice M3.. IT´S a 328 NOT AN m3..

[@DF-pr4sb]

Who said m3

[@catatanrhw2104]

Suspension is the flaw

[@DF-pr4sb]

Replace it and ur fine

[@MisoElEven]

Suspension? You mean the subframe?

[@theotherchannel2028]

perfection is boring?! why are people such masochists?

[@leenevin8451]

shame there's no good ones left

[@klodgta2003]

An English puppy observing the German Shepherd. English troll deserve to use only an English MG.

[@rscosworthfan]

the interior is a bit of a let down and its not very comfortable

[@MybeautifulandamazingPrincess]

It's better than 90% of cars out there, and the point of BMWs is how they drive it's never been the interior. But if you pay more you get a very good interior, depends how much you're willing to spend

[@MisoElEven]

Try other cars from 1998 lmao

[@rscosworthfan]

@@MisoElEven im talking from experience cos i actually owned one and in 1998 there were lots of comfortable and reliable cars to choose from

[@MisoElEven]

@@rscosworthfan There are numerous types of seats with different surfaces (leather, cloth, mixed etc.)... you cant universally say that a car is uncomfortable unless its a Dacia xD

[@rscosworthfan]

@@MisoElEven stay off the drugs