RE: BMW M135i (F20) | PH Used Buying Guide
Discussion
Roncee said:
Great package. Not sure what people are expecting for the £ in this modern era of disposable cars.
5 years in mine and only just sold it as fancied a change now. Longest I have kept a vehicle.
All points been mentioned already but:
Rwd hatch - never going to happen again
Adaptive suspension really disguised the rubbish roads when not in the mood
Eibach Springs, oem rear brace and got a stonking deal on a m performance LSD which made it a much better car for not a huge outlay (considering you can sell the lsd on for a fair £)
Extended warranty from bmw covering wear and tear was £360 - personally thought that was a bargain for such a complex car and really important for me as a daily.
£260 road tax
40mpg+ in eco on motorway on cruise control
Interior did not wear or fall to bits in my ownership. Leather on drivers seat still looked great.
Idrive ahead of its time for the year, my pronav would still bong at me every so often warning me of dangerous driving conditions or obstacles - really useful stuff.
In my ownership only 1 thing went wrong and it was an idrive map update. I.e nothing mechanical went wrong.
Servicing reasonable cost at an indy and good intervals
So many aftermarket mods
Michelin ps4 reasonable cost and makes the car much more usable through winter
Such a good daily and when it takes your mood with those minor mods listed above it was enjoyable and easily kept up with a friends m2 on country roads.
Only downside in my opinion but also a silver lining
Not an M car as its a bit ‘soft’.
On the upside its not M money to purchase and run and secondly something non shouty that goes under the radar.
Last chance for learning the joys of RWD (get the LSD fitted) before everyone goes electric.
Some really good points there, I was all set on picking up an i3, I will get one eventually but the bits in bold swung it for me. Hold out for the right spec, they're hard to come by once you start refining the options... pro media / adaptive, particularly manuals, post LCI, pre PPF etc, it goes on. It's the last of a breed, a future classic one day I imagine.5 years in mine and only just sold it as fancied a change now. Longest I have kept a vehicle.
All points been mentioned already but:
Rwd hatch - never going to happen again
Adaptive suspension really disguised the rubbish roads when not in the mood
Eibach Springs, oem rear brace and got a stonking deal on a m performance LSD which made it a much better car for not a huge outlay (considering you can sell the lsd on for a fair £)
Extended warranty from bmw covering wear and tear was £360 - personally thought that was a bargain for such a complex car and really important for me as a daily.
£260 road tax
40mpg+ in eco on motorway on cruise control
Interior did not wear or fall to bits in my ownership. Leather on drivers seat still looked great.
Idrive ahead of its time for the year, my pronav would still bong at me every so often warning me of dangerous driving conditions or obstacles - really useful stuff.
In my ownership only 1 thing went wrong and it was an idrive map update. I.e nothing mechanical went wrong.
Servicing reasonable cost at an indy and good intervals
So many aftermarket mods
Michelin ps4 reasonable cost and makes the car much more usable through winter
Such a good daily and when it takes your mood with those minor mods listed above it was enjoyable and easily kept up with a friends m2 on country roads.
Only downside in my opinion but also a silver lining
Not an M car as its a bit ‘soft’.
On the upside its not M money to purchase and run and secondly something non shouty that goes under the radar.
Last chance for learning the joys of RWD (get the LSD fitted) before everyone goes electric.
I don't get the complaints regards traction people have with this car. Perhaps it's expectations - It's high powered with an abundance of torque and rear wheel drive! I think this is mainly down to auto drivers with leaden feet . Just modulate a little! I do have the Ps4's fitted for reference but I've run PSS in the winter on high powered cars with no issue.
TheMatrix said:
One look at it and it’s a no from me regardless of how it performs. One ugly pile of crap.
Over time you become de-sensitised to it's looks and I've even started to like how it looks after running one (2014 car) for ~2.5 years.On a side note this article seems to have converted the babybmw m-lite FAQ into an article and missed a couple of bits out.
MustardCutter said:
Over time you become de-sensitised to it's looks and I've even started to like how it looks after running one (2014 car) for ~2.5 years.
On a side note this article seems to have converted the babybmw m-lite FAQ into an article and missed a couple of bits out.
I agree, time has softened the looks somewhat. The LCI cars are much better looking that’s the original car. On a side note this article seems to have converted the babybmw m-lite FAQ into an article and missed a couple of bits out.
MustardCutter said:
Court_S said:
I agree, time has softened the looks somewhat. The LCI cars are much better looking that’s the original car.
Yes the most offensive part of the original was the front which the LCI sorted out, but I still prefer the original's rear.JD said:
I find the 140i a constant frustration in this weather.
I am hoping that a change from SuperSports to PS4 will be the answer but don’t want to shell out before they are used up in case it makes no difference!
Has anyone made that change? Did it improve the car?
I have a 140. The PS4's are much better in wet and colder conditions especially when parts worn. IMHO the best upgrade to these cars is ditching the crappy dampers and fitting Bilstein PSS12/14/16. Much nicer to drive in all conditions.I am hoping that a change from SuperSports to PS4 will be the answer but don’t want to shell out before they are used up in case it makes no difference!
Has anyone made that change? Did it improve the car?
xjay1337 said:
There are several things which should be noted or ammended on the buyers guide that I've found over 18 months and 35k of ownership.
I often wonder who writes some of these "buyers guides" as they don't seem to have accurate information!
- The tyre pressure sensors are pretty accurate (within 1.5psi of a proper tyre pressure gauge)
- don't wait for the idrive to tell you to top up oil - that's way too low.
- under hard braking you can lose oil pressure (35psi is hot idle and I've seen 25psi in emergency braking situations) and having a lower oil level does not help the issue. No reason to let it go that low in any event. Very poor ownership advice.
- speaking of oil the car runs at around 115c oil temperature on a cruise and switching to a 5w40 or a 0w40 does help. Xw30 is so thin at these temperatures m I use millers nanodrive 5w40 csf nt+.
- track use the factory oil cooler will be overwhelmed very quickly within 2 or 3 laps the oil temperature will be at nearly 140c.
You can buy a drop in oil cooler upgrade from CSF (CSF europe used my car to develop one in the UK).
- switch to 10k maximum oil change intervals on anything other than cars used to cruise on the motorway.
- birds suspension and remaps are ridiculously priced and not special and no better than any other tuner for 1/8th of the price . You would be much better self tuning by purchasing a mhd wireless dongle for around 80 quid (cables are available for less) .
Flasher module is 200 quid and map packs are 90 quid. (stage 1 for stock cars, stage 2 for cars with intercooler and stage 2+ for cars with intercooler and decat or sports down pipe). Optional monitor module is 80 quid. To see everything from oil temperature and pressure to individual cylinder timing , fuel pressure, inlet temps etc.
- For suspension you can buy H&R Monotube or Bilstein b14 coilovers and have money left over for camber adjustable top mounts to save on outer tyre wear.
- common failure part is the OEM charge pipe that goes into the inlet, the plastic part snaps. You should replace with a better one. I have a forge one but cheaper ones are available on Ebay.
- not heard any owners reporting oil use issues , or myself , and i use mine harder than most.
- no need to go for full forged wheels. Also the oem 436s are not that strong and can buckle.
- the zf8 speed is great but if you want it to be better and even more in tune with what you want it to do then XHP offer software for it in a variety of stages, 1 to 4. I have stage 3 and it's brilliant.
- the zf8 speed should be serviced every 50-60k. The parts cost around 280 for a new plastic oil pan and the zf fluid. It takes approx 2 to 3 hours to do.
- m4 pads are trash on track. I use pagid rs29 front (£330l and ds2500 rear (£150). Last very well and perform great on track. However the dust especially from the rs29 is heavy and they can make some noise. However i have fitted mtec high carbon discs now on my 2nd set of rs29 and they are much quieter.
- you can buy inserts for the rear subframe and diff mount to help make it feel more stable on the back end. I haven't had these fitted yet but I'm slowly collecting parts for more bushes.
That's it for now..
Edit :
- sports steering can have a fault causing a knock from behind your accelerator pedal if you turn wheel stationary or when going over minor bumps.
Bmw used to replace the racks under warranty but now they change effectively a large screw on the steering rack. The part is around 200 quid and a couple hours labour at worst.
I think that's a great post and an interesting read for someone considering one. I often wonder who writes some of these "buyers guides" as they don't seem to have accurate information!
- The tyre pressure sensors are pretty accurate (within 1.5psi of a proper tyre pressure gauge)
- don't wait for the idrive to tell you to top up oil - that's way too low.
- under hard braking you can lose oil pressure (35psi is hot idle and I've seen 25psi in emergency braking situations) and having a lower oil level does not help the issue. No reason to let it go that low in any event. Very poor ownership advice.
- speaking of oil the car runs at around 115c oil temperature on a cruise and switching to a 5w40 or a 0w40 does help. Xw30 is so thin at these temperatures m I use millers nanodrive 5w40 csf nt+.
- track use the factory oil cooler will be overwhelmed very quickly within 2 or 3 laps the oil temperature will be at nearly 140c.
You can buy a drop in oil cooler upgrade from CSF (CSF europe used my car to develop one in the UK).
- switch to 10k maximum oil change intervals on anything other than cars used to cruise on the motorway.
- birds suspension and remaps are ridiculously priced and not special and no better than any other tuner for 1/8th of the price . You would be much better self tuning by purchasing a mhd wireless dongle for around 80 quid (cables are available for less) .
Flasher module is 200 quid and map packs are 90 quid. (stage 1 for stock cars, stage 2 for cars with intercooler and stage 2+ for cars with intercooler and decat or sports down pipe). Optional monitor module is 80 quid. To see everything from oil temperature and pressure to individual cylinder timing , fuel pressure, inlet temps etc.
- For suspension you can buy H&R Monotube or Bilstein b14 coilovers and have money left over for camber adjustable top mounts to save on outer tyre wear.
- common failure part is the OEM charge pipe that goes into the inlet, the plastic part snaps. You should replace with a better one. I have a forge one but cheaper ones are available on Ebay.
- not heard any owners reporting oil use issues , or myself , and i use mine harder than most.
- no need to go for full forged wheels. Also the oem 436s are not that strong and can buckle.
- the zf8 speed is great but if you want it to be better and even more in tune with what you want it to do then XHP offer software for it in a variety of stages, 1 to 4. I have stage 3 and it's brilliant.
- the zf8 speed should be serviced every 50-60k. The parts cost around 280 for a new plastic oil pan and the zf fluid. It takes approx 2 to 3 hours to do.
- m4 pads are trash on track. I use pagid rs29 front (£330l and ds2500 rear (£150). Last very well and perform great on track. However the dust especially from the rs29 is heavy and they can make some noise. However i have fitted mtec high carbon discs now on my 2nd set of rs29 and they are much quieter.
- you can buy inserts for the rear subframe and diff mount to help make it feel more stable on the back end. I haven't had these fitted yet but I'm slowly collecting parts for more bushes.
That's it for now..
Edit :
- sports steering can have a fault causing a knock from behind your accelerator pedal if you turn wheel stationary or when going over minor bumps.
Bmw used to replace the racks under warranty but now they change effectively a large screw on the steering rack. The part is around 200 quid and a couple hours labour at worst.
Edited by xjay1337 on Tuesday 28th January 21:31
Interesting thread - I've had a 2014 M135i 5 door (the fuggly one) since new and its more than lived up to my expectations, however, I didn't expect, or need, a full on M car - but I think quite a few owners might and then they call it flawed, having forgotten how little they probably paid for it.
I got mine as utility car that could be a bit more interesting when I wanted it to be e.g. I've got a child seat permanently fitted for my grandson with all of his 'stuff', but I had four IKEA flat packs in it recently and a pair of stepladders and a large tool box, with room to spare, and still had some fun with it on the way home. For this kind of use its unbeatable in my opinion and means that a bloke with a growing family, bigger house and more jobs to do at the weekend etc doesn't need to hang up his driving gloves just yet, as he can get into one of these relatively cheap now... I do agree that its not a track day car in standard trim though, my son tried it once but the brakes and diff let it down in the first instance, and then where do you stop - for that kind of use I would start with an M car proper I think.
I got mine as utility car that could be a bit more interesting when I wanted it to be e.g. I've got a child seat permanently fitted for my grandson with all of his 'stuff', but I had four IKEA flat packs in it recently and a pair of stepladders and a large tool box, with room to spare, and still had some fun with it on the way home. For this kind of use its unbeatable in my opinion and means that a bloke with a growing family, bigger house and more jobs to do at the weekend etc doesn't need to hang up his driving gloves just yet, as he can get into one of these relatively cheap now... I do agree that its not a track day car in standard trim though, my son tried it once but the brakes and diff let it down in the first instance, and then where do you stop - for that kind of use I would start with an M car proper I think.
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