1/3 series - worth it or stupid idea?

[Draculaw]

Hi

I currently have a 15 plate auto Astra GTC with 22.5k on the clock. My main use is commuting - motorway/A roads for the most part and for that it's fine, but uninspiring. The engine feels like there's not much there until the upper rev range, the tyres are insanely expensive to change (235/50/18) and its not got the best fuel economy at around 35-37mpg on a tank. This has dropped a bit recently, not sure if cold weather or new front tyres is the cause though. It's also wide, which makes it a bit of a pain for popping around town.

In short, I am considering a change. I don't want a boring car, but need something semi-practical. I would love a Toyota GT86, but they're put of budget and would just make fuel economy terrible. However, RWD, reliable manufacturer, good looks (imo) and not an overly powerful engine so can still accelerate hard without doing prison speeds are all a big plus.

I have a personal loan for my current car, but the p/x value is the same as the current balance of loan, so I'm not worried about that. I'd rather avoid putting in much extra, perhaps a few hundred. Budget wise I'd therefore be looking at around £6,000. Realistically, for similar RWD, bit of power but not insane and practicality I'm looking at a 1 or 3 series. The main question is whether I'd be shooting myself in the foot as I'd need to go for something around 2010/2011, manual with 60k miles. I don't want to look at diesel as in not too long my commute will involve the ULEZ.

Am I being a fool in considering it?

Thanks in advance.

Edit: I should add the commute is about 35 miles each way, 90% on A roads.

Edited by Draculaw on Wednesday 30th January 11:50

[ZX10R NIN]

Stick with what you've got if you're finding tyres expensive then forget the BMW's as running costs will be higher.

[nunpuncher]

I can only imagine you are looking at 4 cylinder petrol BMWs. In which case I would forget about it. They will be less economical and less reliable and generally cost more to run while being just as uninteresting to drive as an Astra.

[Draculaw]

Seems pretty clear then. I guess keep running current until a 235i or similar?

Are any of the x20d models worth a look? Realistically ULEZ won't hit my commute for a little while, so it'll be towards the end of its life before I have to worry about that, and the £600 annual saving on fuel would cover higher maintenance costs.

[ZX10R NIN]

But you'd still have a dull drive with tyres costing more etc, you'd be better off buying a GTC diesel, so again stick with what you've got or go & buy the nicest 350Z you can find & suck up the extra running costs (Fuel/Tyres) for the better driving experience.

[nunpuncher]

Draculaw said:

Are any of the x20d models worth a look?

Nope.

I had a 320d and a 125d. Both of which developed issues and neither of them were much fun to drive. The 4 cylinder diesel engines are rougher than a badgers arse. To put it into perspective, the place I worked for at the time had an old mk2 1.6 petrol Focus runabout and the steering and handling in it were miles better than either of those BMWs.

[Obee72]

ZX10R NIN said:

Stick with what you've got if you're finding tyres expensive then forget the BMW's as running costs will be higher.

+1

You'd be swapping a three year old car for a 8 year plus car with at least double the mileage. Stay away from the 4 pot 1/3's. Now you could get into a nice 130i for £6k but if you don't like the tyre costs on the Astra, you'll be looking at similar for the 130i. However the smile it will put of your face is irreplaceable and I know !!!

[Draculaw]

Expensive re: tyres was probably the wrong word. Poor value would be better - with 140bhp under the bonnet it really doesn't need or benefit from such big tyres.

A 130i would be fun, but I fear it would be hideous for fuel and would run up repair costs like no end. I generally budget for around £750-1000 a year for maintenance activities. If I could run a 130i on that then I'd definitely look into it, bearing in mind it would have 100k+ on it.

[Obee72]

£6.5k would get you a decent one with 60-80k on it. General consensus is they've hit the bottom of the depreciation arc and are on their way up due to them being the last of the great N52 3.0 engines. Mine has 125k on it and I so far have spent on tyres and a water pump, so around £600 in 8 months. They are a great car to be honest and you can always look on BabyBMW and 130i Owners Club on Face-ache for well looked after ones and typical issues. If looked after the engine is pretty much bomb proof so check on things like a good SH with receipts and good MOT record.

[mike9009]

If you are looking for more fun with potentially the same running costs (ish) I would not look at BMW. As mentioned above the four cylinders are not fun and the six cylinder are fun in a straight line and are more expensive to run. (I currently own a 330i coupe)

I would be looking to MINIs or Renault RS. Darty, fun and should return the same mpg as your Astra. Get something with smaller alloys and tyre costs will drop (my MCS would return up to 46mpg on a steady run and 17x205x55 (from memory) would be about £100/ corner)

MCS (chose later than 2010)
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Renault Clio RS

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Mike

[Draculaw]

Interesting suggestion. I have always liked Minis, but never thought of owning one. I’ll have a look.

Has anyone experience with the 123d? Economy-wise it’s much better for me and would hopefully cover extra maintenance costs which might arise.

[Mr Tidy]

I bought a pre-registered 123d SE "Dynamic" in 2008 with less than 20 miles the clock - so pretty much new!

The "Dynamic" spec meant it had SE looks, M-Sport half-leather seats with electric side bolsters, M-Sport suspension but 17" wheels.

I had it for over 6 years and 80K miles and although I liked it, I never really loved it - even if it did manage 48+ mpg.

It had stop/start like all facelift 1 Series, but needed a new battery before it was 5 years old that cost over £250 from an Indy because AGM batteries need coding.

The starter motor died just after 6 years of age - replacement cost £600+.

But shortly after that I started seeing posts about N47 cam-chain issues, so I moved on to straight 6 petrols.

If I was thinking of buying a 1 Series diesel now I'd look for a pre-facelift 120d with the M47 engine - then maybe get it mapped!

Photo of my 123d anyway;-

Edited by Mr Tidy on Thursday 31st January 00:35

[Obee72]

If you want a few thrills but cheap, reliable motoring you can't go wrong with this:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Very well regarded on here for cheap thrills !!!

[nunpuncher]

Draculaw said:

Interesting suggestion. I have always liked Minis, but never thought of owning one. I’ll have a look.

Has anyone experience with the 123d? Economy-wise it’s much better for me and would hopefully cover extra maintenance costs which might arise.

See my comment from yesterday. I had a 125d (newer version of the 123d) bought new in 2012. The engine is horrible, it doesn't feel anywhere near its claimed power and mine broke twice in 18 months. I wouldn't go near another one. In contrast I had a 3l z4 and that was faultlessly reliable, cheap to service and surprisingly economical averaging 32mpg.

A mini cooper S is a good suggestion but I'm not sure you'll get an n18 r56 for your budget. I'm currently running an old r53 cooper s. It's a bit bouncy on some roads but it really is great fun to drive. It's been a bit of a revelation after my Cupra 290.

[Draculaw]

nunpuncher said:

See my comment from yesterday. I had a 125d (newer version of the 123d) bought new in 2012. The engine is horrible, it doesn't feel anywhere near its claimed power and mine broke twice in 18 months. I wouldn't go near another one. In contrast I had a 3l z4 and that was faultlessly reliable, cheap to service and surprisingly economical averaging 32mpg.

A mini cooper S is a good suggestion but I'm not sure you'll get an n18 r56 for your budget. I'm currently running an old r53 cooper s. It's a bit bouncy on some roads but it really is great fun to drive. It's been a bit of a revelation after my Cupra 290.

Ah, didn't realise the 123d shared the same engine. Will scrap that and look at the 125i and 130i if I want to go down the BMW route in that case. I understand they have the same engines, just a different map and slightly different exhaust.

[PTF]

My 130i is an SE, so it's on 205 45 R17 tyres. Michelin Pilot Sport 4 are £110 a corner. Hardly horrendous.

And 31mpg avg with 36mpg on a run.

So far only other costs have been read discs/pads for about £80 fitted myself.

I picked mine up for less than your budget on 48k miles with 1 owner and full history.

[underphil]

I didn't realise that BMW did a 1/3 series - must be tiny!!

On a sensible note, I had a GTC, a GT86 and a 125i over the last few years

The GTC I agree with what you said, capable but a bit boring ultimately. My solution to expensive tyres was to buy a lightly used set of wheels and tyres off ebay, then sell mine with 2-3mm left for <£100 less

GT86 was excellent on b-roads, looked great to me, but not so good on the motorway. more economical than the GTC in the real world. I liked the engine when thrashing it, but mediocre the rest of the time

125i was a happy medium between the two. I had mine mapped so was pretty quick, engine was the best bit of the car, chassis capable but boring compared to the GT86. More economical than you'd think only ~10% worse than the GT86, and you don't need to feed it the good stuff

[Obee72]

PTF said:

I picked mine up for less than your budget on 48k miles with 1 owner and full history.

Suggest you got a bargain as 2nd hand values have increased.

Looks like a good one if you're prepared to travel:
https://www.gumtree.com/p/bmw/bmw-130i-m-sport-man...

With some very good mods.

[Draculaw]

Thanks for the additional comment. I’ve done a bit more digging and realistically I think I’m over stretching it for a BMW on my budget which I won’t worry about breaking down. I’m going to investigate these two over the weekend if I can and go down the Mini route for a bit of fun and better economy. Lack of cruise control on the Cooper S is a big turn off, so we’ll see if it wows me enough to forego that.

Cooper S

Cooper

[mike9009]

Draculaw said:

Thanks for the additional comment. I’ve done a bit more digging and realistically I think I’m over stretching it for a BMW on my budget which I won’t worry about breaking down. I’m going to investigate these two over the weekend if I can and go down the Mini route for a bit of fun and better economy. Lack of cruise control on the Cooper S is a big turn off, so we’ll see if it wows me enough to forego that.

Cooper S

Cooper

When you drive the Cooper S, make sure you press the Sport button down by the gearstick! It makes the driving experience better - mainly giving a better throttle response POV. Make sure the engine is cold when you get there and check for any rattles from the engine on start-up. (That particular car shouldn't have any issues being post 2010 but it has been known). If you need Bluetooth check it has it, as retrofitting can be a PITA - you cannot simply swap out the stereo for another either....

Have fun