New potential BMW owner

[c_206]

Afternoon all, story is looking to get sister a BMW and looking at either the 13 plate 118 with 1.6 engine or possibly the 1.8 petrol

However as she drives 60 miles a day for work would a diesel be better and more economical, I'm just thinking with all the diesel issues - like higher fuel, ulez is the extra coatings worth it

And any known issues I should be thinking about as I'm just hearing stories about problems with the 116i etc...

Thank you all

[Jaybmw]

That mileage is roughly a tank a week in the petrol vs half a tank in the diesel. I'd not bother with a 1 go for a pre lci 320d as in not the n47 engine and it'll have the looks your going for but also the power and mpg.. the petrol engines under 6cyl are crap compared to the old m40/44 even so I'd not bother

[c_206]

Trying to stick with a 1, for size wise and insurance

[Jaybmw]

Test both a 3 is not much bigger than a 1 in real life but if you have to stick to a newer 1 stay away from the 120d.. petrol engines unless 6cyl are going to be trouble I'm afraid

[c_206]

Jaybmw said:

Test both a 3 is not much bigger than a 1 in real life but if you have to stick to a newer 1 stay away from the 120d.. petrol engines unless 6cyl are going to be trouble I'm afraid

you mean stay away from the 120i?? or d

I think as of the high milleage it makes sense to go for a diesel right?. Now just need to see the difference betweent he 120d (1.8) and 116d

Or shall i be looking at the new B37 and B47 engines for both types? 2015 onwards?

[mekondelta]

116d or 118d isn't the ultimate driving machine but fine for what it is. Check the ulez status on the TFL website before you buy if it's important to you.

[BFleming]

Jaybmw said:

That mileage is roughly a tank a week in the petrol vs half a tank in the diesel. I'd not bother with a 1 go for a pre lci 320d as in not the n47 engine and it'll have the looks your going for but also the power and mpg.. the petrol engines under 6cyl are crap compared to the old m40/44 even so I'd not bother

I'm not sure I'd recommend anyone buy a M47 engined car at this stage - they stopped making them 10 years ago, and the thermostats (x2) were so troublesome they caused enough running issues on their own.
The N47 & the chain thing... hmmm My old E90 LCI N47 is still going strong at 150,000 miles+ (my brother now owns it), and the N47 I have in my current 525d is still running perfectly at 133,000 miles. So they don't all suffer. Very few of them do in my experience, but of course you only hear of the ones that fail.
My other car is a 2013 1 series with the N13B16 engine (all 1.6 by the way). I would avoid that one (114i/116i/118i) as it actually has a noisy cam chain at 66,000 miles despite 10,000 mile service intervals. In fact I wish we had bought a 118d instead - so that's my advice given the mileage you're doing.

Edited by BFleming on Saturday 22 June 15:50

[c_206]

People what about the 116d with the 1.5 engines??

[cossy400]

Personal opinion, smaller the engine the less economical its likely to be. (to an certain extent granted)

On a size point with regards to the poster saying about the 3 series against the one series.

We had an E60 530d, wanted to change it but MRS400 wanted something smaller as she didn't like driving the 5 series, tried her in a 335d she didn't like it and couldn't get comfy..........

Wondered round Stratstone and she eyed up an X4 test drove it and bought it on the spot.

Its bloody bigger than the 5 series.



Cool story bro etc etc but at least go and have a look you might be surprised.

[naturalaspiration]

Personal experience the smaller the engine the more economical it is going to be especially in town. If your sister is not a petrol head than a 3 cyl B37 116d should fit the bill. Pretty sure it is on the EU6 so no worries ULEZ-wise. I drove a facelifted118i with a 3 cylinder engine recently and I actually liked the sound of it... it also has a very long gearing which should keep consumption low on the motorway.