How is your BMW reliability experience?

Yes, we buy our cars now as well and we also went from BMWs to Subarus. We have two of them.

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Yup. I had my 530 returned from a service with half the required oil. The dash was lit up red with alarms. But they still delivered it.

Car itself is impeccable though.

Nice taste👍

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E30 320i perfectly reliable over one year 12k miles but replaced by Subaru
E36 318iS perfectly reliable
E39 525d touring reliable except for intercooler dying just outside warranty with only minor goodwill contribution
E39 530d saloon reliable apart form one or two niggles
i3 never broke down but needed some work under warranty. Had three punctures in one month and no space for a spare

But my brother’s 530d needed new innards when one of the swirl flaps broke and got swallowed - a common problem. And lots of petrol motors had problems with nikasil coated bores, if I remember correctly, and lots of 2.0d problems in the last ten years or so I think

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Perhaps worth adding that the 2.0d Subaru I had was about to die at 77k miles (bought with 9k miles) so traded it in quick (for a 3.0 petrol outback). It was an 08 so known for being chocolate. Also had a 2004 discovery 3 that was awful, just awful, a discovery 4 that was great

I only learnt to drive about 15 years ago in my 40s, I’ve owned 3 MINIs since. My 2008 Diesel Cooper was rock solid for about 7 years, then started developing expensive faults, flywheel, alternator… I traded it in after 8 years for a 2016 5 door petrol Cooper which so far has been rock solid, I picked up a 2009 petrol Cooper convertible a couple of years ago, again that’s been fine. (A friend calls them my summer and winter cars.)
I did have a dire experience with a main dealer service unit, the diesel was towed in for repairs to a major fault, when I got it back £1,500 later it didn’t start the day after I picked it up. I called a local independent MINI specialist who gently told me the battery leads weren’t on properly, bless him he took it to his shop for a quick check up on the house. (And told me he’d have done the same job for under £500 with OEM parts.) When I phoned the main dealer the engineer claimed he hadn’t cut the power. Which could have been true if he hadn’t reset the clock 12 hours out, I’d noticed at 10am it was saying 22.00, which rather suggested a) he’d cut the power, b) he knew it as he’d reset the clock, c) he’d lied.
The second hand convertible came from the independent who’d been so good, and the new 5 door came from a main dealer further away, I don’t buy from businesses I don’t trust.

Had multiple BMW’s, and now driving a X3, happy customer.

In addition to having BMWs (as mentioned above) I also had a '09 MINI John Copper Works. It was a fun car, but was not without issues and recalls. In the end the FWD torque steer drove me nuts and I got rid of it (for a Subaru WRX STi) swearing I would never have a FWD again. Now I’m spoiled by Subaru’s awesome AWD drive train.

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I used to travel in subaru a lot when working in New Zealand. Yeah, it gripped the road so well thanks to AWD.

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When I think about it some more, for my own driving and what I’m most likely to encounter, I sorta prefer having a car who’s DNA is about handling rough and unpredictable surfaces (Subaru in WRC, etc) than one on somewhat more predictable road racing surfaces (BMW in LeMans GT, Touring Car, etc.).

My driving doesn’t entail much risk on dry (or even wet) asphalt and concrete, but when things take a turn for the worse (sleet, ice, heavy snow, etc) I want something that inspires confidence. I don’t need (or want) to drive fast on public roads and my tracking days are done, so a Bimmer is wasted on me. Subaru, on the other hand, takes care of me when conditions turn sour. Not to mention, my Outback is perfect for my cycling lifestyle when I want to haul some buddies and our bicycles to rural Missouri for a nice gravel bike ride. :slightly_smiling_face:

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Of all the cars I’ve owned I’d have to say the Subaru Forester mkII was the best of the lot although it was far from the most expensive. It never went wrong, would go across fields as easy as roads and was as tough as old boots.
After three years and over 60,000 miles it still looked tidy inside.
I would have bought another except they messed it up turning it into an SUV.

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you can always buy a Xdrive from BMw. :wink:

Yeah, why buy a AWD Subaru that works really well in adverse conditions for $25K when you can buy a X Drive BMW that might work just as well for twice the price? :man_shrugging:

Subaru for me every time. I always fancied a Legacy 3.0 spec b but emissions have killed that one off :slightly_frowning_face:

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I’m just saying you could. (because you mention AWD as an advantage)
Not that you should. As a matter of fact, i think you have a good taste in having an Subaru:
i like it a lot, specially the Legacy model.

I know. I was just pulling your leg. LOL

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No problem. By the way, how good are the Confidence with the NDX2/300DR?
I like (read love) Dyn’s Tweeter’s. Very modern/open…

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Just curious if anyone has had to use BMW Assist. After many years of AA membership we ditched it last month as both myself and Mrs n have Assist on our cars. Just wondered if it’s any good ?

The 300DR is a great match for my Confidence C2Ps. I had a 250DR before and it worked pretty well, but the 300DR really makes them shine. It was like getting an upgraded pair of speakers at the same time.

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Utterly, utterly useless.

I’ve only had to call them once in 6 years but they couldn’t have been more pathetic.

“We’ll be with you in an hour sir”. 8 hours later…

It would’ve been quicker for me to walk home/work but at least they paid for the tyre that was shredded as compensation for losing me a day’s work.

I appreciate that a lot of punctures can be fixed with the tyre kit but not if you have a gouge in it, in which case you’re stuffed.

AA for me when the warranty expires.

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