BMW 1 Series Coupe Forum / 1 Series Convertible Forum (1M / tii / 135i / 128i / Coupe / Cabrio / Hatchback) (BMW E82 E88 128i 130i 135i)
 





 

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      07-30-2019, 07:22 AM   #1
MOSTRO
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E82 125i or 135i

Hi Guys,

I have been a Bimmerpost member for a few years although I have been mainly frequenting the F80 lounge as up till a week ago I was the proud owner of a gorgeous F80 M3 30 Jahre (Bought new in Aug 2017). In fact VTL from these parts was kind enough to do some basic coding for that car.

Life being shit and all, I have stopped working at my previous employer and needed to get some equity back into the bank in case my job search continues longer than expected.

Anywhoooo, I am going to be in need of a replacement vehicle soon, and I can't peel away from the brand. I have given myself a moderate budget of $15-$25k, and I thought what fun car can I get with a manual box, that can seat 4.

I recall VTL's awesome E82 although I swear I thought it was a 125i Vincent,

I thought a 135i would be perfect, but was soon warned by some friends that the Turbo 3.0's can have some large maintenance bill and turbo failure rate is high amongst these. I was told by the same people to consider the 125i instead as it is essentially the same 6 Cyl 3.0 engine minus the turbos, which will have a much more natural NA feel about it and better reliability. Is that true?

I know I will be sacrificing a whole lot of torque and general smiles by side stepping the 135i but I just can't be arsed with leaking or blown turbos and other weak links.

Apologies if this has been covered before, but my search didn't show up a thread on the 125i vs 135i.

Any help will be appreciated.
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      07-30-2019, 11:28 PM   #2
asn993
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Hi I have had my manual 135i for 5 years and probably spent $3k on "failures". I think it depends on how much you use it and how you use it but for the $ to purchase there is a massive bang for buck. The 135i is fairly high performance so all these types of cars do generally have higher maintenance costs but I guess part of the entry.
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      07-30-2019, 11:37 PM   #3
MOSTRO
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Quote:
Originally Posted by asn993 View Post
Hi I have had my manual 135i for 5 years and probably spent $3k on "failures". I think it depends on how much you use it and how you use it but for the $ to purchase there is a massive bang for buck. The 135i is fairly high performance so all these types of cars do generally have higher maintenance costs but I guess part of the entry.
Thanks for that. Can I ask what was the mileage on your 135i when you bought it? How much has it travelled in your ownership?
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      07-31-2019, 03:42 AM   #4
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I've had mine since new in 2009 and done 130,000kms with a JB4 on it since 2011

So far:
2 water pumps ~$500 each (inc thermostats)
injectors (leaked) ~$150 each
carbon clean (walnut blast) ~$400 in parts, next clean will be free!
leaking rocker cover gasket . ~$70
cracked rocker cover ~$400
fuel pump (warranty)
oil filter housing gasket. ~$100

I fixed all those myself so it was only parts. Is that good or bad for a performance car over 10 years? *shrug*
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      07-31-2019, 04:11 AM   #5
Edrift
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if you're coming from an M3 it'll be hard to go to a 125i.

Having recently purchased a 2008 E88 135i, i'd highly recommend it. For less than $200 you get a 20% power increase with an MHD tune.

Having said that, there are hardly any E88 or E82 135i with low kms in Victoria for sale. I got lucky with mine with only 46,000km on the clock and 2 female owners (mother-in-law and daughter-in-law). It also had a full BMW service history, which showed the HPFP being replaced already.


What i realised AFTER buying my car was that if i had gotten a 2009+ model, i could've bought a 3rd party warranty which would cover any major failure that these models normally experience.
Yes getting things fixed is inconvenient, but it might be good for piece of mind as the 3rd party warranty was about $1700 from memory.

fingers crossed nothing goes wrong with mine... but it's only a weekend car for me so i dont imagine i'd clock up much more mileage at all.
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      07-31-2019, 06:42 AM   #6
asn993
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MOSTRO View Post
Thanks for that. Can I ask what was the mileage on your 135i when you bought it? How much has it travelled in your ownership?
Had 140,000 when I got it and now 168,000. Used every day for 3 years last 2 not so much as I undertook a 1M conversion.
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      07-31-2019, 05:01 PM   #7
craufurd
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A 125i 6MT is a solid all rounder. Cheap to buy, cheap to maintain, plenty of low down torque and being a 3 litre you can remap it to similar output of 130. Looks just as good in M-Sport. It's quick enough in the city, but never going to be quick enough on a track but is a very balanced little car and you'll be able to spend more time away from work with a bit more cash left in the bank!
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      07-31-2019, 05:52 PM   #8
vtl
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Really depends on your goals

For $15-25k you're still going to end up with a 10+ year old car that will need maintenance. Will be a fair bit more on a 135i but don't expect to do nothing on an N52 (oil leaks, water pump, starter motor still problematic on these). Preventative maintenance is key on these cars.

On an N54, most recent purchases I can look in the engine bay and see at least $2-3k of issues or preventative maintenance items that needs to be done not long after purchase. I've done 219k kms on mine, and while its been very reliable, I've done literally everything to it to keep it going and fix issues before they happen. If you get one of these, just factor the maintenence costs into the purchase price.

Personally (this obviously doesn't apply to everyone), I could not be happy with a stock 135i, would literally need another $5k in mods (power and suspension) to get it reasonable, and probably $15k total to get it where id be very, very happy with it. If I had to start off with a 125i as a base itd be even worse imo. Really depends on what your needs are though.

A 125i I don't think you'll save much on the purchase price vs a 135i, and the motor is pretty gutless, and the base specification vs the 135i is actually pretty poor. No xenons, most dont have powered seats, worse suspension and no brembos, list goes on. Nav is rare on the 135i, almost non existent on the 125i

Personally between the two I'd still pick the 135i. Youd really just have to factor the purchase price + maintenence into the budget. I think if you bought a clean manual for around $18k, and spent the rest on mods and maintenence youd have a very nice car. You're certainly welcome to come by and have a look at mine.
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      07-31-2019, 09:35 PM   #9
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Thanks guys....invaluable info......
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