Considering this....tips for faults??

ninty9er

I haven't called the guy yet to see if he still has it, but it's been on Carzone for about 2-3 months...

I want to get loan approval befor I go to see the car next week after my exams are finished, but there's something niggling in my mind that there's something dodgy about the car (no reason, just a feeling).

This is it

A) Is the Cartell €40 report worth the money (I feel it is for piece of mind)
Were there any major faults of note with these Beemers.

FU<K..I'm thinking of buying a Bimmer:rolleyes::rolleyes::eek: I never thought I'd do it!!

Also considering one of these though??

S.I.R

that model ( e36 ) is the less desirable model , go for the e30 ( previous one ) , i see alot of 325i's going for the 1500-2000 mark which is good since there around 4000 in autotrader... also never use auto trade unless you like over priced taxi's.


anyways bmw's have all the usual problems but 1 think to look out for is the exhaust , all bmw drives Are rev happy and it could cost a few quid for a decent replacement part also they drink oil and rear tyres aren't as cheap as they used to be. brakes are strong but the pads often wear unevenly which means you will have to spend the 100+ euro per disc. interiors are nicely spec'd on bmws and you cant complain , 6 cd changer , enough room to swing a cat around it and most have leather trim... avoid leather trim if possible.

alloys are also a important fact. if he don't have the original ones , be careful , alway a good sign of a crashed one . after all who would replace the stock wheels , there fine


if you dont like the older model this is a good one to go for http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=804788

leather trim is annoying , smells terrable and is high maintenance... after all bmw is a driving car , not one you sped all your time looking at ( unless you me )

http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=85964

another good example but insurance is a nightmare... of course its not a bmw but for that kinda money would be my preference

if any of the info is of help , i got plenty more , just too tired to type it all.

Rowley Birkin QC

If you were gonna go for the Omega chance offering the dealer something ridiculous. They have no mass in these cars and are usually glad to get them off the stock sheet.

If you are after an omega i would go with a diesel, I'm open to correction but i think the diesel ones had BMW engines, fairly bulletproof. Mate had one and they are superb motorway cruisers.

S.I.R

all opels at that time used an iszuzu designed engine.


dont touch opels let alone anything by GM unless you have a barge poll handy.:)

Andrewf20

Right, this car could indeeed stir up major issues. The E36 6 cylinder engines (320i, 323i, 328i) with the Aluminium block from circa 1995 to early 1998 had a well known & common Nikasil bore wear issue that basically rendered the engine ready for the bin. Symptoms were the engine cutting out, rough idle, excessive oil loss, and the engine feeling down on power. I have a 6 cylinder E36 like this which had the block changed under warranty before I bought it.

See more here; http://www.bmw-board.co.uk/nikasil.htm#what_is

I always look to see what tires they have on the car, and these ones look cheap, which may suggest the owner will cut corners financially.

If i were you, id look for a 4 cylinder 318is with lower mileage in case the bore wear issue plays up on this 6 cylinder model, otherwise it could be 6k down the drain. With 140 bhp in the 318is, its not much slower than the 320i, is cheaper to run & turns in better due to a lighter engine.

FSH but slammed: http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=793482
If has service history could be good deal although it may be on UK plates: http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=785170

My Dad has the 2.0l petrol version of that Omega. Its heavy and slow and corners like a boat. Like alot of magazines, Id recommend a mark 2 Mondeo instead.

Andrewf20

S.I.R wrote: »

anyways bmw's have all the usual problems but 1 think to look out for is the exhaust , all bmw drives Are rev happy and it could cost a few quid for a decent replacement part also they drink oil and rear tyres aren't as cheap as they used to be. brakes are strong but the pads often wear unevenly which means you will have to spend the 100+ euro per disc. interiors are nicely spec'd on bmws and you cant complain , 6 cd changer , enough room to swing a cat around it and most have leather trim... avoid leather trim if possible.

alloys are also a important fact. if he don't have the original ones , be careful , alway a good sign of a crashed one . after all who would replace the stock wheels , there fine

leather trim is annoying , smells terrable and is high maintenance... after all bmw is a driving car , not one you sped all your time looking at ( unless you me )

I wouldnt consider the 6 cylinders to be rev happy. My 323i has a very heavy flywheel, resulting in a noticeable sluggishness off the line until 3000rpm arrives when the flywheel is up to speed. An E30 318is is very rev happy in comparison. The drinking of the oil depends on the condition of the engine. Mine doesnt use any oil. Heal and toeing shows this up heavy flywheel business also, whereby blipping the throttle needs a small delay while you wait for the revs to build. My brothers E30 318is revs so much faster.

A E36 genuine BMW cat will set you back around 1100 euro excl fitting and they tend to have around a 10 year life span.

I dont see how the leather is high maintenance. I give mine a quick wipe every week or so. It seems to wear quite well.

Brembo stock discs cost 82 euro for a pair from GSF.

alias no.9

S.I.R wrote: »

all opels at that time used an iszuzu designed engine.


dont touch opels let alone anything by GM unless you have a barge poll handy.:)

Not so, I'm afraid. Most of the 1.7 diesels (the better ones) in the astra and vectra were isuzu but there were also some opel ones. The 1.5 diesels in the corsa were all isuzu. The 2.5 diesel is a BMW lump also used in the BMW 325TDS, the 525TDS, and the Range Rover. The 2.2 diesel was lifted from an old bedford van and mildly reworked.

TheBigLebowski

Is that beemer not sold?

i.e. the title of the car is "3 Series 320ies *SOLD"

Anan1

ninty9er wrote: »

but there's something niggling in my mind that there's something dodgy about the car (no reason, just a feeling).

I'll second that. That ad just doesn't smell right.

JHMEG

ninty9er wrote: »

but there's something niggling in my mind that there's something dodgy about the car (no reason, just a feeling).

It's the crap aftermarket HIDs, probably chinese. I can see even from those photos that they would light up the overhead gantries on the M50 even tho they're on dips.

Anan1

JHMEG wrote: »

It's the crap aftermarket HIDs, probably chinese. I can see even from those photos that they would light up the overhead gantries on the M50 even tho they're on dips.

They don't help. There's also the wheels, the boxing gloves hanging from the rearview mirror, the stereo, the ground-in dirt in the carpets, and the 085 number. The only upside really is the tax, which implies that the previous owner had intended keeping the car a while.

E92

Andrewf20 wrote: »

Right, this car could indeeed stir up major issues. The E36 6 cylinder engines (320i, 323i, 328i) with the Aluminium block from circa 1995 to early 1998 had a well known & common Nikasil bore wear issue that basically rendered the engine ready for the bin. Symptoms were the engine cutting out, rough idle, excessive oil loss, and the engine feeling down on power. I have a 6 cylinder E36 like this which had the block changed under warranty before I bought it.

If i were you, id look for a 4 cylinder 318is with lower mileage in case the bore wear issue plays up on this 6 cylinder model, otherwise it could be 6k down the drain. With 140 bhp in the 318is, its not much slower than the 320i, is cheaper to run & turns in better due to a lighter engine.

AFAIK the Nikasil issue only affected UK cars because their fuel quality was considerably lower. The Nikasil problem came to bear at around 70,000 to 80,000 miles, this car has 110,000, so it should be over the problem.

AFAIK the newer M52 engine is the one that isn't rev happy. The older M50(320i,325i) was the one that liked to rev.

ninty9er

Thanks for all the replies...I think I'll try the Omega or similar, I never really liked the idea of being thought of as a BM driver.

There was a reason for the 2 in particular though. I'm going auto and nobody's going to change my mind except a "must have" car...which there are very few of out there.

I'm not 21 yet, but will be in a fortnight and it's a kind of Christmas/Birthday present to myself. I'm in no hurry as I was expecting to see a lot of this type of car come in in January, but I might have to wait until July now. I'm ready to wait a bit (but maybe not until July...probably February) for the right car.

2.2 is my absolute insurance limit [as a named driver(and yes it makes a difference, quite a big one to go above that)]. Cheers for the Omega advice too...I doubt there's too many diesel autos out there though as the diesels are farmers cars in the main and probably never saw the top-side of 3rd gear.

Also, budget is €8k straight deal to include about 1400 for insurance, as I may just get insured on the current car and let my mam have it. I'd rather not go older than 95 or over 110k - 120k miles.

I also believe that E92 is correct about the NIKASIL issue and the M52 engine revs

Many thanks
ninty;)

Andrewf20

E92 wrote: »

AFAIK the Nikasil issue only affected UK cars because their fuel quality was considerably lower. The Nikasil problem came to bear at around 70,000 to 80,000 miles, this car has 110,000, so it should be over the problem.

AFAIK the newer M52 engine is the one that isn't rev happy. The older M50(320i,325i) was the one that liked to rev.

Yep the UK was hard hit, but I have heard of a few cases of the Nikasil issue popping up here too, including my own which wasnt imported.

Andrewf20

ninty9er wrote: »

2.2 is my absolute insurance limit [as a named driver(and yes it makes a difference, quite a big one to go above that)]. Cheers for the Omega advice too...I doubt there's too many diesel autos out there though as the diesels are farmers cars in the main and probably never saw the top-side of 3rd gear.

The 2.2 will be faster than my fathers 2.0l. Other than its handling woes, it has proven to be a solid, reliable performer with no scary hidden bills so far with 110k on clock. As a crusier its very comfy, so good luck with any purchases! With such high mileage in the link you posted, I think 7.5k euro is too much, especially if the timing chain has not been changed.

Why not consider this one with FSH incl belt change and 40,000 miles less on the clock, and shes and auto for the same price, although its not from a garage:
http://www.carzone.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=764742

ninty9er

C5

On my way out to drive it after the credit union in about an hour...price is a bit much I reckon but the mileage is low and we've had a Xsara before so I know they're comfy and the reliability issues do exist but can be overexaggerated.