Need Advice

[Cardinalchunder]

I have an opportunity to purchase a 1991 318i with only 74,000 miles on it. I am unfamiliar with BMWs over all and would like to know what I can expect in terms of future repairs and their costs.

Thanks,

Gregory

[E30BeemerLad]

mileage is not that important as getting a rot free shell mate.

Mechanicals are realtively cheap to fix/replace, but needing to weld in panels/floor etc is not cheap, unless you are Simon!

[kam-325i]

All i can really add is that the running cost's arn't really any more than any most cars, It really depends on how the car has done those 74000 miles.

[Conan]

welcome to the zone

what you driving at the mo?

[Gwynleym10]

Welcome to the zone.

Not sure how much you are going to pay for it but...

Ԛ£200-500
Little history and some rust, engine might be getting a bit noisy

Ԛ£500-1000
Some history, maybe small patches of rust but nothing serious

Ԛ£1000+

Super mint no rust, Full bmw service history, full mot full tax good tyres. etc etc



Rust is the biggest problem on these cars, check rear arches sills number plate light, suspension turrets and under the fuse box.

Engine is a m40 engine, generally pretty reliable but suffer from cam wear and problems with hydraulic lifters, expensive and pointless to replace. If the engine is noisy and lacks power at high revs..this is probably you problem.

Make all the suspension is straight, no uneven tyre wear.

[Cotty]

I have an opportunity to purchase a 1991 318i

Saloon, convertable, touring????

As each have different things to look for

[Dude8383]

sorry if this may be a bit off topic...but does europe have the M42 engines in the 318i/is' ??

i know we had the M44 later on in the E36 318i's..

and to get back to the topic..as everyone else has been saying, rust is important, if theres very little or none then its a good buy!

[Cardinalchunder]

Perhaps I should have been more specific. The car is in California so I don't believe that rust will be too much of an issue. The car was purchased by one of the partners as a gift for his sister who had alreday purchased the vehicle (The Partner drives an 850). My previous vehicle (Nissan maxima) has given up the ghost. I apparently had a cracked motor mount, which snapped when I hit bump causing the engine to sail into the radiator obliterating the transmision in the process and causing the timing belt to snap destoying all valves - my mechanic said he'd never seen anything like it. I am unsure of the style of the car as I'm not that familiar with BMW's on the whole. My main concerns are that one friend of mine says they have electrical problems hen they're 13 years old, but I don't really think he knows what he's talking about. If anyone knows of a source to read up on these cars, I'd sure appreciate it.

Cheers,

Gregory

[Dude8383]

lol dude i think you've found the source to read up on these cars...theres a shitload of members here with E30's..i doubt you can find a better source..

[E30BeemerLad]

a source for all tech things is also www.bimmerdiy.com/e30

[fuzzy]

unfortunately as with all older cars you can guarantee that you will be puting your hand in your pockets on a regular basis for mainanance and upgrading. i dont know about the cost of parts in your part of the world but my e30 generally costs about a third of the price of parts compared to my toyota celica