03-17-2013, 05:03 PM | #200 |
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Problems with 2012 F20 118i
Hi everbody,
I'm new to the forum and, having read some of the threads as a guest, thought I might join to share my (mixed) thoughts & experiences of owning the 118i for the last 9 months. I've driven almost 10,000km in the car. I bought it as an ex-demo from the dealer here in Melbourne. Although the dealer are actually very helpful, and, Generally, the car runs quite well, but I have had the following problems with it; 1) Two weeks in, the steering column started making a loud squeaking / graunching noise! Took it in, had it lubed, OK after that. 2) Two months, in I decided to check the fluid levels (an old habit from my first cars years ago!) and found, much to my surprise, that the car has used a fair bit of oil. Topped it up with 400ml. Then, two months ago, it wanted another fill up half a litre this time - that's 900ml of oil burnt in less than 6000 miles in old money. Blimey. That's a lot. The sooty tail pip was a bit of a give away. Engine is also mechanically noisy / thrashy if you lift the bonnet with it running, it almost sounds like a deisel. 3) 4 weeks ago, a Transmission fault suddenly occurred, and the car went into 'limp' mode - turned out the VANOS sensor on the motor had died, was replaced under warranty 4) Rain sensing wipers have a mind of their own, sometimes they work, sometimes they don't! 3 visits to have software updates carried out have not fixed it. Oh well. 5) Auto Box, while good 95% of the time, has moments when it get's itself muddled up on which gear it wants. 6) Various / numerous rattles from the cabin / boot. On the plus side, it has a good radio, the car phone / bluetooth is good, it looks good (in my opinion) and it is nice and quiet. It handles well on the good tyres, too. (I replaced the (in my opinion) lousy RFT tyres with 'normal' Michelin Pilot Sport 3 - this made a big difference to the level of grip and also made it ride a bit better These fit straight onto the regular rim. No need to buy new wheels.) I also sourced a spare wheel kit from Bimmer Zone in the US. By the way, if you want a kit but are flummoxed by the 'there's no such kit that will fit available for your car ' line: The kit that fits, having researched all the Wheel offsets, diameters and stud patterns, etc, is the Z4 E85/86, this 5 stud steel space saver fits perfectly front and rear on my car (have used it once already)! Apparently, a lot of these cars have similar problems to mine, which knocks my confidence in the Brand. Having owned a fair few cars now, I must say, the service I've had from the Dealer is the best I've seen, they are truly excellent. BUT, I actually don't think all that much of the car. It's just not that well made (ref Oil burning and rattles). Is it worth (the large sum of) money for a 5 door hatchback; AUD$54,000?? $60,000 by the time you buy decent tyres, spare wheel kits, have the window tinting, service package, etc. Nope. It's just not. That is a ton of money, when I add it up I reckon it's a $40,000 car tops. In my opinion, from this example, BMW over-promise (and market) and under-deliver. What do you think? |
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03-18-2013, 02:08 AM | #202 | |
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03-29-2013, 02:03 AM | #203 |
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Drives: 116i (F20) Auto
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Location: Athens, Greece
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Update on a few problems:
1. On Tuesday night I heard a strange ticking noise from the engine. It was very similar to how the valves tick when there is low oil pressure. Could not figure though where it was exactly coming from. No warnings or any other engine messages. 2. The coolant level droped to minimum, withoug any warning and it tayed there. When I toped up (twice, about 1 litre each time) within 24 hours the coolant was again to minimum. It was strange because it was losing coolant but only up to the min. level and then it stopped. 3. Driver's window not working properly. It stopped (as if there was an obstacle) whenever it wanted, sometimes it stops working at all etc. The car went to the dealer on Wednsdya morning and I picked it yesterday with the following report: 1. This was caused by 2 things: a) The Water pump belt was damaged from the inside and a small slither was cut and it was making the noise and b) the pulley or the tensioner (cannot remmeber) was loose. Both problems fixed, the noise has stopped. 2. That was caused by a faulty pipe going to the radiator (thus as not losing all the collant but only a portion). Replace and problem solved. 3. This was coming up to the diagnostics as well and is down to a faulty electric window motor. A new one has been ordered and I will replace it in about a month that I will go for an oil change. All the above (except No.3 which is pending) were done under warranty, so I paid nothing (thank God, as only the parts cost 327 Euro!!). Also, since the car was there for 2 days, they did two software recall campaigns and one more is pending.
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2011- : BMW 116i (F20)
2009-11: BMW Z4 2.5si (E85) 2007-09: Mini Cooper S (R56) 2005-07: BMW 325ti (E46) 2004-05: BMW 318i (E36) |
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03-29-2013, 08:14 AM | #204 | |
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03-29-2013, 04:41 PM | #205 | |
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There's a certain degree of luck involved here. Yours has clearly been bad. It also crossed my mind whether you are paying the price for having bought a demonstrator given that they are rarely run in properly and often thrashed within in an inch of their lives by prospective purchasers, but that might not explain anything other than the oil consumption. Who's your dealer? They sound good. I've been using Melbourne BMW but last time I tried to book my 3 series in for a service, they told me there was a month's waiting list. As for your general conclusions about BMW, I can understand you thinking that, but my experience of having owned BMWs for many years is that the reputation is deserved. The cars I've had have been largely bullet proof--although the interior trim in the last car has been less than robust.
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Last edited by mdt; 03-29-2013 at 04:49 PM.. |
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04-11-2013, 11:20 AM | #206 |
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Hello everybody,
After 1 year and 13000km (BMW 116i 2012) I had a minor problem with the rear windscreen, which they fixed. However they (the dealer service) discovered an oil leakage (a little bit as they said) in the engine. They replaced an oil pump and the engine wire harness (!). Could this be actually true? A little bit of oil leakage to cause a replacement of the engine wiring harness on a new BMW car? After that I feel the car a little bit underpowered with a slightly increased fuel consumption. Definitely not the same car I had. I didn't expect this damage from the first year |
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04-11-2013, 06:46 PM | #207 |
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Update: In addition to the steering rack it looks like I have a faulty Coolant Sensor. It's told me twice now that the coolant level is too low, despite being full. Control message disappears after engine restart.
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04-12-2013, 02:21 AM | #208 |
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Drives: 116i (F20) Auto
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Unfortunately a very common problem...have the dealer replace it.
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2011- : BMW 116i (F20)
2009-11: BMW Z4 2.5si (E85) 2007-09: Mini Cooper S (R56) 2005-07: BMW 325ti (E46) 2004-05: BMW 318i (E36) |
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04-18-2013, 02:48 AM | #209 |
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Hello,
"Problems" I have encountered with my company car, a 116 ED: 1° After washing the car, there is always damp/fog in the headlights, goes away when dry 2° The fairly loud sound of wind when you drive on the motorway is a bit annoying and not what you expect from a BMW car. 3° The ED version has a not so nice "rattling" engine sound (more on higher revs) 4° After 4 months, I have still not found a good position for the seats ( too much different setups are possible) Not real issues here as I am very pleased with this car. Grtz, MisterLonsdale |
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04-18-2013, 04:34 AM | #210 |
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Here in Taiwan the problems are generally,
1. Rusty panel -- being taken care of like everyone else 2. Driver side door rattles, some suffer from passenger side too. Dealers "adjusted" the doors and put a tape over it (they knew this problem) 3. Dealer not too comfortable with upgrading car computer. Some took many days. 4. Computer says coolant level too low but it's actually okay 5. Computer says tire pressure too low when it's actually okay 6. If you modify driver seat into some racing seat a light comes on telling you to be safe or something 7. If you modify your suspension not everyone has the parameters for alignment (not for my region, yet) 8. I can just say when possible, don't install aftermarket sat nav, alarm, dvd, bad experience here. ------------------ summing mine problems & some friends' I haven't read through all the threads, if anything repeats please excuse me. Charles |
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04-18-2013, 06:49 PM | #211 |
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So far after 18 months and 31,000kms the list of faults with a 118i are as follows - quite long
1. Door rattles - fixed 2. Missing LED light on door handle - fixed 3. A/C failure - fixed 4. Faulty Glove box - Replaced 5. Faulty Coolant bottle (Low coolant warnings) - coolant replaced 6. Trim around gear leaver came loose - replaced 7. Side of dashboard you see when you open door warped and fell out - replaced 8. Middle console trim ie around idrive and gear stick has come loose - awaiting replacement 9. Accelerator pedal clicks on pressing and releasing - awaiting replacement 10. Dash rattles - fixed 11. Idrive crashes - software update So people with faults are not alone |
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04-23-2013, 04:19 PM | #212 | |
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westphone What is this tape you are talking about? |
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04-23-2013, 04:40 PM | #213 |
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Heh, my accelerator pedal makes a bit of a click on pressing and release too. What did your dealer say aussman, straight in with a replacement offer? I have to see if I can be arsed to get it sorted.
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04-25-2013, 09:43 PM | #214 | |
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Now, at almost 25,000kms and 1 month shy of its 1st birthday, I got the DRIVETRAIN warning! Ahhh!!! I've taken the car into the dealership with no promise of when i will get it back or even a loaner car to get me by to and from work. For an expensive car, it is awfully fussy and sensitive. |
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04-27-2013, 09:27 AM | #215 | |
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My seats have started to rust particularly in hinge between the back rest and cushion |
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05-01-2013, 07:23 AM | #216 |
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Hi,
Rust under the seats spotted... All over the frame... Thought this wouldn't come up living in a warm climate area... I'll get in touch with the dealer and hopefully they should be able to fix (paint) it... |
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05-06-2013, 02:23 AM | #217 | |
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Regards and hope for the best. |
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05-06-2013, 05:10 PM | #218 |
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Thanks for that! I'll keep you posted...
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05-24-2013, 11:12 AM | #219 |
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Have made 17,000 km with my car. On the dashboard it shows that after 17,000 km I should go for service (!). After the 15k km, this counter started to increase. All this after a software upgrade.
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05-31-2013, 01:09 AM | #220 |
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I've had:-
after 1000 miles New rear disks rear wiper blade ripped off after 4000 miles turbo waste gate actuator failure steering rack failure. The steering rack is on 3 weeks back order. It's a new part number as the original one is a poor construction. I would imagine that these may be recalled at a massive expense from BMW? |
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