SmithyInWelly

And if anyone wants to shift their slush box (no pun intended) to pick this up; let me know - I'm after a decent dd.

Good spot re the exhaust… the wheels and headlights already raised questions for me! Thought about the cheapest one that’s in the Tron but it seems a bit hard with the seller, and that one here in the Hutt looks munted.

And on a similar note, if anyone knows anything about the Kiwi new one in Waiuku - hit me up 👍 https://www.trademe.co.nz/a/motors/cars/bmw/130i/listing/4241116501

Funny - I'm soon to buy a cheap runaround for $5-6k and saw a few 130i's had popped up around Wgtn... but there's no such thing as a free (or cheap) lunch; and certainly not when it comes to BMW's - nor other Euro's.

'08 NZ new, 46000km, good condition, recent service... looking for around $11/12k - located in Lower Hutt. (also selling my 2022 Honda Monkey on the off chance anyone is interested, less than 500km).

No sports mode on this one... but having driven another couple that did have it I'm not overly bothered. It sounds quite ok for this old fella lol I'm pretty keen to keep it stock - aside from the reliability stuff (ie: catch can), with the k's as low as they are and the spec; I quite like it being a bit understated.

Cheers Kyu - that's great to know... and yeah - some pics...

I am now the proud owner of an '08 R56... with an N14 😜 But in it's defence - it's Kiwi new, with very very very low kms and a good service/ownership history. Now to get it serviced; get some decent rubber on it, probably a walnut blast and an oil catch catch can, and do something about the horrendous factory audio with a 3.5mm aux in that makes music played via my iPhone sound like it's being listened to under water. But bluddy hell, it ain't half fun to drive! And yes Greg - I was originally thinking along the lines of a 130; but I've done the 3ltr Beemer thing (330i the M135i) and wanting three pedals pushed the price up beyond what I wanted to spend, not to mention there being bugger all on the market at the moment.

So after all the research and advice... who can guess what I now own?

Someone should buy this... so much pace and a fair bit of practicality for the price, had a ball with mine.

Cheers John and yes, it looks good. I'm pretty keen on a roof so will wait a little longer before I go the roofed route.

Must be manual - ideally with a sunroof, and preferably N18 (would consider N14 if it's been well maintained). Not interested in a project car, nor a garage queen - simply looking for a fun daily driver. I'm in Wellington but happy to travel for the right car.

Thanks for that 👍 It certainly seems worthwhile to hold out for an N18... the downside (for me) is it's harder to find the spec I want. I wasn't born with the patience gene lol.

Yes - R56... and before y'all tell me why an R53 is better - I've recently driven both and it's not for me. My left side is a bit munted following surgeries (and I'm a bit buggered from chemo), and as I do want a manual; whilst the '53 is more analogue, the '56 is that bit easier/lighter to drive - and for me, that matters. It's purely a fun second car that won't be driven a lot (just sold my previous car that had done approx 2.5kms in the last six months), just a fun little box for me to run around town and occasionally a bit further. I'm looking to spend around the $10k mark... and have no need for a bigger mini (Countryman's and the like) so keen to stick to the basic two door hatch (not the butt ugly "coupe" lol). I've seen a little bit about the benefits of an N18 vs the N14, which of course seems logical enough but that's pushing the budget and a 14 is more realistic... though as I'll have to outsource any maintenance maybe it's worth spending that bit more? Anyway; any real-world recommendations appreciated... and if you know of a good one that's available (preferably with a sunroof), give me a shout.

Yip, it was at O'Reilly's - saw it when I had my car serviced. Such a lot of car for the cabbage.

You know it makes sense!

Cheers for the feedback everyone... going to check out a 3.0 X1 in Nelson over the weekend (for comparisons sake) and will have a look at the 35i at Turners next week probably... I don't think there's much upside (for me) in going diesel; I simply won't do the mileage. Also need to do something about shifting my A250 and my Vespa too - looking at Tard Me it doesn't seem there's much turnover happening in the used market at the moment.

Cheers Neal - a CX5 was the other thing on my radar (funnily enough) though had thought the 2.5 rather than a diesel as per above.

Yeah that's what I thought... they've actively stated 2WD multiple times. Muppets.

Mostly 5-10 mins... though I do usually take the scenic route so it at least gets up to temp. Every few weeks a trip into Newtown (from Lower Hutt) for chemo... and aside from that the occasional trip to Martinborough. I've always assumed diesels are great for long hot running but less great for the kinds stuff I do. I've nothing against diesels at all but have never really thought of them as the right option (for me).

I do mostly short short/local trips... not a lot of decent hot running aside from a trip over to Martinborough every month or two. I've always thought that'd be bad for an oil-burner?

Thanks Kyu, sounds positive. There's one local to me so I might try and have a look at it this week... wrong spec tho - no sunroof. It's also listed as a 2WD which seems strange for a 35i, all the others seem to be Xdrive.

I've tried the search but haven't come up with much; well, anything. I'm going to sell the awesome little A250 Sport and get something that's easier for me to get into, and more so to get out of when I'm fatigued/sore from chemo which is about a third of the time... anyway, I don't want/need something big (smallish parking spot and it's almost always only one or two people in it) and I don't necessarily need an SUV/SAV for any particular reason other than something higher is much easier for me to live with. Took the Merc for a service a couple weeks back and the loaner was a Rangie Sport - and it was a breeze (and no, I'd never consider buying one - haha). So thinking about smaller SUV's doesn't bring up a whole lot - I could sell the Merc and get a lifted version of the same car that costs more (GLA250) but that seems kinda nonsensical and a bit too obvious. Ideally I'd like to go back to six cylinders - my mileage isn't huge and something that gives a bit of fizz is the preference. So I've kinda landed on a 2nd gen X3 - probably a 35i... doesn't have to be X drive though the vast majority are. They seem to be an M135i with less performance (more weight) and shitter dynamics (more weight) but I won't exactly be driving it on the limit so neither a major issues for me. Budget is pretty much what I sell the Merc for and possibly my 2018 Vespa Sprint 150 too (if anyone is interested in either hit me up)... so low-mid 20's, the lesser the better really but I wouldn't consider a first gen X3 because oink. If anyone has any real-world experience of them I'd appreciate any pros/cons... whether they'll relate to me and how I'll use it or not. Open to other suggestions too (and yes, ML63's are cheap and high on fizz and depreciation but I don't need something that big lol). Cheers 👍

An intriguing thought... here's the top five underrated Bimmers having been outsourced by an Aussie bloke (and his mates). Personally, I can't have an X3 anywhere and would replace it with pretty much anything (M135i perhaps?)... (tried to embed the vid but no go).

These are dropping like a stone, and they can't drop much further... such amazing value for what you get. I still miss mine. You (almost definitely) won't be disappointed.