1985 BMW 3 Series 325 e 2.7L from North America

Summary:

Good engine, bad past owners

Faults:

When I first bought the car the gas tank had a hole in it. $125 to replace (did with the help of my dad)

Gas gage didn't work.

Needed breaks.

Break lines were rusty. $900 (Mechanic)

Sway bar was broke.

Tune up. $550 (Mechanic)

A/C didn't work. quoted $1000 to fix, but never did.

Replaced power steering unit. Bought a parts car that had one that worked on it.

Went through 2 alternator. I have subs.

The dash unit does not work correctly.

New tires. $220.

Suspension needs to be replaced.

I have a connection issue. The battery gets drained somehow. sometimes I will go and try and start it and it will be dead. I don't have my system hooked up. in the cold I need a jump because the battery usually is dead. My battery is brand new.

BMW parts are expensive. I saved a lot of money by doing the repairs myself.

General Comments:

Its my first car and the engine runs strong too bad nothing else on the car works.

The heat is awesome.

It's a little car so there isn't much room.

The people who had this car before me never took care of It. that's why I had to replace what I did.

It starts up every time I need it too. sometimes with a little help (jump). Starter has never failed even in -20 degrees. if the battery has a charge it will start up right away.

I wish I would have gotten this car when it was new because it would last me forever then. This car had 11 owners. I looked it up on carfax.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 26th February, 2008

1985 BMW 3 Series 525e from North America

Faults:

A few cosmetic things are wrong with the car, but its 23 yrs old, most can be fixed either with parts from Ebay, or a little elbow grease.

General Comments:

Although built 23 yrs ago, the car is more solid than most small tinny boxes being built today, and they retain their status in a sea of look alike cars being built these days.

Am 6 ft tall, decent headroom.

Adequate get-up-and-go, decent handling with stock wheels/tires, and while gas mileage isn't in the Honda Civic range, that's not why one buys the car in the first place, this is an Autobahn cruiser, not an econobox with boy racer intentions.

They made enough of these that part's aren't a problem.

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

Review Date: 19th February, 2008

1985 BMW 3 Series 325e 2.7L eta 6 from North America

Summary:

Worth owning, not only for the looks

Faults:

Discovered, not gone wrong, as I only recently bought it, but at this point the list includes:

LCD on the onboard computer is out

Paint is all scratched, a bit of rust

One bad shock mount

Windows, sunroof switches are temperamental

So are door locks

Trunk liner is missing.

General Comments:

All that said, this car at 22 is still just plain fun to drive, even though it's an e series.

Even thought I'm 6'5, it's comfortable to drive, visibility is good all around, though admittedly not very comfortable for any but my 7 year old sitting behind me.

Though I must admit that there's as little room for my big feet (especially the toes) on the clutch as there is on my motorcycle. Have to get used to positioning so as not to get stuck mid-shift.

27+ mpg overall average is nice, very now that gas is getting close to $3 again.

The car apparently hasn't had anything, but regular service throughout its long life, and yet it runs smooth and strong. A moving advertisement for preventive maintenance.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 17th April, 2007

1985 BMW 3 Series 318i 1.8 from North America

Summary:

It a nice car..

Faults:

Well the glove box lock broke about 4 years ago and again this year. the door locks that lock the door open are broke. I had to repalce the voltage regulator at 600,000 miles. Driver rear wheel cylinder went out lately. both rear cv axles have been gone since I've owned it, it only causes a vibration at low RPM's.

General Comments:

The car runs great at about 3,000 and on the highway it drinks little gas at 70 MPH, but at 90 it has great response in power, but it also drinks gas...

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 7th April, 2007

9th Apr 2007, 04:19

Surely the mileage on this review can't be correct? Then again, if it is correct I don't think you can complain at all about a broken glove box and some handles after doing 700,000 miles!

19th Mar 2008, 01:18

I have a 318i and the only thing with my glove box is very strange, if you have a CD in the car (i have a stereo in mine not the original) when you open the glove compartment it ejects the cd, but if you only have had those problems and are at 600,000 then wow you're lucky to have found such a great car.

27th Mar 2008, 21:55

Does anyone have the gas mileage for a 1984 BMW 318???