Bad News! - BMW 1 series worst reliability record ever

owned one for around 6 months and got shot of it!!
not impressed with any aspect of it...very cheap build...slow,tedious!!
went straight out and got me a beloved 3 series

Originally Posted by depeche john

owned one for around 6 months and got shot of it!!
not impressed with any aspect of it...very cheap build...slow,tedious!!
went straight out and got me a beloved 3 series

Good for you.

Originally Posted by mryakanisachoad

the 1 series is a piece of crap.

fuel pumps are the least of her problems.

The car doesn't have 1 decent seal on it.

Can someone tell me why these people come to a 1 series forum just to post negative things about the car even though most of them don't have one? The fuel pump problem is easy. Go limp your butt into the dealership and get it swapped out. Is it so much of a hassle in your oh so busy life? Of which you have none.

This is my 3rd BMW(1st was 520i and 2nd was 525d) and never had problems with either but now my 2007 has had an HPFP seizure which has triggered a series of other faults, timing chain snapping, cam chain not moving camshaft, camshaft carrier cracked etc. Car has been regularly serviced by BMW Sytner, Cardiff from new till its current 120k mileage. Dealer feels its a manufacturer fault and the various threads here seem to confirm that recurring HPFP faults. No extended warranty - any advice, despite mileage, considering age, service history, brand loyalty, high cost of repair, etc. Before this car has been in tip top drive condition.

Originally Posted by Nhlanganiso

This is my 3rd BMW(1st was 520i and 2nd was 525d) and never had problems with either but now my 2007 has had an HPFP seizure which has triggered a series of other faults, timing chain snapping, cam chain not moving camshaft, camshaft carrier cracked etc. Car has been regularly serviced by BMW Sytner, Cardiff from new till its current 120k mileage. Dealer feels its a manufacturer fault and the various threads here seem to confirm that recurring HPFP faults. No extended warranty - any advice, despite mileage, considering age, service history, brand loyalty, high cost of repair, etc. Before this car has been in tip top drive condition.

Your 118d HPFP is a completely different design to the pump on the 135i. It is much closer to the mechanical engine-driven HPFP pump used by VW on its diesels and 2.0T petrol engines, than it is to the BMW electric HPFP used on the petrol N54/N55 engines. BTW, VW seems to have problems with it's mechanical HPFPs too.

Sorry I should have been more clearer. I meant my 2007 118d HPFP and just today BMW customer (un)care have just come back to saying they won't offer any goodwill help

Thanks for the info. Guess I'll hang on to my 1999 528 for a couple more years.

Originally Posted by ProRail

Thanks for the info. Guess I'll hang on to my 1999 528 for a couple more years.

Who are you thanking? The troll who started this thread and fed it with misinformation, or the several posters who exposed him?

Originally Posted by C-Bear

Who are you thanking? The troll who started this thread and fed it with misinformation, or the several posters who exposed him?

I'm thanking all those who took the time to write. It provided me with lots of useful information and perspective, especially that which reinforces my preference for the 128 over the 135, if and when my 528 needs replacing.

Originally Posted by ProRail

I'm thanking all those who took the time to write. It provided me with lots of useful information and perspective, especially that which reinforces my preference for the 128 over the 135, if and when my 528 needs replacing.

Will you miss four doors? The current 328 gets excellent marks, along with the 128.

Originally Posted by C-Bear

Will you miss four doors? The current 328 gets excellent marks, along with the 128.

Good point. I love those extra doors. Would like to get one of those 5-door models they have in Europe, but I don't think NA will get them. Guess I'll have to wait until I retire somewhere on the other side of the pond.

Can anyone tell me when BMW knew about the problem with the fuel pump on the 135i? And when did the story break about the problem existing? Did BMW actually try and surpress the story or were they trying to proactively fix it? We have a 135i convertible and love the car, but obviously this is a concern. We had the fuel pump replaced, but I'm hearing the fixes haven't been working. Would appreciate any feedback on here.

Originally Posted by SnohomishCounty

Can anyone tell me when BMW knew about the problem with the fuel pump on the 135i? And when did the story break about the problem existing? Did BMW actually try and surpress the story or were they trying to proactively fix it? We have a 135i convertible and love the car, but obviously this is a concern. We had the fuel pump replaced, but I'm hearing the fixes haven't been working. Would appreciate any feedback on here.

I doubt if BMW has the power to supress any reports of this information, but it seems reasonable that they would try to fix it before they publicized it.

Originally Posted by SnohomishCounty

Can anyone tell me when BMW knew about the problem with the fuel pump on the 135i? And when did the story break about the problem existing? Did BMW actually try and surpress the story or were they trying to proactively fix it? We have a 135i convertible and love the car, but obviously this is a concern. We had the fuel pump replaced, but I'm hearing the fixes haven't been working. Would appreciate any feedback on here.

The particular part you mention has had an extra warranty of 120,000 miles or 10 years free replacement for years. So I'd say BMW did NOT suppress it, and DID act proactively.

Btw, I had my pump go (same engine) and it was no big deal. Took it in, got it replaced - about as troublesome as an oil change.

Originally Posted by PolkNole

The particular part you mention has had an extra warranty of 120,000 miles or 10 years free replacement for years. So I'd say BMW did NOT suppress it, and DID act proactively.

Btw, I had my pump go (same engine) and it was no big deal. Took it in, got it replaced - about as troublesome as an oil change.

Thanks for the reply. Have you only had to replace it the one time?

By the way. Go 'Noles. I was a huge Danny MacManus fan.

Originally Posted by SnohomishCounty

Thanks for the reply. Have you only had to replace it the one time?

By the way. Go 'Noles. I was a huge Danny MacManus fan.

Yes, one time. I drove around with it for days and hundreds of miles. I did have to stop and restart the car a few times to reset the car. Then took it to the dealer. I needed to bring her in anyway as they needed to replace my noisy sunroof seal - did it all in one day.

Oh yes, Danny! What a great win vs Nebraska in I think the Fiesta in the late 80s. Hit a 4th and long with no time left for the win. Btw, the Noles are back. We will be making national waves again starting this year.

I'm actually visiting Seattle in July. Never been there.

Just to add a small tid-bit in here, The German Automobile CLub [ADAC] has rated the entire BMW 1 Series line as excellent in the Small Middle class [Untere Mittelklasse] in terms of Breakdowns/Reliability. It has held the #1 position for reliability for model years 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 in its class.

See ADAC Motorwelt, Issue 5, May 2011

So I believe I've read the whole thread and although I've seen part numbers for the N54 HPFPs, I haven't seen any hard info as to whether the N55 uses the same pump or has had any of the same documented problems. Can anyone comment or document on the N55 engine specifically having the problem or not. I have seen only inferences, but maybe missed something. Thanks.

Originally Posted by Gerry116

So I believe I've read the whole thread and although I've seen part numbers for the N54 HPFPs, I haven't seen any hard info as to whether the N55 uses the same pump or has had any of the same documented problems. Can anyone comment or document on the N55 engine specifically having the problem or not. I have seen only inferences, but maybe missed something. Thanks.

Both the N54 and N55 engines can use the 13-51-7-616-170 and 13-51-7-616-446 fuel pumps (these are currently the two part numbers for re-manufactured pumps that haven't been superceded), so yes they use the same pump.

sorry for such a newbie question but does Na mean non automatic? I've heard these transmissions on bmw's normally last longer before going out or needing replaced than the automatic transmissions

Originally Posted by mr29

sorry for such a newbie question but does Na mean non automatic? I've heard these transmissions on bmw's normally last longer before going out or needing replaced than the automatic transmissions

Not sure of the context of your question, but,

NA = normally aspirated (non-turbo)

NA = North America