i think i found the car, is it in exeter? looks like a decent price, especially if you've talked him down to $1500. to give you an idea my '84 318i has 367,5xx on it right now.
i decided i was gonna buy mine before i even heard it run (but the body on mine is near perfect). i honestly don't think that buying it without having it inspected is a terrible idea; i've never had anyone else inspect the cars i intend to buy. but how easy was it for you to maintain your e34? because maintenance is the killer with these older bmws.
To be honest, I have little to no experience with working on vehicles. I love reading about how to do it and all, but have never attempted anything more than a oil change. I didn't do any maintance on the bmw, it leaked oil so I just put oil into it when ever I decided to drive it.
So I made an appt for it to get checked out this friday, if everything goes okay im going to purchase it
You better hop on it man, I'm in the game for a new car and BMWs are my thing. You know, NH really aint that far after all.
[quote name='"justyn93"'] Almost ALL American cars are shitty. Get a Honda or Toyota like this guy said. BMW's are good too a lil more to fix and shit but if you like it and it runs good and shit it should be fine.[/quote] Granted Hondas and toyotas will run forever, American cars are no where near shitty anymore. Far from it. A 1500$ price range just puts you near 1990's American stuff which anybody knows had problems with quality with few exceptions, now, I had a 2006 Audi A4 and that thing fucking fell apart on me. With 60k miles. So German isn't really all it's cracked up to be either. But I agree with you that Japanese cars are mostly bulletproof. But in 10 years when today's American cars are cheap, I'd rather have one of those than something foreign.
[quote name='"madskunk"'] Granted Hondas and toyotas will run forever, American cars are no where near shitty anymore. Far from it. A 1500$ price range just puts you near 1990's American stuff which anybody knows had problems with quality with few exceptions, now, I had a 2006 Audi A4 and that thing fucking fell apart on me. With 60k miles. So German isn't really all it's cracked up to be either. But I agree with you that Japanese cars are mostly bulletproof. But in 10 years when today's American cars are cheap, I'd rather have one of those than something foreign.[/quote] so german ain't what its cracked up to be because you either got a lemon of an A4 or you dont keep up on maintaining your car?
[quote name='"Bluntman00"'] so german ain't what its cracked up to be because you either got a lemon of an A4 or you dont keep up on maintaining your car?[/quote] Gonna go with the last line on that one..
[quote name='"Bluntman00"'] so german ain't what its cracked up to be because you either got a lemon of an A4 or you dont keep up on maintaining your car?[/quote] Had nothing to do with maintenance, front airbag sensor failed, glovebox hinge failed, PCV valve failed, Evap line developed a crack. Not to mention the cam follower which could blow at any time and basically run a 1k+ repair job. And a close friend had a transmission die on a 750Li at 36,000 miles. So yea, I know what I'm talking about, and I stand by my statement. German quality has taken a dip lately, and they're not always the worry free, bulletproof machines everyone makes them out to be. Probably also explained by the U.S. initial quality rankings for 2012.
[quote name='"madskunk"'] Had nothing to do with maintenance, front airbag sensor failed, glovebox hinge failed, PCV valve failed, Evap line developed a crack. Not to mention the cam follower which could blow at any time and basically run a 1k+ repair job. And a close friend had a transmission die on a 750Li at 36,000 miles. So yea, I know what I'm talking about, and I stand by my statement. German quality has taken a dip lately, and they're not always the worry free, bulletproof machines everyone makes them out to be. Probably also explained by the U.S. initial quality rankings for 2012.[/quote] Edit: and I had the car for less than a year, and join any forum those are all common problems.
luckily we're not talking about anything made by germans "lately". you're comparing apples and oranges.
Probably a bit more maintenance that needs to be done other than just timiing belt. lol. with a car that old, there will be LOTS of things that need to be replaced. German cars are not only expensive to get parts for, but they can be a PITA to work on becuz everything is put together so well (unlike Jap or American cars). Its probably listed at 1500 because they owner knows how much work is needed. I guarantee it will hold up better than any 1985 American car you could find, but perhaps not as well as a 90s Jap car. If you have the mechanic skills and $$$ to bring it back to life, then I would go for it. It will def be an ongoing project though. If you don't have the time and money to fuss with it, leave it alone.
OP, don't listen to most of these people. $1500 is a solid price for a decent, running e30. i paid $775 for mine in february, but i needed to rebuild the rear brakes/fix other minor things. still could use exhaust work but thats another story, and barely affects driveability. also, how many times do i have to say, this particular car doesn't have a timing belt? it uses a timing chain, which is far more reliable than it's timing belt driven counterparts (325i, 325e). one just sold in my own town, with a new inspection sticker, all up on maintenance for $1000. i would almost guarantee the reason this one is priced below $2000 is because of the economy.
[quote name='"docleary"'] luckily we're not talking about anything made by germans "lately". you're comparing apples and oranges.[/quote] You're right, I'm not talking about a BMW from 1985. Just like the poster I disagree with wasn't talking a specific year of American car.
[quote name='"madskunk"'] Granted Hondas and toyotas will run forever, American cars are no where near shitty anymore. Far from it. A 1500$ price range just puts you near 1990's American stuff which anybody knows had problems with quality with few exceptions, now, I had a 2006 Audi A4 and that thing fucking fell apart on me. With 60k miles. So German isn't really all it's cracked up to be either. But I agree with you that Japanese cars are mostly bulletproof. But in 10 years when today's American cars are cheap, I'd rather have one of those than something foreign.[/quote] Audis are kinda sub par Imo they are one of Germanys most unreliable. Plus a4 is one of their lowest cars. I still think American cars are built with cheaper interior parts and are more plastic then imports.