Bmw 130i

[the new member]

Good day guys

I am currently in the process of trading my car for a 2008 bmw 130i (E81) 2 door my concern is what should I look out on these cars and how reliable is the engine on these cars, what's the common issues and what is the fuel economy on these cars it will be my first time having a bmw

 

[momo1]

N52s are pretty strong and if the service history is up to date all should be good.

most common issue: Change out the water pump and thermostat as preventative maintenance as its almost guaranteed to fail after 170,000km
check Vanos solenoids, clean or replace when necessary.
only other issue I had was a faulty O2 Sensor on bank 2.

 

[the new member]

The current milage is 192xxxkm and it does come with full service history thank you for your advice much appreciated

 

[husaindindar]

I've had my share of N52 experience.

2008 is a long time ago. Its not a new car. Its seen a fair share of kilos also. You will be spending money on the car to get it in reliable shape.
Things that go as mentioned above also:
Water pump
Thermostat
CCV/PCV pipes and oil seperator
Oil seperator then kills the valve cover gasket and oil pan gasket.
Disa flaps follow as oil gets into them and breaks down the plastics
Oil filter housing gaskets
Vanos solenoids - replace them. Cleaning doesnt really help
Radiator hoses tend to crack over time

Also make sure the engine never overheat when the water pump failed in its histiory. I'm quite sure it did fail already at some point.
The usual wear items - Rod ends, Control arms, shocks etc...


All these things add up to a healthy figure, but once its all sorted, its such a beautiful machine to drive. You wont be the fasted kid on the block, but you will have the best smile when that motor spins smoothly up to redline.

 

[the new member]

Thank you so much buddy really appreciate it