Need advice from 318 owners

[NYCMPOWER]

Im looking for a second car, wanting another E36 Im looking for a 318. What can you guys tell about the car? The car Im currently looking at has 124000 on the clock and is a 94, owner is asking 2900 for the car. What should I look for? What problems can I expect from the engine/tranny?

[Tuff Guy]

there shouldnt be any problems at all, the only problem i had is when a vacuum hose came loose and when i replaced it it ran fine, theyre pretty reliable cars really

[aaronwoode36]

Its slow

[NYCMPOWER]

Its slow

I can deal with slow, this will become my daily driver. I need reliablity.

[Alpine 318is]

suspenion has gone down hill on mine but its pretty rock solid and its easy to work on.

[luckydawg]

Cheapest parts too. Oh, and in case you haven't noticed, you can't play that little math game at the gas pump anymore where you try and keep an on-the-fly computation of price per gallon to check if your'e getting ripped off BECAUSE THE DOLLARS READOUT SPINS TOO FAST TO READ!!! You won't get to not do that as often with the 318.

[Jeffrie]

Can't go wrong with a 318, would be considered the most reliable bmw of that era if it didn't have that profile gasket issue in the early years.
Profile gasket was an isssue for the M42 only but by now sure it has been changed already. A worn timming chain tensioner may make it sound like a deisel but it's just a noise and a easy repair. T-stat often get's stuck open around that milage (needle should be at 12:00) still a cheap fix.
Other then that the car itself is the same as any other e36, just without the power but still has a top speed of 200 KPH (190KPH for the M44).

[johnf]

Vmax for both is 213 km/h when you get far enough away from New Jersey. :)

No rest for the wicked -- back to work.

[BhamRoadrunner]

I love my 318i.

Very reliable, very comfortable. It has decent throttle response, but it's by no means fast. It'll scoot when you need it to, but don't expect to haul arse all day long.

Mine's a beater as well. I love it. Couldn't have made a better choice.

BTW, on the freeway I get over 30+Mpg (convert as nessecary for LPK or whatever) Around town it drops to about 28mpg

[Xoloitzcuintli]

My '97 318i is the 44m version, reliable, great mileage. Did the usual stuff, brakes, shocks, struts, water pump, valve cover gasket, belt, and tune-up/oil changes. I need a set of wires as #4 is frayed. I'm not real green on spending $180.00 for a set of 4 wires. (that could be a post).
All in all, I really like the car. Best I've owned!
X

[kalimot]

cheap, pretty reliable (just keep up with maintainance), and fun momentum car to drive. just don't expect it to be fast :)

[Jeffrie]

Vmax for both is 213 km/h when you get far enough away from New Jersey. :)

No rest for the wicked -- back to work.

M42 is faster then M44.
the M44 is governed (@ 190 KPH in North America) while the M42 is rev limited = faster even with a few less ponys and short 0.1 litres in displacment.

[NYCMPOWER]

cheap, pretty reliable (just keep up with maintainance), and fun momentum car to drive. just don't expect it to be fast :)

I dont expect speed out of it as I already own the car pictured in my sig., the reason Im leaning towards the E36 318 is because I am very familiar with the E36 body and design and basic maintenance procedures. So, so far it looks like the 4 cylinder is a pretty solid engine. thanks for the responses so far. Keep them coming.

[Mr.M]

Easiest car to work on ever. If you get a car that didn't have profile gasket problems, (94+ I think?) you will NEVER have drivetrain problems save for the coolant system. I literally sat inside my engine bay when I changed my waterpump. Most reliable motor BMW makes.

[RallyE36]

I've had my 96 318i for 4 years. It is completely stock. I don't "monkey around" with mechanical upgrades .... just keep it maintained with parts as required. I find it very reliable. It is not as fast as a 325 or 328, but I get satisfaction at the gas pump as the mileage is around 27mpg/city and 39mpg/hwy.

My car is 10 years old with only 109,000 kms (68,000 miles) and with a 4-cylinder engine I find the 318 quite smooth and fast enough for what I need.

I have not found any areas that have particular problems, as I do regular maintenance. Here are the items I've had to replace unexpectedly to date:
- climate control (11 button digital)
- thermostat and housing (one unit)
- front rotors (and pads all around)
- final stage resistor (heating/ac controls)
- battery
- light switch bulb
- water pump
- Coolant reservoir (leaking at the bottom)

[brandonpturner]

I have a '97 318i. I LOVE this car. Like any other car, problems will arise, and you will need to fix certain things. Especially since you don't know what the previous owner did to it. I have had to change the driver side door lock actuator, the front window regulators, the final stage resistor, some fuses (prolly my fault), I need to change my front control arm bushings, but other than that everything is fantastic. I recently pulled of my valve cover at around 110,085mi. It was friggin' gorgeous. I couldn't have asked for a better car under $10k. I say go for it!

[nanaimo318is]

awsome car, i replaced timing cover gaskets, and valve cover gaskets, to fix oil leak, but besides that its been awsome, really fun to drive

[ChItalian1027]

hope u can buy that car!!! i would ask when he had the oil changed and when he had the anti freeze checked!! check the tire pressure and check the belts!! hope this info helped you!!

[LinxJinx]

great car, great gas mileage, as a college kid its peppy and hell of alot more reliable and fun to drive then your other daily beaters.

at 178k, the engine is as solid as ever.

with that much mileage just about everything around the engine has worn down though. my water pump blew at around 160k and i my radiator had a slow leak so i had that replaced as well. But when i say the engine is tough, i was in a small accident where the motor mounts broke, and well when the towing guy release the car it started rolling backwards on its own in park down a hill. (he jumped outa the car quicker then i have ever seen a 220lb man before and managed to get in the door of the car in about 5 seconds)

the repair wasn't too costly if i remember, but it was awhile ago. the oil pan cracked but it was welded back together.

All together me and my 318 have had some rough bumps (falling debris from a truck being one of em and my friend running into the curb another one)

the tensioner did give the car this annoying sound for abit but it was a cheap fix as well.

didn't know about the t-stat being stuck open, that explains why my temp dips from normal to cold and back again.

otherwise it's been nothing but normal matinence for it as far as a car from 94 with 178k miles, gunning for that magical 200,000#