Fun Second Family Car 5-7k

[Sko77y]

We're expecting our first child towards the end of this year, with large car duties being covered by a 2020 Cupra Ateca, I'm looking at what I can get myself since that'll predominantly be the wife's main car.

Ideally I want something fun to drive as I'll be parting out my turbo mk1 mx5 to partially fund this. It'd fill the role of secondary family car/commuter/fun daily driver for me.

List of requirements:
2011 or newer (or at least 2007 onwards at a push)
4 seats/5 doors
Manual
Better MPG than 35 would be preferable.
Euro 4 Petrol
Fun to Drive
5-7k budget
Mileage under 100k
Isofix

This is what I've thought of so far:
BMW 130i (N52)
Mini Clubman CooperS (4 door variety - may not be practical enough).
Fiesta ST (too small?)
Focus ST (mk3 - hatchback/maybe estate)
VW Polo GTI

Open to suggestions on what I might have missed or what I might need to concede to achieve the majority of criteria.

[trevalvole]

Re. the Mini, I'd check what engine it has, and if it has a Prince one, then I'd find out what version it is and the associated problems.

Polo GTI - avoid the twincharger(1.4 turbo & supercharged), which I suspect only comes with an early dry-clutch DSG, which means even more problems on top of those with the engine.

[Rumblestripe]

trevalvole said:

Re. the Mini, I'd check what engine it has, and if it has a Prince one, then I'd find out what version it is and the associated problems.

4 door (Cooper S or otherwise) never came with the Prince engine

[Sko77y]

trevalvole said:

Re. the Mini, I'd check what engine it has, and if it has a Prince one, then I'd find out what version it is and the associated problems.

Polo GTI - avoid the twincharger(1.4 turbo & supercharged), which I suspect only comes with an early dry-clutch DSG, which means even more problems on top of those with the engine.

Will a proper look into the mini, it's been the non conventional 4 door, so could well be - the later clubmans were all 5 door but out of budget.

I'd only been looking at manuals for the Polo so hopefully that avoids that. Determined to keep at least one manual car in the household.

[trevalvole]

Rumblestripe said:

trevalvole said:

Re. the Mini, I'd check what engine it has, and if it has a Prince one, then I'd find out what version it is and the associated problems.

4 door (Cooper S or otherwise) never came with the Prince engine

I'm a bit confused by what is meant by the 4 door Clubman, but if it is the 2007-2014 R55, then it did come with the Prince engine: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mini_Clubman_(2007)

[ZX10R NIN]

Sko77y said:

We're expecting our first child towards the end of this year, with large car duties being covered by a 2020 Cupra Ateca, I'm looking at what I can get myself since that'll predominantly be the wife's main car.

Ideally I want something fun to drive as I'll be parting out my turbo mk1 mx5 to partially fund this. It'd fill the role of secondary family car/commuter/fun daily driver for me.

List of requirements:
2011 or newer (or at least 2007 onwards at a push)
4 seats/5 doors
Manual
Better MPG than 35 would be preferable.
Euro 4 Petrol
Fun to Drive
5-7k budget
Mileage under 100k
Isofix

This is what I've thought of so far:
BMW 130i (N52)
Mini Clubman CooperS (4 door variety - may not be practical enough).
Fiesta ST (too small?)
Focus ST (mk3 - hatchback/maybe estate)
VW Polo GTI

Open to suggestions on what I might have missed or what I might need to concede to achieve the majority of criteria.

I'd say that if you want a fun steer that can do daily/family duties then the Astra GTC VXR is a great choice as they're spacious with a big boot too:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304256...

Or if you need five doors the 2.0T ST-3 Focus gets my vote but you'll be just over 100k though:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304116...

Or the Alfa Giulietta Cloverleaf, a good steer (not as sharp as the two above but good none the less) & a cracking engine:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302274...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304246...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302254...

Or if you really a BMW then a 125i could work:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304266...

[Rumblestripe]

trevalvole said:

Rumblestripe said:

trevalvole said:

Re. the Mini, I'd check what engine it has, and if it has a Prince one, then I'd find out what version it is and the associated problems.

4 door (Cooper S or otherwise) never came with the Prince engine

I'm a bit confused by what is meant by the 4 door Clubman, but if it is the 2007-2014 R55, then it did come with the Prince engine: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mini_Clubman_(2007)

True but it has five doors! Two front doors the barn doors at the back and the little door behind the driver's door. I assumed he was talking about the four door hatch (which again pedantically is a five door!)

[RoVoFob]

Sko77y said:

This is what I've thought of so far:
BMW 130i (N52)
Mini Clubman CooperS (4 door variety - may not be practical enough).
Fiesta ST (too small?)
Focus ST (mk3 - hatchback/maybe estate)
VW Polo GTI

Open to suggestions on what I might have missed or what I might need to concede to achieve the majority of criteria.

Three-time 130i owner here. Had my current one when my son arrived last year, alongside an A6 4.2 V8 Avant then a Passat R36 Estate and an A6 4.2 saloon, though that’s up for sale now and I’m hunting for family car number four now…

I think the 130i works pretty well as a fun, practical-enough second family car - and it’s the one I’ve relied on in the gaps between big family cars. Good value, very reliable and more practical than you might think.

The only limitation for us was that we could either fit our gigantic bassinet or pushchair base in the boot. If you’re happy to load things in the front footwell/on the passenger suit, you’ve got a decent amount of room. Just don’t plan on transporting an oversized pushchair base and bassinet at the same time, unless you’re good with creative cabin packing.

Mine has rear ISOFIX points (standard) plus a passenger seat ISOFIX mount (which I think was optional). Fitting a child seat is much easier in the 130i than models with recessed mounts.

Despite my 130i being 17 years old, my wife seems to feel pretty safe in it with our son and we managed to pack ourselves up for a three-day Christmas trip in it.

Oh, and the engine is wonderful. Really punchy, has loads of torque, revs nicely and sounds great. Mine’s been decently economical. If you have any particular family-friendly questions, let me know…

[georgeyboy12345]

Sko77y said:

We're expecting our first child towards the end of this year, with large car duties being covered by a 2020 Cupra Ateca, I'm looking at what I can get myself since that'll predominantly be the wife's main car.

Ideally I want something fun to drive as I'll be parting out my turbo mk1 mx5 to partially fund this. It'd fill the role of secondary family car/commuter/fun daily driver for me.

List of requirements:
2011 or newer (or at least 2007 onwards at a push)
4 seats/5 doors
Manual
Better MPG than 35 would be preferable.
Euro 4 Petrol
Fun to Drive
5-7k budget
Mileage under 100k
Isofix

This is what I've thought of so far:
BMW 130i (N52)
Mini Clubman CooperS (4 door variety - may not be practical enough).
Fiesta ST (too small?)
Focus ST (mk3 - hatchback/maybe estate)
VW Polo GTI

Open to suggestions on what I might have missed or what I might need to concede to achieve the majority of criteria.

For the cars you have listed I think you might need to up your budget a bit

You'll struggle to find a decent 2007+ manual 130i with less than 100k on the clock at all, never mind one in budget. They won't manage 35 mpg and most won't have isofix either as they were an option. If you relax your requirements a bit regarding mpg, isofix, age and mileage, then this one looks like good value and probably won't cost you anything in depreciation (but maybe a bit in repairs). I think 2006+ models also have very high annual tax.
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302144...

Avoid the Mini Clubmans - as someone has already mentioned, they will have the troublesome Prince engines.

You'll need around £9500 for a decent Focus ST, they also won't do 35 mpg.
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202303255...


Fiesta and Polo could be a little on the small side.

I'd be looking at spending a little more than your budget on the newest Fiesta ST you can, like this
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304086...


As for the Polo GTI, avoid the 1.4s and go for the later 1.8 TSI engined models, you want to be spending around £10k on a decent one
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304066...



Here are some alternative recommendations

Alfa Romeo Giulietta TBi
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202208279...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302013...


Seat Leon 1.8 TSI FR (will remap to over 250 bhp)
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304035...


5 door Suzuki Swift Sport
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304176...

Edited by georgeyboy12345 on Monday 1st May 22:31

[Brassblaster]

Volvo C30 T5 should be possible on that budget - quick autotrader flick shows a few but either older than 2011 or more like 120k miles... that engine wears huge mileages very well so I wouldn't (personally) fret a 120k+ example if the service history is right.

[RoVoFob]

georgeyboy12345 said:

You'll struggle to find a decent 2007+ manual 130i with less than 100k on the clock at all, never mind one in budget. They won't manage 35 mpg and most won't have isofix either as they were an option. If you relax your requirements a bit regarding mpg, isofix, age and mileage, then this one looks like good value and probably won't cost you anything in depreciation (but maybe a bit in repairs). I think 2006+ models also have very high annual tax.
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302144...

Edited by georgeyboy12345 on Monday 1st May 22:31

From the UK press pack for the BMW 130i [the highlighting was me finding ‘ISOFIX’ in the doc]:


So, rear ISOFIX points were standard on the 130i.

All manual 130is are £395 in tax (pre-facelift) or less for the slightly more economical facelift versions. Only post-23/3/06 pre-facelift automatics are high tax.

Think the 130i was phased out in 2008, so finding a later one is the harder part, though a well looked after older one should still be decently reliable. 35mpg is possible on a longer trip, especially with a facelift model, though you’d expect to get less in mixed driving - especially with a pre-facelift.

[Sko77y]

Thanks everyone, I knew it was a good idea to ask here.

Yes technically Clubman is 5 door regardless, although having done some research into them further they're now off the list. Also Polo 1.4 GTI are off the list so it'd need to be the 1.8 like advised above - I'd struggle to get them in on budget, unless it was a CAT-N/S.

The Astra GTC VXR is a lovely car, but I think it needs to be 5 door at minimum. same for the Alfa's but I'm not a fan of how they look unfortunately.

Volvo C30 T5 manages to get worse MPG than the Cupra so I don't think it'd be good for the 38 mile commute - same engine as my old ST and it was not great on fuel. I'll have a look into the Leon and the Swift Sport though as hadn't considered them.

I've a couple questions re: the 130i but I'll put that in a separate post.

[Sko77y]

RoVoFob said:

Three-time 130i owner here. Had my current one when my son arrived last year, alongside an A6 4.2 V8 Avant then a Passat R36 Estate and an A6 4.2 saloon, though that’s up for sale now and I’m hunting for family car number four now…

I think the 130i works pretty well as a fun, practical-enough second family car - and it’s the one I’ve relied on in the gaps between big family cars. Good value, very reliable and more practical than you might think.

The only limitation for us was that we could either fit our gigantic bassinet or pushchair base in the boot. If you’re happy to load things in the front footwell/on the passenger suit, you’ve got a decent amount of room. Just don’t plan on transporting an oversized pushchair base and bassinet at the same time, unless you’re good with creative cabin packing.

Mine has rear ISOFIX points (standard) plus a passenger seat ISOFIX mount (which I think was optional). Fitting a child seat is much easier in the 130i than models with recessed mounts.

Despite my 130i being 17 years old, my wife seems to feel pretty safe in it with our son and we managed to pack ourselves up for a three-day Christmas trip in it.

Oh, and the engine is wonderful. Really punchy, has loads of torque, revs nicely and sounds great. Mine’s been decently economical. If you have any particular family-friendly questions, let me know…

Thanks for the reply, the feeling safe aspect is predominantly why the MX5 has to go, so it's good to hear that you don't have any issues. Once concern was that the boot would be too small for the size of the car - have you looked into a roof box at all? Although in saying that, main car duties are covered already - so it's treading a line between small but also practical.

Is the N52 the one to go for? so a looked after 100k example shouldn't cause any extra issues, especially if enthusiast owned?

I think if they came with Isofix it makes it a very tempting option, the only real issue would be finding a good enough example of one. I'll do some more reading up on common faults and issues. What sort of realistic MPG is achievable in one of these? Do they suffer from rust? Coming from an mx5 I don't want to be battling rot again anytime soon.

[RoVoFob]

Sko77y said:

Thanks for the reply, the feeling safe aspect is predominantly why the MX5 has to go, so it's good to hear that you don't have any issues. Once concern was that the boot would be too small for the size of the car - have you looked into a roof box at all? Although in saying that, main car duties are covered already - so it's treading a line between small but also practical.

Is the N52 the one to go for? so a looked after 100k example shouldn't cause any extra issues, especially if enthusiast owned?

I think if they came with Isofix it makes it a very tempting option, the only real issue would be finding a good enough example of one. I'll do some more reading up on common faults and issues. What sort of realistic MPG is achievable in one of these? Do they suffer from rust? Coming from an mx5 I don't want to be battling rot again anytime soon.

You’re welcome. Any opportunity to big up the 130i…

The boot isn’t huge, but it is bigger than that of a Golf R32 (don’t believe Clarkson on that). Annoyingly, the floor isn’t completely flat, though the volume is reasonable. If you have an average or smallish pram, that’d make things easier. We didn’t ever transport our bassinet in the 130i, but the wheels/base in the boot and pram seat on the passenger seat worked for us once our son was over six months old.

I’m allergic to sticking things on cars/towing etc. so if it doesn’t fit in the car, it’s not coming! With a child seat in one corner of the car, there’s room in the footwell, plus the boot around the pushchair and the front seat/footwell. If you travel without pushchair/bassinet when they’re less than six months old you’ll have loads of room for travel cot, nappies, clothes and whatever else you might need.

All 130is have the N52. Pre-facelift ones feel slightly quicker - or at least more analogue - to me, while the facelift ones have EfficientDynamics kit, which makes them about 10% more economical on paper. Reliability is pretty good overall, though there are a few weak points like water pumps, which can go. There’s loads of detail on BabyBMW, so may be worth having a look there for more buyers’ guide info.

I paid £5,850 for my 2006 one with 70k miles in 2020. Bought my previous one with similar mileage for £5,850 in summer 2014 or so. Good ones are still around. I’d probably prioritise decent condition, servicing and options over low mileage if you have to choose/can’t wait.

Popular options include xenons, leather seats, heated seats and uprated speakers. Rust hasn’t been an issue for me, there are just a few small stone chip bits on mine that could do with touching up.

MPG will vary in where/how you drive. Did an 1,800-mile road trip across France, Germany and Switzerland a few years back and think my previous 130i (pre-facelift) did about 33-34mog overall, including bombing along the autobahn and dawdling though a few bits of France.

I imagine 22-25mpg would be typical in heavy town traffic, 30-35mpg out of town in my current one (pre-facelift, too).

[andy118run]

I'm in a similar place to OP, always trawling the likes of AT or gumtree, looking form something interesting but practical to run as a second car.
In this kind of budget it really does feel like looking for a needle in a haystack sometimes...

Focus ST-2 2.0 ecoboost (2014) -

For what it's worth I also drive a Focus ST, which has been my daily driver/family car for the last 2 years.
Bought on 38k miles, it's now just short of 60k miles. It's been reliable, just needed tyres and yearly servicing, never even had to replace a light bulb.

It's fairly practical - it's been taking the family of 2 adults and 2 kids wherever it needs to for the last couple of years - in the last month it's been for easter hols in Scotland and a weekend in Manchester (travelling from Norwich). Though I do miss the huge boot of my previous S Max, and packing the boot of the Focus tends to take a bit of planning...

Performance and economy is adequate - must admit I'm starting to think I'd fancy something a bit quicker (330d, Golf R etc...), though outright pace isn't everything I suppose.
Fuel wise - the trip computer is currently at 35.9mpg from a mix of local and longer trips, and generally speaking it hard not to achieve between 35 and 40 mpg, especially on the longer drives.

ST-2 cars are much more common than the ST-3s and are perfectly comfortable in my mind - the half leather recaros are comfy to me. The headlights are nothing special and there are no daytime running lights which seems strange, considering my 2012 S Max had them.

Passenger room in the back is ok - my average sized wife often sits there on longer journeys.
The cars are very tuneable I'm led to believe - most basic remaps would increase power from 250hp to 270ish, which I must admit is tempting as I have a local chap who does this stuff.

As a previous poster pointed out, for around 7k a mk 3 Focus would probably be around to 100k miles mark and there don't seem any estates in that range.
If you fancy a fast-ish estate - how about this (Octavia VRS)-
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302224...
Only posting that as it's near me and always crops up in my searches - been for sale for a while though and slowly reducing in price, so I assume it's still strong money.

[ZX10R NIN]

RoVoFob said:

You’re welcome. Any opportunity to big up the 130i…

The boot isn’t huge, but it is bigger than that of a Golf R32 (don’t believe Clarkson on that). Annoyingly, the floor isn’t completely flat, though the volume is reasonable. If you have an average or smallish pram, that’d make things easier. We didn’t ever transport our bassinet in the 130i, but the wheels/base in the boot and pram seat on the passenger seat worked for us once our son was over six months old.

I’m allergic to sticking things on cars/towing etc. so if it doesn’t fit in the car, it’s not coming! With a child seat in one corner of the car, there’s room in the footwell, plus the boot around the pushchair and the front seat/footwell. If you travel without pushchair/bassinet when they’re less than six months old you’ll have loads of room for travel cot, nappies, clothes and whatever else you might need.

All 130is have the N52. Pre-facelift ones feel slightly quicker - or at least more analogue - to me, while the facelift ones have EfficientDynamics kit, which makes them about 10% more economical on paper. Reliability is pretty good overall, though there are a few weak points like water pumps, which can go. There’s loads of detail on BabyBMW, so may be worth having a look there for more buyers’ guide info.

I paid £5,850 for my 2006 one with 70k miles in 2020. Bought my previous one with similar mileage for £5,850 in summer 2014 or so. Good ones are still around. I’d probably prioritise decent condition, servicing and options over low mileage if you have to choose/can’t wait.

Popular options include xenons, leather seats, heated seats and uprated speakers. Rust hasn’t been an issue for me, there are just a few small stone chip bits on mine that could do with touching up.

MPG will vary in where/how you drive. Did an 1,800-mile road trip across France, Germany and Switzerland a few years back and think my previous 130i (pre-facelift) did about 33-34mog overall, including bombing along the autobahn and dawdling though a few bits of France.

I imagine 22-25mpg would be typical in heavy town traffic, 30-35mpg out of town in my current one (pre-facelift, too).

The 125i I linked to may well be the fit as it's new enough & still has a decent amount of go.

[Sko77y]

RoVoFob said:

You’re welcome. Any opportunity to big up the 130i…

The boot isn’t huge, but it is bigger than that of a Golf R32 (don’t believe Clarkson on that). Annoyingly, the floor isn’t completely flat, though the volume is reasonable. If you have an average or smallish pram, that’d make things easier. We didn’t ever transport our bassinet in the 130i, but the wheels/base in the boot and pram seat on the passenger seat worked for us once our son was over six months old.

I’m allergic to sticking things on cars/towing etc. so if it doesn’t fit in the car, it’s not coming! With a child seat in one corner of the car, there’s room in the footwell, plus the boot around the pushchair and the front seat/footwell. If you travel without pushchair/bassinet when they’re less than six months old you’ll have loads of room for travel cot, nappies, clothes and whatever else you might need.

All 130is have the N52. Pre-facelift ones feel slightly quicker - or at least more analogue - to me, while the facelift ones have EfficientDynamics kit, which makes them about 10% more economical on paper. Reliability is pretty good overall, though there are a few weak points like water pumps, which can go. There’s loads of detail on BabyBMW, so may be worth having a look there for more buyers’ guide info.

I paid £5,850 for my 2006 one with 70k miles in 2020. Bought my previous one with similar mileage for £5,850 in summer 2014 or so. Good ones are still around. I’d probably prioritise decent condition, servicing and options over low mileage if you have to choose/can’t wait.

Popular options include xenons, leather seats, heated seats and uprated speakers. Rust hasn’t been an issue for me, there are just a few small stone chip bits on mine that could do with touching up.

MPG will vary in where/how you drive. Did an 1,800-mile road trip across France, Germany and Switzerland a few years back and think my previous 130i (pre-facelift) did about 33-34mog overall, including bombing along the autobahn and dawdling though a few bits of France.

I imagine 22-25mpg would be typical in heavy town traffic, 30-35mpg out of town in my current one (pre-facelift, too).

Perfect thanks, so easily usable as a second car is what I'm hearing then, should it be pushed into main car duties it'll cope (with a roof box for emergencies). I think for the age it'd be easier to get a better130i than a Focus ST - which seem to be the main 2 front runners currently. 130i getting better MPG.

So mileage around 100k isn't a worry on these? I see quite a few for sale at the 100-130k mark that'd leave me with a pot of cash for maintenance, I'd likely go for an enthusiast owned car in that case then.

Ah yes, I remember BabyBMW, almost got a 130i before but bought an Audi S3 instead that turned out to be a lemon, always regretted that decision. I'll hop on there and have a look at what to expect.

[GreatGranny]

That would get you a higher mileage MK6 GTI

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202303285...

or a nice lower mileage MK5

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202304106...

[Sko77y]

andy118run said:

I'm in a similar place to OP, always trawling the likes of AT or gumtree, looking form something interesting but practical to run as a second car.
In this kind of budget it really does feel like looking for a needle in a haystack sometimes...

Focus ST-2 2.0 ecoboost (2014) -

For what it's worth I also drive a Focus ST, which has been my daily driver/family car for the last 2 years.
Bought on 38k miles, it's now just short of 60k miles. It's been reliable, just needed tyres and yearly servicing, never even had to replace a light bulb.

It's fairly practical - it's been taking the family of 2 adults and 2 kids wherever it needs to for the last couple of years - in the last month it's been for easter hols in Scotland and a weekend in Manchester (travelling from Norwich). Though I do miss the huge boot of my previous S Max, and packing the boot of the Focus tends to take a bit of planning...

Performance and economy is adequate - must admit I'm starting to think I'd fancy something a bit quicker (330d, Golf R etc...), though outright pace isn't everything I suppose.
Fuel wise - the trip computer is currently at 35.9mpg from a mix of local and longer trips, and generally speaking it hard not to achieve between 35 and 40 mpg, especially on the longer drives.

ST-2 cars are much more common than the ST-3s and are perfectly comfortable in my mind - the half leather recaros are comfy to me. The headlights are nothing special and there are no daytime running lights which seems strange, considering my 2012 S Max had them.

Passenger room in the back is ok - my average sized wife often sits there on longer journeys.
The cars are very tuneable I'm led to believe - most basic remaps would increase power from 250hp to 270ish, which I must admit is tempting as I have a local chap who does this stuff.

As a previous poster pointed out, for around 7k a mk 3 Focus would probably be around to 100k miles mark and there don't seem any estates in that range.
If you fancy a fast-ish estate - how about this (Octavia VRS)-
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202302224...
Only posting that as it's near me and always crops up in my searches - been for sale for a while though and slowly reducing in price, so I assume it's still strong money.

Thanks for sharing your experience with the ST, I must have googled the wrong version as saw MPG values of 25-30, maybe the earlier model. How'd the tend to wear their miles? I'll do a bit of research, I don't think I'll be able to push the budget out further to get something with less miles than that, unless I go CatN/S.

[RoVoFob]

Sko77y said:

Perfect thanks, so easily usable as a second car is what I'm hearing then, should it be pushed into main car duties it'll cope (with a roof box for emergencies). I think for the age it'd be easier to get a better130i than a Focus ST - which seem to be the main 2 front runners currently. 130i getting better MPG.

So mileage around 100k isn't a worry on these? I see quite a few for sale at the 100-130k mark that'd leave me with a pot of cash for maintenance, I'd likely go for an enthusiast owned car in that case then.

Ah yes, I remember BabyBMW, almost got a 130i before but bought an Audi S3 instead that turned out to be a lemon, always regretted that decision. I'll hop on there and have a look at what to expect.

I’d say it’s a viable second family car, provided you’re not planning on having an enormous pram/bassinet that you want to carry in the car often.

130i should be more economical than the 2.5-litre Focus ST. As someone else has said, though, the newer four cylinder Focus is likely to be more economical. My current 130i uses notably less fuel than my previous one (really feels like it has been remapped - though the guy I bought it from repeatedly swore that it hadn’t been), though they’re all pretty economical for a car of this power/engine format.

I wouldn’t worry about a well looked after 130i with up to 150k personally. Water pump is the main failure point I can think of, along with standard age-related suspension wear and tear. I replaced the suspension on my current one at 14 years old/75k miles - the shocks were knackered. Aside from that, in the three years I’ve owned it, all it’s needed has been a rear number plate bulb (the previous owner had fitted LED ones which were flickering) and to adjust one of the headlight beams.

An enthusiast-owned one with more miles is definitely better than a neglected, lower-mileage one.