Help please!

-dmo7-

Right i'm looking to buy a car as soon as I can. At the moment I want to buy a BMW 316i Coupe from around the years 93-98. Anybody have anything to say on these in terms of reliability, performance, mpg and anything else relevant to this car. Please bear in mind I am only 17 also and I know the 6 pots are better to drive but I seriously doubt my insurance would allow., Owners knowledge of these cars would be best.

Regards,
Declan.

colm_mcm

The girl I'm living with had one of these until recently, it's very hard to find a 316 coupe that hasn't been owned by a young person who's rallied it around, also at that age, any car will be at a stage where parts wear out, e.g catalytic convertor, exhaust, suspension components, electrics like sunroof, central locking and windows
Go into it with your eyes open, walk away from anything without a long NCT and evidence that it's been cared for.

Whilst the 316 is hardly a performance machine, it does carry a certain amount of kudos being a BMW and being RWD.

-dmo7-

colm_mcm wrote: »

The girl I'm living with had one of these until recently, it's very hard to find a 316 coupe that hasn't been owned by a young person who's rallied it around, also at that age, any car will be at a stage where parts wear out, e.g catalytic convertor, exhaust, suspension components, electrics like sunroof, central locking and windows
Go into it with your eyes open, walk away from anything without a long NCT and evidence that it's been cared for.

Whilst the 316 is hardly a performance machine, it does carry a certain amount of kudos being a BMW and being RWD.

Cheers buddy! I agree with the performance bit alright, I just think a 318is would be a bit hard on the juice though

Paddo81

Ive been driving a '94 316 coupe for about 12 months now. Only one major problem. The back bearings were shot. My local garage had the car for 3 days trying to fit the new ones but i got away with a bill of €300 inc the new parts.

Other than that not a bother. Its certainly no powerhouse. Aceleration is sluggish but once your cruising on the main road life is good. Im not looking for a rally car anyway so power isnt important.

Mine was a UK import. I paid abit over the odds for it but with only 87k on the clock and one lady owner and it was loved!! All electrics in good working order - something you'd def want to look out for on these cars.

Petrol consumption not too bad, provided your not hammering it all the time. When ya take it handy you'd get 35 maybe 40mpg. With the foot down, it does drink the stuff.

Alot of people seem to think a beemer has to be powerful to appreciate it. I know ya cant fully experience the quality of the machine in a 1.6l engine but still other attributes come thru. Solid drive, little body roll, balanced weight distribution. Ive driven alot of 15 year old cars and their more like tractors. This thing could pass for a 5 year old car the way it feels and handles.

If it looks well minded, and you can get a reasonable amount of service history etc, go for it. But dont fall into the trap of overpaying for the badge like me.

Thats my tuppence anyway.

Spipov

same here. i have the 99 316i coupe. i bought it from a reputable dealer garage but they had lost the service history. they themselves imported that car 4 years ago, and sold it twice (each time trading it in towards a newer one when their seller came back to them, so they gave me a letter stating the car is what it is and they guarantee it).

but anyway, its perfect for me. i wanted the badge but i could not afford too much insurance, and i wanted a coupe. it does the trick, its good, coming from a 1.4 almera, i can feel the difference. its a joy to drive long distances in it, and its massively comfortable.

having never driven anything over 1.6, i cant tell u power wise that its underpowered, for me it does the trick. and it accelerates when it needs to.

my only gripe with it at the moment is the squeaking (im not sure whats causing it) when i go over bumps. i need to bring it to a garage soon.

i did go through cartell.ie before i bought it, and all dates matched with sales and it was never declared off the road...

now to get that pesky window tint off!

-dmo7-

Paddo81 wrote: »

Ive been driving a '94 316 coupe for about 12 months now. Only one major problem. The back bearings were shot. My local garage had the car for 3 days trying to fit the new ones but i got away with a bill of €300 inc the new parts.

Other than that not a bother. Its certainly no powerhouse. Aceleration is sluggish but once your cruising on the main road life is good. Im not looking for a rally car anyway so power isnt important.

Mine was a UK import. I paid abit over the odds for it but with only 87k on the clock and one lady owner and it was loved!! All electrics in good working order - something you'd def want to look out for on these cars.

Petrol consumption not too bad, provided your not hammering it all the time. When ya take it handy you'd get 35 maybe 40mpg. With the foot down, it does drink the stuff.

Alot of people seem to think a beemer has to be powerful to appreciate it. I know ya cant fully experience the quality of the machine in a 1.6l engine but still other attributes come thru. Solid drive, little body roll, balanced weight distribution. Ive driven alot of 15 year old cars and their more like tractors. This thing could pass for a 5 year old car the way it feels and handles.

If it looks well minded, and you can get a reasonable amount of service history etc, go for it. But dont fall into the trap of overpaying for the badge like me.

Thats my tuppence anyway.

Cheers lad, the fuel consumption is kind of worrying me though. Anybody else with any rough figures on what they're getting? Any other pricey running costs I should know about?

DublinDilbert

-dmo7- wrote: »

Any other pricey running costs I should know about?

Maintenance, a car of this age will need a good bit....

hefty_langer

-dmo7- wrote: »

Cheers lad, the fuel consumption is kind of worrying me though. Anybody else with any rough figures on what they're getting? Any other pricey running costs I should know about?

E36 316i should be getting 35-38mpg on long runs and around 30 in town...

Esel

Quote below from Honest John. Read his full review. Be sure to get a good one - have it checked over by a specialist.

316i and 318i saloons over-rated, under powered and pretty ordinary to drive. Lots of early E36 3-Series suffered premature dashboard failure, so mileage on the clock may not be the mileage on the car.

M40 8-valve four-cylinder engines had timing belts up to September 1993 and failure leads to bent valves. Belts need changing every 3 years or 36k miles. Engine noise on M40 engine usually from worn valvegear due to neglected oil changes. Long cranking time on M40 and M50 engines means fuel tank lifter pump is faulty.

M43 four cylinder engines from 1994 model year had chains. If M43 engine overheats will be due to failing head gasket.

Silver '97 auto 60K in UK

Blue '95 78K in UK

-dmo7-

Right lad's I went to see one today, it has everything I wanted. He did the nct in July this year but it has to be done again in January, maybe it was back dated? And he mentioned something about it being a 95 and it being nct'd on an even year (2008) although this bit just confused me. It's originally imported from England so what documents, proof, receipts should I look out for? Should the MOT certs still be there? Last but not least, the clock says 62000 miles, he said a lady owned it before him and that's the reason it's so low. 62000 miles on a 95 like? Bit strange. Is there any way to check if this mileage is genuine? Anything I should look out for on the car that would indicate this?

Any help is much appreciated guys!

Captain Slow IRL

If you look at the registration cert, have a look at item J4 - it'll give you the car's registration before it came into this country. You can use that to do a hpi check if you want, here - http://www.hpicheck.com/newfrontend/
Check if it has a full service history, and if possible all old mot certs. If it doesn't have a service history, have a good look at the certs to verify that the mileage corresponds to what the seller is saying. If the seller has neither, you're probably better off leaving it alone and looking for something better.
The fact that a lady owned it shouldn't result in a car that has less mileage than any other car. (although, have a good look at the bumpers for scuffs and car-park damage - and I'm not trying to be sexist)

-dmo7-

Captain Slow IRL wrote: »

The fact that a lady owned it shouldn't result in a car that has less mileage than any other car. (although, have a good look at the bumpers for scuffs and car-park damage - and I'm not trying to be sexist)

Yeah the bumpers and exterior were ok apart from one dink in the back. Nothing major though. Mileage is worrying me but i'm going to try and see if my mechanic can have a look at it monday, he should be able to tell the mileage on it by looking at it right?

Captain Slow IRL

The steering wheel and gear knob are the most indicative areas to check - the leather finish on the knob and wheel can wear down to a point where it's peeling off and revealing a shiny plastic underneath - the leather itself can get shiny with age, but you want to look for bald patches where it has worn off altogether. This would indicate a car that has done around the 100k mark - it's not totally fool-proof but is a good indication.

Best of luck!

Esel

Look at the amount of wear on the pedals too.

-dmo7-

Captain Slow IRL wrote: »

Best of luck!

Cool thank's lad,Only had a quick look at it the last time should have a good look tommorow if i've time. Fingers crossed!