1984 BMW 3 Series e 2.7eta from North America

Summary:

Superb handling, great economy

Faults:

Brake Master Cylinder.

Replaced water pump, timing belt under normal maintaince.

Alternator mounting cylinders.

Cold start injector.

General Comments:

Car is beautiful to drive and own. Very easy to work on and the layout of the engine compartment is much easier to work on then the prelude I was used to.

The acceleration isn't the greatest, but 30mpg on regular gasoline is nice since it is a daily driver. Get compliments on it frequently because of its classic style.

The handling is superb and the ergonomics are great. One of the best fitting cars I've driven being 6 feet tall.

I would recommend this car to anyone who is willing to do maintaince themselves. Mechanic labor is extremely expensive and completely offsets the low purchase price if you have to take it in to a shop for anything.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 7th February, 2006

1984 BMW 3 Series 318i 1.8L from North America

Summary:

A disappointing foray into the European auto market

Faults:

What hasn't gone wrong?

Speedometer hasn't worked since I purchased the car, and I don't have the days required to re-trace the wiring.

The dashboard lights are flaky, and sometimes go out.

Factory stereo didn't work since I purchased the car.

Seats are badly worn, but are comfortable.

The trunk power lock is broken, and sometimes it takes me several minutes to work the key in the lock to open it (so I keep it unlocked)

The gas tank leaks.

Brake lines corroded and blew.

I've replaced the fuel injectors.

The electric fan at the front stopped working, and now the car overheats regularly. (I use the heater to relieve the engine heat, but that's pretty nasty in the summer months)

I replaced the thermostat.

I've gone through two idle control valves, and I need another one.

The car runs rough.

General Comments:

I'm pretty disappointed with this car. I thought that when I purchased it I was going to get a really reliable car for driving back and forth to work, but the only thing reliable about it is that it always runs like crap.

If I sell it now, I might just get away before the whole thing blows up.

The handling is great.

In winter or slippery conditions, this car isn't all that swell. I find that the rear wheel drive easily spins out, but that could be a factor of me having the engine revving high because of the idle control valve.

Parts are extremely expensive. The idle control valve is something that is only a four inch long cylinder, and they want $600 for it at the dealership. (no parts suppliers have it)

If I'd had a parts car to go with it, I would've been better off.

Maybe this could be someone else's parts car.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 8th August, 2005

9th Aug 2005, 22:36

Unfortunately no matter how well the car was originally built it is a 20 year old vehicle, so is bound to be unreliable and require considerable investment in parts and labour. Most 20 year old BMWs would be scrapped by now.

18th Aug 2005, 09:29

I'm glad that people are taking time to comment on my post. I agree that a 20yr old car doesn't have very much life left in it. This being said, I did purchase a car with a mechanics certification (performed the month before), as well as an e-test (required in Ontario) performed less than a year previous (I now doubt that either of these were actually performed). This car I've driven for over a year, and I've definitely got my money out of it. 264K is low mileage for a) a European car, b) something 20 years old. at 20K per year it would have been closer to 400K by now. So the mileage isn't much of a concern. Like I said, the body is okay, and when I purchased the vehicle, I was told that it had recently had a newer engine put in. (lesson learned) In the review I described what went wrong with the car, not what I should have expected. I whole-heartedly admit that I know very little about purchasing cars, but aside from stating what went wrong with the vehicle, I did nowhere slam the make or the model, so I'm a little curious about some of the comments. The intent of the report left by me is to illustrate to another user interested in purchasing a like vehicle, what they're getting themselves into, so that they don't underestimate the commitment required, as I did.

Again, thanks for the comments, I enjoyed reading them.

Cheers.

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