Jump to content
  •  
Advertise here

Recommended Posts

How good or bad is it to own a used BMW car.

Based on the foll criteria:

  • Spare parts costs and availability
  • Mileage(Kms driven) range to look for in a used car
  • Which series is the most economical and less troublesome
  • Which year model is preferred or reliable from any of your personal experience. 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am driving 2012 BMW X5 35si. 133.000km now. Last maintenance 383.50aed for original bmw oil and oil filter. 40aed for labour i paid. Almost 1 year this car with me lately we changed one of the bush for 330 aed. Other than that no trouble at all.  

  • Thanks (+1) 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

22 minutes ago, sertac said:

I am driving 2012 BMW X5 35si. 133.000km now. Last maintenance 383.50aed for original bmw oil and oil filter. 40aed for labour i paid. Almost 1 year this car with me lately we changed one of the bush for 330 aed. Other than that no trouble at all.  

How much did you buy it for? And what was the Kms when you bought it. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

BMW trouble-free lifespan is 3-5 years. If you are lucky and get a clean car that has been maintained to the perfection then 6-7 years, must be the case of Sertac X5.

I know friend's and family whose Bimmers are failing within warranty but it doesn't hurt as it comes back with free new parts and only cost the downtime in AGMC.

Bottom line, buy BMW which is in warranty or ready for gambling.

  • Thanks (+1) 1

Let's root for each other & watch each other grow.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have a 2013 316i. Bought it in 2016 for 68k with 80,000km on the odometer, but starting leaking oil everywhere and it costed me another 7000 to get many rubbers and gaskets replaced as apparently they couldn't deal with the climate.

Since then i have been virtually worry-free. I get my maintenance done in Sharjah and i am now at around 180,000km. I hope it gives me another few years of pleasure because i really enjoy driving it. It is comfortable, consumes less than 8l/100km, fast enough, and i like the way it looks. I've always been a pretty big BMW fan and for me there is no comparison in terms of driving pleasure and handling.

"Go as far as you can see; once you get there, you'll be able to see further."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I basically drive a BMW. Technically its a Range Rover but other than a Land Rover body and few bits and bobs it's a BMW with a range rover body. It's got the BMW M62 engine, ZF5HP trans used in many older BMWs like the older 7 and 5 series. Even the ecus are Bmw, you can use a BMW diagnostic scanner on it and works on it. Even the infotainment is a direct swap from Bmw of that generation. I've saved quite some money by buying BMW parts than the more expensive Land Rover bits.

But I'll say this when its working it's a damn good car but it has massive engineering flaws and is a lemon. Timing chain guide rails are plastic which in this weather become hard and crack leaving the timing chain slapping around scrapping the metal and the broken plastic rails fall in the sump and block the oil pickup which starve the engine of oil and then your engine becomes toast. 

Gaskets and seals are made of putty which disintegrate and it's leaks from everywhere. The Vanos systems goes to shit around 100-150k mine is only one I've seen with a working vanos I've checked many other 2002-2005 Range rovers none of theirs were working. 

Some stupid german decided not to give the front drive shaft a cv joint which then strips the teeth and you lose front diff and voila out of thr  blue one day you don't have drive( there was a massive worldwide recall on this)

Another smart german at ZF decided that the transmission doesnt need to be serviced ans put HUGE warning stickers on it, do not service, gearbox filled for life, but failed to mentioned not life of car but life of transmission which is supposed to be 100k so after that tge torque converter clutch packs wear out and you start to get shuddering like when driving over cattle grid then soon after that other things inside the boxs start to break.

The engine is super sensitive, and requires fully sythentic oil because it runs so hot. The thermostat on it opens at temps where other cars start to overheat and melt.

And god forbid for whatever reason if you overheat the car just a tiny bit also say goodbye to your cylinder heads if your are lucky. You also end up with scoured sleeves which basically means dismantling the entire motor. And having need sleeves ans piston heads put in.

All in all I will never touch anything made by BMW with a 1000ft long pole.

German engineering my ass! 

  • Haha (+1) 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

bmws and mercedes rovers audis vws porsches  are for cold climate they have a bad time adjusting here they are good only for 4 or 5 years after that all hell breaks loose i had one guy he imported his merc s600 and when i told him that he needed to remove the gear to fix the converter leak he was like this is a new car it has warranty and i told him the warranty is in germany not here and you have to fix it yourself ghargash won't do it for free as they have not sold it to you...and later on the auto close feature of the rear and driver door broke that also he fixed here its actuator is really delicate it just breaks if door is handled harsh

as of late the issues of leaks oil, air or even coolant usually pops out in mostly newer cars in places which is usually unheard of in older cars

  • Thanks (+1) 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I’ve had a few BMW M3s, E36s. 2 x M3, M3 Evo and M3 Evo Individual. I’ve had a couple of lesser model 318 and 325 too. All were flawless apart from one of the standard M3s which was a ball of dung, which was purely down to neglect by the previous owner. The Evo Individual had a Vanos issue but that was easy fixed with a cheap rebuild kit.

If you want a BMW, buy one. People will say the brand is unreliable but if you believe everything you read on the internet you will stop driving cars and buy a bicycle. Sure they break down sometimes, just like any other car, but if you want a car with lots of extra features that’s the price to pay. People in uae rave about Japanese cars being the best thing since powdered milk and the most reliable thing next to a biryani from ravis. That’s because they’re simple, there’s nothing to go wrong. Engine, air conditioning and a radio. If everyone stuck wheels on their sofa and pedalled around, life would be no fun. Drive what you want to drive but make sure you buy a good, well looked after example and care for it properly. If the electric handbrake stops working, fix it. Otherwise go out and buy a Camry and be like every other boring taxi driver in Dubai. It’s not watching reruns of top gear that makes you a petrolhead, it’s going out and driving what you want to drive. Plenty of people have laughed at my car on here and other forums but I don’t care because it cost me under 10k and I know it would smoke many 100k+ cars. 

  • Like (+1) 2
  • Thanks (+1) 1
  • Haha (+1) 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hey think my opinion has a little credibility here, remember I'm from a Land Rover Range Rover background, you know the ones every one says are the least reliable and most expensive to maintain!

If I say BMWs are shyte. That's gotta hold some weight.

And whole and sole disagree with Saleem on Euro brands being good for 4-5 yrs here. My current European car is 16yrs old and 220k kms on the clock and still has a lot of life left in it. 

And stop giving bad advice to your customers. The warranty is by tye manufacturer not dealer. Sure the local dealer makes noise at first and gives you stories but in the end he has to honor the warranty ot else you get directly in touch with the manufacturer.

I know couple of cases where guys imported new cars from abroad. The local dealer made some noise at first and then even charged 2-15k to open a "file" fpr that car since they didn't sell it but after that car had same warranty as car sold by them. Which was 5yrs unlimited mileage. 

  • Like (+1) 1
  • Thanks (+1) 1
  • Confused (0) 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Terms of use