BMW's have a reputation for mixing luxury with performance, and the modern line-up caters for almost every taste. The used car market can offer up a decent bargain, too. Here are five of our favourites.
1 - BMW 3 Series (1998-2005)
Some consider this generation of the 3 Series (E46) as the best looking to date. The two-door coupé version was — and still is — a very popular car and it retains a sleek and smart appearance.
BMW has always ensured that the 3 Series drives well, and the E46 is no exception. In 320Ci guise, it will get you from standstill to 60mph in 8.3sec and return 31.7mpg. Ride quality is top notch and the car is spacious and has a top-quality finish inside.
There are few reports of major problems with the 3 Series, because it is well engineered. Servicing costs are reasonable, too.
We found a 2.2-litre 320Ci Sport showing 49,000 miles for £4950.
2 - BMW 6 Series (2003-2010)
After an absence of 14 years, the 6 Series was reintroduced to the BMW line-up in 2003 with equal amounts of hype, anticipation and bewilderment. Based on the excellent E60 5 Series, the E63 6 Series Coupé became the headline act of the controversial styling era under design chief Chris Bangle.
The styling divided opinion, and that has pushed used prices lower than one might expect, even though the car looks less controversial today. It’s great to drive, covers long distances in proper GT style and has a high-quality interior. Servicing costs are reasonable, although spares and tyres can be costly.
We found a 10-year-old, 60,000-mile 645Ci automatic for £7795.
3 - BMW 1 Series (2004-2011)
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Used to own an E39 diesel.
Personally think the F10 looks as modern as ever.
Not trolling...
The story of a one-owner 200k car is almost an exception that proves the rule. This guide is about buying second-hand and saying you'll get a great car. Yes you will, but without any form of knowledge of the cars history they can be (and generally are) expensive cars to maintain. I forgot about the swirl flaps that were mentioned, another case in point - over-engineered and will go wrong.
What a load of pap some
I had a 2002 E46 320d Sport bought new. The car was regularly serviced by BMW until about 125,000 when it was done by an indie but they were so poor, I went back to BMW.
Its original front Michelin Pilots did nearly 120,000 miles before an MOT saw them off. When I sold it on recently, it had done over 217,000 miles on its original engine, clutch, exhaust and gearbox. I had the turbo refurbed at 160,000 miles.
I had the swirl flaps removed at just over 100,000 miles. It had the discs replaced 3 times.
I hardly every had to replace bulbs. It did develop the annoying airbag light coming on if you moved the driver's seat roughly but a £14 resetter corrected that.
Do all those people with so called horror stories ever have their car serviced?
centenary wrote: What a load
120k miles on one set of front tyres? I know it's RWD but that sounds borderline seriously dangerous to me...tyres aren't supposed to clock up that sort of mileage however careful you drive! As for BMW's, I've had good and bad...had a head gasket go on the 1.8 twin cam engine but had a faultless 2.8 straight six engine. Having said that, the 1.8 twin cam issues would make me nervous about a similar purchase in the future...
E46