BMW 320 Coupe - Petrol or Diesel?

[Ocean Breeze]

I would really like to buy a 320 Coupe in the spring, 2010 onwards. However I am worried about fuel consumption.

I don't like diesel, so petrol is my preferred choice and it would most likely be a 2.0 engine.

I commute 34 miles per day (round trip) to the train station and back on lanes/country roads (40-60mph). At the moment I drive a 1.2 Clio 2005, so this would be a huge difference to what I am used to. I am probably spending £25-30 per week on petrol (Rarely drive at weekend). I seem to average 42-43mpg.

Am I crazy to consider this car? especially petrol. Would diesel be more sensible?

Do the M Sport versions consume more fuel?

This will be my first 'nice' car. I have only been looking at BMW, Audi, Mercedes. Should I consider other cars. My budget is £10-15k

Thanks

 

[iaind]

m sport is just a trim - blingy wheels and lots of M Badges

For that few miles, the 320i wouldn't cost you much more than you're currently spending. Diesel wouldn't save you enough to be worth the noise and more potential for expensive repairs

 

[Jono8]

Assuming you do 5 days a week with an average amount of holiday time that is only less than 8000 miles commuting so there isnt any real reason to get the diesel if you don't want to ( unless you do huge amounts of recreational miles as well). You would probably only save a couple of hundred on fuel a year.

M sport is a trim level so no they won;t consume more fuel.

 

[Dis86]

It's a 2l 4 cylinder. It's not gonna drink Kuwait dry. You're looking at figures in the high 30s to low 40s for consumption.

Also for your budget I wouldn't buy a 10 plate onwards. You're wasting money. Buy older it's exactly the same car and spec just cheaper. I think the coupe got it's lci in mid 2008 so look for 58s and newer

 

[Ocean Breeze]

That's a relief. People at work have been telling me it's going to drink!

I do expect it to consume more fuel than the Clio, but as long as I am not spending vastly more money each week on petrol, I think I am going to go for it. Won't be gunning it anyway.

 

[SDK^]

People at work chatter is always fun to listen to. For some people a 320d/Golf GTD/S Line Diesel is the fastest thing on the road

Also, my experience of people not into motoring is they have a perception that M-Sport/S Line/AMG line cars improve performance over the lower SE versions.

 

[Dis86]

Yeah, they're telling you porkies. I used to have a 1.2 Clio and got 46mpg ten years ago. I now have a BMW 328i and do pretty much the same commute.i now get 33mpg in significantly more traffic.

 

[Kenai]

That's a relief. People at work have been telling me it's going to drink!

I do expect it to consume more fuel than the Clio, but as long as I am not spending vastly more money each week on petrol, I think I am going to go for it. Won't be gunning it anyway.

The problem with 'people at work' is that by and large they know nothing about cars and form all their opinions on 90s stereotypes.

As a result you'll be told that 2.0 engines are huge, BMW are thirsty, etc. etc.

Then you get the 'my car is best' crew, whose 2.0 TDI Audi A4 seems to get dragged raced at every dual carriageway and is faster than even Audis own RS4.

 

[Jono8]

TDI is super car yo.

 

[Duke]

The problem with 'people at work' is that by and large they know nothing about cars and form all their opinions on 90s stereotypes.

As a result you'll be told that 2.0 engines are huge, BMW are thirsty, etc. etc.

Then you get the 'my car is best' crew, whose 2.0 TDI Audi A4 seems to get dragged raced at every dual carriageway and is faster than even Audis own RS4.

Guy I used to work with bought an A3 TDI S-Line and wouldn't stop going on about it

 

[[TW]Fox]

The 2 litre diesel has a significant issue with the timing chain's failing. The 2 litre petrol does not.

Frankly if you are that scared about the fuel consumption of a small capacity 4 cylinder engine then why are you buying a used BMW?

I'm not sure I'd want to spend up to £15k on one these. They are old cars inside and out, the E90 generation first came out 11 years ago. You'll find more modern and just as 'nice' cars available from less 'premium' manufacturers at this money. The interior of the E92 is nothing to write home about these days.

£7-8k for example buys an E92 325i with the reliable 6 cylinder 2.5 litre engine. It'll use a little more fuel, but its half the price and fundamentally exactly the same car as the 2010-2012 ones you are looking at. Buy a nice one and it's basically the same, the only key difference is the navigation system is better in the newer ones but you can retrofit it anyway. If you find a sub 60k mile car you can even buy a BMW warranty for it.

 

[ADT]

"M" Sport is just a trim level and nothing else. For that yearly mileage I would just buy a 325 petrol as you would get more toys as standard.

 

[SDK^]

^^ The 325 doesn't come with any more spec over 320. It's just a more powerful engine.

 

[nas]

I've owned a 320i m sport. It's fast enough for day to day use and I found it pretty good on petrol. Mine was also efficient dynamics so had start/stop etc.

If you do opt for one then ensure you get one with spec. Mine was pretty basic bar the m sport kit. I stress the importance of spec taking priority over the trim when browsing.

 

[Dav4]

How can u be worried about mpg'z when your spending 10-15k on a car it's not exactly an M3 it's only a 2.0 which will get good mpg and less hassle than the diesel.
Ignore the idiots you work with! Narrow minded people are the reason 99.9% of German whips on the road are diesel.They are all just sheep that follow each other.

 

[iaind]

I'm with Fox and others on this. The refinement and sound of the 6 cylinder 325i will outweigh the extra few mpgs of the 4 pot by a mile. You're doing such low mileage that it makes very little difference, and spending a lot less on an older one makes a lot more sense too.

My 2.5 6 cylinder car only does about 28mpg and l do a few more miles than you, but the BMW engine will do quite a bit better. I'm not sure I can go back to a 4 cylinder unless I need to again

 

[[TW]Fox]

^^ The 325 doesn't come with any more spec over 320. It's just a more powerful engine.

Actually no, this isn't true. There are specification differences between SE 4 cylinder and SE 6 cylinder.

The 6 cylinder car adds the following over the 4 cylinder car:

Cruise Control
Part electric seats
Rain sensing wipers

I don't think it helps the OP if you start guessing and pretending its fact

 

[ADT]

Actually no, this isn't true. There are specification differences between SE 4 cylinder and SE 6 cylinder.

The 6 cylinder car adds the following over the 4 cylinder car:

Cruise Control
Part electric seats
Rain sensing wipers

I don't think it helps the OP if you start guessing and pretending its fact

That's what I found when I was looking for e92's but my budget could only stretch to an SE. Everyone was saying get the 320i better mpgz etc when I was looking for a 325i. I believe auto lights were also standard in the 6pot? (not sure)

Anyways I ignored everyone so I ended up with a 330ci cab sport.

 

[SDK^]

Actually no, this isn't true. There are specification differences between SE 4 cylinder and SE 6 cylinder.

The 6 cylinder car adds the following over the 4 cylinder car:

Cruise Control
Part electric seats
Rain sensing wipers

I don't think it helps the OP if you start guessing and pretending its fact

What about the M Sport versions which he is looking to buy

 

[[TW]Fox]

What about the M Sport versions which he is looking to buy

Yup, those too.

I'd imagine you've furiously googled and found the brochure by now. It's a bit misleading at the top at first, go down further and look at the equipment list by model. You'll notice it quite clearly shows, say, that a rain sensor is not fitted as standard to a 320i M Sport.

This is typical BMW, there is always a spec improvement by changing cylinder count. Sometimes it's trivial stuff, other times it's quite fundamental. On a 5 Series you get a crap climate control system with a 4 pot, for example.