BMW 3 series coupe '07 E90 - opinions

[Andehh]

I am in the market for a new car to soak up around 350 miles a week (13kish a year) for a new job I have down in London. I need a semi-practical car and originally had a budget of £8-10k. For a few thousand more I could get the BMW with 60-90k on the clock in the 2.0D form. The MPG & VED/tax look very good, insurance looks alright and the reviews all seem favourable.

Does anyone have one, or have any experience with one? Mainly servicing, reliability, suspension feel on motorways and overall opinions on the car. How are they for resale value and general costs to live with?


Thanks

[gizlaroc]

One of the best all rounders ever made imho, there is a reason they are one of the most popular cars you can buy, they are bloody good.

If you bought a nice 320d M-Sport with the 177bhp engine you would see nearly 50mpg in manual guise without trying too hard at all and even with 150k miles on it they still sell and get good money.

[Gun]

I will own a 335i Coupe one day, fantastic engine.

[Andehh]

Good news so far, anyone else who can add something? Im especially keen on owners experiences!

[bennyboydurham]

You can't go wrong. Legroom's a bit tight in the back but er, that's about it. Great engines all round, perfect ride and handling mix and generally can take mileages well. Spec wise, the M Sport is harder riding than the SE and I personally find the Sport's seat bolsters a bit narrow but it's down to you. My choice would be a petrol 325, fwiw.

[RobM77]

I think the only thing worth mentioning is that a car with over 100k on the clock may be hard to sell on later. I know people here will instantly jump to respond saying there's nothing wrong with a modern car that's done over 100k, which there isn't, but the truth is that the market doesn't see it that way.

At that mileage you may be looking at new suspension bits, which can be quite costly if you go for original BMW parts (which I recommend you do). Dampers in particular will have seen their best on a 60-90k mile car, even if it's mainly done motorway miles.

Those are the only downsides - other than that from what you've said I think you've found the car you're looking for and it'll suit your needs perfectly

[Andehh]

Do you have a rough figure of how much said suspension bits would cost to sort out? Thanks

[RobM77]

Andehh said:

Do you have a rough figure of how much said suspension bits would cost to sort out? Thanks

Sorry, no. I've done it on a couple of my E36s, but my newer BMWs have been low mileage. Non sport suspension was just under £1000 and sport was £2000. Very rough figures though. That's getting an independant garage to do springs, dampers and bushes with BMW parts.

[edo]

I have an e90 (that is saloon, e92 is coupe) 320d m sport 09. I have also owned an e92 335d (not mapped).

Both great cars. The 320d is really not lacking at all in the real world and in 23k since I got it is averaging 49mpg despite a fuel card and no effort to save fuel....

[MidlandDan84]

Ive had an E90 320d M Sport for 12 months now, overall very happy with it, driven a few BMWs through my old company, thought the 320d was the best suit for me at the time. Average 48mpg and i dont have to be that careful. I find it comfortable and relatively quick.

[MidlandDan84]

RobM77 said:

Andehh said:

Do you have a rough figure of how much said suspension bits would cost to sort out? Thanks

Sorry, no. I've done it on a couple of my E36s, but my newer BMWs have been low mileage. Non sport suspension was just under £1000 and sport was £2000. Very rough figures though. That's getting an independant garage to do springs, dampers and bushes with BMW parts.

Thats interesting mine is heading towards 60k, how did you get to the £2000 figure? Genuinely interested.

[Lost soul]

gizlaroc said:

One of the best all rounders ever made imho, there is a reason they are one of the most popular cars you can buy, they are bloody good.

If you bought a nice 320d M-Sport with the 177bhp engine you would see nearly 50mpg in manual guise without trying too hard at all and even with 150k miles on it they still sell and get good money.

I had one of these and they are great i love the feel of the car with the m sport pack , try and get the blue tooth fitted its a great option to have

[RobM77]

MidlandDan84 said:

RobM77 said:

Andehh said:

Do you have a rough figure of how much said suspension bits would cost to sort out? Thanks

Sorry, no. I've done it on a couple of my E36s, but my newer BMWs have been low mileage. Non sport suspension was just under £1000 and sport was £2000. Very rough figures though. That's getting an independant garage to do springs, dampers and bushes with BMW parts.

Thats interesting mine is heading towards 60k, how did you get to the £2000 figure? Genuinely interested.

Check out the blog for my E36 328i on my profile.

BMW sports springs and dampers were £1645 including fitting at my local garage; replacement bushes were £658. Total £2303. You could probably knock £700 to £800 off that by using Bilstein springs and dampers instead.

With all cars dampers last about 30k miles before you notice a deterioration (my Elise is just about to hit 30k...); most people push on to between 60k and 100k miles before they change them. It depends how picky you are about handling, and on how the chassis copes. The E36 was well known for turning into a death trap with worn suspension. I remember once in my old 325i when it had done about 100k miles I was driving my girlfriend around a wet roundabout when I backed off slightly and the tail flew right out! I fitted new suspension and you couldn't just back off, you could actually brake on the same roundabout with no ill effects. Sure, it's an extreme test, but it shows you how much the handling changed on them.

I don't know about E90s yet, but with almost all cars 60 to 90k is where one should start thinking about fitting new springs and dampers.

[Andehh]

Thanks for all the comments guys. Admittedly my one concern is going from a 1.1 saxo to a powerful(for me) RWD car, especially on wet roundabouts & corners. I followed a BMW yesterday who spun out on one locally here, effectively writing it off with the help of a curb. That really did my me double guess my choice of the 3 series coupe.

What is their traction control (and such) like, admittedly I am not a fast & furious driver (got caught racing soon after I passed my test & that put me on the straight & narrow) but i am worried about how twitchy they may be.

How would one know when the bushes & suspension need replacing?

Edited by Andehh on Sunday 30th May 17:41

[amirzed]

Got one myself, it's an e92 coupe, excellent car, I see 44mpg driving it around town with no motorways. The m sport suspension is not cool but the rest of it's great, highly recommended!!!

[MidlandDan84]

RobM77 said:

MidlandDan84 said:

RobM77 said:

Andehh said:

Do you have a rough figure of how much said suspension bits would cost to sort out? Thanks

Sorry, no. I've done it on a couple of my E36s, but my newer BMWs have been low mileage. Non sport suspension was just under £1000 and sport was £2000. Very rough figures though. That's getting an independant garage to do springs, dampers and bushes with BMW parts.

Thats interesting mine is heading towards 60k, how did you get to the £2000 figure? Genuinely interested.

Check out the blog for my E36 328i on my profile.

BMW sports springs and dampers were £1645 including fitting at my local garage; replacement bushes were £658. Total £2303. You could probably knock £700 to £800 off that by using Bilstein springs and dampers instead.

With all cars dampers last about 30k miles before you notice a deterioration (my Elise is just about to hit 30k...); most people push on to between 60k and 100k miles before they change them. It depends how picky you are about handling, and on how the chassis copes. The E36 was well known for turning into a death trap with worn suspension. I remember once in my old 325i when it had done about 100k miles I was driving my girlfriend around a wet roundabout when I backed off slightly and the tail flew right out! I fitted new suspension and you couldn't just back off, you could actually brake on the same roundabout with no ill effects. Sure, it's an extreme test, but it shows you how much the handling changed on them.

I don't know about E90s yet, but with almost all cars 60 to 90k is where one should start thinking about fitting new springs and dampers.

Ah right i see where your coming from, mine is approaching 60k and is a little bit crashy but nothing exceptional as its an M Sport.

As for handling, i find it very good, just give it respect on wet roundabouts but ive never come close to any problems.

[RobM77]

MidlandDan84 said:

RobM77 said:

MidlandDan84 said:

RobM77 said:

Andehh said:

Do you have a rough figure of how much said suspension bits would cost to sort out? Thanks

Sorry, no. I've done it on a couple of my E36s, but my newer BMWs have been low mileage. Non sport suspension was just under £1000 and sport was £2000. Very rough figures though. That's getting an independant garage to do springs, dampers and bushes with BMW parts.

Thats interesting mine is heading towards 60k, how did you get to the £2000 figure? Genuinely interested.

Check out the blog for my E36 328i on my profile.

BMW sports springs and dampers were £1645 including fitting at my local garage; replacement bushes were £658. Total £2303. You could probably knock £700 to £800 off that by using Bilstein springs and dampers instead.

With all cars dampers last about 30k miles before you notice a deterioration (my Elise is just about to hit 30k...); most people push on to between 60k and 100k miles before they change them. It depends how picky you are about handling, and on how the chassis copes. The E36 was well known for turning into a death trap with worn suspension. I remember once in my old 325i when it had done about 100k miles I was driving my girlfriend around a wet roundabout when I backed off slightly and the tail flew right out! I fitted new suspension and you couldn't just back off, you could actually brake on the same roundabout with no ill effects. Sure, it's an extreme test, but it shows you how much the handling changed on them.

I don't know about E90s yet, but with almost all cars 60 to 90k is where one should start thinking about fitting new springs and dampers.

Ah right i see where your coming from, mine is approaching 60k and is a little bit crashy but nothing exceptional as its an M Sport.

As for handling, i find it very good, just give it respect on wet roundabouts but ive never come close to any problems.

The handling issues on worn suspension may have been particular to the E36. Keep an eye on your damping though (ps don't trust a garages damper test equipment, it won't say they're worn till about 200k and your car feels like a boat! )

[Ry_B]

You got caught racing in a 1.1 Saxo?

My mate had a 335d, he reguarly gets over 40mpg, it's well equipped and hasn't put a foot wrong!

Oh and re the RWD, don't worry, it won't be a problem and I'm sure BMW have some over the top stability control anyway, just leave that on for a few weeks

[RobM77]

I can agree with the comments above regarding RWD. I think the power and capability of the car is more likely to get you into trouble to be honest. 90mph in the BMW will feel like 30mph did in the Saxo, and you'll get there as quick. Trouble is car stopping distances are surprisingly similar! Keep an eye on your speed, match speed with vision and go easy with the throttle pedal.

Regarding the DSC, I went to a BMW day once where I was asked to spin a car with DSC switched on. I couldn't...

[RobM77]

Sorry, I was getting confused with the 335i thread when I mentioned power :-) My comments on the car's impression of speed remain though! :-)