E87 130i - How is it as a daily?

[qube 3570]

you need to find some wheels with lower offset. dont run spacers its illegal without a cert.

I am selling a set of BMW Style 441M and also a set of style 350M's which fit the 1 series perfectly. will fill the guards much better than stock wheels

[Blackie 510]

I find mine way too tiring to drive as a daily. The suspension is hard even on pilot sports. Runflats forget it! Best for those smooth motorway runs, and open road overtaking as not especially fast from a standstill. 

Edit, also hardly any storage space. Centee console is tiny and awkwardly sized and cup holder is obstructed by the lid lol.

Edited February 10, 2019 by Blackie

[Danch 35]

Thanks guys for your comments.

I see quite a few 130i on TM with around 100k mileage. Most of them didn't have the water pump/thermostat replaced which puts me off..  If I take a car to a BMW workshop, would they be able to tell if the water pump is going to go? 

[NZ_InFerno 371]

Could always budget the cost of fixing the water pump into the purchase price, and bargain the seller down if you find a good car. 

I find turning up with a pocket full of cash intending to buy, or put down a deposit, can give you a good discount on the price too. 

[qube 3570]

2 hours ago, Danch said:

Thanks guys for your comments.

I see quite a few 130i on TM with around 100k mileage. Most of them didn't have the water pump/thermostat replaced which puts me off..  If I take a car to a BMW workshop, would they be able to tell if the water pump is going to go? 

wrong way to look at it.

2 hours ago, NZ_InFerno said:

Could always budget the cost of fixing the water pump into the purchase price, and bargain the seller down if you find a good car. 

I find turning up with a pocket full of cash intending to buy, or put down a deposit, can give you a good discount on the price too. 

right way to look at it.

 

waterpump and tstat is not expensive if you order the part overseas and either you can DIY or get it fitted at an indy for not a lot of money for peace of mind.

dont expect these things to be done, the general car owner in NZ is sub standard and we are the rare breed who actually care and think about preventative maintenance.

 

[Danch 35]

24 minutes ago, NZ_InFerno said:

Could always budget the cost of fixing the water pump into the purchase price, and bargain the seller down if you find a good car. 

I find turning up with a pocket full of cash intending to buy, or put down a deposit, can give you a good discount on the price too. 

@qube How much do you think I should budget for fixing the water pump?

[B.M.W Ltd 950]

Retail $1,300- $1,600

[NZ_InFerno 371]

Yeeeeewwww

I would buy an Autosure(or other provider) breakdown insurance(make sure they cover water pumps). That will give you some peace of mind motoring for the water pump and any other issues that may occur. 

I've had breakdown claims done recently on my car, which I've only had 6 months, and the cover has certainly saved me the cost of the policy already. 

[qube 3570]

for the N52, it is an electric waterpump so it can be quite expensive.

about $400nzd if you buy from overseas the pierburg version or about $500nzd for genuine, plus shipping and taxes.

if you buy locally its about $1000+ gst easily depending on where you go.

@Danch I would budget at least $1000 on labour and parts if you prepare in advance otherwise it is a easy $2000 bill if you need to do it at dealer/locally.

better way is to get mech insurance (and make sure the waterpump is covered) 

[Eagle 1662]

Out of interest what an average mechanical warranty cost on one of these? Id think with all the well known issues around BMW cooling systems, leaks etc they would have all that priced in so the wouldn't be exactly cheap. But maybe that's not the case judging from other posts ive seen?

[Gaz 1060]

7 minutes ago, Eagle said:

Out of interest what an average mechanical warranty cost on one of these? Id think with all the well known issues around BMW cooling systems, leaks etc they would have all that priced in so the wouldn't be exactly cheap. But maybe that's not the case judging from other posts ive seen?

We sell autosure extreme (their top cover) for $1890 for 3 years cover

[Danch 35]

Just like what Gaz said, I got a quote from a used car dealership (guessing Autosure): ~$1100/1 year, $1400/2 years, $1700/3 years, $1900 for top cover.

[Jacko 2154]

I did mine with pierburg pump (OEM) , new OEM thermostat, genuine coolant, all new ali bolts etc for $650NZD, and about 4 hours labour (having never done it before).

 

Its nowhere near as scary as the internet sometimes says, and the pump was at 230 something thousand ks before it started throwing an intermittent canbus error.

Edited February 14, 2019 by Jacko

[Eagle 1662]

If you can't do the work yourself then having a warranty looks like good value for money if the car has no history.

[GorGasm 563]

RE: water pump.  Meh, replace it if/when it fails.  I'd be more concerned about the DSC pump motor.

We have had ours for a good 4 or 5 years now and done 60k kms on it.  Currently @ 85k.  Only issues have been a failed DSC pump (common) and spark plugs.  Maintenance is relatively painless.

My gripes with them are the steering is too heavy, the suspension is too hard and they are a little small.  Front seats are too narrow and i'm not large.

The steering and suspension work pretty well on a spirited drive but the rest of the time it's just annoying.  The steering in both my M5 and 535i is far superior in daily use.

Engine is solid, fuel consumption is average at between 10-12l/100km.

Overall a solid reliable car that is pretty good to drive.

 

Tempted to sell it as well as the M5, but what to buy?!

 

Edited February 14, 2019 by GorGasm

[balancerider 757]

13 minutes ago, GorGasm said:

 

Tempted to sell it as well as the M5, but what to buy?!

 

M135/M140i with adaptive suspension?

[GorGasm 563]

Too small, I almost bought a M135i when I was looking at my M5, it was a very close choice.  (Un?)fortunately I got a toddler, and a baby about to drop and the 130i is too small for all 4 of us, hence we have the 535i.

If I sell both M5 and 130i, their replacement will need to be a reasonably large car.  Have thought about all sorts of stuff, an Audi S6 4.0, Panamera, new brand new Camry or old Mark X, Maser Quattroporte...  Too much to chose from, I should probably just knuckle down and focus on the new baby instead of new cars

 

 

Edited February 14, 2019 by GorGasm

[qube 3570]

swap you my M135 plus cash for your M5 + 130i

its not too small, its perfectly fine for two adults and a kid 2 kids

4 adults is okay on short trips, not recommended on long ones.

 

edit: 2 kids

Edited February 14, 2019 by qube

[GorGasm 563]

Hah!  It's not actually the kids that's the problem, it's the monstrous car seats, and the push chair, and the baby bags, and the shopping bags >_<.

Tempting offer, even just to reduce the fleet, but I think I need to try something different...

[Driftit 2078]

If you got a Camry you could drive for Uber at night.  Don't forget to not wear deodorant.

I reckon if you are gonna go VAG you might as well go Panamera.

Also the new M2 will come with 4 doors.  Or you could try an F30 M3 or even the 340i.  They are big cars now.

[Blackie 510]

On 2/14/2019 at 1:34 PM, qube said:

dont expect these things to be done, the general car owner in NZ is sub standard and we are the rare breed who actually care and think about preventative maintenance.

Preventative maintenance was dealer speak for fleecing when I was in the industry. We tried to do a lot of preventative maintenance.