Brun

...so as the A180 was a no goer, we had a ride out in a 118d ES. It doesn't look amazing but is clearly well screwed together and it has the important things like a/c and a steering wheel.
The details - 55 plate with 43k and i think i can get it for £7.5k.
The wife covers 30k+ each year and spends 75% of her time on the M1. The interweb suggests 60mpg on some sites but high 40's on others - does anyone have a realistic figure of their own? Also, whats the story with the variable servicing thing - will it ask for a service every 8k? If it does are the services expensive? Do they need a cam belt?
Sorry for the shed load of questions. I will be looking round the interweb for answers but we plan to go back in the morning for another look hopefully armed with more info so i thought the power of SN could assist me

Brun

Looked around the interweb and the only things that jumps out as worrying is the timing chain replacement - is it a costly engine out job?

stilover

Is is the 118 or the 1.6 badged 118?

A Bloke at work payed £20k+ for the lowest powered 1 Series they do. Added bigger wheels, and a few options. Bragged how it would only cost him £30 a year in road tax.

It has less power than a healthy fart. Gets about 50mpg if driven like a girl, and as it's the base model, it has lost a lot of money. But hey, when asked what car he drives, he can brag the he drives a BMW (without mentioning it's the sh!test one they do).

And apparently, BMW included a secret switch, Sssshhhhh, in the engine bay, that once pressed gives the little BMW 170bhp. No remaps or anything else required.

He has been know to talk **** once or twice an hour though. Every bl00dy day. .

AS for the original post. £7.5k seems a lot. His 3 year old was valued at £6k

john banks

Much prefer the 320d. But depends on budget, how big your wife is, whether she carries luggage etc, and whether you can live with the looks of the 1er.

Brun

Wife is a midget and doesn't carry much and quite likes the looks.
Done a search on trader and the price doesn't seem too bad.

Dedrater

If she ever needs a 5 series, I would probably never mention this to her in conversation.

lozgti1

As a newcomer to BMW I've only just started working out model designation

I think it is ES base then SE then M Sport

Probably completely wrong

Really weird with 118 having 2.0 engine.Good at confusing you

Brun

141 bhp from what i can find out. I didn't seem as punchy as her VRS but seemed to progress quite well and seemed to ride quite flat through the bends where the Fab rolls a little.
Having searched PH and the trader, the price seems not too bad to say it's from a dealer, the only thing which concerns me is the cam chain tensioner issue which looks like it will cost £1200 or there abouts to rectify.

bighead

iTrader: (1)

service is condition base ...ie it only need a service dependant on how you drive , oil is every 15000miles, brake fluid change every 2 yrs, vechile inspection is every 3 yrs , brakes pad and disc will depend if you drive like a F1 racer or a granny going to the shops.
average is 24,000 for the fr brakes and around 30,000 for the rear.

Brun

How does the car decide when it needs a service?

Dunk

iTrader: (1)

The same way you decide to go to the Doctors.

D

Brun

I don't lubricate with oil - i use Strongbow Do expand

s70rjw

iTrader: (2)

Combination of many things the ECU analyses. Cold starts, hot starts, journey lengths, oil temps, number of times engine exceeds xxxx revs, number of times rev limiter hit etc...

Brun

That sounds ok as she spends so much time on the motorway
Anyone know anything on the tensioner issue?

Dedrater

Interested if anyone could expand on this?

It is going to be a company secret, but has anyone an inclination of the logic gates on this.

Devildog

Have a look here

http://www.babybmw.net/index.php

The 118d is a 2.0L from memory. Same basic engine as the 120d

My old 120d used to average just over 40mpg, driving it quite hard. Should get 50 on motorway no problem.

Common problems on cars of that age will be noisy door seals. Evident from a creaking/squeaking noise. Lots of fixes out there (inlcuding a redesign from BMW) but to be honest keeping the rubber lubricated did the job.

I loved mine, would have another. Great cars, a joy to drive.

nks

iTrader: (6)

I'm in a similar boat to you mate.
My mother is looking for a newer car and the BMW 118d/120d ticks all the boxes. Its nice to look at, great to drive, big enough for 2 people to do the weekly shop and the occasional outing with the grandkids, RWD is a bonus, they will most definitely be buying winter tyres for it as my father already has a 3-series and always uses them in winter.

The problems I have heard about are the cam chain tensioners and Turbos being quite week about £1K each to be sorted.

In addition to that sensors are a pain to deal with and brand new cars go into limp mode quite often, but as your buying used th small niggles should have been rectified by now. FBMWSH is a must and check with BMW themselves that the info they hold is correct.

Brun

She went for a super low miler Fab VRS in the end. The cam tensioer issue was just too much of a risk to take with her wacky mileage.

lordharding

iTrader: (1)

Excellent choice
Great car
Parts are very cheap and hourly rates for the garage will be half price I would imagine