Results 1 to 7 of 7

Thread: Pls Help! Car buying advice

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2019
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    32
    My Cars
    None

    Pls Help! Car buying advice

    Hi,

    I'm very interested in a 2013 328i xdrive BMW with 65,000km. The owner said that it was a leased car, and has been well maintained by BMW and by him, and so he says there are no problems with the car.
    He has an error being displayed for brake fluid, so he's flushing it before I buy.

    I am fully aware that BMWs are generally more expensive to fix, but I still expect high quality.

    However, I have been reading up on this model, and I cant believe what some owners are reporting. These are issues that I didn't even think existed, especially with BMW.

    This is the site I used:
    https://www.carcomplaints.com/BMW/328/2013/

    I have a $500 deposit and am scheduled to buy on Thursday, but I'm legitimately scared of the car now.

    Things like:

    **Brakes not working at all
    -- I thought if you depressed the brakes enough, it would activate mechanically by bypassing the assist

    **Randomly accelerating and brakes not working
    -- That's just crazy. Imagine your car just speeding up with no control over it. Worse, you can't stop it. That's straight out of a horror movie
    I would have never thought this.

    **Car locks passengers into car and can't get out.

    **Transmission can't give power and stops working.

    **Complete engine replacement

    Many other problems...

    Should I stop the sale?? Is this just a very small portion of 328i's?? I feel so disappointed in BMW right now. This isn't about expensive fixes, this is complete unreliability.

    This is the CarFax is anyone is interested:
    https://vhr.carfax.ca/main?id=IwlJ2dCsRYdBitcnRANBlwoipfqkYODx

    The 328i also seems to have alot of recalls.
    Last edited by Stephen8991; 06-23-2019 at 05:23 AM.

  2. #2
    MauiM3Mania's Avatar
    MauiM3Mania is offline Observer/Master Skeptic Moderator
    Join Date
    Jan 2002
    Location
    Central Pacific
    Posts
    10,809
    My Cars
    88M3 99M3 04M3 ITBx16
    I can't speak from personal experience with a 2013 328i, but any model of any car is going to get a level of complaints listed on a site of that variety. Plug in a Mercedes model of the same vintage and see what comes up.

    I've moved your post to the model specific sub-forum. You're sure to get input and experience from actual owners.
    04M3 TiAg 69k slick-top 3 pedal
    99M3 Cosmos 61k S50B32 euro 6Spd

    88M3 AW 43k miles Project FS


    WTB: 3.5" Eurosport/Conforti CAI

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jun 2019
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    32
    My Cars
    None
    Yes exactly, it's true for any car, no doubt. I was actually looking at the complaints for the 2013 Ford focus, and there were a ton, yet Focuses are known to be quite reliable, at least from my circles.

    Like you said, these sites are condensed with these kinds of complaints, and isn't representative of the FREQUENCY. And that's what I want to better understand.

    The other thing I want to add is that, I'm fully aware that every car will have issues. Maybe it's just a faulty transmission that was put into the car, or just some other faulty component, and it won't work. But this is not representative of all the cars.
    On any and every assembly line or production facility, there is a certain % of components that will be defective no matter what you do.
    There are so many BMWs on the road, and so I would just want to know if this is widespread or not. Is it a concern that my BMW is destined for. It does have 65k km on it, so I'm thinking alot of problems would have popped up already.

    So if there are 13 reports on engine failure out of 80 000 then I don't see that as a problem, but if it's 13 out of 100 then that is a problem . How reliable are these BMWs?

    It's just like my friend, he bought the same computer as me, mine if flawless after 4 years, but he's having some minor problems after only 2. He just happened to get the .5% of bad laptops from that production facility, but MOST computers that I've used lasted 7 years, and so his experience isnt as relevant .

    This is what I am trying to understand with the 2013 328xi.
    Last edited by Stephen8991; 06-23-2019 at 02:01 PM.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2001
    Location
    STR, MUC, LHR
    Posts
    25,294
    My Cars
    I love turbos!
    I bought a 2014 328i on June 14. So far, I have put on 300 miles and the car is quite impressive. In Sport mode and the shifter in Sport, the car hauls ass! A 240hp car does not pull like this, so I am sure the motor is under rated. As for the complaint you see on the web, it is just that. When people are upset with a car, they verbalize via posts on any forum they can find. Do you see similar posts praising the car? Not really. All cars have problems, so just take what you read with a grain of salt.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jul 2018
    Location
    Shaker Heights Ohio
    Posts
    72
    My Cars
    2016 435i Convertible
    The 328i is a great BMW and will serve you well if it is properly maintained. The N20 engine has won praises over the years. If the owner provides all previous service records, and they look good with proper oil changes as prescribed, you've got a winner. MY understanding is that the only thing to really keep an eye on is the timing chain guide issue, and BMW has extended the warranty for that item. No need to be worried, just aware. Here is the information:
    https://bmwtechnician.com/2016/08/07...g-chain-issue/
    Good luck!

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    Bellevue, WA
    Posts
    2,403
    My Cars
    335d, 328xd (had 330xi)
    Quote Originally Posted by Stephen8991 View Post
    ...
    This is the site I used:
    https://www.carcomplaints.com/BMW/328/2013/

    I have a $500 deposit and am scheduled to buy on Thursday, but I'm legitimately scared of the car now.

    Things like:

    **Brakes not working at all
    ...
    Many other problems...

    Should I stop the sale?? Is this just a very small portion of 328i's?? I feel so disappointed in BMW right now. This isn't about expensive fixes, this is complete unreliability.
    ...
    Completely random, one off problems. Self-reporting websites are complete garbage as far as valid statistics are concerned.
    These are extremely complicated cars. They break down. Simple as that. If you look at Consumer Reports, you'll find that BMWs are in the middle of the reliability scores: average.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    North Potomac, MD
    Posts
    1,054
    My Cars
    2011 E90 328i
    Are you not have a pre-purchase inspection done on the car? If not, then whatever happens is on you.

    Also, did you pull the Carfax? You can get one for $3 on ebay.

Similar Threads

  1. Car buying advice...please help me choose!!!
    By ahsm in forum General BMW and Automotive Discussion sponsored by Intercity Lines
    Replies: 9
    Last Post: 04-18-2011, 11:51 AM
  2. Pls Help Car Wont Start With New Chip!!!
    By CANBMW in forum 1991 - 1999 (E36)
    Replies: 6
    Last Post: 12-23-2005, 09:41 PM
  3. i need car buying advice
    By ryan86242 in forum 1983 - 1991 (E30)
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 02-20-2004, 10:35 AM

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •