BMW E36 - What to look out for?
Discussion
Just a quick question,
What are the common problems on the E36? or to be more precise, what should I look out for when buying one?
Once the Mercedes is sold I am looking at getting an E36 Touring (the Touring looks much nicer than the saloon and I can get my bike in the back) And the fact that chavs don't tend to touch the estates.
Many thanks,
Matt.
What are the common problems on the E36? or to be more precise, what should I look out for when buying one?
Once the Mercedes is sold I am looking at getting an E36 Touring (the Touring looks much nicer than the saloon and I can get my bike in the back) And the fact that chavs don't tend to touch the estates.
Many thanks,
Matt.
Edited by 190E Matt on Friday 16th January 15:27
With the bigger engine cars look for evidence of work on the suspension arms/bushings at the front as these tend to go.
Over heating, water leaks.
Rust on rear brake pipes.
Make sure it doesn't sound too "tappety" when you rev it.
Rear diff weeping oil isn't a bad one "they all do that sir"
Best to look at a few to compare and contrast, one with loads of bills and service receipts etc not the usual "my mate services it but i haven't any proof"
best of luck
I love my 328i Touring, i like to call it the poor mans 130i ! ho ho.
Over heating, water leaks.
Rust on rear brake pipes.
Make sure it doesn't sound too "tappety" when you rev it.
Rear diff weeping oil isn't a bad one "they all do that sir"
Best to look at a few to compare and contrast, one with loads of bills and service receipts etc not the usual "my mate services it but i haven't any proof"
best of luck
I love my 328i Touring, i like to call it the poor mans 130i ! ho ho.
I would say the headlights mist up. Its not too expensive but its a haggling tool.
Both the front calipers went recently on our 1998 328 although parts are very cheap for them.
I bought a brand new caliper for £52 in Vat.
Take it for a drive, see it doesnt pull under braking and feel the heat in the wheel after a test drive.
Both the front calipers went recently on our 1998 328 although parts are very cheap for them.
I bought a brand new caliper for £52 in Vat.
Take it for a drive, see it doesnt pull under braking and feel the heat in the wheel after a test drive.
Rust spots - rear arches, boot lid bottom corners, and the inside aperture of the boot, jacking points if a rubber pad is missing, battery tray and spare wheel well.
Sometimes around the top edge of the windscreen too.
Suspension - front balljoints and rear trailing arm bushes are common. Any early 325's like to rip the diff free of the chassis too, which gives noticable shunt followed by loud banging when it does rip.
You also can get driveline shunt from a worn rubber prop coupling.
Engine - weak viscous fans make them overheat in standing traffic, no hot air or general overheating can be a dodgy water pump.
Apart from rust, they are pretty solid, the only components to go are serviceable items which would be coming up for replacement anyway.
I'd always advise getting the water pump and thermostat changed in a mini cooling system overhaul. The water pumps are 40-ish or less, but it's the most likely component to cause damage or leave you stuck at the side of the road, and not too expensive to add onto a service.
They use cam chains instead of belts so you save a bit on that compared to the usual cam belt change which is normally done when you buy a second hand car for piece of mind.
Diff rips are almost inevitable on a 325 from 91-93, 318iS's and 320 have done it also, but rarer. I have even seen a 328 do it, but that would have been more bad luck than a design catastrophe.
The cause for this is a mix between poor design and worn axle carrier bushes which allow a little play which it uses to hammer its way off the car, so be careful of thuds when taking off.
A final point which would be quite obvious is rear shock mounts break up quite commonly, and that gives loud bangs when going over bumps. Not a big or expensive problem, but also rather obvious on a test drive so you'll know about it quickly.
Sometimes around the top edge of the windscreen too.
Suspension - front balljoints and rear trailing arm bushes are common. Any early 325's like to rip the diff free of the chassis too, which gives noticable shunt followed by loud banging when it does rip.
You also can get driveline shunt from a worn rubber prop coupling.
Engine - weak viscous fans make them overheat in standing traffic, no hot air or general overheating can be a dodgy water pump.
Apart from rust, they are pretty solid, the only components to go are serviceable items which would be coming up for replacement anyway.
I'd always advise getting the water pump and thermostat changed in a mini cooling system overhaul. The water pumps are 40-ish or less, but it's the most likely component to cause damage or leave you stuck at the side of the road, and not too expensive to add onto a service.
They use cam chains instead of belts so you save a bit on that compared to the usual cam belt change which is normally done when you buy a second hand car for piece of mind.
Diff rips are almost inevitable on a 325 from 91-93, 318iS's and 320 have done it also, but rarer. I have even seen a 328 do it, but that would have been more bad luck than a design catastrophe.
The cause for this is a mix between poor design and worn axle carrier bushes which allow a little play which it uses to hammer its way off the car, so be careful of thuds when taking off.
A final point which would be quite obvious is rear shock mounts break up quite commonly, and that gives loud bangs when going over bumps. Not a big or expensive problem, but also rather obvious on a test drive so you'll know about it quickly.
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