Gas mileage & Battery issues

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Beemer Dreamer

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#1
Hello Gang!

I have been reading reviews on the 3 series and I am curious about a couple things.

What can one expect realistically for city gas mileage? And what is the rumor about batteries needing a charge after a few days of being idle? Here's an example:

"One problem, if I let the car sit for 3 days or so without driving it, the battery is dead. Dealer told me that this is not unusual, and car needs to be driven at highway speed to keep battery charged up. I don't buy this excuse though as I've never had a car drain a battery this fast. Had to jump it twice already."

This person was from WI.

Thanks

Beemer Dreamer
 
vlad

vlad

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#2
I have had my 3er for about a year and and a half, no issues with the battery to date! My M3 isn't the greatest on milage, around 18MPG in the city. A 325 would do much better.
 
Average Jae

Average Jae

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mine sat in the garage for over 2 weeks in the sub zeros and the car started up with only a little struggle.. btw the virtural imola 330i is awesome in reality!! i used to get 23+ w/ mostly city driving, but since the temp dipped, it went below.. but the mpg really depends on how heavy your right foot is.

what you copied above seems like a complete BS. well just perfect since most dealers are full of it anyway. and prolly didnt' want to do a warranty fix.. bah!! but if the battery life concerns ya, you can always get the battery conditioner, they are like $60, $70 for the bimmer brand iirc..
 
e30fr3@k

e30fr3@k

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i dont know what platform (i.e. e30, e36, e46) you're asking about, but i have an e30 325i. so for the sake of argument, i'll assume that you want or could somehow use information about the cars made in these years (late 80s). first off, regarding the battery problem-thats a crock. and not just a crock, we're talking CROCK. i've never had a problem with the battery. here's an idea-the alternator's broken. as far as miles to the gallon...i'm embarrased to say. i believe it's about a 13 gallon tank, and i get 240 miles IF I'M LUCKY. to add insult to injury, 90 percent of those miles are freeway. 240 devided by 13 is i think about 18.5 to 19. if i was getting 18 in the city i'd be happy. however, i'm a bit of a leadfoot. anyway you cut it, expect to get low mpg. BUT the redeeming fact is that i dont care how much gas costs, or how much i use, or how low it drains my funds, because those cars are so incredibly fun to drive.
 
E

epj3

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#6
vlad said:
I have had my 3er for about a year and and a half, no issues with the battery to date! My M3 isn't the greatest on milage, around 18MPG in the city. A 325 would do much better.
Click to expand...
Wow, I get about 18 - 20 mpg in the city and my car doenst have the power of the M3 [:(]
 
P

Pink_Floyd

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On the subject of what grade gas to use.. well I only put premium in mine. It's a '92 325i with 170,000 miles on it. Realistically the older the engine is the less compression it will probably make which means that you would have less of a need of premium gas. However, the car has always gotten premium and I figured I would just keep doing it. It's like $200/year, so whatever.
 
R

rvenneman

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#9
Seaside?? Heights or Park. I spent 54 of my 55 years in NJ. Now I am living in Portland Oregon since April. I'll tell you, I miss NJ and would move back in a heartbeat if my mother-in-law was not ill. No porkroll egg and chesse here [:(]
 
SanDiegoBimmerM

SanDiegoBimmerM

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I have a 01 325Ci and have let it sit for over a week when I took a trip and did not have any problem at all starting it when I returned home. As far as MPG I do mostly all city and get 18.5 MPG.
 
Kirby

Kirby

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#11
Beemer Dreamer said:

"One problem, if I let the car sit for 3 days or so without driving it, the battery is dead. Dealer told me that this is not unusual, and car needs to be driven at highway speed to keep battery charged up. I don't buy this excuse though as I've never had a car drain a battery this fast. Had to jump it twice already."

This person was from WI.

Thanks

Beemer Dreamer
Click to expand...
Mine just sat for 3 weeks without being started. It cranked over strong, like it had been run yesterday. There is/was an issue with Climate Control software that was keeping the control unit powered on at full power even when the iginition was off. That has been fixed with a software update. There is a thread in the E46 forum regarding a recall letter, I think.
 
C

cordelli

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#13
We just got a recall on the 330 because of the battery issue. When it went in for the oil change and the recall the dealer said that a light in the AC unit stays on and that forces the computer to stay on at full power in some cars (though wasn't an issue in ours), it's a software upload to fix it.
 
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