Used 1996 BMW 3 Series

"Best value sports car"

"This is the second BMW we have owned. It has over 275,000 miles and we have rebuilt it for continued service. The motor was untouched. It still had excellent compression in all cylinders and there was little leak-down. The transmission was also great - we drained and refilled with SWEPCO 201 and it shifts and holds great. What we did replace was the shocks, struts, springs, clutch, shift linkage bushings, transmission mount bushings, sway bar bushings, steering rack and tie rods, water pump, fan clutch, brake hardware, and wheel bearings. It now runs and handles like new. Very impressive engineering. Great on-line community support for repairs and upgrades - lots of instruction and U-Tube videos. Repair parts are suprisingly inexpensive with the exception of a few dealer-only trim pieces. Definately a car you can keep for 500k miles without cracking open the motor - just keep synthetic oil in it and change every 5k or so. If you find a low mileage car, you can expect to have reliable transportation. Our car had a great body, interior, but was driven by a salesman and he had wore out the clutch, wheel bearings and suspension - so the parts mentioned. The fan clutch and water pump was strictly preventitive. The E36 is best for people who like to perform basic tinkering and maintenance on their own - as the cars age you will have to replace some worn and dried out items (belts, hoses, vacuum lines, etc.). It does not take a lot of tools or skill, but a few hours of BMW mechanic time does add up. Great car. Lots of fun to drive. 28 mpg overall and cheap to insure."

"Great car, expensive maintenance"

"With 150,000 miles on it, this little car is still driving great. Repairs however are expensive. I can estimate to spend about $1000-1500 in repairs per year on this car however (that does not include maintenance i.e. new tires, oil changes, etc.)"

"Love this car like it's part of me"

"I bought my Alpine White 1994 325is coupe in 2004 never having driven a BMW. I didn't even know how to drive stickshift at the time and it's a manual- it was an awkward sale but I'm so happy I got it. Mine has every available option for the 3-series that year, including heated power sport seats, the advanced trip computer and the sport suspension package. Driving it is sublime, you're in total control of a rock-solid machine with an ultra-precise shifting gearbox, amazing handling characteristics and the horsepower to back it up. It easily spins the tires into second gear (with traction control turned off, of course)and the engine lets out such a satisfying yet tasteful roar that is woefully missing from the later model 3-series (having driven several E46 models I noticed this, and it feels like newer 325's have much less power too). On the down side, I have spent SO much money keeping this car in tip-top shape. Repairs are very expensive. The engine & transmission have never given me problems but many little things have, such as the windows, fuel pump, gauges and various electronic/luxury features. And gas mileage isn't terrible but it's not awesome either at approx. 20-21mpg. Still, the feeling of quality and coolness is pervasive. Driving it makes you feel, well, pretty cool. A massive array of upgraded equipment is on the market, I have done much to improve the styling & performance of mine, and it's worth it. A set of 5-spoke 18-inch wheels, M3-style mirrors, bumpers & sideskirts and HID-loaded projector headlights with angel eye LED rings makes for one strikingly beautiful coupe. The 4-door 325i looks nice too, but trust me, you want the coupe. And -whatever- you do, get a manual transmission. Not only is that the way a 3-series is meant to be experienced, but I've heard the automatic transmission tends to fail early with a $3000 repair bill. You don't want that- but you really do want this car!"