57 reg 320i sport convertible! Please help...

57 reg 320i sport convertible! Please help...

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Chan61922

Original Poster:

172 posts

113 months

Sunday 26th October 2014
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Hey guys recently spotted a tidy early 320i sport convertible, (hope I'm not opening a can of worms now) I know it's just the entry level model and the 320i has quite a few common issues- but can't afford a diesel sport variant and the 6 pots are too juicy for my liking (had e46 330ci and e46 m3 in past) okay my issue is this, the cars currently at a private dealer its claimed mileage and odometer reading is 75,000miles- fair enough, not a issue at all. The dealer states it's been serviced 4/5 times, again not too shabby, I have to check this out properly when I visit garage again.

Now things get interesting.......

Today I ran my own hpi check on car, latest mileage reading by NMR is 73,000 on 20/09/2014
The cars reading 75,000 at the moment, so 2000 miles in 1 month? Hmm okay

So I've managed to source the vin by bmw by giving them the reg. Turns out 3/4 bmw garages have had this car in, 1 dealer has had it in 6/7 times all due to warranty work and resale of vehicle.I've found some interesting finds ringing the dealers up. 1 dealer sold the car in 2011 as a approved used car- 5 months later under warranty the clutch and flywheel was replaced at 43,000miles, a month later at 44,000 a new gearbox was replaced. Now don't get me wrong it is possible, but you've seriously got to be giving it some abuse to knacker the clutch and gearbox on a car 2/3 years old on 40 odd thousand miles. Now a new clutch and gearbox could be a big bonus for me, as I know it's been done, however the cars done 35,000 miles since, and my main issue is if the gearbox and clutch got knackered, what's next? Can another component be on its way out? Sad news is the warranty as it expired on both as it only lasted 2 years, interesting because seems like this cars back up for sale 6months after warrantys expired. The cars also had a few warranty bits done here n there although the dealer didn't have any extra info, as well as a wheel alignment and tyre change back in 2010, and a smart repair which is paint work, alloy refurb etc in 2009. One positive is it has an outstanding recall on vehicle for replacement of ignition coils, free upgrade to Bosch part, all supplied and fitted by bmw, great news as I know ignition coils and injectors are a problem on this little engine.

Okay so if I have to do some more homework on this car as I don't know what it's been up to since March 2012 when bmw saw it last, it was on 49,000 miles then, 2.5 years later it's reading 75,000 today, so seems okay- just need to chase up a few mot and services.

The car is in decent Nick, nice body work, spotless interior, don't seem like it's had a hard life- although it's previous warranty States it has. My question is would you guys go for it? I assume it's had some idiot behind the wheel in its life time because from late 2009-late 2011 it's been in a dealer 7 times. It's had 3 or 4 previous owners, the first owner seemed to look after well, 2/3 was a lunatic, 3/4th I still need to source info regarding his maintenance and repair work.

Am I buying a lemon? Would you guys walk away? 7 year old car, 3/4 previous owners- fair condition on exterior, hpi clear(but who knows) rubbish 3 month warranty from dealer(means nothing)

Hope I haven't put anyone to sleep smile
Any feedback appreciated.


E30M3SE

8,465 posts

195 months

Sunday 26th October 2014
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Dealer warrantyon clutch/flywheel and gearbox could have been done due to a noisy bearing, for example that was first diagnosed as a flywheel but that didn't sort the issue so they then threw a gearbox at it, who knows....?

If you're really worried but want the car, the put a BMW Insured Warranty on it.

https://www.bmw-warranty.co.uk/Start

Bemmer

1,103 posts

201 months

Sunday 26th October 2014
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"2/3 was a lunatic"



Yea.. So if you do buy it it's changing from lunatic to idiot.....! The cars 7 year old 75.000 miles and had a clutch and gearbox replaced.... How does that get interesting.....? FFS.....!


Chan61922

Original Poster:

172 posts

113 months

Sunday 26th October 2014
quotequote all
Someone's woken up on the wrong side of the bed this morning banghead I'm simply just trying to gather some thoughts on whether this car is likely to be ragged or am I just being paranoid and bricking it for no reason. To me 4 owners on a car is a lot, I've never bought a car over two, so that's playing up in my head too. I understand if it was a performance car built for speed or a weekend trackday but it's not. Fair point about the worn bearing noise, could of mis- diagnosed a fault hence why both parts where changed, but like you said- who knows? I've been looking for warranty also, is bmw comprehensive any good? Or am I better off with warranty direct or warrantywise, all warranty companies are same, always find a way to blame it on wear and tear

Chan61922

Original Poster:

172 posts

113 months

Sunday 26th October 2014
quotequote all
1 other thing, a mate of mine claims newer bmws reg's starting with 'Y' are ex fleet and company vehicles, 56 reg onwards, is this a load of rubbish, or has anyone heard this before. It's strange because theres a lot of e90 sport coupes n convertibles about starting with a y, maybe I'm going mad. I always thought y was for Yorkshire, which is probably even more worrying haha smile anyway vehicle im looking at is a 'YF57''

E30M3SE

8,465 posts

195 months

Sunday 26th October 2014
quotequote all
BMW Comprehensive is about as good as you'll get.

It's a convertible, so they do tend to have more owners as some will buy them run them for one summer then move them on.

rsv696

474 posts

142 months

Sunday 26th October 2014
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I'd go with your instincts & look elsewhere. Plenty more out there.

a4cabrio

898 posts

158 months

Sunday 26th October 2014
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Get a 6 cylinder, you won't regret it, not much mpg difference between a 320 & 330

dingg

3,974 posts

218 months

Sunday 26th October 2014
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if you like it buy it - simple really

lifes too short to worry about the st in your original post

Chan61922

Original Poster:

172 posts

113 months

Tuesday 28th October 2014
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All valid points thanks for the input, I'm now toying with the idea of a pre lci, 57 reg 325d sport convertible, exactly same mileage, it's 2.5k more but it comes with sat nav and is with a bmw dealer so years warranty and servicing is included, makes more sense to be honest. only prob is its a manual frown I always thought a 6 pot diesel would be better in auto? Correct me if I'm wrong, never had a diesel before. Is the 325d any good? Any common issues or faults? Does it react well to a remap? The vehicle is with a stratstone branch, is this actually bmw? I'm assuming it's there used car department? The vehicles some 150 miles away from me if it is bmw themselves you think they could have vehicle delivered to my local bmw dealer pre sale?
Cheers

Shaoxter

4,048 posts

123 months

Tuesday 28th October 2014
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A diesel, M Sport convertible... to top it off, is it in white? smile

The stuff in your OP sounds like paranoia to me, it's good that you've done some research but you're never gonna buy a car if you're that fussy. 3-4 owners is very normal for a 7 year old convertible.

Chan61922

Original Poster:

172 posts

113 months

Tuesday 28th October 2014
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There both black, Ive just had some bad luck in the past buying used cars, been paranoid since