Faults:

Squeaking sill.

Broke down and had to be flat towed to dealer due to wiring loom fault.

Had to 're-build' front suspension due to odd noises as (what dealer said) power steering hose making contact with suspension.

Heat shield fell off onto gear box causing rattles through gear lever below 2000rpm.

Flat run-flat which nearly cost $900 to replace by dealer.

Squeaking rear doors, body flex.

Cracking/snapping noise from under the dash.

Mysteriously cracked windscreen.

Steering wheel squeaks. - can't be fixed.

Clutch shudder, ongoing and infrequent since 5000kms.

General Comments:

I traded my 40 year old Volkswagen in on this new BMW because it was getting very tiresome and wearing down being used every day. When I test drove the 116i it was a revelation, compared to what I'd been used to.

1 1/2 years later I still cannot drive it properly, the accelerator feels like its modulated through a pillow and can't hold even revs. Some things you can never really get used to and that includes the ride, even with 16inch it’s still very harsh.

The car also has a tendency after cornering to lose power and doesn't come back until 5000rpm or a change of gear.

The car seems to be riddled with problems, a lot of which like the rattles and squeaks can't be fixed because they seem to disappear when I take it to the dealership!

In general the quality seems to be lacking and certainly not what I expected of a new BMW. In one of the few storage places, is a collection of broken parts from the seats. Despite my best efforts the interior seems to be deteriorating with surfaces that scratch and mark easily.

Sure it handles well, but there’s no power to exploit it and fuel economy suffers due to how hard you need to push it just to keep up with traffic.

The steering is quite heavy for low speed maneuverability and becomes tiresome combined with the transmission, after lots of city driving.

Whilst I don't hate the car, air conditioning and and a heater that doesn't gas you to death, wipers that work and safety features are all nice to have, it does cause me grief! I had less problems with my Karmann Ghia and makes me think I should has just suffered with that instead and at least looked good!

Faults:

Windows squeaking.

General Comments:

I purchased this car last week. I was going to purchase a 120, but by the time I ticked all the option list, the 130 was a better buy.

The straight six 3 liter engine is very powerful, with the paddle shift on the steering wheel making gear changing very exciting. The engine note is louder than the 120, but it's bigger capacity, so it's expected.

I think the steering wheel feedback is too strong on the 130, sometimes you get steering kick when the road is not so good.

Overall I'm happy with the car, and with the dealer, but I'm very disappointed with windows squeaking after owning the car for one week. I am not sure of the cause - could be the motors for the electric windows. I am taking back to the dealer see what they say, but for the money I have paid, I am very surprised to see that windows squeaks.

Tim.