When properly maintained and driven cautiously, the BMW 3 Series can endure between 200,000 and 250,000 miles. It will last roughly 13 to 17 years if you drive 15,000 miles per year before needing pricey and uneconomical maintenance. The 3 Series has been known to travel up to 300,000 miles.
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What is the maximum mileage for a BMW 3 Series? (Answered)
A BMW 3-Series can travel how many miles? This is a perfectly legitimate question to ask when looking to buy a new or used 3-Series. After all, you undoubtedly want to maximize your financial investment. We’ll examine this subject in great detail in this blog, but let’s start with a succinct response first:
A BMW 3-Series typically lasts between 200.000 and 230.000 kilometers. About 0.95 times a year, an unscheduled repair on a 3-Series is required, with a 12% chance that the issue will be serious. Furthermore, annual repair expenditures for BMW 3-Series customers average $773.
Having said that, our work is by no means over. First, we’ll go into greater detail below regarding how many miles a BMW 3-Series can travel. Next, we’ll show you the annual cost of a 3-Series as well as the highest and least expensive production years. We also talk about the typical issues that a car could encounter. Read on!
All-around High Mileage
100,000 km or more is regarded as high mileage for the majority of sellers and BMW owners. Drivers typically estimate that a car will only last four to five more years after 100,000 miles.
A basic BMW will survive for at least 150,000 kilometers. But because to technical improvements made by BMW, some of their cars may now survive up to 200,000 or even 250,000 kilometers. In order to get the most life out of a used BMW, try to choose one with fewer than 100,000 miles on it.
A typical American driver logs 12,000 to 13,000 miles annually. Multiply the number of years you anticipate using the vehicle by 12,500 miles, and then account for the remaining mileage on the BMW. For instance, you must go at least 62,500 miles if you want this BMW to last for 5 years. You must locate a BMW with 100,000 miles or fewer because they only last between 150,000 and 200,000 kilometers. More than that, and the BMW is probably going to malfunction before the five years are up.
Are BMWs efficient in terms of mileage?
In order to wrap up this article, let’s review everything we’ve covered. In general, BMW vehicles get good gas mileage. They typically reach their maximum range of 150–250,000 miles. Therefore, anything in the range is considered to have a mileage that may be too high to justify owning the car. But when they reach 60–80,000 miles, the majority of BMWs fall into the high mileage category. Therefore, it is clear that there is still a long way to go before you reach the “too high” point.
With all of that in mind, purchasing a high mileage BMW might be a wise financial move because you’ll receive a great car that’s dependable, has plenty of miles remaining in the tank, and is much less expensive.
I’m Scott, a huge fan of BMWs and a long-time owner of these incredible vehicles. I’m here to chronicle my encounters with BMWs over the years and, hopefully, to be of use to others.
kind of BMW
I notice this constant discussion about BMW reliability every time I visit a BMW community online. Do BMWs need more maintenance or are they just unreliable? Is there a distinction between more maintenance and unreliability? Since I just covered this topic in another piece, I won’t go into great detail here, but every automaker, regardless of how good they are, produces some “dud” vehicles. BMW is no exception.
Every day, and I mean EVERY DAY, BMWs travel well above 100,000 miles. All four of the BMWs I’ve owned—three E36s and one E46—made it well over the 100,000-mile mark, with one reaching 240,000.
The fact that a car COULD go over 100,000 miles, however, does not necessarily suggest that it is worthwhile for you to purchase a vehicle with more than 100,000 miles. Examples of failure of the turbocharger, transmission problems, and early engine failure have all been documented. Here are several specific BMWs that I advise you to steer clear of at high mileage.
Early E90 twin turbocharger troubles led BMW to specifically warrantee some N54 faults, however by this time the cars are already past the warranty’s expiration date. The N54 frequently experienced turbocharger problems that necessitated the installation of two new turbochargers—talk about pricey!
The N54 turbocharged 3 Series automobiles should not be purchased, in my opinion. It is simply not worth the chance of experiencing significant turbocharger issues.
Some 3 Series E46s: The overall quality of the BMW E46 was superb. These cars have at least 100,000 miles on them, if not the bulk of the ones that are now on the market. The E46s with the ZF-branded automatic transmission are notorious for having catastrophic problems that either require the transmission to be replaced or substantial transmission repair, which is a huge issue that I have occasionally seen with these vehicles. The “no reverse” issue with ZF transmissions is the most prevalent complaint. Checking your model number online can allow you to determine whether you have a ZF or the more dependable GM transmission.
This BMW X5 4.8 liter review is entirely based on personal ownership experience. I strongly advise against purchasing the 4.8-liter edition of this car if you want a BMW SUV since I detest it to the hilt. By the time I reached 50,000 miles, I had changed the water pump, both valve cover gaskets, both valley pan gaskets, and the coolant reservoir three times.
The shear absurdity of how much BMW stuffed into the engine bay irritated me the most. There was so little space to work with that it took an absurd amount of time just to remove the valve covers.
There are undoubtedly some model years that I am missing, but overall, these are the most significant problems I have encountered that are widespread across a given number of automobiles.
What does a BMW have high mileage?
Although the average BMW can travel between 100,000 and 250,000 miles, excessive mileage is actually regarded as being a little less than this. Most dealers won’t carry BMWs with mileage over 100,000, and some even think 60-80,000 is a high mileage range for these vehicles.
Therefore, you’ve reached the high mileage area if you’re looking at BMWs with between 60 and 80,000 miles on the odometer. Keep a watch on this because it demonstrates that there are high mileage BMWs available with vastly different mileage estimates.
What is the average lifespan of a BMW 3 Series?
But how far is a BMW 3 Series capable of traveling? When maintained properly, you can anticipate your 3 Series to endure between 200,000 and 250,000 kilometres.
Can BMW travel over 300,000 miles?
When properly maintained and driven cautiously, the BMW 3 Series can endure between 200,000 and 250,000 miles. It will last roughly 13 to 17 years if you drive 15,000 miles per year before needing pricey and uneconomical maintenance. In some cases, the 3 Series can travel up to 300,000 kilometers.
How far can a BMW engine travel?
With good care, almost any BMW has the ability to last up to 200,000 or even 250,000 miles, and there will always be outliers that last even longer.
Which BMW 3 Series engine is the best?
The 318d and 320d four-cylinder diesel versions, in particular if you travel a lot of miles, are so fuel-efficient while yet offering plenty of performance that they remain popular even though diesel cars aren’t quite as popular as they were a few years ago.
The four-cylinder 320i and 330i petrol engines offer sporty performance without significantly losing fuel economy as compared to the diesel counterparts if you drive less kilometres.
If power and performance are your top priorities, the top-of-the-line M340i xDrive with its powerful 3.0 litre six-cylinder engine is definitely the best option. Although the M340d’s diesel engine isn’t quite as powerful, it is almost as quick. But in our opinion, the M340i with a gasoline engine is the more enjoyable vehicle to drive.
The sporty-looking M Sport trim level is by far the most popular when it comes to trim levels, but the lower-spec SE and Sport trims are still attractive and well-equipped options.
What mileage is too high?
Any more than that would be deemed high mileage, such as a two-year-old automobile with 40,000 miles, and would be considered driving more than 1000 miles each month, or 12,000 miles annually.
However, the term “high mileage” is typically only applied to vehicles that have traveled at least 100,000 miles. Most automobiles don’t have warranty coverage for more than 100,000 miles, but there are some exceptions. For instance, Hyundais have a five-year/100,000-mile guarantee. This kind of distance can turn off many owners.
How dependable is a 3 Series BMW?
An illustration of a Personal Contract Purchase: Cash price PS10,000, deposit PS150, and borrowing PS8,500 for 4 years at a representative 7.4% APR (fixed). A total of PS4127.50 will be paid after 47 instalments of PS132.04. PS1833.38 is the total cost of credit. Payable in total is PS11,833.38. 8,000 miles per year as a base. If excess miles is used, there are fees. Finance subject to status; only those 18+.
Although BMW has a reputation for building dependable vehicles, its poor 21st place finish (out of 30 manufacturers) in our 2021 Driver Power customer satisfaction study demonstrates that there are still some areas that need to be improved. In the Driver Power Best cars to own survey, the 3 Series came in at number 31 out of 75 vehicles.
The latest 5 Series, which shares most of its technology with the most recent 3 Series, was ranked in 40th place, which is good news for the new car’s dependability despite the fact that the 3 Series was not included in the survey of customer satisfaction. We expect the 3 Series can raise its overall ranking as many of the infotainment technologies as well as the car’s fundamental design, engine, and gearboxes performed well in the 5 Series.
BMW is known for building secure vehicles, and the 3 Series lives up to that reputation. The most recent vehicle underwent a thorough safety testing process in 2019 and received a perfect five-star rating from Euro NCAP. Protection for adult and child occupants was 97% and 87%, respectively.
Under what BMW refers to as Active Guard Plus, additional safety systems are included. This incorporates cruise control with braking capability, speed limit information, lane departure warning, a collision and pedestrian warning system with a city brake function, and all of the aforementioned features.
Customers can add the Driving Assistant Professional package for about PS1,250 for a more complete set of safety features. Active cruise control, steering and lane control assistance, lane keeping assistance with active side collision protection, priority warning and wrong-way warning systems, and cross-traffic alert are some of the features that fall under this category. In the event of an accident, BMW’s Connected+ service, which comes standard, can notify the emergency services.
BMWs still dependable after 100,000 miles?
BMW is renowned for producing opulent vehicles with outstanding handling and driving dynamics. Do BMWs still be reliable after more than 100,000 miles on the road?
JD Power and other reliability evaluations have routinely placed BMW among the top ten most trustworthy cars.
Furthermore, having driven a BMW myself, I can vouch to the reliability of these vehicles, even after more than 100,000 miles on them. Some models are trustworthy while others are not, therefore it also depends on the models. They require maintenance, but any vehicle that you want to keep in good running order requires maintenance as well.
It heavily depends on the circumstances. It has been said that several BMW models, including the E46 and the E90, can go more than 300,000 miles on a single charge.
This, however, depends on a number of variables. For instance, it’s possible that your car may need significant repairs after 100,000 miles if you don’t change the oil in it frequently or maintain it properly.