BMW 318 - worst car ever ?

After three years of nothing but problems with the wife's 318 I did something I should have do a long time ago .. traded it in for a Mercedes. I feel so cheated that I wasted so much time on a car with such poor quality components and a dealer network with no interest in sorting anything out. Anyway .. What a difference .. the Mercedes works reliably and the dealer still has an interest in looking after us and the car. I'm getting the feeling that the saying is true that you never actually own a Mercedes .. you just look after it for the next person. With the BMW I was just looking after the dealer bank balance!

I would have through that as the 3 series out sell any other salon in Europe they would have a product and dealer network that matched there advertising claims. If BMW want to keep their reputation then they need to work not only on the quality of their cars but also the manner of their dealers.

That's my moan over so come on BMW not every one of your customers is a company car driver who does not have to worry about how much things cost to fix.

Reply to
billy
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Bye.

Reply to
Jeff Strickland

LOL

Reply to
TonyK

What will this lamentation change for Bimmer fans ?

Possibly you got a lemon, possibly you didn't have a strong liking for the dealer. Nobody will ever know.

Good luck with your Merc, and rendez-vous on the Mercedes Forum within some months because I guess you'll have exactly the _same_ problems.

"billy" a écrit dans le message news: snipped-for-privacy@bt.com...

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Reply to
frischmoutt

After driving it for 11 years it still ran like a dream. Finally sold it over blue book to the first person who drove it.

Reply to
grinder

Yeah, I picked up a 94 318i conv w/ 91K miles last spring, we only put about

8K on it but the car didn't have a problem (other than a collapsing headliner), rattle or repair. The previous owner said he had it for about 30K and did nothing but brakes and oil services.
Reply to
Jim Tiberio

I am a less than thrilled BMW owner also, have had less than satisfactory dealer encounters. People who are extremely satisfied with their version of a manufacturer's product and people who are at the opposite end of the spectrum should not automatically assume that everyone else has had the same experience. All manufacturers of everything, no matter their quality control, will send out some units with problems. BMW is no different than anyone else and there are serious issues with some of their products. Some consumers are never satisfied either . . . I too wish I had bought a Mercedes, however.

Reply to
bmoag

Merc is not better. According to CR, Merc is significantly worse, in fact.

Reply to
dizzy

If you were destined to get a and car you could have got a shitty example of a Mercedes, too. Yeah I know, that's too zen for this time of the morning. My bad.

But you're point is well taken, evenry car maker ships bad ones from time to time.

Except Fords which are all bad.

Reply to
Richard Sexton

If you've decided a boring car will suit you better why not go the whole mile and get a boring *and* reliable car - a Lexus?

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

Can't get much more boring than a 318.

Reply to
adder1969

Have you driven a recent one? Decidedly lively for a base model with a sweet engine for a four. Well balanced chassis too - the lighter engine doesn't do any harm.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

Last one I drove was a 2004 model. Lively isn't the word I'd use. A well balanced chassis makes for a dull ride when the car's got no ooomph. It was quiet but that's about the only good thing I could say about it.

Reply to
adder1969

mate bought one of the first 318 coupes some years ago - nothing but trouble - air con / electrics/windows/paint (even matt leather one side/glossy on the other door) etc etc

To cap it all he bought it new in October, when he got the reg. doc (V5) the dealer had registered it for a few days in the previous month to hit a dealer incentive Mate complained, dealer lost the incentive and then dealer principle had great pleasure to tell friend when he complained about all the build quality issues - well it is second hand (with a smirk)

fight ensued!

Reply to
lurkio

Yes I got that, when I was buying a used car it was "we do a thorough million point check so it comes to you like new" then a week after "well it *has* done 30k miles sir"

Reply to
adder1969

On 21 Dec 2006 01:19:56 -0800, "adder1969" waffled on about something:

There was always the old 316 :-)

Dodgy.

Reply to
Dodgy

On 21 Dec 2006 06:17:01 -0800, "adder1969" waffled on about something:

30k is nothing though, that's like expecting a 20 year old person to start falling apart!

Even Lada could build things to last longer than that!

Dodgy.

Reply to
Dodgy

I understand how you feel. Having had a 318 myself, less than stellar car. What made matters worse was the lack of care at the dealership. Granted it was only a 318 and not a 750, but they should have been more responsible.

I switched to a Cadillac STS after the 318...and like in your case, what a difference!

Since then I moved to a different state. I am happy that the local BMW dealer is much better, and I am happy with my X 5. It too had some problems, nothing that dealer could not take care of, as a drive in.

Good luch with your Mercedes. I've had a few of those, including the

6.9! They are fine cars.

gamini

Reply to
gw

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