[lunyou]

Hey guys I have a lead on a BMW 325i with 128000 miles for pretty cheap. What are the typical problems with these cars and when do they start appearing typically?

I know nothing about BMWs and know there are a few people on the board that drive them

thanks for the help

lunyou

[sisukid1975]

I know a guy who had one....

He estimates it had 400K miles on it. Estimates because the odometer stopped working at 380,000 miles or so.

He swore by it. Who knows how well taken care of this one is though.... Probably expensive to fix when/if it does break, I'd guess.

[NaterGator]

Definitely expensive to fix. Not particularly easy to work on your own. Pretty darn reliable.

I'm pretty sure the power steering pumps on the E46 325i was a weak spot.

[94landcruiser]

Year is important. The name ran from the mid 80's to about 2000.

[cary]

Originally Posted by NaterGator

Definitely expensive to fix. Not particularly easy to work on your own. Pretty darn reliable.

Between my wife and I, we have had 5 BMW's ranging from a 1600 to a X5. Contrary to what you have found, I have found them to be cheaper to fix than my 80 or my Nissan Pathfinder before that. Same goes for how easy they are to fix, much easier than the 80. The 80 is more reliable.

[nick]

Bought a 325 ix 2 years ago with 189,000 miles. now with 193,000 spent too much $$$$ to keep it running. Parts are way expensive.
Want to buy it?

[NaterGator]

Originally Posted by cary

Between my wife and I, we have had 5 BMW's ranging from a 1600 to a X5. Contrary to what you have found, I have found them to be cheaper to fix than my 80 or my Nissan Pathfinder before that. Same goes for how easy they are to fix, much easier than the 80. The 80 is more reliable.

I tried to work on a 745Li... the electronics (and being from the 80 forum, you know I like electronics) were utterly unfathomable. Granted this was the 1st MY of the 745Li, but the data busses, etc were a huge headache.

Then a friends 4.8is X5 got hit from the side and the traction control system went off the fritz with the AWD. We spent about 6 days tooling around with a BMW tech moonlighting trying to help us. Eventually it had to be taken in and have a huge portion of the drivetrain replaced. Luckily insurance eventually covered it, I think it was in the 5 figure range.

Finally I have done two custom stereo installs and a sound deadening install on E46 3 series. They are cramped to work on and certainly meticulously engineered to work the way they came from the factory. Doing PM on the 3 was enough of a headache that eating the additional cost at the dealership seemed worth it. Unfortunately the service dept at Reeve's here seems to end up breaking something every time you take a vehicle in to be fixed.


Don't get me wrong, I love BMWs, I just wouldn't solicit them as "cheap to own, easy to work on" vehicles, especially the new ones. You want that? Buy a Ford; you'll be fixing it all the time, but at least so will everybody else


To be fair though, you are right... owning and fixing an 80 series is expensive stuff compared to 3 series maint.

[lunyou]

its a 1992.....128,000 miles

lunyou

[theside00]

Bovarian Money Waster all I got to say. The shop I worked in did all cars but those becuase they are always in and a pain in the ass to work on. Im sure there are some out there that are good and some that are lemons but I would be careful and I will never own a BMW.

[cary]

Originally Posted by lunyou

its a 1992.....128,000 miles

lunyou

That was the first year of the e36, which is not a very highly regarded car. I would pass. If you want an e36, get a 1995-1998 where they had more of the issues sorted out.


BTW, I forgot to mention, when looking at BMW's you should draw a line between the 6 cyl cars and the V8s. Anything with a V8, pass on; they are more expensive to maintain and repair as well as harder. Also, the 7 series, is, and always has been an electrical nightmare. Stay with the 3 and 5 series.

[Gumby]

My biggest experience with them was one of those sought after 6 cyl E34 cars. if it gets worse from there .. [shudder]

The list of what regularly goes wrong with them is as long as my arm, and all of those things was wrong with the one I had.

Like the bikes, they require extensive and expensive maintenance. If it's not done, the car goes downhill fast. You can also expect a host of electrical problems.

[ar2stp48]

Seems I remember something about the head warping or cracking easily; this was a warning when we were looking at and had a 5 series for a short time.

Parts can be found reasonably; a couple of suppliers in Dallas treated us very well on prices.

[jsaltlick]

I just bought a 2000 328i a few months ago and I am pissed at myself for driving Nissans for the last 12 years. I feel like I've wasted my driving life in uncomfortable and unexciting cars. The 328 drives amazing, accelerates smooth and the brakes are the best. My cousin works for a BMW place and got me a sweet deal. Best car I've ever owned. His boss' car has 425K miles on it and shows no signs of slowing up. Pay extra for the synthetic oil and it'll go forever. It only needs a changing every 5000 miles.

Buy it.

[BladeRunner80]

I think it really depends on how well it was taken care......i.e. the scheduled maintenance. I have a '99 323is (pretty much a rebadged 325is). I don't know if a 92 is the same, what year did they start the e36?

I have a bunch of maintenance i need to do on mine, probably in the upwards of several thousand dollars. They are great cars, very dependable but expensive to maintain. If you do the work yourself, you can probably save a lot of money. If you live in a area where there are a lot of mechanics that specialize in euro cars, that might save you some money as well. Just be prepared to shell out some cash getting parts and service done to it, because it WILL need it eventually.


But......BMW's are sweet machines to drive and they age well in the looks department too.

[scottm]

Originally Posted by cary

Anything with a V8, pass on; they are more expensive to maintain and repair as well as harder. Also, the 7 series, is, and always has been an electrical nightmare. Stay with the 3 and 5 series.

I've heard the 325 is kind of their econo-cheap model, not as well built as the bigger models. I wasn't into BMWs, but I test drove a '96 740iL a few years ago, and the radiator blew on my test drive. It was already cheap, and much cheaper with the radiator blown, so I bought it. I replaced the radiator, expansion tank, fan, thermostat, waterpump, and all hoses front and back for about $500, from the dealer. It was the cheapest and easiest water pump I've done, every fastener was easily accessible, and came out with very little effort. It helps that the block and components are all aluminum, with no corrosion on them or the fasteners. The radiator is held in by two big clamps, it was a snap. I've since lifted the intake and replaced the valley pan, again the parts were cheap and work went smoothly. I've begun replacing suspension parts, they're worn at 175k, so far not bad on price or difficulty. I've heard these cars are expensive and difficult to maintain, but so far it's cheaper and easier than any car I've known. I'd like to buy a newer one in a few years, so please continue to tell everyone they're expensive and difficult to maintain. My wife and I absolutely love this car, as do our kids.

[BladeRunner80]

You could call a 318 the econo cheap, but there is nothing "econo" about a 325, espeically when it was released in 92. Back then they didn't have the bastard Z3, so the 325 was considered more of a sporty model compared to a 5 or 7 series of the time.

[JohnQ]

I'll preface this by saying that I've been heavily involved with BMWs for the last 10 years. I'm no expert, but I do feel comfortable discussing the brand's merits and shortcomings.

I just sold my '87 with 220k miles on it. I only sold it because I had no need for it after buying my 60. Besides, it was getting hard to cram all my son's baseball equipment in the trunk.

This was my second BMW and it never failed to take me wherever I wanted to go. My first BMW (actually my wife's) was a 2005 E46 that was just as reliable. Got rid of it and got her a truck- baseball again.

The reason you'll hear about these cars being unreliable is that people will buy one as cheap as they can find because they really can't afford it in the first place. The cheap ones are the ones that weren't taken care of in the first place so the person that picks one up for thousands of dollars below the going rate is the very first one to complain when they have to fix something. You'll find that to be the case with anything this type of person is involved in. Whether it's their lawnmower, car, boat, etc.

Lets also keep in mind that part of the reason a 3 series is more expensive than a Maxima (for example) is because production is lower which translates to lower production of the parts that are used to make the cars which in turn means parts are more expensive.

All maintenance on new BMWs is free for 4yrs. If you have/want an older one find a local independent that works on euro cars and you should be fine and you'll spend less than you would at the dealer. Beware, if you take it to a shop that doesn't have BMW experience you are asking for trouble.

BMW has had it's share of problems, no doubt. The cracked blocks were happening in the late 80's early 90's as a result of the material they used for the cylinder liners reacting to additives in US fuel. Auto transmissions in E34 BMWs were troublesome after 100k miles or so. E36 cars had scattered electrical problems but were otherwise very good cars. The 745i and Li are also very good cars but are impossible to troubleshoot if you do not have the correct equipment and software.

The fact is, every manufacturer has issues they eventually overcome but no one builds a car with the combination of usability and driving enjoyment that BMW builds.

In my opinion the E30 3 series is the most fun to drive while being very easy to maintain by the owner. Parts are readily available and comparable in price to LC parts. My E30 was a 325is sport package car with inline 6 cyl. and limited slip diff and I still averaged 27 mpg.

[LI FJ40]

as a BMW driver I think the E36 you are looking at could be fun, You said it was cheap, if you want it go for it

[lunyou]

well the wife is having second thoughts on it right now. The guy wants 3700 for it and thats 1000 below book but it also has some interior problem that we noticed. It road nice, accelerated surprisingly well and was very tight in handling.

Just a minor question....how well does the MPG gauge on the car work??

lunyou

[JohnQ]

The car should have an on board trip computer. It would be on the dash to the right of the radio. It will have either 6 or 9 buttons (I think) depending on which option was checked when built. You can push the button for the corresponding info- MPG for MPG, Temp for temp. etc. or alternatively push the end of the turn signal towards the steering column to cycle through the info. The MPG gauge on there should be pretty accurate but you'd certainly want to verify it using pencil/paper method. I wouldn't think you'd see more than a 10%-15% variance.
The MPG gauge in the instrument panel (under the tach) has been in these cars since I can remember. In my opinion the OBC readout is more practical than the gauge in the instrument cluster. But it can certainly be used to demonstrate how a heavy foot affects mileage as I explained to my wife.

ETA: What was wrong with the interior?
Also, if you'll get me the last six characters of the VIN number I may be able to tell you what the original options and colors were on the car as well as whether or not there are any open recalls or service bulletins on the vehicle and when it was last serviced by a dealer.