2000 BMW 3 Series 318i SE from UK and Ireland - Comments

Did the guy say Citroen, never never never ever buy a citroen. If you do you are a fool. I have had my Xantia 1.8 for 2 years and I have had more things go wrong with it than monkeys have nits.

I can't believe some of these comments. Bad build quality? Totally beyond comprehension!

My good friend bought a new 318i Executive (Aust. market) and it has a fit and finish that the new C-class cannot touch and an on road feel that I have never experienced in any car for the money. Its handling and braking are absolutely 1st class.

I have worked in the motor industry for nearly 8 years and I have seen and driven countless amounts of cars. I cannot believe that a 328 or 330ci are dud cars that fall apart. BMW's represent the pinnacle of quality motoring, the quality of the 318i is the same as a 740i, a Mercedes C-Class 180 Classic has a cheap and nasty interior, whilst the S-Class has exceptional quality.

The BMW's we get in Australia are all made in Germany except for the X5. Does BMW have any factories in North America? I know they have a factory in South Africa and it is often said that the quality of these cars is not as good as their German counterparts. If they are making BMW's in the US, then and only then could I believe that a BMW was of poor quality and unreliable.

Just a note to the Australian poster. Australian 3 series BMW's are manufactured in South Africa.

I own a 2001 325Ci and I am very impressed. I used to own a `92 318i and loved every minute of it. It was such a good car that a friend also bought one and his was a complete bag of spanners. The sunroof leaked, the suspension was awful, the paintwork went badly wrong as did most other aspects. I honestly think you can be lucky with one car and unlucky with the next of the same model. I haven't quite fallen in love this car yet, but it will grow on me.

Ummmmmm...no, the Australian 318i's are made in South Africa, and all other models are made in Germany.

Australian 3 Series made in South Africa? I don't think so! Where did you hear that one? Unless the compliance plates have been falsified it is DEFINITELY made in Germany.

ALL BMW 318 sedans and since 1997 ALL Mercedes Benz C180 sedans are now manufactured in South Africa. Some of the new Mercedes Benz commercial vehicles are now manufactured in Korea. This information has been passed onto me by too many dealers now for it to be inaccurate.

Gentlemen, Gentlemen. The 3 Series models made in Germany are confined to the 330i, 330Ci & the supersonic M3.

The other 3 Series models are made in the Rosslyn plant, in South Africa.

The easiest way to identify this is by looking at the logo that is embossed on each window. If the logo that appears on the side windows states 'Armourplate', then the model is from South Africa. If, however, the model has Sicursiv, Delodour, or Soliver embossed, then the vehicle is from the Munich plant.

My Dad had one of the newer 318 and previous to that the last of the older style 318. I liked the old car better. The new 318 is too soft and feels under powered. The older 318 still feels a bit under powered but was far more fun to drive.

Both cars were reasonably economical to run but dealer servicing was stupidly expensive. The build quality of the cars (we had) were faultless and he was a 25k a year driver.

Both were company cars otherwise they would just be too expensive.

Interesting to read all the concerns people have had with their BMW's.

I think the car maker to consider is Alfa Romeo. I know what you all might be thinking - "reliability etc", however its amazing to see how quickly reputations can change, witness 2 recent european car of the year awards in the 156 and 147.

My 1999 3.0 litre GTV is simply sublime. I'm convinced that apart from the more expensive and utterly delicious M3, no other BMW engine has come close to giving me such pleasurable driving enjoyment in the past. True, it doesn't have the BMW "thing", however it does have an air of exotic exclusiveness to it and the best reaction from the public - not "BMW envy" but genuine appreciation.

Discovering alfa's I have come to understand what "...made for driving pleasure" is all about. There is a certain civilised rawness to them that is addictive and yet they are indeed sophisticated, stylish and better value for money.

Anyway, I am enjoying mine and I am looking forward to the next generation of alfas, if the 147 is any indication of what is to come. I think Alfa's are becoming the "new BMW".

What do you think?

Happy motoring!

I think that there is no possible way that any Alfa Romeo could even match their respective BMW counterpart in terms of resale value, driver involvement, reliability or build quality.

Irrespective of the European Car of The Year awards won, every model in the Alfa Romeo lineup appears to have major problems in the areas that I have just outlined, plus major problems in dealer service & warranty backup also. Just take a look at ANY of Top Gear magazine's JD Power III's Quality Surveys held every year to substantiate this fact!

But then again, as the old saying goes, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder!

I own a 2000 (w) 320dse and find some of the comments I have read hard to believe:- 'bad build quality, poor ride and handling' this doesn't sound like the car I know and love as I couldn't fault mine in any way apart from one. Mine currently has 27,000 miles on the clock and it has just had its 5th set of disks and pads fitted. The problem starts when the disks and pads have had around 4000 miles use and its around then that I get a bad judder through the steering wheel. I am not by any means severe on the brakes and can't see how my driving could be causing the fault, but I am told by my local dealer that a problem of this nature is virtually unheard of in the E46. Has anyone else come across a problem with the brakes on their car or had similar trouble?

The symptoms you have just described of the steering wheel juddering when braking is what brought me to this website. Same problem and made to feel like I was from another planet by BMW dealers. Currently suffering from extreme cumber in the wheels, have already spent a fortune and still no joy. This response may be a couple of years late, however I am sure it will ensure some other person knows it is the dealers being crafty not their sanity they are losing.

I'm also probably a few years late, but I own a 2000 5-series. My problem has been that I have gone through 3 sets of brakes discs in 3 months/2000 miles. All pads were replaced new each time and already I have massive judder... and I usually use engine braking!! My dealer tried to fob me off also, but I have asked some non-BMW mechanics and they say the 5-series in particular is noted for this problem. So much for the legendary BMW build quality. Other than that I can't fault the car!!

You should learn to take care of a car before you go dissing it. I love my 2000 BMW 323i it's the best car I have ever had.