I should be going today to look at a 318 ti for sale. I know a few people on here have one of these, and I was wondering what their experience has been?
This one is supposed to be the sport trim level, but i don't know what that comes with over the standard ones, or what to look for.
Also, mileage is kinda high (190,000). This one is adult owned, but how long will these engines generally run before needing a lot of work?
The engines usually aren't the problem. Take a good hard look at the cooling system first and foremost. The water pump should have a metal impeller (not many of the stock plastic ones made it past 60,000 miles). Head gaskets are sensitive to overheating so be sure to check for signs of head gasket damage. Make sure the windows are operating properly. Check ball joints and front, lower control arm bushings and motor mounts. None of these things are hard to change (the car is good to work on) but they could give you some bargaining leverage if they are bad. Check to see if the door panels are secure and check for clunks when going from forward to reverse. Clunks are indicative of rear control arm bushing wear. I have had all these problems and I still love the car.
I had one with a Downing Supercharger, bad to the bone, very cool car.
Good luck. 99% of the ones I've ever seen for sale had automatic transmissions.
BTW, isn't there something about the rear subframe on these, or is it only the MECHANICALLY similar Z3 that has a problem with the diff tearing out the floor....or something like that? (Obviously, not a BMW expert.)
Entropyman wrote:The engines usually aren't the problem. Take a good hard look at the cooling system first and foremost. The water pump should have a metal impeller (not many of the stock plastic ones made it past 60,000 miles). Head gaskets are sensitive to overheating so be sure to check for signs of head gasket damage. Make sure the windows are operating properly. Check ball joints and front, lower control arm bushings and motor mounts. None of these things are hard to change (the car is good to work on) but they could give you some bargaining leverage if they are bad. Check to see if the door panels are secure and check for clunks when going from forward to reverse. Clunks are indicative of rear control arm bushing wear. I have had all these problems and I still love the car.
um... what he said?
318ti buyers guide - http://318ti.org/forum/showthread.php?t=5137
Knowing what year 318ti is key.. the 95s had a different engine from the 96+. Later cars were more luxurious and there was the availibility of the "california top" that is a large folding fabric roof... while neat, I would avoid those cars.
the 95 used the M42 engine.. which is a 1.8 and pretty stout with a forged crank.. but had a bad gasket on the front of the engine that would allow oil and coolant to mix. it was a matter of when, not if it went. at almost 200,000 miles.. it was already replaced. the M44 in the 96+ was a 1.9 that made the same HP (it has a more restrictive intake sytem and a different Fuel injection.
As for the Diff pulling out of the floor.. I have not heard of a ti doing that. The 4 cylinder engines do not have the HP that the 6's do.
The big bug bears are the interior and the rear suspension. The subframe bushings are a PAIN to do (which is why I still need to do them) and like all E36s.. it seems like BMW used elmers glue to hold the door panels on.. Other problems are typical to all E36s..
The big plus for the Ti.. it weighs a good 400 pounds less than most other E36s and being slightly "decontented" there is less to break, which makes them even more reliable
In addition to what everyone else said, check all of the body panels for the VIN #. If it says DOT.R, it's a replacement panel.
havent owned any but i love driving them. IMO they feel a little livelier than a standard e36 as it uses the e30 rear semi-trailing arm suspension. and the best part is that its the same engine bay as any other 6cyl powered e36.
when i worked at the bmw garage we had a customer with a 235k mile Ti that had a downing atlanta supercharger for the previous 135k miles and it was a hoot to drive.
from what ive heard the thing that often kills the car is if the profile gasket fails, which seems to be an earlier car issue more often, but it dumps or trickles coolant into the crankcase behind the timing cover. i.e no cheap fix. i havent seen one fail in person though for what thats worth.
I bought mine (96 base model 318ti) a year ago with 120k on the clock. It has been a very fun and practical car. Great gas mileage and awesome cargo capacity with the rear seats folded down.
Sport models got upgraded suspension. Different springs and sway bars. Front suspension is the same as any non-M e36 and the rear is the same as the z3/e30. The only year with a factory limited slip is 95. The club sport editions and the winter package cars got them. Limited slips from e30's are basically a bolt in job.
Check for rust around the rubber hockey-puck jacking points on the side of the car. That's where I saw rust on the other one I looked at.
The other issue on the M44 models (96+) is the plastic cooling system fittings. There are 3 that are prone to cracking and should be replace every ~100k miles. They are cheap, but a bit of a pain to replace. I did a complete cooling system overhaul including new hoses, radiator, plastic pieces, water pump, etc for about $500 in parts. The bottom ends are pretty much bullet proof. I have heard of issues with the cam gears/timing chain coming apart and destroying the engine. That was on an engine with 240k miles.
Properly bleeding the cooling system is essential to getting reliable engine operation. Not getting all of the air out can result in over heating and blown head gaskets.
Like gimp said, 318ti.org is a great source of information. Ignore the guys who wish they'd bought a VW over there and you'll be okay :)
JMcD wrote:Sport models got upgraded suspension. Different springs and sway bars. Front suspension is the same as any non-M e36 and the rear is the same as the z3/e30. The only year with a factory limited slip is 95. The club sport editions and the winter package cars got them. Limited slips from e30's are basically a bolt in job.
My 96 has the winter package and the LSD. Friend of mine has a 97 sport with the DASC and traction control.. mine handles better:)
Early 96s are more likely to get the LSD.. from mid year on they got traction control that kills the power through an aux throttlebody in the intake when it senses wheel slip
mad_machine wrote:JMcD wrote:Sport models got upgraded suspension. Different springs and sway bars. Front suspension is the same as any non-M e36 and the rear is the same as the z3/e30. The only year with a factory limited slip is 95. The club sport editions and the winter package cars got them. Limited slips from e30's are basically a bolt in job.
My 96 has the winter package and the LSD. Friend of mine has a 97 sport with the DASC and traction control.. mine handles better:)
Early 96s are more likely to get the LSD.. from mid year on they got traction control that kills the power through an aux throttlebody in the intake when it senses wheel slip
Ahh, I didn't realize some of the 96 cars got them as well. I put an lsd from a 95 CS in mine. I can put down power much better coming out of corners now. No more inside wheel spin!
I can still get wheel spin.. but it through both of them. Honestly though, I like how it feels like the car is "digging in" as it takes off
m42's don't die from mileage. they die of neglect.
