Faults:

Voltage regulator blew.

Interior trim on the doors fell off.

Headliner sagged.

A/C is weak

Automatic locks stopped working.

Window slider clips fell off.

Ignition barrel jammed up.

Electronic instrument pixels burned out.

Rear wheel bearings replaced.

Automatic transmission is slow to respond.

Cooling system is crap (water pump failed, thermostat jammed, radiator cracked).

Eventually the head gasket blew.

General Comments:

Stay clear of high mileage BMW 318is with no service records. I must have spent over $3,000 in repairs over 8 months, and it still ended up at the wreckers. They gave me $200 for it. The cooling system has plastic composite parts, which literally disintegrate over time. The water pump impeller exploded inside the motor. Nothing worked on this vehicle, despite all the repairs. It made me conclude that these vehicles do not go beyond 250K often.

Faults:

Water pump weak.

Headliner sags.

Interior trim looks cheap.

Radio electricals.

General Comments:

I operate six BMW 318i vehicles as part of our "A to B" fleet. Although not as reliable as our Mitsubishi fleet, they certainly make up for it in customer satisfaction in regards to "Road Feel". The BMW still feels tight on the road.

Parts prices can be an issue, but normal wear and tear items cost no more than Japanese models.

The first thing to do when acquiring one of these vehicles (other than roadworthy item inspection) is to recondition the cooling system with a quality water pump, thermostat and coolant.

Faults:

Normal wear and tear for a car of this vintage: the air conditioning needed to be re-gassed and the radiator needed replacing. Other minor things all to do with the age of the car, and totally normal.

General Comments:

It's a great car, it has that classic BMW style and 'connected' feeling to the road. It handles very well on the road and in parking situations its just fabulous. The steering is just excellent.

The seats may look thin, but are quite supportive and comfortable. The performance is not blistering, but is enough for what I need (the car really loves to perform in the high rev ranges).

The quality of the interior is my one quibble, not of the high standard you may expect (the door trims and quality of the cloth and some plastics). Expect saggy door trims as standard.

Not as much room in the back, but actually I rode in the back today (a friend was driving), and it was actually really comfortable and smooth.

The safety is also quite good, with ABS brakes, and clever deforming crumple zones and side intrusion bars - definitely good for a car of this era.