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BMW 3-Series Maintenance and Repair

5349 messages,  Last post on Apr 30, 2013 at 3:31 PM

You are in the BMW 3-Series Forum.

What is this discussion about? BMW 3 Series, Sedan

    
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Messages Page 127 of 536

#1253 of 5349 shipo and silvernubira by dunworth

Sep 01, 2004 (5:50 am)

shipo: You are absolutely correct. It was a typo, my brother's silver coupe is a 2003 325ci not a 328ci.
 
Actually, dealer service on the car has been good. The dealership is very patient, but the fact still remains that the car is horribly unreliable.
 
silvernubira: Thanks for sharing your experiences. My brother is not happy with his car as his problem always seems to happen on the highway, and he travels to the north part of our province often for work. However he still loves the car when it is working well and is not ready to give on the BMW brand, yet.
 
And for all the guys flaming our friend with the Daewoo, just because it is cheap does not make it a horrible car. My 1994 Hyundai Excel, arguably one of the least loved cars in recent memory, was bought new as a first car for my wife at a cost of C$6995 new plus tax. It was extremely reliable though not much fun to drive. Four years later I traded it in with 58,000 km for C$4800 plus tax. Now that's value!

#1254 of 5349 dunworth by div2

Sep 01, 2004 (9:11 am)

"And for all the guys flaming our friend with the Daewoo, just because it is cheap does not make it a horrible car."
I agree; a Daewoo isn't horrible because it is cheap-it's horrible because it is a Daewoo.

#1255 of 5349 Ohhhhhkay.... by KarenS HOST

Sep 01, 2004 (9:12 am)

...let's drop the personal sniping and off topic (re: Daewoo) comments.

#1258 of 5349 Re: Oops... [kyfdx] by KarenS HOST

Sep 01, 2004 (9:17 am)

I'll give you a pass as it looks like we were posting at the same time...but that's the last one in my hall monitor pack.

#1259 of 5349 Re: Oops... [KarenS] by kyfdx HOST

Sep 01, 2004 (9:18 am)

Replying to: KarenS (Sep 01, 2004 9:17 am)
thanks for the pass... I deleted..
 
regards,
kyfdx

#1260 of 5349 Fuel for 1999 BMW 323i sedan? by ungarn

Sep 02, 2004 (1:30 pm)

Any problems using 87 octane fuel in our 1999 BMW 323i sedan?
 
It is my wife's car and she is a safe and SLOW driver. There is absolutely no noise under acceleration. One BMW dealer service manager indicated that there is no problem using 87 octane, in fact it burns "cleaner" than premium fuel with octane boosting additives.
 
Just curious...thanks!
 
-Thad

#1261 of 5349 Re: Fuel for 1999 BMW 323i sedan? [ungarn] by bmw323is

Sep 02, 2004 (2:05 pm)

Replying to: ungarn (Sep 02, 2004 1:30 pm)
I'm sure you will get many opinions on the 'premuim or regular" fuel debate. I've never used anything but premium in my 2000 323i. I also have a 2003 4Runner in which premium fuel is recommended, but I usually use regular. The main reason I use regular is that with the Toyota, the manual says to use premium for "improved performance." With BMW the manual simply recommends premium fuel.
 
I really don't think I would damage my BMW with regular fuel, but I'll continue to use premium. I often think I'm just programmed to use premium in an 'upscale' BMW while a 'Toyota' should be fine on regular.

#1262 of 5349 Re: Fuel for 1999 BMW 323i sedan? [ungarn] by shipo

Sep 02, 2004 (2:10 pm)

Replying to: ungarn (Sep 02, 2004 1:30 pm)
The only things that you will encounter are a reduction in power under full throttle and reduced gas mileage. In both cases, the reasons for the reductions are the same, ignition timing. Our engines have what is known as an On Board Computer (OBC), and its job is to use ignition timing to keep the engine operating at the very edge, which provides the best acceleration under full throttle and the best economy while cruising without overdoing it and making the engine very unhappy. By introducing a fuel that is more volatile (lower octane), then OBC needs to retard the timing to keep the mechanicals from getting too hot (detonation and pre-ignition). The result, less performance.
 
As for regular fuel burning cleaner, that is just an old wife’s tale that is completely untrue, assuming of course that your engine is designed for premium fuel. If your engine was designed for low octane fuel and you use premium anyway, then yes, extra deposits will collect in your engine due to the lower volatility of the premium fuel. It has nothing to do with the additives. The simple truth is that if your engine is burning all of the fuel introduced into the cylinders, there will be few if any combustion chamber deposits left behind.
 
In the end, my advice is to do both your car and your wallet a favor and feed your car premium fuel.
 
Best Regards,
Shipo

Messages Page 127 of 536

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