E36 buying guide

[Ashley2]

Hello all newbie here,

Currently looking into buying an e36 328 sport. At the moment just trying to find what to look for. Ive heard of the dreaded Nikalsi problem but what actually is it? Is high mileage a big issue with these cars? And is there any other common problems?

Cheers guys,

Ash

[gj88]

I'm asking for a similar buying guide over in General Gassing. Hasn't gone down too well so far but it might help you if you keep an eye on it.

Link here http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

ETA Welcome!

Edited by gj88 on Monday 6th October 20:46

[evenflow]

The Nikasil problem was due to high levels of sulphur in petrol that damaged the nikasil lining in the block.

Steel lining replaced nikasil in build week 10 of 1998 (ie March 1998). Obviously when looking at a car, check for the build date rather than the first registered date as these may differ: a car sold post-March 1998 may still have nikasil lining.

AFAIK the petrol in the north of england and scotland contained more sulphur than down south.

A rough idle will generally indicate if a car has a problem - BMW diagnostics can tell you in <30 minutes.

[chrisr29]

Have one I'm thinking of selling. PM me if interested.

Cheers, Chris.

[evenflow]

+1: PM me if you like the look of mine (see profile)!

[scottbm]

just bought E36 328 sport in september. Great car and no real problems. Just check all arches for rust as they all seem to suffer around that age. They can be repaired pretty cheap.
I prefer to make sure the history is right. Full BMW maybe. If it has been looked after then it will go forever.
good luck