BMW e92 325i buyers guide

selectamatic

I'm toying with the idea of going to look at a n52b25 engined e92. Specifically this one https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/bmw-325i-coupe/19874720

My own opinion:

Pros:
It's at the right end of the price range and looks pretty clean
The ad seems pretty genuine
It's a manual (many will see this as a negative)
It appears to be well spec'd
The black interior and silver exterior combo is low maintenance yet still looks well.

Cons:
It's an se (not the end of the world in the case of an e92 imo)
silver limits its appeal and resale
Tax is on the high side (still manageable)
fuel consumption


What I'd be wary of: oil consumption, coil issues, injector issues (I believe these aren't that common on the 2.5's), vanos problems, rust since it's a uk import and the potential for expensive electrical issues.


Anything else of note to look out for?

Any and all opinions welcome particularly from anyone with real world experience of such cars.

neglectarino

I had an 06 525i and other weak points at similar mileage to the car you’re looking at were ....

leaking rocker cover gasket
it went through 3 radiators in 6years
high oil consumption
aircon stopped working
Reverse gear in auto box became ‘clunky’
At 8 year mark, lots of engine seals needed replacing

Having said all of this, I loved the car and the NA engine power progression and sound.

The car you found looks good value to me if it’s clean

MarkN

I picked up an SE 325i for a runaround a few weeks ago, 200,000kms on it and the engine is still amazingly smooth. Injectors seemed to be more of an issue on the 335.

Main downside apart from the tax is fuel economy, €30 barely sees 170kms.

selectamatic

MarkN wrote: »

I picked up an SE 325i for a runaround a few weeks ago, 200,000kms on it and the engine is still amazingly smooth. Injectors seemed to be more of an issue on the 335.

Main downside apart from the tax is fuel economy, €30 barely sees 170kms.

The n53b30 engines in the 3.0 325's give a bit of bother with injectors too. But I believe there's a few indy crowds around now that can sort them handy enough.

The fuel economy is a bit of a downer alright.

BabyEater

I have an 07 don’t find fuel economy too bad €30 would get me 230km.

Leonard Hofstadter

No problems with N52 injectors. Haven't heard anything bad about N52s other than the usual petrol BMW oil leaks around the rocker cover gasket, oil filter housing gasket, and some of them can burn a bit of oil. They sometimes make a ticking sound when cold, but it's just the tappets.

They solved it with the N52N engines, but we never got them because they switched to the direct injection N53 engines here (these are the ones that have the reputation for injector problems).

As for manual vs auto, no question as far as I'm concerned - manual every time. Older generation car I know, but I test drove E46s with both gearboxes and the auto saps so much power and it's nowhere near as involving as the manual.

I've had my 325 for two years now and I honestly can't understand why people don't like manual BMWs - sure they can be a bit hard to pull away smoothly initially, but they shift so sweetly and the box is so slick. Removing the clutch delay valve is the making of them, they pull away like a normal car once this is done and the notchiness between first and second disappears for good measure.

My 325 does 32-33 actual mpg on a motorway, I'd expect an E92 to at least 35 because they have a six speed box. If you want to have fun with them you'll find they'll start to use a good bit, and they're not great around town, either - you'll be lucky to get more than 15-16 mpg on an urban commute but if you were to drive around a city when there's little to no traffic it will do low to mid 20s mpg no bother.

MarkN

I did Ballymount to Dublin port in two hours traffic last week and I could see the needle moving.

That’s good to know about the tappets, mine does have a tick when cold and when I rev the engine the ticking speeds up a little. Same thing you reckon?

Theboinkmaster

I wouldn't buy an e92 non msport personally...

Leonard Hofstadter

MarkN wrote: »

I did Ballymount to Dublin port in two hours traffic last week and I could see the needle moving.

That’s good to know about the tappets, mine does have a tick when cold and when I rev the engine the ticking speeds up a little. Same thing you reckon?

I always thought this problem only happened when cold to be honest, I wouldn't say I know a whole pile about the N52 engines, though. Google gives me conflicting reports as to whether it just happens when cold, or whether it can happen all the time.

With the older straight six engines it's common for them to make the ticking noise when cold at higher mileage (especially if the car hasn't been started in over 24 hours), but it goes after a few seconds.

selectamatic

Theboinkmaster wrote: »

I wouldn't buy an e92 non msport personally...

I dunno really I certainly feel the non msport e90's are pretty uninspiring but with an e92 its not really as big an issue imo.

Both the e92 se and msports look well. Obviously the msports look better but I really don't think its a big enough difference to warrant the general 2k (at least) extra on asking price.

Then you have the fact you'd most likely have to go to the uk to get a e92 325i msport for a reasonable price. The se ones start to get more appealing when you consider all, especially if you get a well spec'd one.

bazz26

The E92 is a good looking car, an SE in the right colour and spec is still an attractive proposition. The 19" alloys on the M Sport are notorious for cracking, those the stiff M Sport suspension and run flat tyres make the ride very crashy.

Twenty Grand

Leonard Hofstadter wrote: »

I always thought this problem only happened when cold to be honest, I wouldn't say I know a whole pile about the N52 engines, though. Google gives me conflicting reports as to whether it just happens when cold, or whether it can happen all the time.

With the older straight six engines it's common for them to make the ticking noise when cold at higher mileage (especially if the car hasn't been started in over 24 hours), but it goes after a few seconds.

Mine has it.

It's worse now with the colder weather it seems, tho disappears when the engine gets up to temp. It's fixable, but more money than it's worth IMO.

MetzgerMeister

With the SE you can get "Aero" kits which look very well. My E92 335i was an SE albeit with M Sport suspension but it had this front lip stuck on which took the SE look off the front. That an a boot lip spoiler changes it up a lot.

Idbatterim

if purchasing the one you linked to OP, I would at least throw an m sport front bumper onto her...

Theboinkmaster

MetzgerMeister wrote: »

With the SE you can get "Aero" kits which look very well. My E92 335i was an SE albeit with M Sport suspension but it had this front lip stuck on which took the SE look off the front. That an a boot lip spoiler changes it up a lot.
]

lovely looking, that makes e a big difference

selectamatic

Idbatterim wrote: »

if purchasing the one you linked to OP, I would at least throw an m sport front bumper onto her...

A lip similar to the ones above would be the plan there's supposedly even decent ones on ebay going by some of the bmw forums. I'd say an msport front bumper might be a bit low and look out of place on its own.