Help: 1 or 3?

[GRRRR]

Hi,

I'm in an position of wanting to leave a relationship before it gets messy (it's not so much her as her "family" and the honeymoon is ending at the end of the year and I have a feeling that she'll cost me more than an arm and a leg to maintain myself!)

Yes, I have an Audi about to hit end of Freeway plan and I have had it with the waste of everyone's time (they try and call this 11/10 service for some sadistic reason).

I used to have a BMW years ago and had no problems with it as far as I can recall before I did something stupid to it (but that's a story for another day). I saw the new 3 series and I must admit that I love the new design, but then I had another look at the rest of the stable and in my price range, I realised I can get some rather interesting options in the 1 series range (which I personally think looks way better than the squat look of the previous model).

So I'd love your help, guidance and opinions on which one to go for:

1. 320i base with a few options (keep the price down)
2. 320i Sport line
3. 120d Hatch with Sports line
4. 125i Hatch with M Sport line

My heart says the 125i (but that's the most expensive), but the 120d and 320i Sports line are similarly priced.

Help?

Thanks for your help getting a newbie (back) into a BMW!
Cheers
Glenn

 

[Sabretooth tiger]

go for the 3series, more space, but that's just my opinion:thumbs:

 

[m20boy]

which audi do u hav? and which bmw did u hav ?,

ive not owned a 1 series ,cant comment on the new shape other than it hasnt grown on me yet :yuck:

3 series i say , e90 ? maybe ? or wot of e46 ?
:thumbs:

 

[Raybimmer]

Glenn , Hi and welcome to the forum .:thumbs:

Unfortunately you will get some biased answers here as we are all fanatical about the models we drive .:thumbs:

What do you want , the 1 series is more of a bachelors car , the 3 more of an occaisional family and friends car .

The diesels are reliable , frugal and us guys with singing straight sixes find these tractors up our exhaust pipes too often , and yes some of them even keep in front of us

Get an idea of your requirements and test drive a few . There are a few guys with F30 models on the forum who can give more specific advice .

Good luck .

 

[UpNcOmiNg!]

125i with 8 spd auto. Simple! But drive them all, starting with the 125i

 

[Rayzor]

I Agree, drive a few before making a decision:thumbs:

 

[Dmonic1]

Whatever it is... get the MSport pack.... yeah it adds abt R3k extra to the price but its so worth it fir either the 3er or 1er...

125i is amazing performance, will be cheaper for the 3 door (out soon)

 

[moranor@axis]

go for the 3 i dont see the new 1 series keeping value very well because of its face...

 

[Yuvan]

Whatever it is... get the MSport pack.... yeah it adds abt R3k extra to the price but its so worth it fir either the 3er or 1er...

125i is amazing performance, will be cheaper for the 3 door (out soon)

+1

 

[GRRRR]

Quick replies! raise:

The main prompt for the change is the end of Freeway plan and the useless Audi service is keeping me far away from another one.
I'm married with 2 young kids (3.5 and 2) a dog and cat and that's why I have an Audi A4 Avant 3.0TDi tiptronic quattro (NOT light on fuel at all...over 10l/100km is normal day to day). It seemed like the ideal family car (and maybe is), but we use my wife's car (Outlander) for the entire family trips and now that we're over the pram stage, there's no need for a huge boot anymore when it's just us and the kids. The car is mostly only used by me. So I'm specifically comparing the f30 320i vs the f20 120d or 125i.

I drove the 320i (in auto) and it was nice, but just nice (the Audi is NOT shy in power and torque). I do want manual again though...

I want the benefits of worry/risk free motoring with a safe tradein in 3 or so years on the new model, rinse/repeat. My mileage is quite low, so I've been told I can load a good residual and I'd have no problems trading in on a new model in 3 years.

---

which audi do u hav? and which bmw did u hav ?,

ive not owned a 1 series ,cant comment on the new shape other than it hasnt grown on me yet :yuck:

3 series i say , e90 ? maybe ? or wot of e46 ?
:thumbs:

Audi 3.0 TDI avant tip quattro (B7 shape)
I had a 318i E46 facelift

---

go for the 3 i dont see the new 1 series keeping value very well because of its face...

Hi,

I kind of like this 1 series. The Sport Line looks good and the M Sport looks great (imho)

Does it make a difference if I plan on trading in with BMW again? I'd prefer a more fun car to drive and I think the 120d or definitely the 125i would be better in that respect than the 320i?

 

[m20boy]

118 turbo then or 125

 

[GRRRR]

Related...what's the insurance like for say a 125i M Sport compared to the 320i Sport line?

( I know that each case is different, but is the 125i loaded if it's specced with the M Sport? )