[TW]Fox;25472495 said:
The engine is exactly the same size as that in the 320i. They are both 2 litre engines.
Aye, which is why I didn't have any issues with considering this. In fact, one we're looking at hopefully at the weekend is a a 320 M Sport. Hopefully it isn't a duff example.
Odd way to work it. Does forced induction affect it at all?
Pre-08 - No, which is the only saving grace, and one of the main reasons it's almost feasible to take the Evo over (when it's time). There is no differentiation between a frugal N/A 2.0 diesel engine, and in the case of the Evo, a 2.0 with a reasonably large turbo on it running up to 400bhp in standard form.
Manufactured after 2008, an Evo IX costs 2350 a year to tax for essentially the same car. Pre 2008, a VII or VIII costs 710 euro a year to tax.
I've spouted the comparison before, but I pay three times more to tax my MX5 in Ireland than I do to tax the Evo in the UK.
Even when it's registered over here, the Evo will *only* cost 33 euro more to tax than the MX5.
I had no idea car tax was so steep in Ireland.
You do now
It's the reason barely anyone has performance cars over here. You literally have to sell your soul to own one.
Post 2008, it's CO2 based hence everyone buys diesels now even though they're totally unsuitable for a lot of Irish driving profiles. People are starting to cop onto the fact that modern diesels are so complicated and there is a push back into petrol in some circles.
Agreed. Dublin for instance has chronically awful city traffic. And everyone owns a diesel, mainly due to the fuel economy, and the fact that Diesel is still 5 cent a litre cheaper over here than Petrol. Wondering how long it will take for the government to cop on like the UK government did.
The biggest problem is that you have all these fancy diesel engines with their fancy high pressure injection systems and variable geometry turbochargers, but I've found car ownership here to be considerably less diligent than in the UK. People in general don't tend to look after their cars as well, and a full dealer service history is a rarity!
Fox, the way people view cars in Ireland is a bit different, generally any e90 would be seen as a prestigious car due to the badge.
There's an element of that - not sure how much it is due to the rather picky nature of car enthusiasts - "Ugh it's not even a LCI - grim"
Generally, and certainly in this instance. It's the brand, and not the model or age that matters.
Gayjin, I'm going to assume the budget is somewhere around €8k if you're saying manual 318i's are the main focus? The main problem you'll have is finding one with FSH & decent spec. I had a look on donedeal and pretty much every 318i or 320i looks dodgy or has brutal spec
If you can persuade him to pay an extra €1/day in road tax, the 2.5's are great value:
http://cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/bmw-for-sale/5963045 - seems suspiciously cheap though!
http://cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/06-bmw-325i-auto-leather-6995/5599363
If this has FSH, it looks like a great deal:
http://cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/bmw-3-series-se-auto-limited-edition/6058833
You are correct in your assumption. I'm slightly keen to stay away from from 6 cyl options due to the higher tax, servicing and duty of care. Similarly I would like to avoid automatic transmissions for the potential for issues. Both him and his brother have faced issues with automatic transmissions in the past and he needs his car to get to work.
This chap is not going to spend a great deal of money (through choice or otherwise) on this car after it is bought. It will probably be serviced cheaply, and wanted to be run for as cheap as possible.
Again, far away from how I run my cars, but it's not my decision!
Personally I would have a nice facelift E46, but as much as I've tried, I don't think it's on the table currently.
![[TW]Fox](/data/man-of-honor/2009.png){kind=avatar}
