So i picked up this beauty last night.

[Zombie_Head]

Took a 5 hour and 30 minute ride on the train, changed trains 3 times to get to my destination add another 5 hour drive home. Went over the paperwork with the owner, made sure all payment was settled and everyone was happy. I originally wanted a late 135i to save myself the headache of the "typical N54 issues", but the more i started doing my research, the more i realized that BMW does not make NA engines anymore and those N52s are bulletproof engines and are lightweight.

The owner was really amazing to work with, had patience and understanding and made transfer of ownership a large ease on me. In Germany, since the car is changing states from Bad Württemburg to Bavaria, the car had to be unregistered first, a short term plate and insurance purchased (using the car's paperwork), then within 5 days the car had to be fully registered locally (new insurance, papers etc). He just gave me the car under his name to transfer ownership, taking a risk and just drove back home and got it registered.

At first i was not sure how that detuned 3 liter engine would handle on the highway or in town. I must say, even though it is rated at 217hp, it feels more than that and torque is just fine around town. From 1,500 rpm it picked up effortlessly, on the autobahn, plant your foot at 3,000rpm and it just picks up in a the traditional NA fashion and goes.

I was not sure about the Kumho winter tires, but they do a pretty impressive job. Quiet, soft (they are non run flat) and decent grip, at low speeds it kind of understeers but generally the steering is just great.

Coming from my Golf R, it is night and day between the steering feel and the wheel itself (big beefy M wheel) and super eager to just turn. Engine response is as you expect from a BMW, super silky smooth and linear and expected, no boost build up surprises (like the R) and instant response.

BMW also makes wonderful pedals and a shifter, clutch is super light and took me a while to get used to but easy to live with around down. Rev matching as well as heel and toe is just too darn easy, it was a headache with my R since the pedals have a strange layout and i had to bend my right knee "inwards" to be able to heel and toe. Shifter is notchy but precise, typical BMW, unlike the mushy lifeless feel of the R.

You guys were not joking about interior storage space, it is very limited but you quickly get used to it and remember that it is about the driving and you should not have too many loose items around in the cabin anyways. Visibility is much better than the Golf and parking is even easier.

Brake pedal is a but...mushy, however the rear pads need to be replaced as well as all the disks (small lip on all of them and slightly warped). All 4 disks, pads and fluid will be replaced.

When i test drove the car, we kept getting a "low battery" warning, and the owner explained how he drove the car less than 10,000kms in 2 years. So i was hoping that the 5 hour drive back home (despite it at night) would help with the charge. Today, at cold start, no warnings. Drove around town for 2 hours and no warnings. Hooked up carly app, there were some warnings (5 if i recall), cleared then and tested again today. Only one warning " Instrument cluster, shutdown/terminal shutdown code 00A559", if i am not mistaken, this is due to reading/using carly app when the battery hit low voltage?

Car needs to be detailed (especially clayed) badly, but we are expecting rain and snow today, so i gave it a quick touchless wash.

I know 1 of the 18" wheels has some scuffing, which i will take all 4 to a local professional to have them checked for bends and repair. This weekend, if the weather is good, i will detail the car and post the progress.

Overall i am very happy with my decision to get one of the last NA engine from BMW, it is more than enough for daily driving, great manual shifting and it really feel eager to go sideways.

My plans? Well, get on top of maintenance ASAP (all filters, oils, fluids, plugs, coils, valve cover gasket as preventive measures as well as coolant flush and waterpump as preventive maintenance as well), non RFT for summer and get some proper winter wheels and tires (the 1st owner had some aftermarket wheels on, they got to go).

In terms of upgrades, after the non RFTs i plan on doing the rear subframe bushings (M3/M1) and then do some track days. It has been so long since i drove a RWD car, so suspension, brakes and power mods (including LSD) are far down on the list.

Here is the car right after the local KFZ Zulassungsstelle (Car registration office) with new plates and a quick touchless wash. I must thank you guys a lot, your information and knowledge really helped me pick out what i want, what to look for and how to tackle repairs, DIYs and issues.

Oh and ignore the bags in the back, those are the summer wheels and tires, need to clean them and inspect them before sending them out.

[chris_flies]

Beautiful car! I really like the way white like on our cars. You'd actually be surprised how Pedro it can be in a pinch.

[Zombie_Head]

Originally Posted by chris_flies

Beautiful car! I really like the way white like on our cars. You'd actually be surprised how Pedro it can be in a pinch.

I am so not a fan of black, white or silver since they are too common and i am an absolute sucker for metallics, especially blue (a proper blue like LeMans Blue).

But i agree with you, those "common colours" look good on the E8x series.

Can not wait to get it detailed, at least with an AIO (All In One) polish, even 1 month protection during Feb is enough to save it against some salt till the weather warms up an a proper waxs gets applied.

Had to order a coarser claybar, the one i have is "soft" meant for new paint, or paint that is well maintained and has little to no contaminants. Since i have no idea if the car was clayed/waxed/polished before (most likely not) need to make that 6 year old paint shine like new.

[olds350]

congrats on the new ride!!!

[swagon]

That's a rare find in Europe. Glückwunsch!

[chris_flies]

Originally Posted by Zombie_Head

I am so not a fan of black, white or silver since they are too common and i am an absolute sucker for metallics, especially blue (a proper blue like LeMans Blue).

But i agree with you, those "common colours" look good on the E8x series.

Can not wait to get it detailed, at least with an AIO (All In One) polish, even 1 month protection during Feb is enough to save it against some salt till the weather warms up an a proper waxs gets applied.

Had to order a coarser claybar, the one i have is "soft" meant for new paint, or paint that is well maintained and has little to no contaminants. Since i have no idea if the car was clayed/waxed/polished before (most likely not) need to make that 6 year old paint shine like new.

All the neutral colors are too common. LeMans/Montego Blue is a really great color, though Valencia Orange is my favorite. When clean, clear, and maintained my Monaco Blue is gorgeous, and looks so deep you could just swim in it. I'd like white, though, it shows imperfections to a much lesser extent.

I was going to do a full detailing in the near future, but now that I've been hit...twice...in two weeks, I'll wait and see how the body shop cleans it up. I'd be a very happy person if they did a full detailing, and I secretly hope that the paint won't ever match, and they'll have to repaint the whole car so it all matches. They did (insurance company) promise to return it to it's previous condition, which was that everything matched.

Good luck with your car! It looks really good!

[JimVonBaden]

Very nice, and congrats!

[Esteban]

Blues are my favorite as well, but these cars look beautiful in classic Alpine White.

Congrats and welcome to 1ADDICTS!

[Zombie_Head]

Originally Posted by swagon

That's a rare find in Europe. Glückwunsch!

Which part of them is rare? The engine in the E82? or the manual? or both?

There are around 30+ 135s for sale, but just a handful are the N54s, maybe 2 are completely stock and the rest are tuned/modded (one was or another). N55s are more common and the opposite, meaning most are stock and very few are tuned.

There were around 20 cars for sale since December when i started looking (125i models), but most of them had sunroof and electric seats, this was the only one that has no sunroof, manual seat and navi (i wanted the navi).

And thanks you guys, wheels are going off tomorrow to be inspected. The shop is fully booked for the next 3-4 weeks so it is good to have them check the condition now and probably have them by early spring.

[olds350]

Originally Posted by Zombie_Head

And thanks you guys, wheels are going off tomorrow to be inspected. The shop is fully booked for the next 3-4 weeks so it is good to have them check the condition now and probably have them by early spring.

I'm sorry, what? Wheels are being inspected or the entire car is being inspected? Just curious as separate wheel inspection here in the states is not a "thing" that I'm aware of...

[Zombie_Head]

Originally Posted by olds350

I'm sorry, what? Wheels are being inspected or the entire car is being inspected? Just curious as separate wheel inspection here in the states is not a "thing" that I'm aware of...

The passenger side 18" wheel has cosmetic scuffing on it, probably due to hitting a curb. I am unsure if there are any other cosmetic scuffs on the other wheels, so i having all 4 18" wheels sent to a professional wheel shop to assess the cosmetic damage and to have the wheels checked for any bends, cracks, issues etc before the spring when we swap out the 17" winter wheels/tires for 18" summer set.

[elitesales305]

Originally Posted by swagon

That's a rare find in Europe. Glückwunsch!

I think swag just told u to go fuck off??

[Esteban]

Originally Posted by elitesales305

I think swag just told u to go fuck off??

[FrostyDC4]

Congrats man


Post more pics

[Matticus91]

Welcome and beautiful car! I have a definite soft spot for the alpine white 1ers

[Zombie_Head]

Originally Posted by FrostyDC4

Congrats man


Post more pics

Originally Posted by Matticus91

Welcome and beautiful car! I have a definite soft spot for the alpine white 1ers

Thank you so much, i will have a complete detailing progress thread in the relevant section, exterior and interior.

Originally Posted by FrostyDC4

Congrats man


Post more pics

Originally Posted by Matticus91

Welcome and beautiful car! I have a definite soft spot for the alpine white 1ers

As of yesterday so do i

[swagon]

Originally Posted by Zombie_Head

Which part of them is rare? The engine in the E82? or the manual? or both?

On mobile.de, there are currently more 135i Coupés listed for sale than 125i's. Even several years ago, I had a hard time finding manual LCI 135i's in Germany.

Originally Posted by elitesales305

I think swag just told u to go fuck off??

Haha nah I told him bout ur mom, bruh

[doublevanosrc]

More pics!!

[Zombie_Head]

Originally Posted by swagon

On mobile.de, there are currently more 135i Coupés listed for sale than 125i's. Even several years ago, I had a hard time finding manual LCI 135i's in Germany.



Haha nah I told him bout ur mom, bruh

Quite a few 135s in manual, never had a problem finding one honestly. I was just picky with the options such as no sunroof, manual seats etc.

Originally Posted by doublevanosrc

More pics!!

It is snowing outside :/ i will be posting pic i promise ^^

[PDXE82]

Good looking car Zombie. I may be a little biased on the AW though. I wish the 135i came with fogs of some sort. I guess it's the price to pay for cooler brakes.

[Zombie_Head]

Originally Posted by PDXE82

Good looking car Zombie. I may be a little biased on the AW though. I wish the 135i came with fogs of some sort. I guess it's the price to pay for cooler brakes.

Thank you, honestly it depends on what you are looking for and plan on doing with your own car.

In my case it will be my only daily, so i do not mind the fog lights. Infact i appreciate having them since i live 400m above sea level and we get a lot of fog (even as we speak at 17:50) in Bavaria. Since i will occasionally do some track days (nothing professional or even aggressive, just your average car guy that likes to have fun on the weekend on a track) the brakes (stock) maybe just barely enough for me (we shall see with time, at least a proper fluid will be used).

[swagon]

Are you German, OP?