BMW and M Power Owners

Been nosing around at 2nd hand BMWs as it might soon be time to replace the somewhat impractical S2000 with something with 4 seats and a bit more luggage space. I have a bonkers quick motorbike these days for going away and having fun on and the S2000 only gets used for shopping trips or going somewhere I don't want to tip up in motorcycle PPE. As you can imagine, the S2000 is not a great shopping car nor all that useful when you have more than 1 other person to ferry about.

As much as I would hate to see it go it sits unused for most of the time. I'm relatively open to ideas in the BMW market and had initially considered getting something second hand, and not necessarily BMW. However, I have just learnt I qualify for significant discounts on brand new BMW/Mini orders (To the tune of 15%)

All in all I have a few requirements:

4 doors/5 seats minimum
HID lighting at minimum, LED preferable
Petrol is preferable but Diesel is not ruled out
X-Drive would be nice but not a must have

I drive 3 Series Touring X-Drive Diesels at work and they are relatively nice places to be. Step Father has a 320D M-Sport also and it's quite plush.

I understand as far as options go some certainly have better ongoing residual value than others. Pros of a new build is 15% straight off the sticker price, exact spec desired, potential for a part-ex of my current car, VAT removed and finance options if I desired them. Cons are obviously taking depreciation on and more money laid out. It's obviously a circumstantial question, but would you buy new over second hand with a 15% saving incentive? Or would you go for the second hand buy? I know it's a little Apples to Oranges comparison but what is the nearly new model depreciation like at present?
 
15% is not a significant discount on a new BMW - it is actually less than the level of discount you should be expecting to get anyway, either through negotiation or through a broker. Therefore this offer you have is worth nothing really on a 3 Series, a car on which very big discounts are already available and already factored into used residuals.

I would avoid Xdrive unless you really need it - it's a fairly pointless addition. I had a 420d XDrive for a bit once which I put about 500 miles on and all XDrive did was make the car slower and more thirsty.
 
[TW]Fox;29562613 said:
15% is not a significant discount on a new BMW - it is actually less than the level of discount you should be expecting to get anyway, either through negotiation or through a broker. Therefore this offer you have is worth nothing really on a 3 Series, a car on which very big discounts are already available and already factored into used residuals.

I would avoid Xdrive unless you really need it - it's a fairly pointless addition. I had a 420d XDrive for a bit once which I put about 500 miles on and all XDrive did was make the car slower and more thirsty.
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Fair point about X-Drive.

I'm yet to investigate what I can get a new order model down at price wise compared to other avenues but I am led to believe it is in the region of 15%. Although if that's less than what anyone might expect via another avenue then it certainly is not at all attractive as an option. It's the UK Forces programme so I am unsure how that compares to other available discounts.
 
The UK forces programme is done through Park Lane BMW IIRC - the only BMW UK owned dealership.

Through a broker you can order a new 340i M Sport with 20% off..
 
Yep, I got near 20% off my 530d without any special program or anything. So the 15% isn't that special.

Just go have a look at a couple, price them up, and make your choice. While I would prefer a 340i personally, if it's gonna sit around most of the time, and you're happy getting your speed from your bike, I'd probably be looking at a second hand motor, with a cheaper engine choice.
 
A question for Fox, do you know for certain if the N53 engine is problematic. I've been reading conflicting information across forums about the reliability level of them. I'd assume they were less problematic than the N54 and similar age diesel engines?
 
Great engine. Nice power delivery, smooth and can achieve 50mpg on a run.

Mine is a 59 plate with 70k on the clock and i have had to chnage 3 injectors and the output shaft seal (seal obviously not engine related)
 
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panthro said:
A question for Fox, do you know for certain if the N53 engine is problematic. I've been reading conflicting information across forums about the reliability level of them. I'd assume they were less problematic than the N54 and similar age diesel engines?
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There are issues with the N53. The N53 is a direct injection engine with particularly fussy injection system (Which is responsible for it's often remarkable fuel efficiency). Therefore there are issues with the injectors and high pressure fuel delivery system.

My Dad had the dubious honour of owning one of the very first N53's to come out of warranty and had great fun with injector issues about 6 years ago on a 525i. It was a big issue at that time as nobody outside the dealer network knew what to do with them - this situation has probably changed now but it remains a foible of the engine that isn't a problem with the conventional N52 it replaced.

Ironically the most reliable engine in the post 2008 E9x's is the 3 litre diesel!
 
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[TW]Fox;29564045 said:
Ironically the most reliable engine in the post 2008 E9x's is the 3 litre diesel!
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My friend has a 3 series, how can one tell if its either of these?

330d 2005–2008 M57TU2D30 170 kW (228 hp) 500 N·m (369 lb·ft) 6.7

330d 2008–2012 N57D30O0 180 kW (241 hp) 520 N·m (384 lb·ft) 6.1

and should he be worried about the reliability if he has the pre 08 engine?

A mutual friends daughter just had her 1 series 123D need £3kish worth of work after the chain went so now he is all paranoid.
 
hurfdurf said:
My friend has a 3 series, how can one tell if its either of these?

330d 2005–2008 M57TU2D30 170 kW (228 hp) 500 N·m (369 lb·ft) 6.7

330d 2008–2012 N57D30O0 180 kW (241 hp) 520 N·m (384 lb·ft) 6.1

and should he be worried about the reliability if he has the pre 08 engine?

A mutual friends daughter just had her 1 series 123D need £3kish worth of work after the chain went so now he is all paranoid.
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You could run the reg through the DVLA tax checking tool (https://www.vehicleenquiry.service.gov.uk/) and see when the vehicle was put on the road.
 
hurfdurf said:
My friend has a 3 series, how can one tell if its either of these?

330d 2005–2008 M57TU2D30 170 kW (228 hp) 500 N·m (369 lb·ft) 6.7

330d 2008–2012 N57D30O0 180 kW (241 hp) 520 N·m (384 lb·ft) 6.1
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Easy - all facelift cars are N57, all pre facelift cars are M57. Facelift cars were manufactured from September 2008 onwards.

It's a bit more tricky if it's a Coupe or a Cab, they got the N57 at the same time as the saloon facelift but you'd need to know the build date - if it has Navigation, if it's got the newer CIC with the hard drive it's an N57 engined car.

and should he be worried about the reliability if he has the pre 08 engine?

A mutual friends daughter just had her 1 series 123D need £3kish worth of work after the chain went so now he is all paranoid.
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The 3 litre is not affected by this problem.
 
You can also put the reg into the BMW warranty website, it will then give you the VIN code and engine number (providing it doesn't have a BMW warranty on it already).
 
I keep forgetting the newer models are far prettier though with the bigger wheels and such forth (someone posted a lovely pearl white one on here somewhere), but I like the fact that black one looks more modern for the mods applied to it and more agressive, in my personal opinion, but I have always had boyo cars so it's par for the course :cool: Don't worry though, I am quite normal and not at all chav :D
 
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