[xoniv]

Hello everyone!
This is my first ever post on any BMW forum but I'll try to make it as clear as I possibly can.

I am looking to buy my first BMW, an E90 to be specific. I've been fantasizing about one for years.
I live in Israel, and the used vehicle market here isn't very large (in comparison to the EU or US), especially in German vehicles.
One of the consequences of the market being small here is the price.
The prices are super high compared to the US or EU market, which limits my choice quite a bit as you will see.

I have been looking at a few different models of the BMW E90, yet I am having a hard time deciding which one I should get.

Lets say that my budget is 40,000 ILS (Israeli currency, $1 = roughly 3.76 ILS).
I could get an extra ~5k if REALLY needed which places me at a budget of 45,000.

318i / 320i - These sell between 38k and 42k.
To me, both of these options look solid for a first E90. I would rather go for the higher HP 320i but I have heard some bad things about the i4 engine, such as it being "too weak" or a "money pit".

325i - Sells at around 45k to 50k.
I have mainly been searching for this specific model, as I've heard some good things about its "buttery-smooth" 6 cylinder engine.

The problem with the 325i in my country is that there aren't many at all, and around 95% of them are owned by a specific group of sketchy people... They are known for abusing their cars while owning it, and selling it for a high profit while hiding all of the damage they've done to it.

330i - This one is pretty much way beyond my budget.
335i - We only have a few of these in the entire country.

My question to you, dear bimmer lovers, what would you choose in my situation?
Would you go for the cheaper 318i/320i or would you try to find a good condition 325i which could take a year?
Also, I would be very happy to know about the common problems or things I should look out for in either of these.

Thanks in advance!

[porsche959]

Holy shit at those prices I would not buy a 3 series.

What’s a comparable Japanese car cost?

[neilvan]

What is the cost of fuel over there?

Also is the 2.5L I6 or the 3.0L I6. Beyond that it is up to you. Is the bigger motor/more HP worth the extra money

[xoniv]

Originally Posted by porsche959

Holy shit at those prices I would not buy a 3 series.

What’s a comparable Japanese car cost?

The best E90 325i I could find is a 3rd hand 2006 model with a bit over 200k kilometers. It costs 45,000 ILS (so roughly 11,700 USD).

For the almost same price, you could buy a 1st hand 2013 Toyota Corolla with 130k kilometers for 43,000 ILS (so roughly 11,200 USD).

[xoniv]

Originally Posted by neilvan

What is the cost of fuel over there?

Also is the 2.5L I6 or the 3.0L I6. Beyond that it is up to you. Is the bigger motor/more HP worth the extra money

We have 95 which is the standard petrol that sells for 6 ILS per liter (roughly 1.6 USD per liter).
We also have 98 which is the premium petrol. It sells for about $2 a liter.

About the engine, I would be super happy with a 2.5L I6.
Currently, my problem is choosing between a 320i 2.0L I4 which I can afford and a 325i 2.5L I6 which I would have to take a small loan for.
How do these two compare in terms of reliability, fuel consumption, maintenance and unusual problems?

[type-dRew]

Buy something different, that is too much money for those cars.

This doesn't sound like a good decision.

[oVeRdOsE.]

those cars are reliable, reliable for BMW.
You shouldn't have major issue with them, but you'll have issues. Little gremlin here and there.

Make sure you have parts. At the beginning, if the BMW market is poor in your area, you'll have hard time to find used/new parts

[xoniv]

Originally Posted by type-dRew

Buy something different, that is too much money for those cars.

This doesn't sound like a good decision.

I understand that it is super pricey, but these are the costs where I live :/
I will go for either 320i or 325i, I just don't know which one would be the better choice which is why I came here to discuss and get some help choosing.

[xoniv]

Originally Posted by oVeRdOsE.

those cars are reliable, reliable for BMW.
You shouldn't have major issue with them, but you'll have issues. Little gremlin here and there.

Make sure you have parts. At the beginning, if the BMW market is poor in your area, you'll have hard time to find used/new parts

The market for 325i's and above is very poor here, I could only find about 4 up for sale. The problem is that they're all owned by a specific group of people which are well known for not taking care of their cars at all.
On the other hand, the market for 320i's isn't that poor. I've found about 20 listings for it.

The problem is deciding which one I should go for.
Finding a 325i would be much better by the looks of it, but will take super long (might just be over a year).
Finding a well taken care of 320i would be way faster, probably a month or so, but it is also quite a bit weaker. Judging by what I've read on this forum, the 2.0L I4 also seems to have more problems than the smooth I6.

[Bimmer_Engineer]

This forum is mainly American and Canadian owners. I know they didn't sell the 4 cylinder versions in America and I don't think they did in Canada either.

It sounds like you're okay with the 4 cylinder and it would be a lot easier to find a well cared for example. Perhaps there's another forum that has more users with the 4 cylinder engines where you could get better feedback on them...

[xShadow]

Originally Posted by xoniv

The best E90 325i I could find is a 3rd hand 2006 model with a bit over 200k kilometers. It costs 45,000 ILS (so roughly 11,700 USD).

For the almost same price, you could buy a 1st hand 2013 Toyota Corolla with 130k kilometers for 43,000 ILS (so roughly 11,200 USD).

Man those are some high km's. I didn't realize car prices in Israel were so high. Personally I don't think $12,000 US is worth a 14 year old Bimmer with 200,000 kms. You will dump so much additional money in repairs.

Best of luck finding your dream car though.

[xoniv]

Originally Posted by Bimmer_Engineer

This forum is mainly American and Canadian owners. I know they didn't sell the 4 cylinder versions in America and I don't think they did in Canada either.

It sounds like you're okay with the 4 cylinder and it would be a lot easier to find a well cared for example. Perhaps there's another forum that has more users with the 4 cylinder engines where you could get better feedback on them...

I never knew that. Here we have mainly the 4 cylinder versions, and very few 6 cylinder versions.
All of the 318i / 320i here is I4. The 325i, 330i are I6.
From what I've heard and read, the 320i's I4 engine is too weak for the fairly heavy 320i. I've also read that it has quite a bit more problems than the 325i.

Do you know of any forums I can ask about the 4 cylinder version to get better knowledge about it's known "issues"?

[xoniv]

Originally Posted by xShadow

Man those are some high km's. I didn't realize car prices in Israel were so high. Personally I don't think $12,000 US is worth a 14 year old Bimmer with 200,000 kms. You will dump so much additional money in repairs.

Best of luck finding your dream car though.

How many kms is too many for buying a used E90?
Does it change between the I4 and I6 versions?
I would also be very happy to know which years I should go for.

Thanks in advance!

[Unknown_Car]

Originally Posted by xoniv

I understand that it is super pricey, but these are the costs where I live :/
I will go for either 320i or 325i, I just don't know which one would be the better choice which is why I came here to discuss and get some help choosing.

Get the 330i, I know for a fact they are reliable, and will last a long time, especially if you take care of it.

[clegg]

I would go for the 325i. The engines are great but used BMW's require maintenance. So if you have to spend 45,000 on one, plan on additional ILS for repairs (water pump, oil leaks etc). Especially one with higher miles. It sounds like the owners do not keep them maintained.

Just try to find one with maintenance history and the nicest one for the money.

[xoniv]

Originally Posted by Roma_335i

Get the 330i, I know for a fact they are reliable, and will last a long time, especially if you take care of it.

I wish I could, these are way out of my budget...
The price for one here is around $17,000 I’d say.
I don’t know the minimum wage in America, but here I earn around $1000 a month so I’m left with around $200 to spend each month.

[xoniv]

Originally Posted by clegg

I would go for the 325i. The engines are great but used BMW's require maintenance. So if you have to spend 45,000 on one, plan on additional ILS for repairs (water pump, oil leaks etc). Especially one with higher miles. It sounds like the owners do not keep them maintained.

Just try to find one with maintenance history and the nicest one for the money.

That might just be my choice.
Do you have any advice on what to check, things to look for, what milage is too high to buy, difference between the years in terms of reliability, etc..?

[Tambohamilton]

The 6 cyl engines are so much nicer than the 4 cyl ones. I don't know much about the 4 cyl maintenance (other than diesels), so I can't comment on that. On the diesels the 325d and 330d are generally more reliable than the 318d or 320d...maybe petrols are the same.

That is a LOT of money compared with your wage though...good luck! You'll need to DIY absolutely everything you can when you get it, so this forum will be super useful! That may be another vote for the 325, since there will be a lot more knowledge about them than the 320 on this forum at least.

[clegg]

Originally Posted by xoniv

That might just be my choice.
Do you have any advice on what to check, things to look for, what milage is too high to buy, difference between the years in terms of reliability, etc..?

It's all about the same on reliability throughout the years.

I bought a 2008 328i last year from a used dealer with no service history with 118000 miles..

This is what I have replaced in a years time.

Water pump and thermostat-The car overheated and left my daughter stranded.

Oil filter housing gasket-Was leaking oil.

Oil pan gasket-Leaking oil

Valve cover- Leaking oil and smoke smell coming through the vents.

Tires- They were in great shape but were an off brand and hydroplaned very badly in the rain. Not a BMW issue but something to consider.

Belt tensioner

The 3 series are fantastic driving cars but DO require maintenance.

As stated, you can save a lot of money by doing most of the work yourself and this forum is a great resource for just that.

If you can buy one with service history records, you will know how the car was maintained and what parts were recently replaced. Also make sure that there are no check engine or warning lights illuminated on the dash and if you can, scan the computer with a good scan tool for any recently cleared codes.

[xoniv]

Originally Posted by Tambohamilton

The 6 cyl engines are so much nicer than the 4 cyl ones. I don't know much about the 4 cyl maintenance (other than diesels), so I can't comment on that. On the diesels the 325d and 330d are generally more reliable than the 318d or 320d...maybe petrols are the same.

That is a LOT of money compared with your wage though...good luck! You'll need to DIY absolutely everything you can when you get it, so this forum will be super useful! That may be another vote for the 325, since there will be a lot more knowledge about them than the 320 on this forum at least.

Thanks for your feedback!
This forum will definitely be a ton of help for me in the future.

[xoniv]

Originally Posted by clegg

It's all about the same on reliability throughout the years.

I bought a 2008 328i last year from a used dealer with no service history with 118000 miles..

This is what I have replaced in a years time.

Water pump and thermostat-The car overheated and left my daughter stranded.

Oil filter housing gasket-Was leaking oil.

Oil pan gasket-Leaking oil

Valve cover- Leaking oil and smoke smell coming through the vents.

Tires- They were in great shape but were an off brand and hydroplaned very badly in the rain. Not a BMW issue but something to consider.

Belt tensioner

The 3 series are fantastic driving cars but DO require maintenance.

As stated, you can save a lot of money by doing most of the work yourself and this forum is a great resource for just that.

If you can buy one with service history records, you will know how the car was maintained and what parts were recently replaced. Also make sure that there are no check engine or warning lights illuminated on the dash and if you can, scan the computer with a good scan tool for any recently cleared codes.

Thanks for the detailed list! I have a couple of questions.
How many of these repairs have you done by yourself? What were the costs?

[clegg]

I replaced the OFHG with a genuine BMW gasket one for $30. This one is easy to do. My mechanic quoted $425.

I replaced the valve cover and the cost was $105. I bought a complete valve cover off of amazon. I was worried of the quality but it was complete with all gaskets and bolts. PCV valve also. I am knocking on wood but it's been on for a couple of months and so far so good. This is a little more of an involved repair.

I replaced the belt tensioner, $90 for the tensioner and pretty easy on the N52's.

I was actually in Dallas when i had the thermostat replaced . $75 for the part and $150 for a shop to replace there.

I had the WP replaced and the cost was $900 at my mechanic. That included parts and labor.

The oil pan gasket was close to $800 at my mechanic and included the gasket and aluminum bolts that should be replaced at that time.

These repairs can be performed DIY but you also need a decent set of tools to accomplish the work as well.

I have been working on cars for over 50 years (not my occupation), so experience helps also.