Cheap run around; 2007 BMW 116es
Discussion
Firstly, apologies for the long post which will include some background to how I came round to buying this 116 for my other half.
A little while ago, prompted by a thread either on here or STW, I sat down to work out how much my company car (Octavia vRS) and my other half’s F56 MINI Cooper actually cost me each month...I nearly fell off my chair because it was more than our mortgage! Part of the issue was that I never really saw how much the company car cost because I paid for it at source rather than by direct debit etc. The last two years of BIK increases in diesel cars had made it a very very expensive option. We also reviewed how my other half used her car; she doesn’t do many miles and it seemed daft for her to do it in a relatively expensive car. She loved her MINI but the depreciation over three years was brutal.
In the end we decided that I’d opt out if my comments car scheme and but what I wanted (M140 once the right deal arrived) and we’d buy her a cheap car for driving to work and parking on a street. At first I was looking at R52 era MINI’s because I’ve had three liked them and so did she. By chance her dad mentioned that he wanted to buy a new car because he didn’t really like the 116 he’d inherited from my mother in law. He thought it was too small and a girls car despite barely doing any miles.
This grabbed my interest; they’d owned it from circa 2008 and it’d never let them down. It is a bit rough round the edges cosmetically but mechanically it’d never wanted for anything; serviced every year etc. We agreed on a price which was pretty damn cheap. And so it starts.
Plans for the car are;
Mega clean (wash, clay, machine polish etc)
Shampoo the carpets to try and get rid of the old car smell
Replace the nasty cloth seats with nicer ones
New steering wheel
New gear knob
New handbrake grip
Sort the window trim that’s gone funny in the sun
New wheels (I’ve bought some style 411’s for sensible money)
New exhaust trim
Debadge
Fit a double din unit with CarPlay
Generally clean / tidy it up
Over the last few months I’d been keeping an eye out for bits. I happened to come across a full set of leather M Sport seats and door card on eBay. I put a cheeky offer in which was accepted. Downside was a trip to Swansea to collect. They’re in bloody good nick considering the age with just some minor bolster wear. This should make a big difference.
My company car doesn’t go back until September, so we’ve ended up with three cars for a bit. I had to order my 140 when I did due to production stopping. I’d then figured that my father in law would procrastinate about what to buy (he normally does when it comes to spending money). I took him to a few car supermarkets the other week and for ages it looked like it was going not to be a long process until he saw a 2 series active tourer. He loved them; getting older they’re easy to get in which is good especially for my mother in law whose hips are buggered until they get replaced. I found him an AUC car which he bought the next day. As such, the 116 is now in our possession a bit earlier than planned.
Here are a few pics of it as it was when my other half drove it home tonight;
God knows when the interior was last cleaned; it was pretty manky. I gave it a quick vac and wipe around inside tonight and popped on the new steering wheel (well, I say popped but getting the old air bag out was an absolute pig), gear knob and hand brake grip. Chucked the new mats in too so it feels a fair bit mess manky.
I have a few days off next week so I’ll tackle the paint, carpet and interior. The double din unit will be fitted in a few weeks once my mate has some spare time. He’s just fitted one to his 125 coupe so I may as well use his knowledge.
I’m hopefully picking the wheels up Friday night. They’re in pretty good nick with good tyres but will be refurbed at a later date in a pale anthracite.
I’ve started cleaning the new seats with Gliptone.
Minor wear to the drivers bolster
The door cards need a really good clean and I’m going to swap some of the switches over due to the new ones being manky and the current ones in better nick.
A little while ago, prompted by a thread either on here or STW, I sat down to work out how much my company car (Octavia vRS) and my other half’s F56 MINI Cooper actually cost me each month...I nearly fell off my chair because it was more than our mortgage! Part of the issue was that I never really saw how much the company car cost because I paid for it at source rather than by direct debit etc. The last two years of BIK increases in diesel cars had made it a very very expensive option. We also reviewed how my other half used her car; she doesn’t do many miles and it seemed daft for her to do it in a relatively expensive car. She loved her MINI but the depreciation over three years was brutal.
In the end we decided that I’d opt out if my comments car scheme and but what I wanted (M140 once the right deal arrived) and we’d buy her a cheap car for driving to work and parking on a street. At first I was looking at R52 era MINI’s because I’ve had three liked them and so did she. By chance her dad mentioned that he wanted to buy a new car because he didn’t really like the 116 he’d inherited from my mother in law. He thought it was too small and a girls car despite barely doing any miles.
This grabbed my interest; they’d owned it from circa 2008 and it’d never let them down. It is a bit rough round the edges cosmetically but mechanically it’d never wanted for anything; serviced every year etc. We agreed on a price which was pretty damn cheap. And so it starts.
Plans for the car are;
Mega clean (wash, clay, machine polish etc)
Shampoo the carpets to try and get rid of the old car smell
Replace the nasty cloth seats with nicer ones
New steering wheel
New gear knob
New handbrake grip
Sort the window trim that’s gone funny in the sun
New wheels (I’ve bought some style 411’s for sensible money)
New exhaust trim
Debadge
Fit a double din unit with CarPlay
Generally clean / tidy it up
Over the last few months I’d been keeping an eye out for bits. I happened to come across a full set of leather M Sport seats and door card on eBay. I put a cheeky offer in which was accepted. Downside was a trip to Swansea to collect. They’re in bloody good nick considering the age with just some minor bolster wear. This should make a big difference.
My company car doesn’t go back until September, so we’ve ended up with three cars for a bit. I had to order my 140 when I did due to production stopping. I’d then figured that my father in law would procrastinate about what to buy (he normally does when it comes to spending money). I took him to a few car supermarkets the other week and for ages it looked like it was going not to be a long process until he saw a 2 series active tourer. He loved them; getting older they’re easy to get in which is good especially for my mother in law whose hips are buggered until they get replaced. I found him an AUC car which he bought the next day. As such, the 116 is now in our possession a bit earlier than planned.
Here are a few pics of it as it was when my other half drove it home tonight;
God knows when the interior was last cleaned; it was pretty manky. I gave it a quick vac and wipe around inside tonight and popped on the new steering wheel (well, I say popped but getting the old air bag out was an absolute pig), gear knob and hand brake grip. Chucked the new mats in too so it feels a fair bit mess manky.
I have a few days off next week so I’ll tackle the paint, carpet and interior. The double din unit will be fitted in a few weeks once my mate has some spare time. He’s just fitted one to his 125 coupe so I may as well use his knowledge.
I’m hopefully picking the wheels up Friday night. They’re in pretty good nick with good tyres but will be refurbed at a later date in a pale anthracite.
I’ve started cleaning the new seats with Gliptone.
Minor wear to the drivers bolster
The door cards need a really good clean and I’m going to swap some of the switches over due to the new ones being manky and the current ones in better nick.
Edited by Court_S on Wednesday 24th July 23:36
Nicely done Op! It’s great to see cars like this improved with OEM bits - should make it feel like the premium product it was always meant to be. Just please don’t make it an M Sport rep.... 
Also worth checking out the coding options on these. There are usually a few useful add ons turned off with BMW’s. If you can find someone with Carly, you should be able to get them activated.
Is that the new steering wheel in the pics? You may be able to retrofit a multifunction one if that would be useful.
Also worth checking out the coding options on these. There are usually a few useful add ons turned off with BMW’s. If you can find someone with Carly, you should be able to get them activated.
Is that the new steering wheel in the pics? You may be able to retrofit a multifunction one if that would be useful.
Edited by col1983 on Thursday 25th July 06:14
Don’t worry it won’t be an M Sport rep. The sport seats were too cheap to turn down at £140 plus I find them super comfy. The new wheels are 16 inch as well, just a nicer design (they’re the basic 2 series wheels).
Yes, that’s the new wheel. I want sure about being able to retrofit a multifunction so just bought a normal one. I might well look into that in the future although given the mileage it’ll do, I doubt it’ll be missed too much.
I have Carly so I’ll look into the coding options for this.
Yes, that’s the new wheel. I want sure about being able to retrofit a multifunction so just bought a normal one. I might well look into that in the future although given the mileage it’ll do, I doubt it’ll be missed too much.
I have Carly so I’ll look into the coding options for this.
Cheers chaps. It should look / feel better next week once I’ve got stuck into it. I’m not sure my father in law really bothered cleaning the inside; it was pretty grim but looks better for now.
It’ll help reduce what we spend on cars which will be good and it’ll be nice to have one rougher / cheaper car that I don’t need to worry about.
Plan is to keep the existing wheels and pop sone winter tyres on them. I’m guessing that my 140 will be hopeless in and snow etc.
It’ll help reduce what we spend on cars which will be good and it’ll be nice to have one rougher / cheaper car that I don’t need to worry about.
Plan is to keep the existing wheels and pop sone winter tyres on them. I’m guessing that my 140 will be hopeless in and snow etc.
I like projects like these, just a bit of tidying up and making nice again
Congratulations on the M140i order, I put mine back to the lease co around 6 weeks ago, great all rounder.
On the subject of the 140i you will need at least 17” wheels to clear the brakes so the ones fitted to this will be useless
Congratulations on the M140i order, I put mine back to the lease co around 6 weeks ago, great all rounder.
On the subject of the 140i you will need at least 17” wheels to clear the brakes so the ones fitted to this will be useless
https://www.750mc.co.uk/formulae/116-trophy.htm
When the time is right
Nice car though, OP. A cheap 116i seems like it would have all the simple fun of older BMWs
When the time is right
Nice car though, OP. A cheap 116i seems like it would have all the simple fun of older BMWs
Cracked on with the car this afternoon / evening before rain stopped play.
First up was a nice easy retrofit of an armrest; feels and looks better. The long empty space between the front seats looked a bit odd.
I then cracked on with the seats; plenty of crap was found under the rear bench and front seats.
Rear seats in
Front seats out
Carpets under the front seats were vac’d and shampoo’d.
Front seats in
Looks and feels loads better with the seats, steering wheel etc. The seats other than the drivers need a bloody good clean with my Gliptone. The stock seats were pretty woeful; no support and bloody uncomfortable even as a passenger.
The only snag is that when I moved the car the airbag warning light came on as did the seatbelt warning light. First port of call tomorrow (if the weather isn’t s
te) is to double check the connection under the drivers seat. Failing that, I’m open to ideas.
Also fitted my other half’s private plates which she’s very happy about. Monday is nuking the paint / pulling my hair out if I can’t easily sort the warning lights.
First up was a nice easy retrofit of an armrest; feels and looks better. The long empty space between the front seats looked a bit odd.
I then cracked on with the seats; plenty of crap was found under the rear bench and front seats.
Rear seats in
Front seats out
Carpets under the front seats were vac’d and shampoo’d.
Front seats in
Looks and feels loads better with the seats, steering wheel etc. The seats other than the drivers need a bloody good clean with my Gliptone. The stock seats were pretty woeful; no support and bloody uncomfortable even as a passenger.
The only snag is that when I moved the car the airbag warning light came on as did the seatbelt warning light. First port of call tomorrow (if the weather isn’t s
te) is to double check the connection under the drivers seat. Failing that, I’m open to ideas.Also fitted my other half’s private plates which she’s very happy about. Monday is nuking the paint / pulling my hair out if I can’t easily sort the warning lights.
martin mrt said:
I like projects like these, just a bit of tidying up and making nice again
Congratulations on the M140i order, I put mine back to the lease co around 6 weeks ago, great all rounder.
On the subject of the 140i you will need at least 17” wheels to clear the brakes so the ones fitted to this will be useless
Cheers. It’s nothing on your cars though.Congratulations on the M140i order, I put mine back to the lease co around 6 weeks ago, great all rounder.
On the subject of the 140i you will need at least 17” wheels to clear the brakes so the ones fitted to this will be useless
I’m enjoying the 140. I’ll be putting the winters in this; I’ll just bench the 140 if it snows.
cerb4.5lee said:
What a difference you've made and that looks great in comparison. 
I bet you're well happy with the improvements for sure.
Cheers; just annoyed about the warning lights. Hoping that the weather isn’t too poo tomorrow so that I can check the connections / pop the old seats in to see which one is giving me grief.I bet you're well happy with the improvements for sure.
Court_S said:
Cheers; just annoyed about the warning lights. Hoping that the weather isn’t too poo tomorrow so that I can check the connections / pop the old seats in to see which one is giving me grief.
Yes and that is frustrating for you mate for sure. Wishing you all the best with sorting out the niggles. Did you disconnect the battery before removing the front seats? If not, and especially if you moved the car with the seat/s disconnected, that’ll explain your airbag light. Seems simple but I forgot to when swapping the seats in my E46. Simply reset it and away you go again. However, and what would be really shïtty, is if it’s something like a failed occupancy sensor in the passenger seat. Not the end of the world but extremely frustrating to have to swap or bodge that.
+1 with OEM+ modifications; makes a world of difference to the enjoyment of a car if it's a nice place to sit. Never though much of the 116i, but now I think they are quite appealing as a little city runabout; 200HP or more just isn’t necessary, fun though it is.
+1 with OEM+ modifications; makes a world of difference to the enjoyment of a car if it's a nice place to sit. Never though much of the 116i, but now I think they are quite appealing as a little city runabout; 200HP or more just isn’t necessary, fun though it is.
Battery was disconnected the entire time (I shut the bloody boot so had to go in through the back seats to reconnect it....). I do have a feeling that I might have left the key in; could that be contributing to the error?
I have the Carly adapter, I just haven’t got round to paying for the app yet.
Judging by the weather today, I doubt I’ll be fiddling today.
I have the Carly adapter, I just haven’t got round to paying for the app yet.
Judging by the weather today, I doubt I’ll be fiddling today.
Nunga said:
+1 with OEM+ modifications; makes a world of difference to the enjoyment of a car if it's a nice place to sit. Never though much of the 116i, but now I think they are quite appealing as a little city runabout; 200HP or more just isn’t necessary, fun though it is.
It’s slow as st but it’s cheap and for doing 10 - 20 miles a day and being parked on the street bear where my other half works, it’s perfect. It’s been dead reliable for the in-laws too, so I’m less worried about buying a cheaper, older car. It’s quire a stark contrast to my 140 in terms of performance! 
It does have better steering feel though.I coughed up for the full version of Carly and it looks like an error with the passenger seat.
To double check, I’ll pop the old one back in tomorrow and see if it goes away. If it does I’ll get a bypass unit from eBay.
It’ll be worth it though because it feels way nicer inside. Oddly, the wear to the bolster looks way worse in the photos than it does in real like.
To double check, I’ll pop the old one back in tomorrow and see if it goes away. If it does I’ll get a bypass unit from eBay.
It’ll be worth it though because it feels way nicer inside. Oddly, the wear to the bolster looks way worse in the photos than it does in real like.
Looks like a good project. I’m keen to hear how you get on with Carly as I need to sort out a diagnostic tool for my 120i.
Seeing the rear seats out gave me flashbacks to having to refit them on mine at 4am as my wife’s water had broken - I had the seats out to fit the isofix flaps, but my son decided to arrive 6 weeks early.
Seeing the rear seats out gave me flashbacks to having to refit them on mine at 4am as my wife’s water had broken - I had the seats out to fit the isofix flaps, but my son decided to arrive 6 weeks early.
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