Buying a used BMW 3 Series: best years, common problems and what to check

Few used cars give you as much for the money. Few are as unforgiving when servicing gets skipped. The difference between a great one and an expensive mistake is how it was looked after.

Anna

Vehicle history research

A great used 3 Series and an expensive one can look identical. The paperwork is where they differ.

The 3 Series is the car people turn to when they want something that feels a class above a family hatchback without paying a class above. That's also where buyers get caught out. Plenty of cheap ones spent years on the longest service intervals the car allowed and were sold just before the big repair bills arrived. The next owner pays them.

This guide covers the three generations you will find for sale, the best years to buy and the ones to approach with care, the common problems by engine, and what to check before you pay.

The short version

Before you hand over the money

Check the mileage, damage, finance and import history behind the car. It takes under a minute.

—

Austria A Belgium B Bulgaria BG Cyprus CY Czechia CZ Germany D Denmark DK Estonia EST Spain E Finland FIN France F United Kingdom GB Greece GR Hungary H Ireland IRL Italy I Lithuania LT Luxembourg L Latvia LV Malta M Netherlands NL Poland PL Portugal P Romania RO Sweden S Slovenia SLO Slovakia SK

No countries match

Please select a country first

Check VIN

Example: WBA3A5G59DNP26082Free preview included

• 30+ countries
• Result in under a minute
• Full PDF report

BMW 3 Series generations: E90, F30 or G20

Three generations make up almost every used 3 Series for sale today. Each comes as a saloon and an estate, which BMW calls the Touring.

E90 (2005 to 2012)

The cheapest way into a 3 Series now. Still a joy to drive, but these are old cars, and the N47 2.0 diesel fitted to the 318d and 320d from 2007 is the one with the timing chain reputation. Buy on condition and service history, not on the badge on the bonnet.

F30 (2012 to 2019)

The generation most buyers end up looking at, and a strong used buy when it's been looked after. Cars built from the 2015 facelift on got a revised diesel engine, the B47, that's far less prone to chain trouble.

G20 (2019 on)

Nicer inside, better to drive and still expensive used. The petrol and plug-in hybrid versions have a better reliability record than the diesels. Some of the earliest cars were caught by recalls, so check the work was done.

The 3 Series is also one of the most checked cars in Europe, second only to the Golf in our ranking of the most bought used cars.

Best years and years to avoid

There is no bad 3 Series year as such, only engines and histories that need more care. As a rule of thumb:

• Best buys: an F30 318d or 320d built from mid 2015 on, with the B47 engine, and a G20 petrol or plug-in hybrid with its recall work done.
• Buy with care: E90 and early F30 diesels with the N47 engine (2007 to 2015), and F30 320i and 328i petrols with the N20 engine. Fine with a full oil change history, risky without one.
• Avoid: the cheapest high mileage E90s with no paperwork. The saving on the price is gone after the first big repair.

The year in the advert does not tell you which engine a car has. The build date does, and on a European BMW the VIN itself does not show the year, as our BMW VIN decoder explains. A VIN check dates the car from the factory records.

BMW 3 Series common problems

Timing chain on the 2.0 diesel (N47)

Every diesel 3 Series from these years uses a timing chain, and on the older 2.0 diesel both the chain and its tensioner can wear out early.

The warning sign is a metallic ticking or rattle from the engine. Cars that went a long time between oil changes suffer most, and the revised post-2015 engine is much better (Parkers, Honest John). Owners who keep these engines healthy change the oil far more often than the service computer asks. A car that went two years between oil changes is one to walk away from.

On the N47 the chain sits at the gearbox end of the engine, so replacing it is a big labour job rather than a quick fix. That is why a rattle matters so much on a car you are about to buy.

The 2.0 diesel's timing chain: listen for a rattle from cold.

Timing chain on the four-cylinder petrols (N20)

The four-cylinder petrols in the F30 320i and 328i are the most troublesome petrol engines in the range. Same cause, same cure: timing chains don't cope with old oil (Parkers, What Car?).

EGR cooler recall on diesels

BMW recalled a large number of its diesels because the EGR cooler can leak coolant inside the engine.

In the worst case that ends in a fire under the bonnet. Warning signs are a low coolant message, a loss of power, a smell of exhaust or smoke from the engine bay. BMW dealers do the fix for free (Consumer Reports, Motoring Research).

Oil leaks on older cars

The E90 is known for leaks from the oil filter housing gasket and the valve cover gasket. It starts as a damp patch and ends with oil dripping onto hot parts. After the test drive, look around the engine and sniff for burning oil (Honest John, PistonHeads).

Rust on the E90

The E90 rusts more quietly than the older 3 Series did. Owners find it bubbling at the rear wheel arches and on the inner arches behind them, with the boot lid next in line. Blocked drain channels, including the ones by the rear lights and the sunroof, are what starts most of it, so the damage is often out of sight rather than obvious (BimmerForums, PistonHeads).

Brakes and tyres

The 3 Series gets through brake pads and discs faster than most owners expect, so budget for them (What Car?, Parkers).

Many cars also run on run-flat tyres, which ride harder and cost more to replace than normal ones. Check what's fitted and how much tread is left.

Smaller annoyances

On the F30: tired starter motors, paint that chips easily on the bonnet and front bumper, and Bluetooth that drops out (Parkers).

On the G20: a rattle from the rear on cars with adaptive dampers, and wind noise at motorway speed (What Car?).

None of these should put you off a good car. All of them are worth raising when you talk price.

Your ten minutes with the car

• Start it from cold and listen. A metallic tick or rattle from a diesel means walk away or budget for a new chain.
• Ask for the oil change history with dates, not just stamps. Once a year or more often is what you want to see.
• Ask a BMW dealer to check the VIN for open recalls, especially the EGR cooler on diesels and the engine recall on some G20s built in spring 2019.
• With the engine warm, use a torch on the top and front of the engine to look for wet oil, and sniff for burning oil after the drive.
• Look at the brake discs through the wheels. A raised lip around the outer edge means discs and pads are due soon.
• Check the tyres: run-flats or normal ones, matching brands, and how much tread is left.
• Look along the bonnet and front bumper for stone chips, and at the wheels for kerb damage.
• On an E90, check the rear wheel arches and the boot lid for bubbling paint, and lift the boot carpet to check for damp from blocked drains.
• Pair your phone, play something over Bluetooth, and try every window and the screen.

How to check a used BMW 3 Series by VIN

Almost every fault above comes down to how the car was looked after, and none of that is visible on the driveway. The record behind the VIN fills the gap.

You will find the VIN at the base of the windscreen on the driver's side, on the sticker in the driver's door frame and on the registration document. Check that all three match before you check anything else.

• Mileage readings from inspections and services over the car's life. A reading that goes down is the sign of a clocked car, which our guide to odometer fraud covers in detail.
• Damage records, including repairs the seller may not mention.
• Import history. Many 3 Series for sale across Europe started life in Germany, and the history often goes missing at the border. See how to check an imported car.
• Open recalls are a separate check: any BMW dealer can look the VIN up in BMW's own system and tell you whether the EGR cooler or 2019 engine recall work was done.

Not sure yet? See what a full report looks like first

What we'd buy

An F30 320d built from 2016 on, with the revised engine and proof of yearly oil changes, is one of the best used cars you can buy for the money.

If you'd rather have petrol, stretch to a G20 330i and make sure any 2019 recall work is done.

And if the budget only reaches an E90, buy the best-kept one you can find, not the cheapest. The saving on the price is gone after the first big repair.

The 3 Series rewards owners who stay on top of the servicing and punishes the ones who don't. The paperwork tells you which kind of car you're looking at.

Also looking at a Volkswagen? Read our used VW Golf guide or the used VW Passat guide.