considering buying a BMW...

I've never owned a BMW, but I need a good reliable used family car that I can drive for the next several years with two kids in the back. I like the Honda and Toyota products, but frankly they are just boring. The BMW style really appeals to me, but I don't want some exotic car that requires expensive maintenance. I'm interested in knowing more about the long term dependability and expense of owning a BMW. What is the life expectancy of this car? Ideally I'd like to buy one with 80 some thousand miles on it, and drive it for another 100K miles, with minimal maintenance costs (like a Honda or Toyota), but I don't know if that is a reasonable expectation. I just don't have any experience with German cars. With fuel prices what they are, I'm definately leaning toward the 4 or 6 cylinder models (which don't seem as common). Any advice, tips, and cautions are greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

I could have written this 4 years ago right before I bought my used 95 318is. My situation might be a little different, but I wanted a good commuter car that wasn't the commuting appliance that was my Toyota Camry. I am happy with my choice. I found a decent private seller offering an 8 year old 4 cylinder manual with 78,000 miles for $9250. Comparing it to my 94 Camry: the pluses are the gas economy of 30 mpg, some increased style and handling=fun. Minuses are more suspension components that wear more quickly, needing to feed it higher octane gas, less reliable electrics and a less cushy ride (duh).

But my four year old refers to it as "the fast car".

Getting the booster and the infant seat in and out of the 2 door coupe is great, too.

Actually I think it was 7 years old when bought for $9250. I'm up to 150000 miles now.

Another plus: looks good when taking wife out around town. Minus: coworkers think you're making more money then them.

All around I am glad I got the car. Life is short, how many cars are you going to own in your lifetime, why not have a little style?

Buy an Infiniti G35 or FX 35 instead. You will be glad you did. I have one and my son-in-law has a 330 and he spends more time in the shop than on the road. Not only this, but my Infiniti G35 runs circles around his Beemer.

I am a former 530 owner and I am glad to be rid of that piece of junk!!

eti engineer

My son has a 96 318i, and dearly loves it. However, be prepared for electronic problems, ie, the heating/cooling system electronics, sir air bag light problems, and the oil light coming on at certain intervals that only a dealer can clear off without buying a 45 dollar tool you can use yourself. If you like doing your own work you will need to buy 2-3 test tools and code clearng tools sometime during the car's lifetime. the good news is that with some research you can deal with these things for a resonable price, unless it has to go to a dealer. Checking tranny fluid a pain, changing it a bigger pain. The car handles well, gets great milage and for a 1.9 it has decent power. Do some research though. I won't tell you not to buy one, but there are pitfalls as with all cars and trucks.

Buy an Infiniti G35 or FX 35 instead. You will be glad you did. I have one and my son-in-law has a 330 and he spends more time in the shop than on the road. Not only this, but my Infiniti G35 runs circles around his Beemer.

I am a former 530 owner and I am glad to be rid of that piece of junk!!

eti engineer

He wants to buy one with 80,000 miles on it. How many G35s have you seen that are that old? The G35 does have more power then the 330i and its a bit cheaper, but other then that BMW wins in every category. Handling, exterior, interior, resale, etc. There is a reason the 3-series outsells the G35.

tfret- If I were you, I would look into an E36 (1991-1998) BMW 325i. They are all around great cars.

BMW maintenance goes like this- the inline 6 in the 3-series and the 5-series is pretty indestructable. I've seen them with 300,000+ miles. They are quick, enjoyable cars that are generally pretty reliable. As long as the engine is properly maintained you should have few problems. What do go wrong with BMWs are little electronic things, which really arn't that big of an issue. 90's BMWs do a pretty good job of staying out of the shop, but when they do it can cost an arm and a leg. BMWs arn't common like Fords, Hondas, Toyotas, etc, so there are fewer people qualified to work on them. Because of this, shops often crank up the price for repairs. The more work you can do on them yourself, the better.

Don't expect BMWs to be as reliable as Honda or Toyota, because they won't be. Pretty much nothing is. Putting those two marques aside, BMWs are generally pretty good as far as reliability. They definitely beat out Audi and Benz for reliability, and they are alot more fun then mid-nineties Acuras, Infinitis, or Lexus. Lincoln and Cadillac shouldn't even be mentioned in the same sentance as the 3-series.