I would urge caution; it's an old car and has done a lot of kilometres. Have it checked by a mechanic who knows the brand before you do the deal. A friend who was a trained BMW mechanic and also sold them at a BMW dealership once told me that anyone buying a BMW should have an exit strategy. In other words, he was saying don't own them too long and get out of them before they become too expensive to own. You say you want to own it two years maximum, I would say that's as long as you should own it.

LIKE you, I prefer rear-wheel-drive cars for the way they drive and feel on the road. I'm also in favour of buying used BMWs and Mercedes-Benzes because you get to drive a better car than you might otherwise be able to afford, but they can be expensive to service and repair. For that reason I am loathe to recommend them. But I also agree that some of the cars coming from Japan look good, and I particularly like the new Lancer. I wouldn't be concerned about front-wheel drive at all, there's nothing wrong with the way they drive, handle, steer or brake.

Michael has done 118,000km in his 318i, and in that time he has fitted four new tyres. But that doesn't mean he's done 118,000km on one set of tyres. His car has done 150,000km, which could mean each of the two sets of tyres fitted to it in that time might have covered 75,000km each. To get 118,000km out of a set of tyres on a 318i would be no mean feat.