(snip)

>
> And surely having two defective parts turn up in the first three months
> doesn't mean the car is going to be a lemon, does it?

Get used to it.

We are on our ninth BMW* ; an M (performance) 135i (F20) which is about
14 months old now. The first of the new genre of BMW to slot in between
the full fat M-cars, and the M-Sport models.

It is our first F series BMW, and having having it 8 months, and then
closely looked at the rest of the F series cars, I can tell you that the
materials, quality of fit and finish are far lower than BMWs of previous
years.

I have had to fit lots of small pieces of rubber to stop squeaks and
rattles in the cabin, but the groans, knocks and further rattles from
the interior really annoy me. Few of which made their presence known
about at the time of assessment.

Everything feels flimsy, and I am ashamed that I agreed to buy it, but
my better half wanted it.

I have found a few parts that were not fitted correctly at the factory.

Even the front and rear wipers do a poor job of clearing the screens,
tried new blades, too.

Our 2011 E82 coupe, a 135i M-Sport, with the same glorious N55 engine,
has much greater quality fit, finish and materials, does not have any
interior niggles at all. The seats are more comfy, too.

I think that the new cars (F-series) have been designed to have a
shorter life.

We have taken our BMWs through around eight different BMW dealer
workshops, and I can tell you, they are all crap. They cannot even be
trusted to get the tyre pressures correct, and often, the cars are
returned damaged.

If any other car maker made a small car with a straight six engine, I
would not have a BMW.

* (five 3 series, and four 1 series)

David