About to buy a 2008 128i 6MT w/ 93,000 miles

[eval]

Hey,

Buying a 2008 128i 6MT accident-free.

What should I be worrying about? It’s certified-pre owned from a Subaru dealership. Has 150,000km (93,000 miles). Going for about 12,000 CAD ($9,200 USD). It’s this beautiful silver metallic and I fell in love with it instantly.

My previous BMW was a 2004 325ci (E46), and despite researching a ton about its unreliability and must change parts for it, I was still surprised at how much it ate my wallet.

I’ve heard general good things about the 128 in terms of reliabilityi. I plan on keeping this for as long as it makes financial sense to. It has quite a bit of KM without any service history and only a mechanical inspection, so obviously I excpect t replace some things. I am purposely staying away from the 135i because I’ve had bad luck with used turbocharged vehicles.

I don’t think there is any parts that fail on the E82 that I’ve researched so far? Unlike the E46 of course.

I’ve done my research, now I just want a final opinion. Thanks

EDIT: I also plan on adding some basic warranty from the dealership with the car.

[NorthernDancer]

Well I own one, an 08 128 6MT tho mine is not winter used and only has 99K kms. I've had no problems. Oil filter housing gasket is one issue; hopefully this area is dry for you. Should change spark plugs soon. Do it yourself-lots of videos out there. This also allows you to check to see if any oil leaking into spark plug wells. Drive and enjoy.

[Lucky1]

Originally Posted by NorthernDancer

Well I own one, an 08 128 6MT tho mine is not winter used and only has 99K kms. I've had no problems. Oil filter housing gasket is one issue; hopefully this area is dry for you. Should change spark plugs soon. Do it yourself-lots of videos out there. This also allows you to check to see if any oil leaking into spark plug wells. Drive and enjoy.

2008 128i 6Mt w/ 200,000km here.
Replaced around and after 150k:

Plugs if not done yet (God I hope so)
Valve cover gasket
Oil filter housing gasket
Rear shocks (about to do)
Xenon lights and one xenon ballast (not cheap!)
Crankshaft position sensor
Battery (programmed with Carly)
Air conditioner refrigerant
Usual fluids and tires, brakes
Turn signal bulb and socket x2
Second auto dimming driver side mirror about to need replacing (going brown/hazy, comfort access thing only).

Average about $400 CAD in unscheduled maintenance a year, worst year was $1,100. See if you can find out if the cylinder block was replaced under warranty. '08 N52's had oil problems around the lifters necessitating their replacement as well as the cylinder block head otherwise ticking on cold start presents itself.

If you're in the GTA area I can help pull any codes from it with Carly and have two good mechanics I can recommend that have helped me keep maintenance costs down.

[Gangplank]

128i seem reliable. Common items are The Oil Filler Housing Gasket, Water Pump, valve cover gasket. These are common to all BMWs tho.

[desertman123]

dooooo itttttt

[chris_flies]

Mine's at 173k miles (as of last Wednesday). I don't know much about its before-me service history, but I've driven it 13k miles and only replaced the Oil Filter Housing Gasket, Shocks (they were just old), Front Control Arms (just a general BMW problem), and the dealer replaced the cracked power steering cooler pre-purchase. All of these maintenance items I used as excuses to upgrade

[Lucky1]

Sorry to threadjack but what do you guys think of the price? I have seen a few examples of 128i's of that year and mileage go for less. As a seller I'd love to get $12,000 CAD for selling an example like that! I've seen 128i's of similar year and mileage (not all 6MT's) listed for $7k-$8k but I confess I don't know their condition.

My 128i is at 200,000kms and is fairly mechanically sound, is the unicorn 6MT with sports package, comfort access and premium package. It does bear the marks of a daily driver which has seen a lot of winter and 401 highway driving (rock chips, etc). Is $8k CAD or more too high for this configuration at this mileage?

[Playnice]

Careful about the Warranty. Make sure it covers turbo gaskets/seals. They usually do the warranty by levels, with the higher level warranties being more expensive.

In my experience man, you get what you pay for. I paid $18,500 CAD (21,ishk CAD all in) for a white, manual 2008 2 years ago.

Personally, I think the one you're looking at my be too cheap. I'm surprised it's not a rebuild. Would be great to have all the work that's been done to it to really find out.

[Zombie_Head]

Welcome, the 125i/128i is really reliable (knock on wood).

So far since i have picked up my 125i in February this year, i did just maintenance (to be honest it was not required, but i was heading to the track so i wanted to be sure everything stock is covered). Brakes, fluids, oils, plugs, filters etc were replaced. Also got new tires (non RFTs).

Went to the track last week, that engine never gave up, you can hammer it and redline it all day long, it will just respond and give you what you want. No warnings, no running hot issues (okay the brakes were fried, but that is what you get on stock brake discs, pads and fluids lol).

Yes i feel the engine could use a software tune to get 270-ish hp, maybe a 3 stage intake to try to squeeze 280hp (thereabouts), but for day to day basis or learning/starting track days, it is a very solid base, it maybe touched 115C-120c oil temp when i was redlining the crap out of 2nd, 3rd and 4th gear on the GP track, but still runs alot cooler than other cars out there.

Usual leaks as with any car hitting 5+ years. Valve cover gasket, oil filter housing gasket and oil pan are to watch out for.

I do everything myself, at a do it yourself garage and just basic tools go a long way. Check for leaks, strange noises and smells. Get a basic OBII reader to check for ECU codes (a more reliable and price one is better, but this is a cheap and quick way to test).

Take it for a drive, see how the engine responds, how does it shift (cold and warm) and list for any noises.

Remember, even if you like it, try to hold your emotions, unless you are 100% sure "this is the one", never rush a car purchase, took me 3 months of constant digging to find mine.

I forgot to add, the water pumps on the 125i/128i are the same as the 135i/335i, however they last a bit longer since the engine runs a lot cooler. However, at nearly 100,000 miles for you, i would change it/replace it for peace of mind. Some reported failures at around that milage.

[Mr Gasser]

Not a performance car, but looks like a 135i

[Lucky1]

Originally Posted by Playnice

Careful about the Warranty. Make sure it covers turbo gaskets/seals. They usually do the warranty by levels, with the higher level warranties being more expensive.

In my experience man, you get what you pay for. I paid $18,500 CAD (21,ishk CAD all in) for a white, manual 2008 2 years ago.

Personally, I think the one you're looking at my be too cheap. I'm surprised it's not a rebuild. Would be great to have all the work that's been done to it to really find out.

Its a 128i? No turbo seals?

Question is why is there no service history. Like none at all? How can that be. Keeping the history and passing it on buyer to buyer is like German car ownership 101.

[Tommm]

Originally Posted by Playnice

Careful about the Warranty. Make sure it covers turbo gaskets/seals. They usually do the warranty by levels, with the higher level warranties being more expensive.

In my experience man, you get what you pay for. I paid $18,500 CAD (21,ishk CAD all in) for a white, manual 2008 2 years ago.

Personally, I think the one you're looking at my be too cheap. I'm surprised it's not a rebuild. Would be great to have all the work that's been done to it to really find out.

Based on what I paid for my 08 MT 128 two years ago with 32k miles the asking price is a fair start. I don't think it is low. The OP has to do the math, and decide if he is getting enough car for the money after he does the maintenance. It may be cheaper to find one with a third less miles for a little more, and do things like shocks in a year or two.

[rowsdower]

Though these cars have fewer things that can go wrong compared to the 135i, they are still used German cars possibly driven hard in harsh winters. I would think a 128i would be similar to a E46 325ci in terms of unplanned maintenance costs. My 2011 was great for 4 years with only oil changes until last fall, when the oil pan gasket, valve cover gasket, oil filter housing gasket, and both front struts started leaking. These are typical for these cars. If you are able to DIY then these are not terribly expensive (gaskets are cheap, as are the stock struts) but if you have to pay a shop, it can add up pretty quickly. Water pumps are also known to go on these cars ($400USD for parts!).

A "certified" pre-owned BMW from a Subaru dealership doesn't exist. It's just a used car. The warranty is a good idea if it's cheap enough and covers enough. Will the dealer let you take it to a good BMW indy or a dealership for a pre-purchase inspection? Make sure the warranty covers any of the things that the PPI finds wrong.