How hard is it to live with a middle aged Bavarian?

maidhc

Aside from their penchant for Yodeling and wearing funny dress I understand the Bavarians make a well known motor car. These cars are know for being good to drive, having RWD mostly and a hoffmeister kink on the rear side window.

It seems however these cars can be hard to keep going into their middle age and beyond. Horror stories of everything from swirl flaps to Nikasil engines to costly suspension bits abound. So honesty, how bad are they? I am just curious,I have never owned a BMW, but would fancy something with an M badge (m3,m5, z4m of 7+ years maybe) at some point in the next few years.

James Bond Junior

maidhc wrote: »

Aside from their penchant for Yodeling and wearing funny dress I understand the Bavarians make a well known motor car. These cars are know for being good to drive, having RWD mostly and a hoffmeister kink on the rear side window.

It seems however these cars can be hard to keep going into their middle age and beyond. Horror stories of everything from swirl flaps to Nikasil engines to costly suspension bits abound. So honesty, how bad are they? I am just curious,I have never owned a BMW, but would fancy something with an M badge (m3,m5, z4m of 7+ years maybe) at some point in the next few years.

I've had a few over the years and I've never seen them being any more unreliable than any other marque. Go for one, you won't regret it. Just make sure it's a petrol. My 18 year old bmw is in better nick and holding up better than my 06 volvo. They make a good car them germans.

Eric Cartman

it is what it is. Any old car is going to give problems. A 90s toyota may 'seem' more reliable but if you look at them they are a lot more simple. Parts really don't cost much more than cars of a similar age, luckily for bmw/mercedes they have a huge enthusiasts community who document repairs for everything.

if you're talking an M car, those are a special performance beast though, cars like that are always going to cost more to keep than the average family saloon (new or old) , but overall reliability is good and the smile those cars put on your face is priceless.

Agricola

Have had a few e36s and the daily is an e46. No horror stories to tell. It's like any car, if you buy a dog to start with, it might just bite you at some point. If you buy something decent and keep up the maintenance, theres a good chance you'll have no trouble. You mentioned swirl flaps.... I had them removed a couple of weeks after buying mine. Wouldn't have known about that weakness but for a small bit of research done online before I took the plunge. So if you know the weak points beforehand, it's half the battle. And as Eric said, owing to the huge fanbase, theres tonnes of info out there about every conceivable problem and very detailed fixes.
IMO, a nice one is a great, solid car. Reliable and fun.

Voodoomelon

I think an element of DIY is key to any German car outside of warranty. If you're inclined to throw a strop every time something goes wrong and only deal with garages for repairs, you'll likely get quite frustrated with them. If you accept that they need constant maintenance and things here and there are going to go wrong, and you have a willingness to learn the basics in regards servicing and repairs, the performance/comfort/style/handling combination is hard to beat across the BMW range.

livingthedream

Voodoomelon wrote: »

I think an element of DIY is key to any German car outside of warranty. If you're inclined to throw a strop every time something goes wrong and only deal with garages for repairs, you'll likely get quite frustrated with them. If you accept that they need constant maintenance and things here and there are going to go wrong, and you have a willingness to learn the basics in regards servicing and repairs, the performance/comfort/style/handling combination is hard to beat across the BMW range.

+1

I've had a few beemers including a Nikasil era E39 which had no issues apart from wear and tear. In fact that car was super solid and probably still is!

I guess the same goes for buying any car, take your time with your initial purchase and find one that has been well looked after by previous owners and then take over. Sort issues as they go wrong.

There are plenty of helpful forums out there and youtube videos. You can get the step by step instructions for every repair as per BMW (TIS CD's) online. You can get full exploded parts diagrams on realoem.org and you can get full diagnostic software for 30-40 quid online too..

As Voodoomelon says though, it would be best to be a little handy with the spanners and willing/interested to learn a bit more if you want to keep the costs down. If you are doing things like regular oil services etc yourself and are willing to change the odd suspension arm every so often then you can keep the costs to a minimum.


~LTD.

kdevitt

Generally they're pretty reliable from my experience, petrol ones anyway. Have my E36 about 18 years now and the most significant issues were a hole in the radiator, and only recently a camshaft sensor went. Likewise had an E46 M3 for 8 years or so and it had no major issues at all - two coilpacks went (€30 or so new), an alternator, and a sticky brake calliper.

My brother has a 123d and it's spent quite a bit of time in the garage having issues resolved though.

bmstuff

Don't listen to hose guys they know nothing about BMW, get a Honda























....

Just messing :D

A lot of aftermarket parts are available for those e38, e39, e46...which make it easier on the wallet (Remember : Break My Wallet )

So many of those parts are made by Valeo, Bosch, Lucas, Febi, ZF etc, which more or less are all the BMW parts suppliers who supplied BMW in the first place and they usually cost 50% cheaper from the local dealer for exactly the same price.

Some brands do supply suspension parts for e39, e46 etc with lifetime warranty too at a good price.

Only parts I recommend buying the dealers are engine sensors such as camshaft/crankshaft ones etc.

Also a lot of trim parts prices from the dealer have had their retail prices increased 3/4 times since the last 2 years. Example : e39 front M Tech bumper splash guards. Used to be 50 and 70 respectively. Now selling for over 250 euros each. Ouch :mad:

Now waiting a few years to get a good e46 M3, e39 M5, might not be wise.

Those were going for 7000-9000 euros back in 2009, try to find a good one these days in original condition and low mileage for less than 15k will be a mission. They are only going up in value.

Quiet a few M5, M3 came up for sale in the past few years, but several of them had accident history.

Voodoomelon

bmstuff wrote: »

Also a lot of trim parts prices from the dealer have had their retail prices increased 3/4 times since the last 2 years. Example : e39 front M Tech bumper splash guards. Used to be 50 and 70 respectively. Now selling for over 250 euros each. Ouch :mad:

Interesting, I priced black 1 inch black plastic trim for my E38 a few months back, for all the way round, over €700!