16 Years, 7 owners, 320,000 KM Later......

[nevetstoj]

Hello all,

I have just passed over 100,000 KM since purchasing my e82 128i used and thought I would post a little write up of the woes of owning a high milage BMW. I did this, partly, because of the horror stories you read about, but more-so the fun its been owning and driving.

At the end of 2020 I traded in my Fern-Green Metallic e46 for my current 2008 128i. I had bought the e46 to commute to university, and did so for about a year until the 128i became an obsession. The e46 was a $1000 first car that had a low monthly insurance cost of around $130. I had no mechanical knowledge, just an interest in cars. Having owned the e46, experiencing RWD and a smooth inline-6, there was no thought to another brand.

I purchased the 128i in November of 2020 for $5,000 and it had 220,000 KM. The e46 was a wonderful car, but the 128 was like stepping into the future.

[nevetstoj]

The first thing I did to the car was scrape off the coating on the steering wheel trim. I then sanded and polished the plastic to a shine, I think it looks pretty good. Then I got my first speeding ticket for doing 65 in a 50, lol. The stress of my insurance going up a constant thought, however upon renewal it only increased from $150-ish to around $170 a month.

[nevetstoj]

With Lockdown and online classes I found myself going for drives and exploring every chance I got. Although, then some little issues came up. First it was the door lock actuator breaking, then the headlight ballast gave out. Figured it was from improper sealing of the headlight in the past after changing the bulb.

[WrathOTM]

Damn, that is an impressive amount of miles. Glad to see you are keeping it going too.

[nevetstoj]

I then had to figure out if I would save up to do maintenance at a shop, or diy it. With the help of the forum I taught myself how to use a jack and jack stands for the first time. Change my brakes and rotors for the first time ever. Also, change the oil in a car for the first time ever.

[nevetstoj]

Many KM later I noticed a bounce on the highway in the front end. I found myself on the forum again learning how to change the front struts and sway bar links. Very scary touching stuff that, if done wrong, could lead to an accident. But, I took my time and followed the steps and torqued everything properly. Still feels tight to this day!

[nevetstoj]

After suspension work there were trouble free miles to 299k. Only thing I did was rust repair on the trunk near the key hole. No idea how it started, but glad I found it when I did.

[nevetstoj]

With campuses opening up this 128i became my commuter. With the miles and my failure to get an alignment after replacing the suspension I wore out my PSS's and got a flat, you live and you learn haha. With no issues I became obsessed with keeping up on the appearance of the car, so I decided to sand the headlights with the Sylvania kit and they came out looking new. To this day they remain clear and show no signs of oxidation.

[nevetstoj]

The single weirdest issue I've had with the car was coming out to it one morning and the sunroof having exploded over night. A giant pain at the time due to my schedule, but a trip to the junkyard and $30 later it was replaced. Only other thing during this time was the passenger xenon dying.

[nevetstoj]

The dates on these issues are fuzzy to me, but recently in the last year the only thing the car has needed was new spark plugs after getting a crazy misfire at anything over 3,000 rpm. Again, thanks to the forums I learned and changed them for the first time ever. Cosmetically, I also added chrome kidney grills from the 135i.

[nevetstoj]

Other than that, nothing has really gone wrong on the car to the point where I could not get home. Style 264's were bought and they really make the car look fantastic. I would regularly get compliments on how beautiful the car was from others.

I also took to cleaning the underside of the car on jack stands before this winter. It was done for no other reason other than I wanted too.

I also took a 10 hour road tip to my gf's cottage a couple months ago, car never missed a beat.

The moral of the story, at least for me, is that higher miles does not mean problems. The N52 is solid, you really just have to keep on top of maintenance. I do not baby this car, I just treat it as a car. It puts a smile on my face every day with the way it handles and how smooth the engine is all the way to 7,000 rpm.

[Finneganistan]

Great write-up! Thanks for sharing. I'd like to know more about the exploding sunroof!

[nevetstoj]

Originally Posted by Finneganistan

Great write-up! Thanks for sharing. I'd like to know more about the exploding sunroof!

Me too man lol. I have no idea what happened, nothing fell on it from what I could see. I just got in the car one morning and pulled the shade back and glass fell on me.

[cerealwars]

Love the thread, the enthusiasm, and all the pics.

I had my sunroof exploded on me too! Be thankful it wasn't while you were driving. Luckily I didn't inhale any or get any in my eyes, but the paint on my roof and decklid didn't fair so well. Also imagine just cruising down the street and hearing what sounds like a muffled gunshot 6 inches from your head, then glass is just raining everywhere. That sucked. At least it wasn't raining.

Where are you getting those sweet steel wheels? Are they 17"s? I kinda want a set for winter tires.

I've got 121k miles (~266k km) on mine, as far as I'm concerned she's just broken in.

[jdt10768]

I like the steelies as well, very cool. Drive Onward !

[brake-fade]

Nice to see another high milage 128 getting some love! It really is a great car. At 251,000 miles (403,945 km) with original clutch, mine is still going strong after 11 years of ownership...despite the New England winters! I would recommend a coolant system refresh if you haven't yet.

[nevetstoj]

Originally Posted by cerealwars

Love the thread, the enthusiasm, and all the pics.

I had my sunroof exploded on me too! Be thankful it wasn't while you were driving. Luckily I didn't inhale any or get any in my eyes, but the paint on my roof and decklid didn't fair so well. Also imagine just cruising down the street and hearing what sounds like a muffled gunshot 6 inches from your head, then glass is just raining everywhere. That sucked. At least it wasn't raining.

Where are you getting those sweet steel wheels? Are they 17"s? I kinda want a set for winter tires.

I've got 121k miles (~266k km) on mine, as far as I'm concerned she's just broken in.

At least im not the only one with an exploding sunroof haha.

The steel wheels in the pic were from my e46, OEM bmw steel wheels. They were black but I painted them Reflux Silver.

I actually got a set of 17" Steelies for this winter from a 4 series.

[nevetstoj]

Originally Posted by brake-fade

Nice to see another high milage 128 getting some love! It really is a great car. At 251,000 miles (403,945 km) with original clutch, mine is still going strong after 11 years of ownership...despite the New England winters! I would recommend a coolant system refresh if you haven't yet.

I know, its on the list!

[nevetstoj]

Originally Posted by nevetstoj

At least im not the only one with an exploding sunroof haha.

The steel wheels in the pic were from my e46, OEM bmw steel wheels. They were black but I painted them Reflux Silver.

I actually got a set of 17" Steelies for this winter from a 4 series.

Here's a better pic of the 17s