BMW 350 convertible & BMW's naming conventions

cayenne

I was abroad last week and came across a BMW 350 cl. I had never seen a 350 before and have a had difficulty finding out the specs for the car since i have come home. I was once told that you know the litre of a BMW by the digits after the series number, in other words a 320 is a 2.0 litre. Is this true? How common or rare is a 350?

.Longshanks.

I think that itused to work like that (i.e. a 320D was a 2.0l diesel and a 316 was a 1.6) but now you can get a 335d which is a twin turbo 3.0l diesel. The newer 320 petrol is a 2.2, whereas the 116 is a 1.8.....etc.
Confusing!

Somebody else will have a more detailed answer. Never heard of a 350

E92

Its so rare that it doesn't exist. The highest numbered 3 series is the 335i(or 335d). Perhaps somebody installed a V8 engine into a 3 series, and decided that they would call it a 350i.

You're right about the numbers, or should I say sort of right. Until the past 4 to 5 years, ever since BMW introduced the the 1 series/ 3 series etc the last two digits practically always refered to the size of the engine. So a 320i had a 2 litre, and a 525i had a 2.5 litre etc. But now its somewhat different. Its more of a guide these days. Like the 320i and 318i both have 2 litre engines. Similarly the soon to arrive 1 series Coupé, has a 118d, 120d and 123d, all boasting a 2 litre engine. But the general idea is right, as the 123d has more power than the 120d, and in turn has more power than the 118d.

Unless you are thinking of the 3.0 CSL or 3.0 CS, both of which were rare 30 years ago, never mind today.

Terrontress

Mercedes C180 has a 2l engine, doesn't it? Ordinarily a Merc's numbers after the class signify the engine size, doesn't it?

testicle

Mutec made a 350ci

ScabbyLeg

C180s used to have a 1.8 litre engine up until the introduction of the last model, then they were 2 litres for a while before the base model became a 1.8 litre Kompressor.
I think they do it for emissions or tax reasons.

optiplexgx270

Longshanks100 wrote:

The newer 320 petrol is a 2.2, whereas the 116 is a 1.8.....etc.

Not true in part....

The current model 320 petrol (E90) is:

2005- 320i - 2.0 L gasoline inline-four, 150 hp (110 kW)

The older model 320 petrol (E46) was:

• 1998-2000 320i - 2.0 L M52B20 T, 150 hp (110 kW)
• 2000-2006 320i - 2.2 L M54B22, 170 hp (125 kW)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMW_3_Series

The 116i is a 1.6l (1596cc) car http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bmw_1_series

Seth Brundle

A number of people have managed to showhorn a V12 into the E30: e.g. www.bmw-power.de/Fahrzeuge/E30_350i_stelze/roberts_350_foto_uebersicht.htm


The naming convention changed in the mid nineties when the 323i/523i were released as these were 2.5L but de-tuned to meet German insurance regs. The fact that there was also a 2.8L model within the range so they didn't want the 2.5L stealing its market. There was also a 2.3L 323i/523i in the past so the name wasn't new.
This has since continued with most models being different from the badge equivalent.

E92

optiplexgx270 wrote:

Not true in part....

The current model 320 petrol (E90) is:

2005- 320i - 2.0 L gasoline inline-four, 150 hp (110 kW)

Now its a 2 litre in line 4 with 170 bhp(well it already is in the Coupe and Convertable, and soon to be in the Touring and Saloon). Anyone know what the engine code is for the new engine? is it still N46? Or is it N46TU? Or some other N number? N47 perhaps?

optiplexgx270

N46 B20 - According to http://www.bmwdrives.com/bmw-e93.php but that's the same block. I reckon its just a engine remap.

E92

I think its more than just a remap, the new engine is the first ever BMW 4 pot petrol to boast direct injection. I presume like the 6 pot petrols, there no longer is Valvetronic either. But I imagine that the rest of the engine is the same. Going by BMWs usual coding, this should really be called N46TU, but then again, the N53 should really be N52TU, because its the same engine(as the N52) bar the direct injection and lack of Valvetronic.

Due for its debut next year is the N46B16, to be found in the 116i, and specially for Ireland the 316i when the E90 is facelifted.

Andrewf20

I have seen a few custom Beemer badges on the past so it looks the 350i badge is another example. In the US they have models we dont have over here, including an E60 550i, 330ix's which are 4 wheel drive.

KTRIC

Strange that someone brought this up, I've seen one or two 350i's here in Germany over the past few years. They were E30's, but I'm not sure where the 5 liter engine came from. Although I did hear of engine transplants from bigger BMW's.

optiplexgx270

Could these 350i 's be from some eastern european tuning company cos i can't find anything about them on the net from either BMW or interest groups?

michaelanthony

Andrewf20 wrote:

I have seen a few custom Beemer badges on the past so it looks the 350i badge is another example. In the US they have models we dont have over here, including an E60 550i, 330ix's which are 4 wheel drive.

There is a 550i here.

rebel.ranter

For the most part the last two digits refer to the engine size. However there have been many exceptions along the way. e.g. 523i etc.
Lately they seem to be using the "extra 5" to signify a turbo, e.g. 330i as opposed to a 335i.
Some customisers that shoe horn large engines into smaller BMWs like to play around with bits of badges.
For example in this month's BMW Car magazine ther eis a guy who has put a v12 into a BMW Compact & called it a 356, & badged it accordingly!

cayenne

Here is the Beemer in question...........

jozi

I think thats just some one trying to look cool in their convertable and pretent it has a bigger engine judging by the M6 wheels and the twin double exhaust

Seth Brundle

The largest engined E46s were the 330i and the M3