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BMW 3-Series Maintenance and Repair

5349 messages,  Last post on Apr 30, 2013 at 3:31 PM

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What is this discussion about? BMW 3 Series, Sedan

    
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Messages Page 162 of 536

#1605 of 5349 Re: cost of 1993 bmw 325is [hellskitchen] by kyfdx HOST

Mar 01, 2005 (8:43 am)

Replying to: hellskitchen (Mar 01, 2005 8:26 am)
Wow.. well if that car had a manual shift, I'd snap it up in a minute...
 
I have a few points..
 
1) You'll have to find a good independent BMW garage to do work on the car... It is imperative that your mechanic specializes in BMWs.
 
2) If you plan on putting 15K/year on this car, it will be expensive to maintain.. I'm not sure this car would be a good substitute for a newer car, if it is to be used as a commuter... Any advantage you receive from buying a low-mileage car will go away fast, if you rack up the miles on it.
 
3) The fact that you are not mechanically inclined shouldn't make a big difference.. I never turn a wrench, and I've bought 20-year-old BMWs and Porsches.. You'll pay more for repairs, but you won't enjoy driving it any less..
 
4) $5K-$7K? That would be a great price.. The car should be worth more with the low miles.. but, I wouldn't pay a lot more.. It is still 12 years old, even if it does have low miles..
 
Maybe div2 can chime in here.. He has a '95 318ti, so he is intimately familiar with the E36 BMWs...
 
18K.. unreal..
 
regards,
kyfdx

#1606 of 5349 Thanks guys by sirdarby1

Mar 01, 2005 (9:18 am)

dhanley
 
What do you mean by this?
 
"However, after 100K miles a change could theoretically be a bad thing(tm."

#1607 of 5349 Re: cost of 1993 bmw 325is [kyfdx] by hellskitchen

Mar 01, 2005 (11:45 am)

Replying to: kyfdx (Mar 01, 2005 8:43 am)
Thanks again for the informative and fast reply. Its funny, but I never learned how to drive a stick! I am born and raised in Times Square, hence the moniker "hellskithcen". In any case, I presently have a 1999 Subaru with 44,000 miles on it, and will give this to my brother who has a 1996 Saturn with 40,000. As you can see, we barely but on 4000 a year! There is a fellow who advertises in the NY Times that he is independent and worked on BMW racers. A new Impreza wagon runs betweeen 17 and 24,ooo depending on the model, and of course, has 4 wheel drive. But if the price is right, the panache of owning a BMW, which admittedly I've never driven, is hard to overcome. What type of expenses would be out of the ordinary as compared with a different make or a newer car? I'm 52 so the insurance shouldn't be too bad. Thanks again.

#1608 of 5349 Re: cost of 1993 bmw 325is [hellskitchen] by kyfdx HOST

Mar 01, 2005 (11:52 am)

Replying to: hellskitchen (Mar 01, 2005 11:45 am)
I've never owned an E46 BMW ('92-'99).. but, they don't have a reputation as being the most trouble-free model... But, if you are driving only 6K/year, then you'll just need to see your mechanic for regular maintenance semi-annually..
 
You should be able to keep the car pretty nice for a long time...
 
I'll wait for some other owners to chime in.. I just don't have enough experience with this model.. I wouldn't mind having one, though...
 
regards,
kyfdx

#1609 of 5349 Re: Thanks guys [sirdarby1] by dhanley

Mar 01, 2005 (7:41 pm)

Replying to: sirdarby1 (Mar 01, 2005 9:18 am)
What i mean is that sometimes, with AT's if they are really old, gunk/crud can be clogging up the seals, making the thing still work. Sometimes, new detergent fluid can cause it to fail faster.
 
However, if BMW is now saying to change the fluid at 100K, i'd feel a lot safer. Plus, it's not me potentially giving you advice that may damage your car. (Probably not, of course. Assumedly they know how to not destroy their own cars. ).

#1610 of 5349 hellskitchen by div2

Mar 01, 2005 (9:09 pm)

As kyfdx noted, I have a 95,000 mile 1995 318ti Club Sport which I have owned since new. Non scheduled maintenance has consisted of:
1 Set of front pads
1 Set of new belts(replaced as a precaution)
1 Timing chain tensioner(ditto)
2 Idler pulleys
3 Sets of Z Rated tires(average life 31,000 miles)
As previously mentioned, find a good indie shop and follow the BMW service recommendations to the letter. If it were me, I'd use Mobil 1 0w-40, ATF, and gear oil, Castrol LMA Brake Fluid, and BMW Coolant. That car should make it to 150,000 miles with no problems. I'd take that '93 over any sub $25K new car.

#1611 of 5349 1998 BMW 328iS with 150000 miles by bimbalas

Mar 01, 2005 (11:03 pm)

Hi,
I'm thinking of purchasing a 1998 BMW 328iS coupe,6cyl,4speed automatic overdrive and with 150000 miles ..for 6000-6500$(Kelly Blue Book value 8200$)...is it a normal deal considering high milage of the car..what things I should look at before buying it?What major problems this car can have because of it's high milage?What are the weaknesses of this model?

#1612 of 5349 bimbalas by div2

Mar 02, 2005 (9:18 am)

The key to the successful purchase of any high mileage BMW is to have it thoroughly checked out by a QUALIFIED BMW technician. I'd also want to take a look at the vehicle service history. Was the oil changed regularly? Was the DOT 4 brake fluid changed every two years? Coolant every three(using only BMW Coolant)? Was the ATF changed at least once? What does the compression test look like? Do you have a good BMW indie shop lined up to handle any repairs and maintenance? The M52 motor should easily go over 200K miles with regular maintenance, but I would expect the slushbox to go belly-up within the next 50K-75K miles. Therefore, I would adjust the price accordingly. If the car does check out I wouldn't hesitate to buy it-for around $4500. That said, I enjoy performing the maintenance and minor repairs myself. If you are going to have go to the dealer for every little glitch then I'd advise that you give the car a pass.

#1613 of 5349 Re: ATF and purchasing Hi mileage BMWs by sirdarby1

Mar 04, 2005 (7:10 am)

Thanks again dhanley:
 
I guess I'm still a bit nervous now that my 100k
warranty is over. That thing really covered a lot and I had my mechanic check the car over thoroughly when I had a few miles left. I was
blessed to get a new AC compressor.
 
I'm gonna rest easy but I do agree that an indie mechanic would be best because the dealer is very expensive.

#1614 of 5349 Re: Crooked drivers seat/gas pedal adjustment in 330xi? [r_l_edison] by jntownes

Mar 04, 2005 (12:43 pm)

Replying to: r_l_edison (Nov 02, 2004 3:15 pm)
I am also having trouble adjusting to the driver's seat in this vehicle. The seat appears in a crooked position so that I end up on one side of the seat instead of directly in the center. Also, there is a support bar in the middle of the seat that exacerbates the uncomfortableness. While the lumbar support can be moved up and down and increased and decreased in intensity, this support bar is permanent and rather intense at its designated position. Combined with crooked position of the seat, I find that the middle, right portion of my back is constantly pressured while I drive. I have found that significantly reclining the seat aleviates this pressure, but this removes almost all the upper support for the seat to the point that it is unsafe.

Messages Page 162 of 536

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