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      09-09-2022, 11:07 PM   #1
vincechase
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Always had a sweet spot for the f25 X3 35i. Is it worth buying in 2022

Always liked the way the compact x3 2011-2017 looked.

Currently have a 2019 330 m sport on lease and it ends in February.

Tbh prices for financing and leasing is out of this world and I can't imagine spending that much money. Would love a 2021 or 2022 m40. Even x1,x2s are going for crazy prices

So I been thinking maybe it's time to buy a good condition decent miles f25 x3 for my daily riding around.

So my questions are

Is it worth it? Are they reliable ? Best years ? What to look out for? What are ideal max miles to buy at ? Should I scratch this thought? Lol
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      09-11-2022, 07:21 AM   #2
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They are as reliable as any F series car I guess. I owned mine since new for 8 years and 100K KM on the clock. No issues. Just maintenance.

You should really focus on the motor code rather than the years. There are some engine codes that are more problematic than others. n20 comes to mind.
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      09-11-2022, 07:23 AM   #3
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Originally Posted by MSport_Jon View Post
They are as reliable as any F series car I guess. I owned mine since new for 8 years and 100K KM on the clock. No issues. Just maintenance.
Why thank you for your response. Anythjng I should look for? I want to go for a 2016 as I have seen from research that is the best model year? Is there a mileage number I should look for?
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      09-11-2022, 07:26 AM   #4
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I think the N20 is the most problematic engine on all BMWs fitted with it. The n55 is good and I believe the N52 is good too. In fact, I think the n52 is more reliable than N55 although older.
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      09-12-2022, 07:28 AM   #5
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I bought my N55 X3 LCI M sport in very late 21' as a daily and would do it again.

To be fair, it's the cheapest in it's (used) segment typically. SQ5 is $5k+ on average and something like a GLC43 is at least $10k more.

Cheapest but the best? Depends who you ask... I REALLY like the SQ5, but the X3 M sport looks sooooo much better.

If I was giving buying advice I would say look for a 15-17' M sport with the N55.
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      09-12-2022, 07:46 AM   #6
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Same exact situation.

I just turned in my 2019 440i and was going to buy it out because lease prices are absolutely nuts. My payment (all details the same) would have doubled!

Since the pandemic, I work from home so I had about half the miles on my lease than I paid for, so leasing wasn't in the cards again.

I did the same search - ended up buying a 2016 x3 35i xdrive. So far I love it. It's kinda high mileage but I got a deal I was happy with and I know I don't drive much so it's not a big deal.

Good luck with your journey! I bought mine from California (live in FL) because it was hard to find the exact one I wanted. But if you are not picky there are probably tons locally.
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      09-12-2022, 07:47 AM   #7
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If I was giving buying advice I would say look for a 15-17' M sport with the N55.
That's what I did! 2016 N55 M-Sport loaded!
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      09-12-2022, 01:35 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jd_perspective View Post
That's what I did! 2016 N55 M-Sport loaded!
Yessir! Every option but cold weather, which is fine living in South Florida...

I got mine from the original owner with 42k miles for a great price given the market at that time. Had to jump on it. Was searching tirelessly for a Mk7 Golf R to daily but this popped up and I had to do it. No regrets.
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      09-13-2022, 01:16 AM   #9
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I'd probably echo most of what's been said here. I'm not sure why a 2016 would be more desirable than a 2017, but otherwise agree. As far as it being a really nice car, it is. It drives a handles much smaller than it should for its size. You don't feel the SUV penalty as much as you'd think coming form sporty cars. The N55 has some pretty nice power delivery.

I think the design language has aged really well. With my 2013 (pre-LCI) I've had people stop on the street, and at gas stations to compliment the car. People get in the car and think it's 2-3 years old. Granted, I keep it very clean, but it's a 10ish year old car with 100,000+ miles. Not that it matters what others think, but it's really a testament to how well the styling works. Heck, the styling now might work better than when it debuted (before the SUV heydays).

For maintenance issues, most things are good until about 80,000 miles, but around there, you'll have to start thinking about:

1) Water pump. It's electric and when it fails you're going to have an inoperable car. Replace it preventively and t's not that expensive or painful. Have it fail on a road trip, get ready to pay. You can do it yourself under $1000. Probably looking at $2,000-$3,000 at a dealer.

2) Oil cooler and oil filter housing gaskets. These seem to fail very commonly, and right around that 80K mark. Do it yourself and it's $50 in parts. Pay the dealer and it's $750 - $1,000?

3) Valve cover gasket. Honestly, it has the PCV valve built into it, so if I were to do it again I'd just replace the whole thing, but you can do just the gasket. $500 yourself, $1000-$1500 at a dealer?

4) Coolant parts. The overflow tank will probably start leaking from the bottom sensor first. At some point closer to 100K that radiator will probably fail. Probably around $500 done yourself, or $1,000 or so from a dealer?

I've done all of that work on mine. The water pump sucked. Everything else was pretty reasonable. To me it's worth it for what this car provides. I've also had it from 2016 at 35,000 miles to now with about 105,000 miles. Outside of regular maintenance, I'm probably $3,000 - $3,500 in actual repairs in 6 years and 70,000 miles of use...I'll take that!
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      09-13-2022, 01:52 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by WagonR View Post
I'd probably echo most of what's been said here. I'm not sure why a 2016 would be more desirable than a 2017, but otherwise agree. As far as it being a really nice car, it is. It drives a handles much smaller than it should for its size. You don't feel the SUV penalty as much as you'd think coming form sporty cars. The N55 has some pretty nice power delivery.

I think the design language has aged really well. With my 2013 (pre-LCI) I've had people stop on the street, and at gas stations to compliment the car. People get in the car and think it's 2-3 years old. Granted, I keep it very clean, but it's a 10ish year old car with 100,000+ miles. Not that it matters what others think, but it's really a testament to how well the styling works. Heck, the styling now might work better than when it debuted (before the SUV heydays).

For maintenance issues, most things are good until about 80,000 miles, but around there, you'll have to start thinking about:

1) Water pump. It's electric and when it fails you're going to have an inoperable car. Replace it preventively and t's not that expensive or painful. Have it fail on a road trip, get ready to pay. You can do it yourself under $1000. Probably looking at $2,000-$3,000 at a dealer.

2) Oil cooler and oil filter housing gaskets. These seem to fail very commonly, and right around that 80K mark. Do it yourself and it's $50 in parts. Pay the dealer and it's $750 - $1,000?

3) Valve cover gasket. Honestly, it has the PCV valve built into it, so if I were to do it again I'd just replace the whole thing, but you can do just the gasket. $500 yourself, $1000-$1500 at a dealer?

4) Coolant parts. The overflow tank will probably start leaking from the bottom sensor first. At some point closer to 100K that radiator will probably fail. Probably around $500 done yourself, or $1,000 or so from a dealer?

I've done all of that work on mine. The water pump sucked. Everything else was pretty reasonable. To me it's worth it for what this car provides. I've also had it from 2016 at 35,000 miles to now with about 105,000 miles. Outside of regular maintenance, I'm probably $3,000 - $3,500 in actual repairs in 6 years and 70,000 miles of use...I'll take that!
Great maintenance list. Adding to it, also do not forget to upgrade your charge pipes. They will go eventually and leave you stranded.

Also, upgrade the plastic upper block coolant hose plastic fitting. It will disintegrate on your hands upon removal. get a metal unit.

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      09-13-2022, 06:52 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jd_perspective View Post
Same exact situation.

I just turned in my 2019 440i and was going to buy it out because lease prices are absolutely nuts. My payment (all details the same) would have doubled!

Since the pandemic, I work from home so I had about half the miles on my lease than I paid for, so leasing wasn't in the cards again.

I did the same search - ended up buying a 2016 x3 35i xdrive. So far I love it. It's kinda high mileage but I got a deal I was happy with and I know I don't drive much so it's not a big deal.

Good luck with your journey! I bought mine from California (live in FL) because it was hard to find the exact one I wanted. But if you are not picky there are probably tons locally.
Nice glad there are others thinking like me lol. Can you share mileage and price paid?
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      09-13-2022, 07:00 AM   #12
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Thanks everyone for their inputs. Greatly appreciate it. I'm in my/nj area I also don't know how to price these things lol. What's a reasonable price for a pretty loaded with 60/70k miles? Low miles are quite expensive I've noticed
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      09-13-2022, 07:18 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by vincechase View Post
Thanks everyone for their inputs. Greatly appreciate it. I'm in my/nj area I also don't know how to price these things lol. What's a reasonable price for a pretty loaded with 60/70k miles? Low miles are quite expensive I've noticed
I would say if you can come in under $25k on an LCI M sport 35i car you won.

I've noticed too that most under or around 50k miles are in the $30k+ range.
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      09-13-2022, 07:56 AM   #14
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Nice glad there are others thinking like me lol. Can you share mileage and price paid?
purchased July 2022. high mileage but i had the full history of the car so i was happy with it (and I hardly drive so I think it's ok) I have to refinish the rims but otherwise it's in great shape and all maintenance is up to date. A couple of the "problems" that people seem to have were already fixed and the car was under full warranty up until I bought it. So fingers crossed I wont regret it. (My first PURCHASE and not a lease since 2006!)

~90K mi.
$21.5K + tax +tags inc. shipping from Cali to FL

i think i got a steal. i was looking at a 2016 with about the same miles at a local dealer and it had 3 wrecks on the carfax for MORE money!
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      09-13-2022, 08:10 AM   #15
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wow you got a fantastic deal tbh then. I will keep up with my search. I want it pretty fully loaded so I dont feel to dated lol. I work in tech so def love tech stuff cant have it empty. With m sport and I think I will be alright for the forseeable future. Cars arent worth the price now days and I rather make more money then spend it on something not worthy tbh.
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      09-13-2022, 11:57 AM   #16
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I have seen some good deals on some x3s with out the m package but I notice they dont have paddle shifters and gear shiffter different. Can these be retrofitted easily ? Obviously I perfer the m sport look but if I can say 5k or more id def not care for it
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      09-13-2022, 01:17 PM   #17
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Quote:
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I have seen some good deals on some x3s with out the m package but I notice they dont have paddle shifters and gear shiffter different. Can these be retrofitted easily ? Obviously I perfer the m sport look but if I can say 5k or more id def not care for it
I believe you can, just requires coding + the correct steering wheel.
To be honest with you I felt the same way and it's cool to have them but I absolutely do not use them like I thought I would/hardly at all.
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