[Buug959]

Great post, very informative and I'm sure very helpful to those buying one of their first cars or those that are looking more for a list of things to look for when shopping for their first 3 series.
I am old enough and experienced enough and stupid enough to do it all COMPLETELY WRONG. LOL I really took a huge gamble when I bought my '08 335xi. I saw three whole photos of it. One from square on the rear, one from square on the passengers side and one of the interior through the open passenger's door. I didn't see the driver's side or the front although I could just make out the tow hook in the front bumper on the passenger's side. I never heard it run and in fact I wasn't entirely sure it did run. All I did know was that " there is oil running down the block" and " a rear shock is wet". Oh did I mention that it was at a BMW dealer 2000km away and was being sold "AS IS".
I gave the dealer my Visa number and said put it on a truck. Nine days later it is at my door on a rollback tow truck and the driver is asking me if it runs because he couldn't get it started. I had to tell him that I had no idea if it ran at all. It turns out it started and ran just fine once you actually put the key IN THE SLOT before you try to start it. LOL The driver thought it was just a proximity key and only had to be near the car.
A new valve cover and the "oil running down the block" is all dried up and the new suspension is on order.
I was INCREDIBLY LUCKY!!! It's a wonderful little car. Everything works as it should and the interior is in fantastic shape for a car with 160k kms on it.
So if you're still reading this I have one piece of advice for you and that is DO NOT DO WHAT I DID!!! Read through the original post and follow it. You'll have a great chance to find a great car of your own that you can enjoy for years to come.

[samerabj]

Very interesting

[TouringForLife]

I bought a 4 year old 2006 xiT. Absolutely a joy to drive, especially on the open road. Only trouble were the runflats. Like solid rubber. I paid around $1000 and had them replaced with regular tires, and the ride became much nicer.

[kart23]

Originally Posted by trader14

great post, I didn't see this post until now 7 years into this forum and of course after purchasing my used bmw but this is what I did - maybe typical, maybe i got lucky

Back in 2013 I purchased a used e93 cpo bmw with 45k miles sight unseen and had it shipped to me from the bmw dealership. Of course I saw every picture of the exterior and interior but since it was cpo i assumed it'd be in great shape and if not it would be covered under their warranty.

CPO is a good deal, but I would still definitely at least drive a car before buying it. I test drove a CPO 5 series, pulled horribly to one side, clearly alignment was never checked or something worse was wrong. Therefore, I really don't trust the cpo inspection. Maybe some dealers are worse than others.

[SeG9n7Rf58pagQt3]

Looking for a 330d LCI. (Germany)

I have a few questions.

• Is it true when the seller states that the car is the EU6 norm? AFAIK LCI is EU5.
• Is Carly enough for some basic checkup?
• How expensive is the power steering problem?
• Some common issues with 330d (manual)

Thanks!

OK, the car is EU6 confirmed by car documents. Unbelievable. I'm gonna visit this guy this weekend, hopefully.

[GEE90]

Cool sounds good

[CCSLAW]

Great post! Thank you for the insight

[BeMyWn]

Ok, I enjoyed your post as I am looking to buy 2009 335i E93 Cabrio, car has 78,000 miles and it is a one owner car always serviced by dealer, I hope I will strike good luck with this one as I inspected the car personally and test drove and it seems it is in a good shape. We will see and I will report back here once I put some miles on it.

[kiwie91]

Hello,

I am looking to buy a e91 325i. Ive found one, thats within my budget, so ive got some money left for maintenance/repairs. Its a 2008 325i m sport touring with idrive, sunroof and has 99,000 miles. Is it a bad idea to buy one with this mileage? Its in very good condition, only 1 tiny scratch to paintwork and interior is very good too. Idrive works and it drives nicely. Should i do it?

Will be mainly used for driving to and from work as well as lots of short weekend trips on open/country roads. Really want one as i like the looks and heard that the 325i seems to be pretty reliable.

Thanks
Elias

[leif20]

Originally Posted by kiwie91

Hello,

I am looking to buy a e91 325i. Ive found one, thats within my budget, so ive got some money left for maintenance/repairs. Its a 2008 325i m sport touring with idrive, sunroof and has 99,000 miles. Is it a bad idea to buy one with this mileage? Its in very good condition, only 1 tiny scratch to paintwork and interior is very good too. Idrive works and it drives nicely. Should i do it?

Will be mainly used for driving to and from work as well as lots of short weekend trips on open/country roads. Really want one as i like the looks and heard that the 325i seems to be pretty reliable.

Thanks
Elias

At 160k km it's right at the threshold of where things start to go wrong. That's not to say it won't run for a little while without issue, but eventually things will need attention. Fortunately for the 325i it has the N52 engine, so the things that go wrong are not catastrophic or particularly expensive if you can take care of them yourself.

These cars will last to 500k miles with wear and tear maintenance. With BMW's the wear and tear is a bit more than just rotors/pads/engine oil.
For the N52 you have the oil filter housing gasket and potentially Valve cover gasket and valvetronic system (valvetronic motor and/or eccentric shaft sensor). Then there is the water pump and thermostat. Vanos solenoids sometimes go as well.
See these threads:
https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1345967
https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1251458

I've had to deal with airbag faults, a dead adaptive headlight module, corroded AC line, door lock actuator, window regulator, and there's more. Almost all of it i've done myself. These cars are quite needy when they are older and have high mileage but replacement parts are available and the knowledge base of design and repair is essentially infinite. I would buy another e90 in a heartbeat.

Every time you go to the dealer they will find broken things on the car and you will be walking out of there $500 poorer each time. Find a good independent mechanic who can take care of the bigger things (AC, wheel bearings, etc) and do the rest yourself and you'll be fine.

[rivera1017]

Best buyers guide i've seen on any platform thus far. These are great cars for 10k and under if you do research before buying!

[TH868Civils]

Nice thread

[Evergreen24]

Is the discord gone or did I get banned for being too awesome? (I’m pretty sure it’s gone)

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by leif20

At 160k km it's right at the threshold of where things start to go wrong. That's not to say it won't run for a little while without issue, but eventually things will need attention. Fortunately for the 325i it has the N52 engine, so the things that go wrong are not catastrophic or particularly expensive if you can take care of them yourself.

These cars will last to 500k miles with wear and tear maintenance. With BMW's the wear and tear is a bit more than just rotors/pads/engine oil.
For the N52 you have the oil filter housing gasket and potentially Valve cover gasket and valvetronic system (valvetronic motor and/or eccentric shaft sensor). Then there is the water pump and thermostat. Vanos solenoids sometimes go as well.
See these threads:
https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1345967
https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1251458
https://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1787346

I've had to deal with airbag faults, a dead adaptive headlight module, corroded AC line, door lock actuator, window regulator, and there's more. Almost all of it i've done myself. These cars are quite needy when they are older and have high mileage but replacement parts are available and the knowledge base of design and repair is essentially infinite. I would buy another e90 in a heartbeat.

Every time you go to the dealer they will find broken things on the car and you will be walking out of there $500 poorer each time. Find a good independent mechanic who can take care of the bigger things (AC, wheel bearings, etc) and do the rest yourself and you'll be fine.

Just to stay current...

[Lukelio]

Could have found this earlier. Spot on !

[Mike K]

Hello all,

This is my first post and i just wanted to say this is an excellent thread. I had an awesome ‘87 e30 325 years back and now I’m again hankering for just the right e91 rwd here in the Chicago NW burbs.

This thread is super helpful as I’m a DIY guy and as knowledge is power, I’m aware of what to look for and expect. Taking my time to find the right e91.

thanks all,
Mike K

[branez]

Great post... I just bought E93

[R3dLeader]

Good post for a potential E93 buyer!

[Liv187]

Great post, A lot of helpfully information!

[Sushant Nitin]

For cars with minor claims, prices weren't all that different. Obviously the lack of accident-free status was a turnoff to some buyers, but sales prices for these small-claim cars were not massively different from what an accident-free unit would fetch.

[Sionnach31]

excellent post and it's got me thinking a good bit. deeeciiisioooons!!

[SMASHEMZzz]

This is such a great and informative post! Thank you!