It has come to my attention that there are some very well-equipped, BMW Certified Pre-Owned, 2007-2008 BMW 328i sedans in my price range. The 2007 models with auto, premium and sports packages are selling in the 25,000 range with fewer than 30,000 miles. The 2008 models sell for a few thousand more. I figured that for about the same amount of money as an Accord, why not take a look?
Through my research, I learned that one advantage of the BMW Certified Pre-Owned program is that a vehicle cannot be certified if there are any gaps in its maintenance history. All of the maintenance history is stored on the keyfob and a printout of the vehicle's maintenance history is required as part of the certification process. This is very useful, as usually you have no information about an used car's past maintenance history. With BMW, you can easily access all of that information.
I am posting this thread to see if anyone is aware of any serious issues with these cars. CR reports the reliability of the newest 3-series (E90) to be very good (4/5). The 328i uses a GM 6L45 transmission, so a rebuild should not be too expensive. Having a car with stellar reliability is not important to me as my current car is a Saturn, but the car's reliability must still be reasonable. I plan to perform all repairs and maintenance myself once the vehicle is out-of-warranty.
The only issue that I can see with these cars is that the tires cannot be rotated if you have the sports package (staggered setup), which means the tires will need replacement about every 15,000 miles. Also, the stock tires are runflats, so no spare is included. So if I switch to normal tires, I'd have to call a tow truck if I get a serious puncture.
Anyway, does anyone own one of these cars? I would be interested in hearing your ownership experience. As always, all other advice and input is welcome.
Thanks in advance.
PS: Since this is an oil site, in case some of you were wondering, the oil change intervals vary significantly with the new Condition Based Service (CBS) system on these cars. Some cars need a service before 10k, others go as long as 20k, but most average around 15k. The car takes seven quarts of a BMW LL-01 approved oil, such as Mobil 1 0w-40. And unlike some of you, I actually find the extended intervals to be a big plus and I would follow them.
Through my research, I learned that one advantage of the BMW Certified Pre-Owned program is that a vehicle cannot be certified if there are any gaps in its maintenance history. All of the maintenance history is stored on the keyfob and a printout of the vehicle's maintenance history is required as part of the certification process. This is very useful, as usually you have no information about an used car's past maintenance history. With BMW, you can easily access all of that information.
I am posting this thread to see if anyone is aware of any serious issues with these cars. CR reports the reliability of the newest 3-series (E90) to be very good (4/5). The 328i uses a GM 6L45 transmission, so a rebuild should not be too expensive. Having a car with stellar reliability is not important to me as my current car is a Saturn, but the car's reliability must still be reasonable. I plan to perform all repairs and maintenance myself once the vehicle is out-of-warranty.
The only issue that I can see with these cars is that the tires cannot be rotated if you have the sports package (staggered setup), which means the tires will need replacement about every 15,000 miles. Also, the stock tires are runflats, so no spare is included. So if I switch to normal tires, I'd have to call a tow truck if I get a serious puncture.
Anyway, does anyone own one of these cars? I would be interested in hearing your ownership experience. As always, all other advice and input is welcome.
Thanks in advance.
PS: Since this is an oil site, in case some of you were wondering, the oil change intervals vary significantly with the new Condition Based Service (CBS) system on these cars. Some cars need a service before 10k, others go as long as 20k, but most average around 15k. The car takes seven quarts of a BMW LL-01 approved oil, such as Mobil 1 0w-40. And unlike some of you, I actually find the extended intervals to be a big plus and I would follow them.