BMW 325i SPORT - MY DAILY DRIVER

Advantages: STYLING, IMAGE, BUILD QUALITY, ATTENTION TO DETAIL
Disadvantages: LACK OF SPACE, EXPENSIVE SPARES/SERVICING

...Last year, I replaced my 1999 BMW 323iSE saloon with a 2002 BMW 325i Sport. The 323iSE was a very impressive car, and my first from the marque. It gave me several thousand miles of problem free motoring. It was also surprisingly economical for a 2.5 litre straight 6 cylinder, generally returning an average of 31 miles per gallon. However, the mileage was getting a little high (80,000 miles in 3 years), so I looked again to BMW for its replacement. Originally, I was looking for a 330i, and it was in pursuit of just such a car that I found myself at a local franchise dealer. However, the 2000 330i I had intended to see there had not been prepared, and I was understandably disappointed. It was at this point that the salesman mentioned a low mileage 2002 BMW 325i Sport that he had in stock. Obviously as the car was newer, with a much...

BARNEYM1979 01.02.2004 (06.05.2004) · Read review
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Review of BMW 325i

BMW 325i convertable

Advantages: Fair price, electric roof, leather interior, CD player and, of course 'blindingly rapid'.
Disadvantages: Quite expensive parts, can tend to guzzle petrol depending on the speed.

...Two years ago my brother was serching for a car which had class, good looks, gave a good performance, a soft-top and space for his golf clubs. He found a mattalic purple BMW 325i convertable which gave him everything above. The only thing it didn't give him was the good performance - instead it's performance was excellent. The soft-top folded back itself - what would you expect? The car came with black leather interior, a CD player, alloy wheels, a standard BMW alarm system and lots more. Insurance can obviously be high for a quality motor as with the BMW 325i. If anyone was going to buy this car my advice to them would be that: *BMW parts can be expensive, although replica parts are available at a fraction of the cost. *It may be necessary to buy a wind-breaker, (which breaks the sometimes violent wind when the roof is down...

tom13 03.05.2001 · Read review
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Review of BMW 318i

Fast, safe, visually pleasing with a hint of practicality

Advantages: Fast, Safe, Practical, Well built
Disadvantages: Fuel Economy, Servicing costs, Worry!

...This is a fantastic car. I am a huge fan of german cars anyway, but this is one of their best. I own a BMW 325ci 03 plate on around 50k. It has the 2.5 straight 6 cylinder engine, and has the "M-sport" exterior package, which in my opinion, makes the car particularly the 18" alloys. Its surprising how few cars have this exterior package option, and it really makes the car stand out from all the (unfortunately) other 3 series BMW's out there. The car itself is fantastic. The engine pulls hard, and the automatic "steptronic" box is very, very smooth. Clicking the gear stick to the left and putting it in sport mode really livens the car up too, holding the revs longer for example. The suspension and chassis are perfect in my opinion, blending composed and rapid cornering with a plush ride. Minus fuel economy, the car behaves brilliantly...

BradleyBrittan 20.07.2009 · Read review
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Review of BMW 325i

Bargin Beemer

Advantages: smooth powerful engine, refinement
Disadvantages: handeling in the wet, cramped rear seats

...My car was an old 1988 model 325i SE. It had around 140,000 on the clock and would still rev cleanly to the redline. COSTS Genuine BMW parts can be pricey but with companys like Eurocarparts and German and Swedish parts can be affordable. Can happily average 30mpg and above but i have got into the low teens with spirited driving. Can be a bit of bargain i paid £300 at an auction and they don't seem to go much above £800 these days. RELIABILITY Very depndable in the time i had it never once did it let me down i once read of a texas bank who had one that had covered 1000,000 miles without problems which i think best shows how well they are made. When they do go wrong there easy to work on. DRIVING Very comfortable on long journeys thanks to absorbant suspension and unstressed engine. Has great overtaking ability thanks to...

brambridge 04.01.2005 · Read review
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Review of BMW 325i

BMW Sytner Chigwell

Advantages: Great customer service, aparently no matter who you are.
Disadvantages: Services can be a bit pricey, but not as bad as you would think.

...I have visited BMW Sytner a few times over the last 3-4 years & I have to say, they have the best customer service i have experienced at any dealership, bar none. I am not your typical kind of guy you would see in a BMW showroom, I am 27 years old but look like I am 17, I probably go there looking a bit rag tag aswell (I think i do it on purpose, i am not fond of face value). But I always feel that they treat me with the same courtesy as all of their customers I have been to Sytner for 3 series parts a few times & no matter how small the problem, the staff are always very helpful & polite. They took their time to track down some E36 washers I could have probably got anywhere & smiled at me when i thought they would charge me for it!, lol. Specifically, i find parts prices are not that bad at all compared to mercedes or renault. I...

krslim 23.04.2009 · Read review
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Review of BMW

Halliwell Jones Chester (BMW) - Give Them A Wide Berth

Advantages: Some pretty cars to look at in the showroom
Disadvantages: Poor after-sales, the ability to 'create' problems with your car (then refuse to accept liabilty)

...(or even interim) service had not been completed at this time. So, here we have a car which is almost 3 years old, with no evidence that the previous owner had the car serviced by BMW, and knowing this information BMW decide only to check the brakes. I know from experience that even Vauxhall dealers would undertake a full (or at least the service that was due based on the vehicle's age) in this situation. They also explained that the fluid levels were not checked during this service, which makes me wonder why I even bothered taking it for a service at all. I could have checked the brakes. The dealer therefore refused to accept negligence on their part, since they wouldn't have even opened the bonnet during the service(!), and argued that they would levy a 1 hour minimum labour charge to subsequently look at the car, since it was now out...

thpba3 19.06.2009 · Read review
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Review of BMW

BMW Approved used car warranty in doubt

Advantages: I have seen none to date
Disadvantages: A BMW approved used car from a main dealer proved to be a nightmare

...Two months ago, I purchased a BMW 323ci convertible from Vines of Guildford who are BMW main dealers. The car is 8 years old and had just over 47000 miles on the clock. It was sold with a BMW used car warranty but with certain exclusions due to its age, explained to me after I had paid a deposit on it. In the last couple of weeks, knocking noises have started coming from the engine which have progressively got worse. I've owned three BMWs and I know these cars well but I've never had one do that before. Very worried I checked the service history booklet 'Evidence of maintenance work' that came with the car and this is what I found ... 09/05/2000 Pre-delivery check No running-in check at 1250 miles 20/11/2002 Oil service at 12632 miles (6 months late) 05/05/2005 Oil/Inspection 1 and 2 at 21055 miles (1 year late) And then no...

cravenh 09.11.2008 (24.11.2008) · Read review
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Review of BMW

BMW Hexagon is poor

Advantages: convenient N London location
Disadvantages: unresponsive staff, expensive

...Hexagon BMW are hopeless. I had my car serviced at the Kentish Town site in December and they ordered a part for me that needed to be fitted. Have tried to contact the service contact (AR) there on 3 separate occasions during January to get the work done - he won't call back. No-one else I have spoken to seems to have any idea what is going on with this repair. I also visited their sales showroom on great north road recently to look at swapping my 7-series for a newer one, but hardly anyone around to help and the one youngster there had limited interest as he said that they were cutting jobs. BMW Park Lane is owned by BMW and I think I'll stick with them going forward....

m1000 14.01.2009 · Read review
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Review of BMW

HR Owen Heathrow BMW & MINI

Advantages: Exceptional Offers - Fantastic Service and Competency of all within the business
Disadvantages: -

...I recently had my vehicle serviced at HR Owen Heathrow BMW in West Drayton and found the overall experience brilliant. I have had numerous BMW's and been to many dealerships but I found them to be very professional and thorough. The pricing was competitive and they advised me on all the extra items my car needed after carrying out a FREE Maintenance Check. The one thing I found unique about them was they offered me a Service While I Fly facility. I dropped my car off to the dealership and the courtesy bus took me straight to the airport for my business flight. When I returned, they collected me, had the car waiting done and cleaned and I killed two birds with one stone. My car was serviced and the storage/parking charges were a damn site chepaer than all the NCP's etc... around the airport. In a nutshell the service was superb...

fashthebash 05.07.2006 · Read review
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Review of BMW

Advantage BMW

Advantages: A good all rounder and relatively cheap to run.
Disadvantages: None.

...and houses the spare under the floor. The CD changer is also in the boot behind a removable panel, and a nice tool kit is fitted in the boot lid. The interior is spacious at the front; however, rear passengers are not catered for so well in the legroom department. Although legroom is forgotten when they sample the smoothness and quietness of this automobile. The automatic gearbox changes without notice although sometimes it will go near the red line before changing up. My car has the steptronic version of auto box with the manual shift facility. I have to confess I hardly ever use it because there are only four gears in that mode, and the auto box achieves its task with so little effort. Driving BMW’s advert claim they are the “ultimate driving machines” and I would agree, This car is all about driving, one tends to...

Shekera 20.10.2001 · Read review
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Review of BMW 523i