is BMW for me?

[stevieo]

I thought I'd throw this question out to you guys as I have around 15-20k to spend car right now and i've been looking around at a few cars but haven't taken any test drives yet as I don't want to waste peoples time.

so by my price range im looking at the E36 as you guys would call it.

so right now I'm more on the side of sedans, but I won't turn down a coupe if its at a great price.

so my few questions are, how reliable has your bmw been to you? (what kinda yearly maintainences do you guys do?)
because I figure, with a car like "BMW" when something breaks I better prepare to pay to fix it correctly.

which brings me to my next question, how many mechanics in calgary do you trust with your bmw, and who are they? do you do your own work? if so how user friendly is it to a person who isn't greatly inclined with mechanics?

how is the gas milage on your vehicle? Does it take premium? or just regular stuff (which model do you have?) I don't know much about bmws but are the 3 series 6 cylinders? how is the power output for you guys? I used to drive an integra, and I need something with a lil bit more punch than that for daily driving. (im sure they are faster/torqueier? sp, than my damn old car haha.)

finally, I'm looking for a more refined car, I don't really feel like dumping money in to my car anymore other than lets say suspension and wheels for some minor exterior looks. aside from that I don't really want to be losing money into a thing that loses its worth everyday. I like the options of leather seats, heated seats, heated mirrors, power windows, power locks, sunroof, a/c, cruise, power seats, alloy wheels, ect and such like that. as 'old' as it might sound, i like the luxuries in the cars. when i had my integra, i downgraded from what i used to drive around. i had the works in the other car but my integra was base, and let me tell you it wasn't that bad but its not something i'd be willing to go with again. does the 3 series come with HIDs? (the e36 years)

other cars i have been looking at have been the acura 3.2 TL and the lexus gs300. so far the tl is the front runner, BUT I would love to see what rwd has to offer. it may add a little bit of 'fun' in my driving. i mean the TL does come nicely equipt w/ pwr options, leather, HIDs and such. but right now with some of the problems i have read about the transmission being a real bitch im really scared about dealing with shit like that.

thanks in advance to all thoise who help me out,

steve.

[AllGoNoShow]

Get a Bently manual and it wil tell you how to do alot of stuff you need to do to your car, if not, everything.

Sheni's Auto Trend and Alpine Autoworks are the favorites around here, I have used Mark personally and been very pleased and Clanche and Rob have used Sheni's and seem to be VERY pleased as well.

I also do some of my own work, its not overly difficult.

My odl 7 takes Regular when stock. With the chip it takes 91. With the way I drive I will just leave the gas milage out of this thread but normally you get quite good milage ;)

Depends what 3 series you get... 318i is 1.8L I4. the 328 I believe is a 2.8L I6.

Stock I don't believe the e36's came with HID's, but a quick retro fit along with some projector housings will give you nice HID's like e46's got ;)

Options u can get with the TL, you can get or refine into the BMW if you please. We own a newer TL then what your after, they are definatly sexy machines but option wise my old 7 still has quite a few it doesn't.

[gp36912]

the gas mileage isn't too bad, its about 13 or so km/l i get about 12.4 when i drive normally, about 12 or in the high 11s when i drive slowly and cautiously, and about 14 when i drive the car hard, or 15 if i drive like allgo :D o and by the way, i have a newer e46 323, 2.5 l so your numbers are gonna vary by a little.

[snowcatxx87]

^ newer e46...

Think about it, a 2000 seems new... but when you say, 6 years old, it seems old. haha

[gp36912]

ya i know but he was looking at a e36, its the older generation 3 series. so my e46 is actually newer compared to the one hes looking for.

[Weapon_R]

Gas mileage is okay, but nothing near the Hondas. You will notice a big difference if you are switching from an integra to a BMW. My civic used to take $37 to fill, the BMW nearly $70. Also, many 3-series reqiure mid or premium.

Maintanence and reliability both suck. Reliability on my brother in laws E46 is worse, he's had some problems and his car only has 50k on it. Mine has been pretty good so far but I havent had it long enough to know. Everything is a lot more expensive for BMW. When I bought my CD player for the Integra, it was $60. A CD43 unit for BMW is around $300-350 for the E36. Most will not have a CD player unless you get a changer in the back (PITA).

Power output is much better than Honda. Lots of torque and horsepower for daily driving. Much more solid feel than any Honda too - no creaks or rattles when you start them like my old Integra used to do :)

The E36 is very well equipped but does not come with HIDs. That is a simple and inexpensive fix, however. They do come with pw/pdl/sunroof/ac/cruise and everything else that you'll want.

Try and get yourself a newer (98, 99) 328. These are the best 3-series that BMW sold in those years (non-m) and they are really nicely equipped. They have the wood trim but some people like it. Alternatively, the 323is coupe is just as nicely equipped but has less power and no wood trim :(

Ask if you have more questions. I would imagine that the E36 and the TL are pretty comparable. The E46 is a step above both IMO.

[pepschnops]

Check out this site: http://auto.consumerguide.com/Auto/Used/reviews/full/index.cfm/id/2363/Act/usedcarreviewshowall/
I used it when i was deciding on a care. I was thinking of an is300 but they were too hard to find in a 5 spd. I came about an 02 320i with 80k on it. Most people get worried when they see these cars with kilometers like this, however i had it inspected and made sure it was mechanically sound. The car had a ton of options like leather, cd, tilt seats, traction control, intermittent wipers and so on. Depending on the options you get the price can greatly vary. I found that getting the car in the color i did (Jet Black) and buying a five speed increased the cost by about 3 grand. One of the options that i wish the car had was a fold down back seat which was a nuissance when i had things such as hockey sticks in the car.

As for the fuel economy the tank was about $60 bucks to fill and on average with highway/city driving i would get about 600 km to the tank on the 2.2l. This was much better than driving my chevy pickup.

As for performance, the suspension on it was great and really tight. It had real good brakes. Driving it was a lot of fun, it had real quick exceleration and was a riot to redline. One of the other things i noticed was it was a really smooth ride.

Finally, the best thing about this car was the value. I spent about 24 k on it and it retained its value when i was selling it a few months later. After the first year or two their depreciation levels off and they are real great value. Never had a problem with the car and it was alot of fun.

I jsut gave you a brief synopsis on the car I had, I hope it is useful. If I can help you with anything else let me know. Best of luck!

[Clanche]

Originally posted by AllGoNoShow
Depends what 3 series you get... 318i is 1.8L I4. the 328 I believe is a 2.8L I6.

1.9L BIATCH! :D the 1.8 was for pre 96

Correct me if i'm wrong but the 2.8L you are looking at 200ish hp 210lbs/torque 0-60 in low 7s

The 2.5L is about 175hp and the 0-60 is high 7s low 8s

The 1.9L is about 140hp and the 0-60 is in the 9s :cry:



the main thing to consider is the handling.. take any of these cars around one corner and you will completely forget about your integra.. all of the bimmers are 50/50 weight and SO well balanced.. high speed in these cars is a breeze as well.. AUTOBAHN BABY :bigpimp:

[AllGoNoShow]

Yah corners are fun ;)

[gp36912]

i can vouch for that one :D corners are great in a bimmer :D

[snowcatxx87]

I must say, cornering is so much more fun that 0-60.

The biggest problem, for you personally, and maitenance cost is:.....





Keeping your damn wheels clean - everyone knows what I mean :rofl:

[robpark]

The E36 is a fine car, but most importantly, they are FUN cars. If you want something you can enjoy, you won't go wrong. Try to get a later model E39 (98/99) as they have most of the little annoyances fixed on them (ie: the plastic impeller on the water pump that was changed to metal on the later models).

Boiled down, BMWs are fun, Hondas are practical.... Some things are worth the price of admission.


And yes, Sheni's Autotrend all the way. Does excellent work at a great price. Probably one of the most qualified BMW guys around; 243-3232.

[AllGoNoShow]

Totally know what you mean Elliot ;) Damn BMW OEM pads.

[gp36912]

hahaha i know :D i just took a look at my winter tires and they were covered in brake dust.