Used BMW Buying Advice

[SwedishChef]

I'm interested in buying a used BMW 3 series for around £15k. I need a reliable, economical, nice looking, interesting to drive, family friendly (ish) car. Doesn't need to compete in the traffic light grand prix but needs to be able to overtake caravans with ease and cruise nicely on long motorway drives. I do 20k a year mostly motorway driving.

My current perfect spec would seem to be:

320D M Sport (manual)
4 door saloon
Between 1 - 3 years old
No more than 35k miles. Must have been well looked after.
Colour: grey (preferably), black or maybe silver.
Interior: Cloth seats, probably not leather. Sat Nav would be superb, but not essential.

I would expect to keep the car for quite a while rather than expect to change it in two/three years time.

There's no rush - I can wait a few months for the right deal. I'm keen on the 320D M Sport because it looks smart, it has a firmer ride than the SE, the power seems to be at the right level, the fuel economy seems great, and everyone raves about how the 3 Series drives.

I've sat in the showroom model which is lovely but way over budget - and for the standard price very few toys are included. I'm not keen on paying that first year depreciation anyway. I've looked at BMW Approved Used cars but they still seem pricey - although I appreciate they come with better peace of mind. I have also looked around the internet but haven't found much of interest - 'good' used BMWs seem to be in short supply! So this is where I need your help on where best to look, what is a good age/mileage to look for and still have high reliability, and anything else. Feel free to suggest other models too. I've never owned a BMW so don't have the inside knowledge so any advice is potentially helpful!

Thanks.

 

[SwedishChef]

Thanks [TW]Fox for the reality check - it's exactly the sort of advice I needed. Hmmm.. these choices are difficult:

a) Compromise on mileage - perhaps a 60k miler? - not so keen on that. I know BMWs are well built and the engines are good but other things still wear. However, I could be imagining problems that don't exist until much higher mileages?

b) Compromise on spec - Maybe an SE? - again, not so keen just because I would probably regret not getting the M sport spec eventually. I enjoy driving and want something reasonably involving. However, if I'm doing the SE a dis-service then please tell me. I should point out that I haven't driven an SE yet.

c) Get more money - This is possible. The budget could be increased to £20k but that would be the limit. I'd be reasonably comfortable with that bearing in mind that a BMW should last a good long while and not suffer horrendous depreciation (should I need to sell for any reason). Do you think 20k is a realistic budget, or not enough??

Hi Iand - I was keen on A3s for a while and for some reason went off them. Hadn't really thought about the A4 as it seemed slightly too big. It's not something that appeals to me. I'm set on the 3 series now so let's rule out D.

 

[SwedishChef]

Hi jamief - Out of interest, how old a car would you still consider to be fairly new? And at what point would you think that mileage is too high (bearing in mind that I'd be looking to keep the car for a while and stick plenty of m-way miles on it).

 

[SwedishChef]

£20k seems much more reasonable for your requirements

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1122772.htm for example

Hmmm... nice looking car. The black does look good. Leather seats are a nice addition too. Shame it's a auto box but I'll look around the rest of the Britannia site.

 

[SwedishChef]

EDIT: You're really trading off spec against mileage in most cases.

One of the age vs mileage vs spec vs price dilemmas I've been battling with are the swirl flaps and inspection II issues. I don't want a car that could face high repair bills if the swirl flaps break (only a problem with older diesels I understand) or a car that's just about to require a £1k major service.

 

[SwedishChef]

60k miles really isn't a lot in the grand scheme of things, especially if you plan on using the car as a motorway cruiser. you're just going to stick even more miles on the car, so why pay more for a low mileage example which you will then make a high mileage example?

It's a fair point. Maybe am I unncessarily restricting myself by saying no more than 35k miles.

if you're stretching closer to £20k, start looking at the 6 cylinder models..

While the extra oomph would be nice, I'm not sure it's wise. I have a hard enough time sticking to the speed limit in my current 100bhp diesel. Also, the 6 cylinder models lose out on fuel economy. I'd rather spend the money on the satnav for example than an extra 0.5/1 litre on the engine.

do you even need a diesel? what's your predicted annual mileage?

I do 20k a year. Miles aside, I do like the diesel torque.

edit- why doesn't anybody spec the satnav? they look crap without idrive

I'd love satnav if I an get it for the money.

 

[SwedishChef]

First of all I'd like to thank evryone for the most excellent, thought provoking advice. I've taken it on board (I think!) and had another look around so secondly, please can I get your thoughts as far as value for money and any gotchas to watch out for on this age/mileage/model for sale from a used car dealer?

2005 55 Reg BMW 330d M Sport (registered Dec 05)
Price: £16,999.
40k miles
Silver metallic paint
Manual, 4 doors
Sat Nav, black full leather, BMW Connect Drive Assist, Bluetooth, ipod aux connector, parking sensors, sports seats, rain sensor, 18" alloys.

Supposed to be in very good condition with FSH. Has had two owners, bought by dealer from a leasing company.

Comes with an RAC Inspection (I don't know how thorough these are) and HPI report, mileage guarantee and moneyback guarantee (if mileage or HPI turns out to be duff).

The spec looks perfect, more than I could have hoped for. My only concern is fuel consumption. If this would do anything near 40mpg on long m-way journeys I'd be happy with that - but surprised, considering it's a 3.0L.