BMW and M Power Owners

What kind of driving? Motorway only and on a steady cruise you'll be 50mpg ish on the early 120d, little better on the newer engine. Can't see why 40mpg wouldn't be achievable on a similar run in the petrol car.

Town or mixed driving you'll see a similar difference between the cars, the more town type driving you put into the mix, particularly when the car is cold the more the average economy will drop by.

I've only ever really run the 118/120d on fairly lengthy motorway drives but a friends 116d will return mid 30's to low 40's with a fairly high mix of town driving (say 2/3 urban).
 
xs2man said:
Check here for real world consumptions : http://www.fuelly.com/car/bmw
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Thanks a-lot, very helpful. :)
rodenal said:
What kind of driving? Motorway only and on a steady cruise you'll be 50mpg ish on the early 120d, little better on the newer engine. Can't see why 40mpg wouldn't be achievable on a similar run in the petrol car.

Town or mixed driving you'll see a similar difference between the cars, the more town type driving you put into the mix, particularly when the car is cold the more the average economy will drop by.

I've only ever really run the 118/120d on fairly lengthy motorway drives but a friends 116d will return mid 30's to low 40's with a fairly high mix of town driving (say 2/3 urban).
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That isn't particularly impressive at all (compared to BMW's figures). :( Very torn because I would love an E87 M-Sport but unfortunately with my current job, fuel economy still matters somewhat.

I'd say my driving is 70% urban 30% rural or motorway, driving style is 'spirited' but not harsh and aggressive.

I dont see why a modern, reasonably torquey, 2.0 petrol with a 6 gear box should only get 40MPG cruising on the motorway. :(
 
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What were you realistically expecting? I'm no diesel fan but a small hatch with circa 160bhp that will do 50mpg isn't exactly poor?

My modern, not at all torquey 2.0 petrol with a 6 speed box will barely break 34mpg on the motorway - The 120i only has about 30bhp less but will be more economical partly due to its gearing
 
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rodenal said:
What were you realistically expecting? I'm no diesel fan but a small hatch with circa 170bhp that will do 50mpg isn't exactly poor?
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Well BMW say 61MPG so 55 would have been nice I suppose, and 45 from the petrol.

Dads old (2001) A6 Avant 1.9TDI gets between 55 and 60 (closer to 55) on a long motorway haul and that thing is a tank with a 5 gear box. At least, thats what he tells me... :rolleyes:

I suppose it isnt bad really, thinking about it. Sorry. Numbers seem so much smaller when you were expecting higher, until you think about it. :)

Current motor gets mid to high 30's around town and mid 40's on the motorway. Just don't ask me what it is. :p
 
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It may well do close to 45mpg (though I sort of doubt it) and the diesel may well do 55! Unless you're doing lots and lots of miles anything in between the two might do figures for each is an irrelevance surely?
 
rodenal said:
It may well do close to 45mpg (though I sort of doubt it), unless you're doing lots and lots of miles anything in between those two figures is an irrelevance surely?
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You have a fair point. :)

I only cover about 8000 - 9000 miles a year.
 
Up to you but to be perfectly honest I can think of much more entertaining places to put my cash than a 4 pot 1 series that will likely have similar insurance costs. The interior quality is pretty poor, as is rear space and the 4 cylinder petrols tend to be fairly terribly specced too
 
If you're doing 70% urban driving, then you will save little by opting for the diesel. Diesels are great on the open road, but in the city, they are only marginally better than petrols to be fair. And only doing 8-9k per year isn't a figure you need to overly worry about fuel consumption anyway.

Having said all that, my money would go on a 123d. If they are within budget.
 
rodenal said:
Up to you but to be perfectly honest I can think of much more entertaining places to put my cash than a 4 pot 1 series that will likely have similar insurance costs. The interior quality is pretty poor, as is rear space and the 4 cylinder petrols tend to be fairly terribly specced too
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I thought the interior quality of the one I sat in was very nice in all honesty, but then again I am going from a poverty spec VW in which everything is made out of cheap plastic.

As for rear space, there is more than I have now by far, and after this damn car air con and electric windows will be enough to keep me happy, nevertheless, all has been taken on board. :) Where would you put your money?

I was drawn to the front engine rear drive in a small package config. Plus I have a soft spot for BMW's in general. I have also been looking at A3 8P sportbacks and a few other alternatives but I cant stop being drawn back to the 1 series' again. I have plenty of time to think before it is time to put my money where my mouth is.

Budget probably wouldn't allow for a 123d sadly. :(
 
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It is likely to be somewhere in the region of £5K, which can get me a half decent early 118 or 120, but I can't get a 123 or 130 which isn't going to explode for that. Half decent ones seem to command another £2K :p

The power will seem more than plentiful to me for the time being. I'll be going from 53HP ;)
 
Spend a bit less (£3-4k), buy an Mx-5 or Mr2 roadster, alternatively buy a mk3 mx-5 though i'm not certain on how good one would be for the budget.

You'll get a better mazda 3 2 litre for the money, Civic 1.8 might be an option, I've seen early TFSI A3's for the money though I think it'd be an absolute dog, might sneak a reasonable octavia VRS, double check insurance and spend £4k on a 330ci then keep money to do things to it, etc etc...
 
I've looked into most of those funnily enough, (apart from the MX-5 and MR2 but they're not my thing) and none of them really made *want* them.

The insurance on a 330ci would sadly be astronomical, and i'm not sure I'd want to step out of a 53HP car into a 330ci :p

Looked at some TFSI A3's, most which are in budget are high mileage or cat C/D, any that arent seem a bit underpriced and I'm a bit wary of them. Looked at the 2.0 FSI models though, they seem decent.

I tried my hardest to like the Octavia VRS but I just cant do it, I absolutely hate how it looks and I'd want to be happy with what I see when I walk up to my car.

Will investigate further. Thanks :)
 
The non turbo engine is crap, avoid.

Have you actually checked the insurance on things like a 330? (or 325 etc etc) You might be surprised at how little it is when you have a couple of years no claims. I insured an MR2 turbo when I was under 25 and had a couple of years no claims for about £600 or something equally cheap

Can you get the little 1.8t gti polos for £5k? They're pretty decent if insurance is doable
 
rodenal said:
The non turbo engine is crap, avoid.

Have you actually checked the insurance on things like a 330? (or 325 etc etc) You might be surprised at how little it is when you have a couple of years no claims. I insured an MR2 turbo when I was under 25 and had a couple of years no claims for about £600 or something equally cheap

Can you get the little 1.8t gti polos for £5k? They're pretty decent if insurance is doable
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Oooh, yes you can! Thanks! *gives unwanted kiss*

Will check the insurance on the 3's, but I didn't want a car that big in honesty. A3 sportback/1 series was about my size limit.
 
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[TW]Fox;26326961 said:
lol@3 series coupe being 'big' :p
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Fox, I'd be coming from a Polo, my first and only car. To me a 1 series looks big! :p

Baby steps, baby steps.
 
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Tbh a 3 series is hardly any bigger than a focus sized car - if anything it's slightly smaller feeling inside.

The 1 series feels small for its class (inside)
 
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