The used car market is brimming with tasty deals, but sometimes it can be hard to tell the wise buys from the potential money pits.
Fear not: our used car experts have compiled their picks from the classifieds. See anything you like? Best to move fast and buy them before we do...
BMW M135i £16,500: Hands up those of you who’ve noticed how cheap the BMW M135i has become lately. Go on, be honest. Well, okay, maybe you had, as an astute reader of these pages, but clearly you’re in the minority, because otherwise they’d be being bought up in their droves.
The M135i is, of course, that rare thing: a rear-wheel-drive hot hatch, last heard of in the days of the Renault Clio V6 and, before that, the Vauxhall Chevette HS. But that isn’t the only thing that makes it special.
For one thing, there’s a 316bhp powerplant that combines a glut of low-down shove with a soaring top end, and then there’s the balanced chassis with a fabulously sticky front end that makes hurling the little BMW through corners at ever- increasing pace a delight.
Find a used BMW M135i on PistonHeads
And when you’re not out giggling yourself senseless, the M135i plays the part of a sophisticated family bus with consummate ease, with plenty of space in the back for two kids, high-quality plastics up front for mum and dad, and a decent-sized boot for everyone’s detritus. There’s even a five-door version.
A four-year-old example isn’t one of those, but it is just £16,500. Truth is, these days you can actually buy high-mile M135is for less than £15k, which seems like a steal. This private-seller car has covered a measly 30,000 miles, though, and comes with a generous helping of options, including the performance exhaust to help liberate the sound of that straight six when you’re on a charge. There is, as you’d expect, a full history as well.
All of which sounds like the sort of thing one should jump on before the rest of the world catches up.
Ferrari 348 TS £45,995: The 348 is still a great entry-level Ferrari, even if it isn’t the finest- handling car to come out of Modena. Indeed, with that in mind, why not go for a Targa? It still looks just as terrific as the tin-top and offers you a spot of al fresco motoring. This right-hand- drive example has high miles but, at the price, looks worth a punt.
Join the debate
Add your comment
The 1 series is *not* a cool
The 1 series is *not* a cool car. Never has been. Never will be.
That C6 though, wow. If you look up cool in a dictionary it'd be a picture of a C6.
WallMeerkat wrote:
Fair enough. Cool is subjective. And I agree that most 1 series - most BMWs, actually - are far from cool. But a big straight six in a relatively small, relatively light rear drive car is cool to me.
A Couple of Things
1 Series is tiny in the back. Cool car, but not a family car. Not sure about a high quality interior, either.
The mileage on the Liberty wasn't mentioned but be careful of high mileage examples. The EJ20 tends to slowly self destruct after around 190,000 km. Not sure about the six.
Ferrari not top Dog anymore....?
Yep, they’re not, there’s so many new brands out there with way more exciting shapes, better sounding powertrains and in some cases make any Ferrari look like an eastern block Polski Fiat!, it’s only recently that Ferrari have got some of their mojo back, started with the 812 and the new Pista version, the 348 was a Dog new and an expensive Dog to keep running now.